In HE in the UK state school students marginally outperform those from private education - until they enter the job market. Social mobility between income groups has fallen substantially across the west. We have lost a grip on the economic dynamic. Many economists believed the rentier part of capitalism would wither away - much as Marx thought the State would. What interests me is that we end up with the 'socialist state' either through 'revolution' or via a financial system stacked in favour of sending money to the very rich who form a politburo of their own. My guess is we are trapped because we can't change financialism and attitudes to work - through an underlying fear of freedom and lack of recognition this has to be structured in such a way there is no need to think much about it once we have something decent in place.
On Jan 13, 2:01 pm, rigs <[email protected]> wrote: > Regard the lilies of the field... > > In fairness, the US has its share/history of ex-pats. > > Debt has a greater earning potential than savings for financial > instiutions. Living beyond one's means is promoted in various ways. > America is the land of re-invention (social and geographic mobility). > > Am partial to savory myself but my grand-daughters requested pies so > pies they had. I do like something sweet maybe once a day.//My habits > were influenced by my early years at boarding school- Sacred Heart > Convent. Home was rather dramatic and chaotic while school and camp > developed other rhythms. Am quite different from my mother or daughter > in many ways but like many people I have tried out various "poses". Am > only human, afterall. > > On Jan 12, 7:54 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > > > When I think about a technology solution I'm not much concerned with > > the hardware and software. Most people who drive have very little > > clue how vehicles work and even less about how they are made. What > > I've been pondering for a long time is whether we can do something > > similar for argument and fashion something we can 'drive'. The > > spreadsheet is a bit of an example, along with databases. People get > > fixated on numbers and techie stuff - and probably with the cruelty of > > potential and real uses. There is an emancipatory potential. In > > essence this is as simple as, say, me wanting to make a blueberry pie, > > not knowing and being able to whistle-up help from rigs or the > > 'cloud' (actually I don't like fruit pies). > > Ancient Greeks (the Pyrrhonists) knew very different and almost > > equally compelling argument could be made about almost anything. > > Their 'solution' was a special state of mind involving suspended > > judgement - but this relies on 'being clever' enough to achieve the > > state of mind. In fact, argument is not of one form but several - > > nine are usually considered and have rather different rules.Most > > philosophic consideration assumes we argue fairly and politics makes > > this a farce before we start. If we are serious about democracy we > > have to consider ignorance and means round this other than our failed > > educational systems. When I first taught finance a lot of the work > > was in calculation and one mistake meant going through everything in > > that bit of the system again. Such work is now done by the technology > > and indeed the technology has enabled new work to be done - mostly > > through its vast iterative speed. The big snags remain garbage in > > garbage out, cheating and focus on deriving competitive advantage only > > in the financial bottom line. What we need is technology that will > > deliver access to embodied knowledge for us all - enabling very clever > > solutions for generally not very clever people. This would involve a > > transparency we have not previously achieved since we lived in small > > groups and probably beyond this. At the moment we have financial > > accounting no one can see through - try reading Wells Fargo's 2011 > > annual report. I couldn't make sense of most bank reports without a > > team of dozens and carte blanche investigation authority. > > > I like the idea of 'sending brains' back to countries of origin rigs - > > but can we really assume our establishment is really interested in > > fixing the problems in any of them - much argument points to the > > opposite including such as McJihad in which the US Empire uses Islam > > to divide and rule - the literature here is vast. I agree the old > > muscle man is mostly long gone (though around the world women do much > > of the hard slog anyway - the insect worker gender is generally female > > too) - indeed farming once made living conditions worse for the people > > who had to do the work. > > > We lack answers to incredibly simple questions such as how much work > > it is reasonable to expect of an individual, what we can reasonably > > allow in safeguarding the planet, how we might reasonably police the > > world and so on. Pretty much every economist (Adam Smith, Richardo, > > Marx, Ely, Veblen, Keynes) has questioned why we allow a rentier class > > and suggested an extirpation of such. Why do we still have a very old > > work ethic with all the helping technology around? How have massive > > productivity gains 'led' to lower ages, more debt and so on? > > > My guess is argument is a roadblock to changes we desperately need, > > including the establishment of world peace - here who would develop > > another country with a power elite of male zombies who need to black- > > bag women and who would come looking to extend their libidinal empire > > once our steel was beaten into plough-shares? What would motivation > > to work be in a world without want? > > > I have a feeling we'd have to develop knowledge technology through > > practical projects - converting communities green, more sociable, self- > > sustaining - and this would require changes in attitudes to what > > investment is. > > > On Jan 12, 12:28 pm, rigs <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Why don't some of the brains that the USA has drained move back to > > > their home countries and fix them? I am thinking of those who withdrew > > > all their money and live like fat cats while their country collapses. > > > > On Jan 11, 3:27 pm, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > I may have to move back to Scotland to stay in the EU. Sad stuff, > > > > showing only we haven't moved on here. I see the French now have > > > > boots on the ground in Mali. > > > > > On Jan 11, 8:26 pm, gabbydott <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > You see, you shouldn't have changed your proxy settings from Scottish > > > > > to > > > > > English! > > > > > > Ah well, the American Empire is helping us out again, here it is in > > > > > the > > > > > French language version:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqSgIhU28B8. > > > > > Foreign affairs are being discussed after 46 minutes. > > > > > > 2013/1/11 archytas <[email protected]> > > > > > > > They won't let me watch your video in England Gabby. > > > > > > > On Jan 10, 2:04 am, rigs <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > Life has already been a game of Monopoly! That's a major part of > > > > > > > the > > > > > > > problem(s). > > > > > > > > I would implant the chip in another spot. > > > > > > > > You will have to address religious and cultural systems that > > > > > > > promote > > > > > > > sexism, racism and ageism. > > > > > > > > On Jan 9, 2:36 pm, andrew vecsey <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > > > In my science fiction novel "A Short History of a Long Future - > > > > > > > > A > > > > > > Guide for > > > > > > > > New-man", I wrote a scenario that applies to this discussion. > > > > > > > > Before > > > > > > Allan > > > > > > > > starts to let off his gas, the "I" is not "me" and it IS a > > > > > > > > science > > > > > > > > fiction. Below is the relevant excerpt from my novel. > > > > > > > > > "One unexpected day the centralized data banks were infected > > > > > > > > with > > > > > > computer > > > > > > > > viruses that erased their entire data banks. The multiple > > > > > > > > backups of > > > > > > the > > > > > > > > last 10 years were also suddenly discovered to have been > > > > > > > > compromised. > > > > > > > > Overnight electronic data of all money was irretrievably wiped > > > > > > > > out. > > > > > > Money > > > > > > > > in all of its form and all its trace disappeared. The banks and > > > > > > > > their > > > > > > > > services shut down immediately and all flow of money seized. > > > > > > > > > I developed a device that measured mental and physical exertion > > > > > > > > done > > > > > > for > > > > > > > > doing a series of tasks. I developed a financial system that > > > > > > > > did not > > > > > > > > include banks. It was a decentralized system where everyone was > > > > > > > > his own > > > > > > > > bank. It was based on my device. This measurement device > > > > > > > > allowed money > > > > > > to > > > > > > > > be based not on gold, oil, or promises, but on human exertion. > > > > > > > > The > > > > > > amount > > > > > > > > of this new money was to be based on the number of users. There > > > > > > > > was to > > > > > > be > > > > > > > > no central governing point and the only regulation were in the > > > > > > algorithms > > > > > > > > governing the issuance of money and in the initial > > > > > > > > registration. It > > > > > > was a > > > > > > > > just-in-time system that issued just enough money at just the > > > > > > > > right > > > > > > time > > > > > > > > and place to just the right person to ensure educational and > > > > > > > > health > > > > > > well > > > > > > > > being. The system was to be open and algorithms were to be > > > > > > > > proposed > > > > > > and > > > > > > > > written by users themselves. > > > > > > > > > I also developed a workable replacement for the once existing > > > > > > centralized > > > > > > > > banks. It was a peer to peer networked system that allowed > > > > > > > > everyone to > > > > > > be > > > > > > > > his own bank. It was free to join with only one requirement. - > > > > > > > > you had > > > > > > to > > > > > > > > have a chip inserted into the forehead under the skin. The chip > > > > > > > > came > > > > > > with > > > > > > > > an account containing 1 million dollars to last you a lifetime > > > > > > > > and pay > > > > > > for > > > > > > > > your basic living needs. > > > > > > > > > All countries adopted the implantation of the chip as a basic > > > > > > > > human > > > > > > > > right. My system provided all the requirements that make money > > > > > > workable. > > > > > > > > It could not be counterfeited and could not be stolen or lost. > > > > > > > > It was > > > > > > based > > > > > > > > on a unique code signed with each person's unique biometric > > > > > > > > signature. > > > > > > It > > > > > > > > could be saved and it was always redeemable anywhere anytime > > > > > > automatically. > > > > > > > > > Everyone who wanted to work and get paid had to use his system > > > > > > > > which > > > > > > was > > > > > > > > implanted into the forehead. Everyone who wanted to buy > > > > > > > > anything had to > > > > > > > > have this implant as well. It acted as a electronic money bank > > > > > > account. To > > > > > > > > fill it you had to work as usual. You could invest your capital > > > > > > > > by > > > > > > buying > > > > > > > > company stocks. > > ... > > read more » --
