The US needs one committment to convert one obviously public institution to metric.
My vote goes to the National Weather Service.
Get them to use kilopascals, celsius, and millimetre/centimetre precipitation amounts
and the public will see it.
My second vote is for the national highways. Get the interstate highways,
statehighways, county and municipal roads converted to "km/h" speeds and "km"
distances. Do it now. All American cars have dual speedometers, get people to use them.
Change either of these obvious "institutions" to metric and the public will see it,
use it, and hopefully, grow to like it!
greg
>>> Adrian Jadic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 2001-03-17 18:42:56 >>>
I must be in one of my pessimism low points (or highs.. depends how you see
it).
I certainly share your views and I also believe it is an achievable goal. I
am not a Don Quixote myself.
I did not mean to discourage, I was just asking a hopefully proactive
question:
====WHAT? ...would (or could) really trigger the switch?====
Like you, I am doing my best to speed it up in any way I can, but it just
helps, it doesn't trigger.
Large companies, the pharmaceutical and automobile industry have switched
but this is, more or less internally due to market needs. People don't see
the bolts in the car nor the drawings it was made from. Cars still display
mph.
As for the drugs, many don't understand anyway what's written on the
packages or they don't care because they are sick and want to get "fixed"
(to quote an expression that my wife hears daily). We still have
Thermometers in F, scales in lbs. ...and nurses Celsius-free.
How about the masses, people (as John mentioned today) who are loudly crying
"Never!". The healthy plumber or carpenter who are building houses for a
living in "the greatest country in the world"? What would convince these
guys to forget about their "two-by-four" and the half-inch pipe?
Obviously, the Mars disaster due to sloppy metrication, did not trigger any
mass reaction despite the financial loss. The carpenter is probably
thinking: "we should have not messed with those "metrics" in the first
place, our system is just fine!".
NASA made a big report with a lot of brushed-up recommendations but nobody
asked the Chief Engineer to resign. This tells me that even NASA is still
not entirely convinced. How about if we had lost astronauts?
I prefer to stop here and let everybody join the discussion if they wish to.
I am convinced that sometimes it is useful to sit back and look at the big
picture although it might look pessimistic. It helps me focus better.
So, what would/could trigger a large scale metrication in the US?
A.
-----Original Message-----
From: Andy Johnson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Saturday 17 March 2001 15:29
To: U.S. Metric Association
Subject: [USMA:11681] Fwd: Re: USMA digest 488
Now...if you were to convince me as a certainty that
the U.S. is not going to go metric in my lifetime,
then I would lose interest in the cause. I am not
interested in metrication as a game or as a hobby but
as a very definite achievable worthwile political
goal.
Elaborate if you can, if you will, about how you see
it, please. As for me, I am sure we will be metric
someday, and I hope I can speed it up a bit.
Andy Johnson
--- Adrian Jadic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> From: Adrian Jadic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject: [USMA:11677] Re: USMA digest 488
> Date: Sat, 17 Mar 2001 12:42:26 -0500
> Reply-to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> I agree that anti-metric thinking is deeply
> engrained in our society but,
> (and I apologize for my pessimism) I believe that a
> tragedy won't be enough.
>
> Just look at the gun laws. There was a Columbine
> tragedy and several more
> before and after that. Results.. nothing.
>
> For Australia a tragedy was enough to trigger a mass
> approval of the gun
> ban. Similarly, it did not take much to convince
> them of the metric
> advantages in spite of their English heritage. Here,
> it seems we need
> something more.
>
> The question is WHAT? Personally, I believe that
> something has to shatter
> the American self confidence before the many would
> accept that there is time
> for a serious/radical change.
>
> I have lived for extended periods in several
> countries and only here I found
> this strong mass conviction that "We are the best".
> When the human spirit
> reaches that level there is no place for change.
> History proved this many
> times.
>
> A.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Paul Trusten [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
> Sent: Friday 16 March 2001 22:50
> To: U.S. Metric Association
> Subject: [USMA:11674] Re: USMA digest 488
>
>
> You are quite right; it is a risk management issue.
> But I'm afraid that
> anti-metric thinking is deeply ingrained in this
> society, and nothing will
> change until a tragedy happens.
>
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