At the risk of starting another e-bate over the constitution, freedom, etc.,
I would like to reply to Robert's post about reinventing the wheel.
I agree that we can and should learn from other countries that have
metricated. However, I don't think we can expect to do things exactly the
same, for several reasons:
(1) Our culture is different than other countries, in that people tend to be
more independent and less tolerant of government meddling.
(2) Some people (like me) think that some actions other countries have taken
would not be constitutional in this country.
(2) We have a far larger economy than most countries, meaning there is a
larger embedded colloquial constituency and there is more to metricate.
As to "the US should be ashamed of itself," all I can say is baloney! This
is not a country where the government tells us how to live, it is a country
where we decide how we want to live. Other countries are free to run
themselves as they see fit, and have no business telling the USA how we
should be run.
Furthermore, even saddled with our miserable colloquial system, the USA has
developed an economy which is, hands down, the biggest, most stable and most
vibrant in the entire world.
Now, tell me again why we should be ashamed?
Jim Elwell
P.S. I am not naive as to how much the USA meddles in other country's
business. Nor do I approve of it.
