As suggested in the previous two blogs, the magnitude of a social calamity (or good fortune) that arises from a single event depends on how we react to the event, more than on the event itself. Now really, do I assert that the outcome of hurricane Sandy depended on our reactions more than the blast of wind and deluge of water? Continue reading
Blog Posts and Writings Tagged: Society
Blog 43. Making molehills or mountains
From small molehills, big mountains grow. Sometimes. If the feedback is positive, that is—if the mole is rewarded with more food just for digging that molehill, and if his children are likewise rewarded. We’re not moles eating carrots, so how does this relate to us? Continue reading
Blog 41. Fast enough? FASTER by Gleick
Americans feel they do not have the time to do everything that needs to be done. Sound true? James Gleick says so Continue reading
Blog 39. Is federal regulation legal?
In drafting the federal constitution, the founding fathers didn’t foresee a government involved in administering diverse things like air travel, radio waves, rivers, and food purity. The Constitution specifically allows regulation of interstate commerce and postal roads, but, for example, does it allow federal regulation of pollution in rivers? Continue reading
Blog 38. Science and anti-science
Although our lives are dominated by technology, most of the US population is scientifically illiterate. Continue reading
Blog 36. Italian Earthquakes and Scientific Illiteracy
In America, we have a society infused with technology but a populace that is scientifically illiterate. That leads to governance by political correctness rather than by critical evaluation. We’re not alone; similar things happen elsewhere. Continue reading
Blog 35. Complex Terrorism
Terrorism doesn’t work, but fear of terrorism works very well.
Scientific American on terrorism.
The August, 2013 Scientific American offered an article, “Five Myths of Terrorism,” by Michael Shermer. Shermer says terrorism doesn’t work because the terrorists have reason to perpetrate violence; they aren’t under central control, they are not unique geniuses, and they are not deadly compared to the annual average of 13,700 homicides. Shermer notes that most terrorist groups failed to attain their strategic goals.
Shermer is wrong because he ignores the effectiveness of the terrorist acts of 9/11. Continue reading
Blog 34. Ancient Greeks and Current Monetocracy
When life gets chaotic
I have suggested that, when daily living becomes sufficiently chaotic, people will look for simple solutions and welcome dictatorial control that promises simplicity. There’s some ancient Greek wisdom to support this view, although the Greeks didn’t have our mathematical notion of complexity that emerged during the last thirty years. Continue reading