🚀 go-pugleaf

>
>I agree much economic non-optimality is an act of man as opposed to
>what they used to call an act of God;  the Great Depression is a prime
>example:  What war,  famine,  plague,  sudden exhaustion of natural
>resources,  etc,  etc,  plunged the United States (and I apologize to
>the rest of the world,  I know even less about the world history of
>that period than US history,  which ain't much...) into semi-economic
>ruin in in 1929?  Answer:  Absolutely nothing external.  People,
>resources,  skills,  all there.  Production,  employment;  not there.
>Why?  Systemic failure.
>

This is a clearly worded hypothesis, one which I would agree with
to some extent. Certain truisms lurk in the perihelion of such a 
view however, in that, yes, if we'd only known then what we know now, 
we could have prevented... the wisdom of 20-20 hindsight in other 
words.  

Like, if humans had modern science when they only numbered in the 
millions, think how quickly they might have brought human affairs 
into secure and sustainable alignment with their ecosystem context, 
vs today, when all the variables fluctuate in a much more complicated
econosphere wherein, I would surmize, we have far less room for error, 
given the already overtaxed ecosystems and momentum towards oblivion 
developed in the intervening centuries.

However, now that we _do_ have 21st century science (western calendar)
at least in prototype form, on our late 20th century drawing boards,
I think we can sketch out realistic, implementable storyboards wherein
the various dark ages science fiction developments forecast in this
decade are replaced with brighter scenarios, meaning we could actually
create television set in the near future and have it be attractive to
viewers as indicative of lifestyles they might actually covet (TV 
series attractive to sponsors for this same reason).  

This would be in contrast to the current trend, which is to have the 
most positive outlooks for humanity show up in the intangibly distant 
future (ala Star Trek and 24th century 'Federation Science') with the 
shading becoming darker and darker as we approach the near future, 
which has been characterized by either post-Holocaust settings ('Road 
Warrior', 'Planet of the Apes') or nightmarish capitalist distopias 
with very steep pyramids -- thronging sweating masses at the base, 
and a very few all-powerful CEOs in their glass towers -- ala 
'Johnny Mnemonic', 'Bladerunner' and 'Brazil'.

>This suggests a third category is need beyond 'Act of God' and 'Act of
>Man'.  There may be villains for the Great Depression,  and some people
>are always eager to find them,  but the process was hardly the result
>of the diabolical machinations of SMIRSH.  It was more biological;  an
>unplanned derangement of the system.  In psychology we used to call
>minor examples of this 'neuroses'.  Stalin's purges were an act of
>Man,  but the Great Depression was an act of Men (well,  I'm trying...
>_you_ think of a catchier phrase if you don't like it).   I think
>Starvation falls much closer to the unplanned act of men category,
>then to the villainous act of man.
>

I think you're right to circle in on 'derangement' and 'neuroses'
(recalling the clinical connotations of 'Great Depression' talk).
Instead of looking through the eyes of police investigators or
judges, looking for villains, I think, as scientists, we'd do
better to wear our doctor glasses and see signs of mental illness,
a lot of it amplified or even rooted in the barrages of misinfor-
mation that have so polluted our shared information pool.  It's 
difficult to think straight in the absence of much cross-checked,
omnitriangulated information about real time states of affairs.

The 'situation room' aesthetics we need to cultivate as an antidote 
to this sorry state, fed by cyberspace aesthetics already central 
to Hollywood's storyboards, even if hyped and exaggerated in the 
mock up versions, are a part of what Design Science aims to provide.  

Part of this 'aesthetics' is less reliance on mock ups and more 
focus on real world, real time global data, and blockbuster films 
which have working prototypes for props, not just mock ups, make 
believe stunts, with highly paid actors emoting on cue for the 
cameras, but with nothing really happening worth all that gut 
wrenching behavior (like a bunch of computerized special effects 
are going to get my adrenalin flowing? -- really now (of course 
some simulators are able to get even test pilots the shakes, but 
thats because they're about simulating real world conditions, not 
some screen writer's head trip)).


>But it seems to me plausible that while we are asking the bad old
>first world to give up some prosperity to help the less fortunate,
>they may with equal justice demand an immediate reduction in birth
>rate -- no if's,  and's or but's,  and no damn excuses.  

No one is asking the bad old first world to give up anything.
This is not the politics of 'big sacrifice' out of some sense
of liberal guilt.  This is simply a logical response to the
situation we face, with a strong hand to play.

The USA is moving to act, based on the science we now have in
inventory, to do its share.  This may be news to people on
sci.physics, but it ain't necessarily news thereby.

>I am incapable of such measure in the face of such sentiments; though
>maybe you even say they are partially justified.  Well... sure.  But I
>can't stomach the 'blame America first' hypocrisy.  It's childish.  At
>least we _try_ to stabilize our corner of the planet.  Isn't that a
>start?  Should we do something different?  

Yawn.

I say you could use a new script writer.  This all sounds like
lame game yesteryear stuff to my ears.  Doesn't move me, except 
to change channels.

>Right now I'm more disgusted with stereotypical liberals than
>stereotypical conservatives;  but that's probably just because they
>are the dominant species here in NYC.

Yeah, maybe that's your problem.  NYC is something of a back water.
You should maybe come out to the Pacific Rim for a visit.

Kirby

----------------------------------------------------
Kirby Urner  "ALL realities are 'virtual'" -- KU
Email: pdx4d@teleport.com
Web:   http://www.teleport.com/~pdx4d/