I am reading Human Development and Interaction in the Age of Ubiquitous Technology. I came across this book, by accident, when scanning titles in O'Reilly The author is from Bangladesh, but he refers to every book he could find on the subject - an exhaustive list!
But he does not include any on Software - which is redefining what Development can be - in this vast new ecosystem.
I have been dabbling in it, and I hardly understand it - but I do know it is something else.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Tuesday, January 30, 2018
Good Guy, Bad Guy
Fifteen years after I left America, I am still upset about my life back there. Americans think they are wonderful, when they are not.
And that begins with the way they treat their children. Psychologists have coined a label for it - the Dysfunctional Family. And every therapist spends his life helping his clients with this.
The best of them, will make this explicit - and carefully explain what this amounts to, and what they are trying to do. But it doesn't take long for them to realize how difficult this is - and how difficult it is for people to change.
Usually, they just want their symptoms cured, without solving the problems that caused them. Because everyone assures them - this is impossible, and even undesirable. They will have to accept the way things are, and learn to live with them - whether these things are good, or not.
There is some truth in this - the world is too big for us to change it very much, and we will have to learn which parts of it we can change, and be satisfied with that. Without forgetting that we were forced to make this choice.
This forgetting can lead to many problems, that cannot be predicted. Bizarre behavior can result, that no one can understand - because the reasons for this behavior have been forgotten.
Before we are born, we are aware of what our mother thinks of us - whether she likes us, or not. And we decide what we are going to do about this - abort, or tough it out. As adults, we are still living with this choice - and it is the job of the therapist to make this choice conscious.
Which most of them do not.
And that begins with the way they treat their children. Psychologists have coined a label for it - the Dysfunctional Family. And every therapist spends his life helping his clients with this.
The best of them, will make this explicit - and carefully explain what this amounts to, and what they are trying to do. But it doesn't take long for them to realize how difficult this is - and how difficult it is for people to change.
Usually, they just want their symptoms cured, without solving the problems that caused them. Because everyone assures them - this is impossible, and even undesirable. They will have to accept the way things are, and learn to live with them - whether these things are good, or not.
There is some truth in this - the world is too big for us to change it very much, and we will have to learn which parts of it we can change, and be satisfied with that. Without forgetting that we were forced to make this choice.
This forgetting can lead to many problems, that cannot be predicted. Bizarre behavior can result, that no one can understand - because the reasons for this behavior have been forgotten.
Before we are born, we are aware of what our mother thinks of us - whether she likes us, or not. And we decide what we are going to do about this - abort, or tough it out. As adults, we are still living with this choice - and it is the job of the therapist to make this choice conscious.
Which most of them do not.
Politicians must Support their Supporters
This morning, I got a notice from Act Blue, saying I had made another donation, to a politician I had forgotten about. I had agreed to make a monthly contribution (a few months back, when I was very impressed with her) and she was still benefiting from it.
If she had been smart, she would have put me on her mailing list - and frequently let me know, who she was, what she was doing - and thanking me for my continuing support.
She did not do this, and I cancelled my continuing contribution.
If she had been smart, she would have put me on her mailing list - and frequently let me know, who she was, what she was doing - and thanking me for my continuing support.
She did not do this, and I cancelled my continuing contribution.
Monday, January 29, 2018
The Holy Terrors
Amazon
What can I say about this? I can only say 'It fascinates me, and I can hardly put it down."
The midwestern, religious background I came from - will not understand it at all.
What can I say about this? I can only say 'It fascinates me, and I can hardly put it down."
The midwestern, religious background I came from - will not understand it at all.
The Future of America
Some things about this future can be predicted easily - since they are already happening.
Americans will continue to reproduce, there will be more of them all the time. And these children, when they grow up, will demand the same Affluent Life their parents had. And they will be disappointed.
American wealth (per capita) is no longer rising, and is probably falling - especially for Americans with no marketable skills. There is still a job market, and a demanding one - that wants the latest skills. And these have to be acquired by individual initiative. Something many young Americans do not have - and are not likely to acquire.
We live in a time of rapid change, especially in the job market - that is ruthless. If you do not have the skills it wants - your future will be limited.
There will continue to be jobs for those with the skills the market needs. New (and improved) products will continue appear, and skilled people will make these. And continue to have a comfortable life - with an income of about $100,000 a year.
But these will be a small part of the population - 10 percent, at the most.
Americans will continue to reproduce, there will be more of them all the time. And these children, when they grow up, will demand the same Affluent Life their parents had. And they will be disappointed.
American wealth (per capita) is no longer rising, and is probably falling - especially for Americans with no marketable skills. There is still a job market, and a demanding one - that wants the latest skills. And these have to be acquired by individual initiative. Something many young Americans do not have - and are not likely to acquire.
We live in a time of rapid change, especially in the job market - that is ruthless. If you do not have the skills it wants - your future will be limited.
There will continue to be jobs for those with the skills the market needs. New (and improved) products will continue appear, and skilled people will make these. And continue to have a comfortable life - with an income of about $100,000 a year.
But these will be a small part of the population - 10 percent, at the most.
Sunday, January 28, 2018
An Angel, a Flower, a Bird
New Yorker
I will quote the opening paragraph, even though it is long - it will give a taste of his writing.
I had been told that most people flying from New York to Austin, Texas, are apt to be en route to conferences with either legislators or professors (Austin being both the state capital and the seat of the state university), and that my mission—to talk with a gentleman who had rocked the international vaudeville world in the nineteen-twenties and thirties with a trapeze act he did disguised as a girl, to the music of Wagner and Rimski-Korsakov—would not, even though he was Texas-born, be considered by Texans a sufficiently serious reason for visiting their state. I suspected at the time that my informant was not entirely correct, and my suspicion has since been confirmed. In Texas, there are quite a few vaudeville buffs, I have discovered, who are respectfully knowledgeable about the career of Barbette (as the gentleman I had come to see was known professionally). And Since Barbette is the hero of one of the best essays on the nature of art written by Jean Cocteau, the French poet, novelist, dramatist, draftsman, and cineaste—an essay not unknown in university circles—his name enjoys, thanks to that connection, academic prestige at Austin as well as elsewhere. It is true, however, that although some of those admirers knew that Barbette was Texas-born, it was generally unknown that he had returned to the state and was living in Austin.
I will quote the opening paragraph, even though it is long - it will give a taste of his writing.
I had been told that most people flying from New York to Austin, Texas, are apt to be en route to conferences with either legislators or professors (Austin being both the state capital and the seat of the state university), and that my mission—to talk with a gentleman who had rocked the international vaudeville world in the nineteen-twenties and thirties with a trapeze act he did disguised as a girl, to the music of Wagner and Rimski-Korsakov—would not, even though he was Texas-born, be considered by Texans a sufficiently serious reason for visiting their state. I suspected at the time that my informant was not entirely correct, and my suspicion has since been confirmed. In Texas, there are quite a few vaudeville buffs, I have discovered, who are respectfully knowledgeable about the career of Barbette (as the gentleman I had come to see was known professionally). And Since Barbette is the hero of one of the best essays on the nature of art written by Jean Cocteau, the French poet, novelist, dramatist, draftsman, and cineaste—an essay not unknown in university circles—his name enjoys, thanks to that connection, academic prestige at Austin as well as elsewhere. It is true, however, that although some of those admirers knew that Barbette was Texas-born, it was generally unknown that he had returned to the state and was living in Austin.
There is something else that draws visitors to Austin - it is an active part of the software ecosystem. And many software conferences are held there - something software developers must do frequently to see and be seen - and to see where they stand in that highly competitive, fast-changing power structure.
But I must return to Literature, and Cocteau, of whom I know nothing. And Francis Steegmuller, of whom I know nothing either. And of the French, of which I am as ignorant, as the Hottentots.
I am from the American Midwest - from a remote part of America, that is itself remote.
I did download The Holy Terrors and I am reading it. I should not being enjoying it - but in a perverse way, I am.
History's Great Military Blunders and the Lessons They Teach
Audible
I got this audiobook because it was free - I had too many Audible credits, and was about to lose some of them, if I didn't use them.
So I downloaded this book, and started to listen to it - and I am still listening to it. It's amazing what military blunders we have made - every kind possible.
I got this audiobook because it was free - I had too many Audible credits, and was about to lose some of them, if I didn't use them.
So I downloaded this book, and started to listen to it - and I am still listening to it. It's amazing what military blunders we have made - every kind possible.
Understanding What We Are
There is a huge resistance to this suggestion, almost a war against it. And the reason for this, is simple - we have become horrible persons - the opposite of what we should be.
We should be good to each other, but we are not. We cannot even be good to ourselves - because somehow, this does not feel right.
It hardly needs be said - that we are not aware of this, and do not want to be aware of it.
I want to find something to blame for this situation. Something that made us be bad. But this is impossible - the best we can do, is accept that it has happened. The last thing on earth, that we will accept.
It's not hard to get people to recognize that something is wrong - but next to impossible to get them to say what is wrong. All they want is action of some kind, but what kind of action does not seem to matter.
Let us consider - the election of Trump in America. This was the result of a chaotic political situation, where almost anything could have happened - but he stepped in and clarified it (or seemed to clarify it).
The net result, has been a worsening of conditions in America - that seems to satisfy Americans. To put this another way - Americans are destroying America, and Trump is helping them do this.
This is not an unusual situation - Athens destroyed itself in the 5th Century BCE - as its own historians recognized. And Athens was a democracy, our first one.
Human society seems to go through cycles of Construction and Destruction - and now we are now in a Destructive phase. A global one.
We should be good to each other, but we are not. We cannot even be good to ourselves - because somehow, this does not feel right.
It hardly needs be said - that we are not aware of this, and do not want to be aware of it.
I want to find something to blame for this situation. Something that made us be bad. But this is impossible - the best we can do, is accept that it has happened. The last thing on earth, that we will accept.
It's not hard to get people to recognize that something is wrong - but next to impossible to get them to say what is wrong. All they want is action of some kind, but what kind of action does not seem to matter.
Let us consider - the election of Trump in America. This was the result of a chaotic political situation, where almost anything could have happened - but he stepped in and clarified it (or seemed to clarify it).
The net result, has been a worsening of conditions in America - that seems to satisfy Americans. To put this another way - Americans are destroying America, and Trump is helping them do this.
This is not an unusual situation - Athens destroyed itself in the 5th Century BCE - as its own historians recognized. And Athens was a democracy, our first one.
Human society seems to go through cycles of Construction and Destruction - and now we are now in a Destructive phase. A global one.
Saturday, January 27, 2018
When Making Things Became More Important Than Helping People
Ever since the advent of Agriculture, people have been growing their food - they were making food. And they built houses and cities to live in - taking other products from the land. In short, they were making food, housing and clothing - the basics. And they were fishing.
It is still possible to visit these cultures - I lived in the Maldives for awhile. They caught fish, dried them in the sun, and traded them for rice in India. They were expert sailors, on their boats made of coconut wood. They had a good life.
But meanwhile, thousand of miles away, in Europe - different things were happening. Things we call Industrialization or Capitalization. Where things were not so good.
Volumes have been written about this, and are still being written. I will add my own feeble attempts to them, by noting what seems obvious to me - things benefited from this, while people (for the most part) did not.
The net effect was amazing - people who did not know who they were, and don't want to know. This has been summarized as "Stone Age brains in Modern Skulls." Which is not entirely accurate, but explains a lot.
Ever since the rise of Networks, people have been overwhelmed by their technology. The basic invention here was Electricity, that made possible the Teletype, that connected everyone with copper wires - on land, and then under the seas. This eliminated time and space, and a more fundamental elimination cannot be imagined. People's reaction was immediate - they didn't want to know about it. It was too much for them to understand.
And with the vast speedups made possible by the Internet and Cellular networks, their response has been the same - they do not want to know, how this has affected them.
This morning, another article plopped into my inbox Will the Liberal Order Survive? This was written by, and is being read by, perhaps one percent of the population. An endangered species.
It is still possible to visit these cultures - I lived in the Maldives for awhile. They caught fish, dried them in the sun, and traded them for rice in India. They were expert sailors, on their boats made of coconut wood. They had a good life.
But meanwhile, thousand of miles away, in Europe - different things were happening. Things we call Industrialization or Capitalization. Where things were not so good.
Volumes have been written about this, and are still being written. I will add my own feeble attempts to them, by noting what seems obvious to me - things benefited from this, while people (for the most part) did not.
The net effect was amazing - people who did not know who they were, and don't want to know. This has been summarized as "Stone Age brains in Modern Skulls." Which is not entirely accurate, but explains a lot.
Ever since the rise of Networks, people have been overwhelmed by their technology. The basic invention here was Electricity, that made possible the Teletype, that connected everyone with copper wires - on land, and then under the seas. This eliminated time and space, and a more fundamental elimination cannot be imagined. People's reaction was immediate - they didn't want to know about it. It was too much for them to understand.
And with the vast speedups made possible by the Internet and Cellular networks, their response has been the same - they do not want to know, how this has affected them.
This morning, another article plopped into my inbox Will the Liberal Order Survive? This was written by, and is being read by, perhaps one percent of the population. An endangered species.
Friday, January 26, 2018
Crime in Immigrants
Washington Times
This article is about crime caused by illegal immigrants in Arizona.
The problem here is with the Data. Where it came from originally, how much of the original data was used, why only that data was used, and how that final data was used to obtain the conclusions that were reached.
Usually, with studies of this kind, the data is analyzed in a number of ways. For example, what percentage of the crimes were drug-related? This information could have obtained easily, and would have been useful.
I had some contact with this problem when I taught English to recent Vietnamese immigrants in Silicon Valley, in the Nineties. The fathers of these Vietnamese cooperated with the Americans in the Vietnam War, and they were, to put it plainly - criminals, and put in prison after the war ended.
Somehow, they they were released from prison in Vietnam, and transferred to Silicon Valley, along with the rest of their families. The men were given an income for the rest of their lives, and they stayed with their comrades from the Vietnam War - never bothering to learn English.
Their children had no income, and had to find jobs - which was hard for them, because they spoke no English. Catholic Charities stepped in and decided to help them. I was learning to to teach English at the time - and I worked with Catholic Charities, to teach them English.
Right away, I could see there were two kinds of Vietnamese - those interested in studying, and those who were not. I was assisted by a professor from San Jose State, who could still speak Vietnamese (and even wrote poetry in it) - but was also fluent in English. He knew how to study.
But the students I was trying to teach, were not interested in studying - but only interested in making easy money. The girls were willing to attach themselves to an American man, who would support them (and perhaps their family, as well). The boys drifted into crime.
This article is about crime caused by illegal immigrants in Arizona.
The problem here is with the Data. Where it came from originally, how much of the original data was used, why only that data was used, and how that final data was used to obtain the conclusions that were reached.
Usually, with studies of this kind, the data is analyzed in a number of ways. For example, what percentage of the crimes were drug-related? This information could have obtained easily, and would have been useful.
I had some contact with this problem when I taught English to recent Vietnamese immigrants in Silicon Valley, in the Nineties. The fathers of these Vietnamese cooperated with the Americans in the Vietnam War, and they were, to put it plainly - criminals, and put in prison after the war ended.
Somehow, they they were released from prison in Vietnam, and transferred to Silicon Valley, along with the rest of their families. The men were given an income for the rest of their lives, and they stayed with their comrades from the Vietnam War - never bothering to learn English.
Their children had no income, and had to find jobs - which was hard for them, because they spoke no English. Catholic Charities stepped in and decided to help them. I was learning to to teach English at the time - and I worked with Catholic Charities, to teach them English.
Right away, I could see there were two kinds of Vietnamese - those interested in studying, and those who were not. I was assisted by a professor from San Jose State, who could still speak Vietnamese (and even wrote poetry in it) - but was also fluent in English. He knew how to study.
But the students I was trying to teach, were not interested in studying - but only interested in making easy money. The girls were willing to attach themselves to an American man, who would support them (and perhaps their family, as well). The boys drifted into crime.
Amazon is in Costa Rica
Tico Times
Note the message on this young woman's tshirt - "Your work matters." Very clever, no?
Amazon is in Costa Rica because people are cheaper here, and they can easily get the cream of the crop. Amazon is selling business services down here - but is not explicit, about what these services are.
I can see, easily enough - that they are showing Latin American companies how to be part of Amazon. And share in its profits.
One of these companies is probably Aeropost, the company I use, to fly my purchases from Miami to Costa Rica, take them through Customs, and then let me pick them up in Cartago, the nearest large town to where I live.
Aeropost decided to go into the online retail business itself. It now has an app for smartphones that lets people shop using their phone (in Spanish, of course) take their phone to one of their outlets, place their order (and pay for it) there. And pick it up a few days later. Behind the scenes, they are placing the order with Amazon, and getting delivery from it.
Catalog sales have been here for quite a while, but using their phone gives Ticos exposure to more products, instantly. And they love their phones!
Note the message on this young woman's tshirt - "Your work matters." Very clever, no?
Amazon is in Costa Rica because people are cheaper here, and they can easily get the cream of the crop. Amazon is selling business services down here - but is not explicit, about what these services are.
I can see, easily enough - that they are showing Latin American companies how to be part of Amazon. And share in its profits.
One of these companies is probably Aeropost, the company I use, to fly my purchases from Miami to Costa Rica, take them through Customs, and then let me pick them up in Cartago, the nearest large town to where I live.
Aeropost decided to go into the online retail business itself. It now has an app for smartphones that lets people shop using their phone (in Spanish, of course) take their phone to one of their outlets, place their order (and pay for it) there. And pick it up a few days later. Behind the scenes, they are placing the order with Amazon, and getting delivery from it.
Catalog sales have been here for quite a while, but using their phone gives Ticos exposure to more products, instantly. And they love their phones!
Making Money, and Not Being
America is obsessed with making money - much to its detriment. And the rest of the world is not far behind. Everyone wants more of the stuff - and doesn't see why they should not get it, since plenty of other people have.
They don't stop to think, about what is going on - they just know money can be made, and a lot of it, by some kind of magic. And they want to be included in that magic.
They can look around them, and see people who have lots of it - and conclude, they must have access to that magic. And one key ingredient, they can also see, is the ruthlessness of these people. They have got it, and they are going to get more of it - at the expense of everyone else. They are not very nice people.
Everyone knows this, and knows it is wrong. And knows this is the way it has to be, and must not be questioned.
How can they live with this contradiction? By not being. The world is full of people who do not exist, and don't want to.
They are safe, because no one can imagine the state of Not Being - and will deny that it even exists.
They don't stop to think, about what is going on - they just know money can be made, and a lot of it, by some kind of magic. And they want to be included in that magic.
They can look around them, and see people who have lots of it - and conclude, they must have access to that magic. And one key ingredient, they can also see, is the ruthlessness of these people. They have got it, and they are going to get more of it - at the expense of everyone else. They are not very nice people.
Everyone knows this, and knows it is wrong. And knows this is the way it has to be, and must not be questioned.
How can they live with this contradiction? By not being. The world is full of people who do not exist, and don't want to.
They are safe, because no one can imagine the state of Not Being - and will deny that it even exists.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
They Don't Know What It is - But they Know They Hate It
What is "It" here? It's the Digital Revolution, that everyone loves to hate.
I just picked up on the label The Digital Revolution, myself - but I am keeping it, because it explains so much.
It's analogous to the Industrial Revolution - a huge event we never understood very well, even as it changed us completely.
One reason we hate it, is because it is so different - like nothing else, we have ever encountered before. To see what I mean, browse this tutorial that plopped into my inbox this morning. To understand it, you have to be already familiar with a ton of other Software stuff. You have to already be there. Anyone else has a lot of catching up to do.
But the people already there, are making a ton of money - much to the discomfort of everyone else. Who wonder "How come they are making so much - when we are not?"
I just picked up on the label The Digital Revolution, myself - but I am keeping it, because it explains so much.
It's analogous to the Industrial Revolution - a huge event we never understood very well, even as it changed us completely.
One reason we hate it, is because it is so different - like nothing else, we have ever encountered before. To see what I mean, browse this tutorial that plopped into my inbox this morning. To understand it, you have to be already familiar with a ton of other Software stuff. You have to already be there. Anyone else has a lot of catching up to do.
But the people already there, are making a ton of money - much to the discomfort of everyone else. Who wonder "How come they are making so much - when we are not?"
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Are We Having Fun Yet?
I hate to tell you - but the answer is "No."
And the reasons for this are many - and go back to the 18th Century, when America was being formed - and Thomas Jefferson altered Locke's phrase "Life, Liberty, and Property" to "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"
What was going on in that guy's head? We don't know, but Americans agreed with him, and still do - even though they have no idea what it means. It just sounds right - and would make good lyrics for a popular song.
They could not have been made into words for an Aria in a Opera - can you imagine a Soprano singing this, full strength - loud enough to drown out an orchestral, and a chorus? They would have thrown rotten tomatoes at her - and perhaps burned down the Opera House, as well.
And the reasons for this are many - and go back to the 18th Century, when America was being formed - and Thomas Jefferson altered Locke's phrase "Life, Liberty, and Property" to "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"
What was going on in that guy's head? We don't know, but Americans agreed with him, and still do - even though they have no idea what it means. It just sounds right - and would make good lyrics for a popular song.
They could not have been made into words for an Aria in a Opera - can you imagine a Soprano singing this, full strength - loud enough to drown out an orchestral, and a chorus? They would have thrown rotten tomatoes at her - and perhaps burned down the Opera House, as well.
I am making Coffee
This is what I said to myself, as I was going through the process of making my coffee this morning. Perhaps because I was not fully awake, it occured to me that this statement was bizarre. And it would have been more accurate to say that I and my Espresso machine were making coffee. We were working together as one unit - a person and a machine!
My espresso machine is a marvel, containing all kinds of parts, many of them plastic, and I have no idea how it is made. All I knew, is that I bought it, for not much money, at the market. And I bought my coffee at another market, for not much money. We live in a time of The Market, where almost anything can be purchased, for very reasonable sums. Some of them. from far away, on the other side of the world.
An automobile, for example - is assembled from parts from everywhere. The manufacturer buys them on the market, and sells the car - also on the market. And everyone considers this perfectly normal - when it is most definitely not!
This was the miracle of the Industrial Era - that gave us more things than ever before. But made us less human - because we became parts of a huge machine, that was unstable in its operation - and had no interest in us. It was more important than we were.
My parents generation knew this, and were proud of it - they were part of something very big. And were willing to defend it with their lives. And were willing to turn off their minds - and not think about what they were doing. The knew one hard-and-fast rule - do not think!
Then the Computer came along - and the Digital Revolution. To use the Computer, and its Software, people had to think. Their thinking was limited to thinking about Software - but they were thinking. And they realized, vaguely - that the way things were being done, was not quite right!
This is where we are now - partly not-thinking and Mechanical, and partly thinking and Digital.
This morning Transforming the powers: the continuing relevance of Walter Wink plopped into my inbox. Ted Grimsrud teaches theology at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
This article arrived via the Internet, a product of the Digital Revolution - that many countries censor vigorously. The truth will make men free - and that is the last thing they want.
My espresso machine is a marvel, containing all kinds of parts, many of them plastic, and I have no idea how it is made. All I knew, is that I bought it, for not much money, at the market. And I bought my coffee at another market, for not much money. We live in a time of The Market, where almost anything can be purchased, for very reasonable sums. Some of them. from far away, on the other side of the world.
An automobile, for example - is assembled from parts from everywhere. The manufacturer buys them on the market, and sells the car - also on the market. And everyone considers this perfectly normal - when it is most definitely not!
This was the miracle of the Industrial Era - that gave us more things than ever before. But made us less human - because we became parts of a huge machine, that was unstable in its operation - and had no interest in us. It was more important than we were.
My parents generation knew this, and were proud of it - they were part of something very big. And were willing to defend it with their lives. And were willing to turn off their minds - and not think about what they were doing. The knew one hard-and-fast rule - do not think!
Then the Computer came along - and the Digital Revolution. To use the Computer, and its Software, people had to think. Their thinking was limited to thinking about Software - but they were thinking. And they realized, vaguely - that the way things were being done, was not quite right!
This is where we are now - partly not-thinking and Mechanical, and partly thinking and Digital.
This morning Transforming the powers: the continuing relevance of Walter Wink plopped into my inbox. Ted Grimsrud teaches theology at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
This article arrived via the Internet, a product of the Digital Revolution - that many countries censor vigorously. The truth will make men free - and that is the last thing they want.
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
The Software Mind
It is one of my firmly-held beliefs, that Technology changes people - sometimes very rapidly. People are adaptable, and can adapt themselves to any successful technology.
From the very first, we learned how to live almost anywhere! Using Language, no doubt - perhaps our first Technology. And our large brains. And our bipedal locomotion, and our lack of body hair. And frontal sexual intercourse. And our ability to tolerate rapid change. of every kind.
How we ended up with such a strange combination - a large brain, bipedal locomotion, lack of body hair, and frontal sex - we do not know, but that is what we ended up with - and this is what makes us human.
Our mind is somehow connected with our brain - how we do not know how, but we know it is, for sure.
But a large part of our mind is not connected with our brain - but with our technologies. Here again, we do not know how - but we know it is, for sure.
Once we have a successful technology - we have the mind that goes with it - and helps us use it. All three go together - the technology, the people that use it, and the mind that connects them.
For example: the Railroads, that were one of the dominant technologies of the 19th Century. Back then, the Railroad Mind preoccupied most people's minds. And they could think of little else - but how to be part of it. As a result, the Railroads grew and grew - until and the cars, trucks, and highway networks - a competing technology, took over.
But time rushed on, and the Computer preoccupied us - in much the same way. The computer had its own mind - the Software that operated it. And some Human Minds were able understand the Computer Minds - and merge with it. Somewhat to the horror of the other Humans, who were left behind.
Software is now changing at a rapid pace - that Software Developers can barely keep up with.
From the very first, we learned how to live almost anywhere! Using Language, no doubt - perhaps our first Technology. And our large brains. And our bipedal locomotion, and our lack of body hair. And frontal sexual intercourse. And our ability to tolerate rapid change. of every kind.
How we ended up with such a strange combination - a large brain, bipedal locomotion, lack of body hair, and frontal sex - we do not know, but that is what we ended up with - and this is what makes us human.
Our mind is somehow connected with our brain - how we do not know how, but we know it is, for sure.
But a large part of our mind is not connected with our brain - but with our technologies. Here again, we do not know how - but we know it is, for sure.
Once we have a successful technology - we have the mind that goes with it - and helps us use it. All three go together - the technology, the people that use it, and the mind that connects them.
For example: the Railroads, that were one of the dominant technologies of the 19th Century. Back then, the Railroad Mind preoccupied most people's minds. And they could think of little else - but how to be part of it. As a result, the Railroads grew and grew - until and the cars, trucks, and highway networks - a competing technology, took over.
But time rushed on, and the Computer preoccupied us - in much the same way. The computer had its own mind - the Software that operated it. And some Human Minds were able understand the Computer Minds - and merge with it. Somewhat to the horror of the other Humans, who were left behind.
Software is now changing at a rapid pace - that Software Developers can barely keep up with.
The Machinery of the Human Mind
Evolutionary Psychology: A Primer This article is one of the things I was determined to read today. So I fixed myself some coffee, and got to work on it.
But I also had Jared Kushner Is China’s Trump Card on my computer. And that interested me also. This is a brilliant insight into the American Mind in operation - and it is obvious that it is defective. The American Mind has evolved in strange ways, in the last fifty years, or so - a very short period of time.
It is more appropriate now to use Software terminology - and speak of the way the brain is organized into functional modules. Each of these modules has its inputs and its outputs - and performs a function, that converts the inputs to the outputs. There are a large number of these modules, arranged in complicated ways - just as the software is, on any laptop or smartphone.
International diplomacy is often works in much the same way - with each diplomat performing his own function in the negotiations. With Kushner now operating as one of them.
Software can be changed nearly instantaneously - just do an update, and it operates differently. This also applies to people - their internal circuitry can be also be updated - and the result is a different person! One that has no idea, how much he has changed.
For some reason, Americans decided to change the way they thought - in fact, to not think much at all! I have no idea why or how this happened - but I could see it had happened. In about 150 years (the 19th Century, and half of the 20th - up to about 1970) their minds had changed greatly. And their technology had changed - to the Computer, a different machine entirely.
Monday, January 22, 2018
Manufacturing, American and Chinese
The US moved its manufacturing to China - because Americans, and the Chinese both benefited. Americans got cheaper products, and China got jobs for its workers.
China was willing take the Dollars, it accumulated - to buy American government securities. Also American Real Estate. Americans were buying Chinese products - but the Chinese were buying America!
America got weaker, and China got stronger. Eventually, Americans realized, this was not such a good deal. But they had no way of stopping it.
Except in Software - where they are far ahead. This requires an expertise that never existed before - and some Americans (maybe one percent) have moved into it. And are raking in tons of money.
I am straddling the fence, I bought a new laptop, made by Acer - that is full of Chinese components. And I will using it to learn Microsoft's latest software - that no one can resist, not even the Chinese!
China was willing take the Dollars, it accumulated - to buy American government securities. Also American Real Estate. Americans were buying Chinese products - but the Chinese were buying America!
America got weaker, and China got stronger. Eventually, Americans realized, this was not such a good deal. But they had no way of stopping it.
Except in Software - where they are far ahead. This requires an expertise that never existed before - and some Americans (maybe one percent) have moved into it. And are raking in tons of money.
I am straddling the fence, I bought a new laptop, made by Acer - that is full of Chinese components. And I will using it to learn Microsoft's latest software - that no one can resist, not even the Chinese!
Not Being
Faith in Humanity
What a fine idea this is! But what does it mean? Usually, it means our kind of humanity and not other kinds.
As the US is doing right now in Afghanistan, the longest American war ever. What do Americans think of this? Nothing. They have perfected the skill of not being - and this means not thinking.
They don't think, but they want a strong leader, who will solve their problems for them. By getting rid of the other people, who are grabbing their wealth. Is this stupid? Yes - very stupid.
In response, there are many people, who have smart ideas, and they want the rest of the people to listen to them. But the people they are talking to - do not exist!
And the people who have these fine ideas - cannot understand this.
What a fine idea this is! But what does it mean? Usually, it means our kind of humanity and not other kinds.
As the US is doing right now in Afghanistan, the longest American war ever. What do Americans think of this? Nothing. They have perfected the skill of not being - and this means not thinking.
They don't think, but they want a strong leader, who will solve their problems for them. By getting rid of the other people, who are grabbing their wealth. Is this stupid? Yes - very stupid.
In response, there are many people, who have smart ideas, and they want the rest of the people to listen to them. But the people they are talking to - do not exist!
And the people who have these fine ideas - cannot understand this.
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Poor Schools Make Poor Countries
No one will disagree with this - it's obvious.
The only thing people disagreed on was - (1) whether or not their schools were bad - and, (2) if they are bad, how they are bad - and (3) how to fix them - spending the least amount possible!
I will start off, by saying the American primary schools in the Sixties, were not very good. Students were more interested in having fun, that in studying - and their parents indulged them in this. I had no children myself, and I watched this in amazement.
Partly because of this, the American economy declined. People did not want to work, and they did not want to work at learning. In short - they did not want to work.
The only thing people disagreed on was - (1) whether or not their schools were bad - and, (2) if they are bad, how they are bad - and (3) how to fix them - spending the least amount possible!
I will start off, by saying the American primary schools in the Sixties, were not very good. Students were more interested in having fun, that in studying - and their parents indulged them in this. I had no children myself, and I watched this in amazement.
Partly because of this, the American economy declined. People did not want to work, and they did not want to work at learning. In short - they did not want to work.
The Sociological Imagination
This is a book by C. Wright Mills - from which I have copied the following:
Ours is a time of uneasiness and indifference—not yet formulated in such ways as to permit the work of reason and the play of sensibility. Instead of troubles—defined in terms of values and threats—there is often the misery of vague uneasiness; instead of explicit issues there is often merely the beat feeling that all is somehow not right. Neither the values threatened nor whatever threatens them has been stated; in short, they have not been carried to the point of decision. Much less have they been formulated as problems of social science.
This was written 40 years ago, but applies to our time - even more!
What are the major issues for publics and the key troubles of private individuals in our time? To formulate issues and troubles, we must ask what values are cherished yet threatened, and what values are cherished and supported, by the characterizing trends of our period. In the case both of threat and of support we must ask what salient contradictions of structure may be involved.
When people cherish some set of values and do not feel any threat to them, they experience well-being. When they cherish values but do feel them to be threatened, they experience a crisis—either as a personal trouble or as a public issue. And if all their values seem involved, they feel the total threat of panic.
But suppose people are neither aware of any cherished values nor experience any threat? That is the experience of indifference, which, if it seems to involve all their values, becomes apathy. Suppose, finally, they are unaware of any cherished values, but still are very much aware of a threat? That is the experience of uneasiness, of anxiety, which, if it is total enough, becomes a deadly unspecified malaise.
This was written 40 years ago, but applies to our time - even more!
What Kind of People Live Here?
This, it seems to me - should be one of the questions foremost in anyone's mind. But it is not a question we are encouraged to ask.
In my last posting, I spent some time analyzing Amazon's choices for its new headquarters. Which included Austin and Dallas, Texas - two entirely different cities, representing two entirely different cultures of that vast state.
Residents of the Southern part of the state, can be candid about its deficiencies.- it could hardly be worse, they will admit. But at the same time, they will live nowhere else!
It's surprising, how many people like to be part of terrible places - and, unbeknown to them, do not want to change them, or themselves - especially themselves!
In my last posting, I spent some time analyzing Amazon's choices for its new headquarters. Which included Austin and Dallas, Texas - two entirely different cities, representing two entirely different cultures of that vast state.
Residents of the Southern part of the state, can be candid about its deficiencies.- it could hardly be worse, they will admit. But at the same time, they will live nowhere else!
It's surprising, how many people like to be part of terrible places - and, unbeknown to them, do not want to change them, or themselves - especially themselves!
Saturday, January 20, 2018
Amazon HQ2
I have been looking at this image, and thinking about it. I would divide it into three categories - Being Considered, Probably not Being Considered, and Not Being Considered. I list them, from West to East:
Denver. According to my sister, this has a severe water shortage.
Nashville. I know nothing about this place - it might be a good buy, and it might not.
Indianapolis. Another town I know nothing about, but it might be a good deal.
Columbus, Ohio. A college town, but that's all I know about it.
Atlanta, Georgia - they even got it misplaced on the map,
Washington, DC - Northern Virginia, and Montgomery County, This was included for political purposes, to keep the Feds happy
Being Considered
Los Angeles. You could hardly miss with this one - it's a number of cities, all different. You can take your pick.
I'm surprised San Diego was not considered. When I was there in the Eighties, there was an excellent University there, and a lot of companies. But when I left in the late Eighties, lot of other people left also. Probably Amazon didn't want to back a losing horse.
For Chicago, the same factors apply. It has everything.
Toronto is in the same category. I haven't heard anything bad about it. It doesn't even have any slums!
New York City. Another megapolis, containing the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island - and Newark, just across the river.
Boston. This place has everything, and I mean everything.
Philadelphia - maybe.
Raleigh - another maybe.
Raleigh - another maybe.
Probably Not Being Considered
You have to consider these locations in the light of the heavyweights above. Amazon wants to show how fair it is, in giving them a chance. Housing is probably cheaper here.Denver. According to my sister, this has a severe water shortage.
Nashville. I know nothing about this place - it might be a good buy, and it might not.
Indianapolis. Another town I know nothing about, but it might be a good deal.
Columbus, Ohio. A college town, but that's all I know about it.
Atlanta, Georgia - they even got it misplaced on the map,
Miami - In the Deep South, with lots of money-laundering banks. Plenty of money, but not much else.
Not Being Considered
Pittsburgh - you gotta be kidding.Washington, DC - Northern Virginia, and Montgomery County, This was included for political purposes, to keep the Feds happy
Why People Pay no Attention to Me
They ask themselves "Is anyone else paying attention to him?" And when the answer is "No" they pay no attention to me either. Simple as that!
This is not the way it was 300 years ago - when Americans were not afraid of expressing their own opinions - in writing, that was published in a huge number of places, large and small.
What happened to these fearless writers? A lot of things, such as those summarized in The Sociological Imagination, by C.Wright Mills. That I just downloaded this morning.
People now exist in the mass - not as individuals. And they think in the mass also. As one superbeing.
If they want to know what is going on - they turn on their Television, and soak up what it is telling them. Far too much for them to understand consciously - so it goes directly into their unconscious minds, and stays there.
This is not the way it was 300 years ago - when Americans were not afraid of expressing their own opinions - in writing, that was published in a huge number of places, large and small.
What happened to these fearless writers? A lot of things, such as those summarized in The Sociological Imagination, by C.Wright Mills. That I just downloaded this morning.
People now exist in the mass - not as individuals. And they think in the mass also. As one superbeing.
If they want to know what is going on - they turn on their Television, and soak up what it is telling them. Far too much for them to understand consciously - so it goes directly into their unconscious minds, and stays there.
The Computer Cannot Understand Emotions
Because they do not compute.
People are highly social, and are very good at detecting the feelings of others - from the slightest physical cues, such as the expression on a face. They know emotions are important, but the Computer does not include them in its calculations - because it cannot detect them in the first place.
Plenty of people cannot do this either, and this is one of the reasons the world is in such bad shape - people do not understand other people. And would rather kill them, than go to the work of trying to understand them. People expected the Computer to solve problems like this, for them!
This plopped into my inbox this morning Machine learning tools for fairness, at scale. This is all about Data (with a capital D) and we think if we have enough of it, and analyze it correctly (using a computer, of course) - all our problems will be solved!
Friday, January 19, 2018
We Bleed Words
This is the latest posting in a blog I subscribe to.
She is 19 years old, and may kill herself - as many poets have.
This is not the way it should be.
She is 19 years old, and may kill herself - as many poets have.
This is not the way it should be.
Good Programming Skills include Good Social Skills
Programmers have to work easily with other programmers - and have good technical skills. A combination that is rare today.
Industrialization produced workers, with limited technical skills and limited social skills - they only did what they were told. These cannot be used as programmers.
There were also small businessmen, in the decades after WWII, who had more diverse skills - but these (along with the family farms) no longer exist.
We are left with a declining Industrial Economy, and a growing Digital Economy. The people in the Industrial Economy are much more numerous (maybe 90 percent) and are biased against those in the Digital Economy - who they see as usurpers (people taking their money away from them).
This can be seen most easily in the matter of encryption - that the Digital Economy needs to survive, but is seen as a threat to their security, for the rest. This is class warfare going right before our eyes!
Industrialization produced workers, with limited technical skills and limited social skills - they only did what they were told. These cannot be used as programmers.
There were also small businessmen, in the decades after WWII, who had more diverse skills - but these (along with the family farms) no longer exist.
We are left with a declining Industrial Economy, and a growing Digital Economy. The people in the Industrial Economy are much more numerous (maybe 90 percent) and are biased against those in the Digital Economy - who they see as usurpers (people taking their money away from them).
This can be seen most easily in the matter of encryption - that the Digital Economy needs to survive, but is seen as a threat to their security, for the rest. This is class warfare going right before our eyes!
We are Complicated Creatures
And complicated is too mild a word for what we really are. That often includes the desire to not know what we are - since this is often not very good news.
We can also believer we are perfect! Without being aware of this at all. I believe this is the situation with most Americans - they believe they are perfect, and do not like to be criticized. This is a huge shortcoming, and makes it difficult to live with them - since their egos have to be stroked constantly.
However, this feeling of superiority, masks a profound feeling of being inadequate, and these two feelings can coexist in the same person - and make him react in different ways at different times - depending on the situation he is in.
This syndrome probably starts early in a child's experience, probably before birth, when it gets the message that - it is not wanted! And to survive, it has to become unaware of this type of message. A serious shortcoming, that lasts throughout its adult life.
This is probably what is behind totalitarianism, in all its many forms. A curse that has been with us, for a very long time. And shows no signs of abating.
We can also believer we are perfect! Without being aware of this at all. I believe this is the situation with most Americans - they believe they are perfect, and do not like to be criticized. This is a huge shortcoming, and makes it difficult to live with them - since their egos have to be stroked constantly.
However, this feeling of superiority, masks a profound feeling of being inadequate, and these two feelings can coexist in the same person - and make him react in different ways at different times - depending on the situation he is in.
This syndrome probably starts early in a child's experience, probably before birth, when it gets the message that - it is not wanted! And to survive, it has to become unaware of this type of message. A serious shortcoming, that lasts throughout its adult life.
This is probably what is behind totalitarianism, in all its many forms. A curse that has been with us, for a very long time. And shows no signs of abating.
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Horrible People and Wonderful Machines
These machines were the defining feature of the Industrial and Digital Economies - both. And created their immense wealth.
How can machines create wealth? It is obvious, that they alone, are not enough. Wealth is created by human societies. But their machines gave some of them huge advantages.
The first such society was England, who invented Industrialization - consisting of Transportation (Canals and Railroads) and Manufacturing (factories). And the Steam Engine to power them.
The countries it produced (America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand) also benefited from these technologies, and became rich. Holland, Germany and Japan - also.
In America, that I can speak of with some authority - since I am one. Americans have identified with their machines, to an amazing degree. This makes them super people, much better than ordinary people (including their children) - who they look down on.
How can machines create wealth? It is obvious, that they alone, are not enough. Wealth is created by human societies. But their machines gave some of them huge advantages.
The first such society was England, who invented Industrialization - consisting of Transportation (Canals and Railroads) and Manufacturing (factories). And the Steam Engine to power them.
The countries it produced (America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand) also benefited from these technologies, and became rich. Holland, Germany and Japan - also.
In America, that I can speak of with some authority - since I am one. Americans have identified with their machines, to an amazing degree. This makes them super people, much better than ordinary people (including their children) - who they look down on.
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
The Sidewalk in Front of The Church
The Church here in the center of town, and is a tourist attraction. A crew of men are rebuilding it, all by hand, and taking their time at it.
I cannot rotate this image, but you can see the pattern in the bricks being laid down.
They are being laid in sand.
The gutter is being rebuilt alongside the sidewalk.
The cement is mixed by hand. A lot of it is used here, because it is fireproof and earthquake proof.
The Importance of Adam Smith
Coursera
This 6 minute video, is part of a MOOC presented by the University of Amsterdam. Part of a course on Sociology.
He was one of the theorists behind the Industrial Revolution, that had a huge impact on America - the most Industrialized country in the world.
He is still being quoted today, by people who want the Market to regulate the economy (and everything else) and not the government.
This 6 minute video, is part of a MOOC presented by the University of Amsterdam. Part of a course on Sociology.
He was one of the theorists behind the Industrial Revolution, that had a huge impact on America - the most Industrialized country in the world.
He is still being quoted today, by people who want the Market to regulate the economy (and everything else) and not the government.
Silicon Valley as a Social Revolution
This event has a name - the Digital Revolution, as contrasted with the Industrial Revolution. Everyone who was part of the Valley, back in the last half of the last Century, does not doubt it was a revolution - and that it changed the world.
Why all this excitement? Money, that flowed its way in staggering quantities. Because it knew this revolution was making money - in unprecedented amounts.
At the same time, it must be said, that most people were unaware of this, and are still unaware of it. Their world is not changing - and they are doing their best, to keep it from changing.
This has resulted in The Gap between two kinds of people - between those in the know, and those who don't know. - and don't want to know. Two entirely different populations, with different potentials.
The Industrial cohort, is obsessed with finding Oil - the Digital with finding Information. And the first cannot understand the second. And doesn't want to, even as the Computer is pulling the rug out from underneath them.
To put this another way - the Industrial Revolution is ending, and the Digital Revolution is beginning.
This seemed like a good place to end this posting. But lo and behold, How Machine Learning Is Taking Over the Cloud, plopped into my inbox.
Heavens! Just when I thought I had things under control - things take off at warp speed!
Why all this excitement? Money, that flowed its way in staggering quantities. Because it knew this revolution was making money - in unprecedented amounts.
At the same time, it must be said, that most people were unaware of this, and are still unaware of it. Their world is not changing - and they are doing their best, to keep it from changing.
This has resulted in The Gap between two kinds of people - between those in the know, and those who don't know. - and don't want to know. Two entirely different populations, with different potentials.
The Industrial cohort, is obsessed with finding Oil - the Digital with finding Information. And the first cannot understand the second. And doesn't want to, even as the Computer is pulling the rug out from underneath them.
To put this another way - the Industrial Revolution is ending, and the Digital Revolution is beginning.
This seemed like a good place to end this posting. But lo and behold, How Machine Learning Is Taking Over the Cloud, plopped into my inbox.
Heavens! Just when I thought I had things under control - things take off at warp speed!
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
We Live in a Commercial World
Adcreep: The Case Against Modern Marketing
I got the title for this posting from this book. Where he uses it to explain why Marketing is necessary, but should be regulated - he is a law professor also.
I spent 10 years in Silicon Valley where I saw the latest kind of cut-throat business practices and advertising practices. I thought to myself "If people could see what is going on behind the scenes here - they would put the whole bunch of us in jail!"
I was so naive, and didn't realize this could have been said many times in the past - but only a few went to jail, or had their heads chopped off.
Most lived comfortably inside the system, and a few got rich off it. And a few went crazy. I was one of those who went crazy - I was too sensitive for that brutal world.
I had every kind of therapist imaginable - even one who specialized in highly-sensitive people. She knew we existed (she was one of them herself) but her only strategy, was to be part of it!
This is the standard response "You gotta be part of it, no matter what." There is another solution for some however: change your scene, and make another life for yourself!
I got the title for this posting from this book. Where he uses it to explain why Marketing is necessary, but should be regulated - he is a law professor also.
I spent 10 years in Silicon Valley where I saw the latest kind of cut-throat business practices and advertising practices. I thought to myself "If people could see what is going on behind the scenes here - they would put the whole bunch of us in jail!"
I was so naive, and didn't realize this could have been said many times in the past - but only a few went to jail, or had their heads chopped off.
Most lived comfortably inside the system, and a few got rich off it. And a few went crazy. I was one of those who went crazy - I was too sensitive for that brutal world.
I had every kind of therapist imaginable - even one who specialized in highly-sensitive people. She knew we existed (she was one of them herself) but her only strategy, was to be part of it!
This is the standard response "You gotta be part of it, no matter what." There is another solution for some however: change your scene, and make another life for yourself!
A Different Kind of Being - And a Different Kind of Pain
I continue to ask myself "What are Americans like?" and I continue to draw a blank. Whatever they are - they are making sure, that no one can understand them.
There must be a whole complex of painful emotions hidden in their personalities - that we can only guess at.
But one guess is easy - they were treated badly, and as a result - they are getting even, by destroying the world that destroyed them.
This is a bizarre line of reasoning - but perfectly logical.
It is difficult to oppose, because Americans have been so affluent. How can they be rich, and unhappy both? This is a foolish question, because all one has to do is look at how they are. Rich and unhappy!
No one can understand this, we have always believed that wealth resulted in happiness. And we don't want to be reminded, that other things are important also.
And it's not hard to see what these are - being treated properly by other people.
There must be a whole complex of painful emotions hidden in their personalities - that we can only guess at.
But one guess is easy - they were treated badly, and as a result - they are getting even, by destroying the world that destroyed them.
This is a bizarre line of reasoning - but perfectly logical.
It is difficult to oppose, because Americans have been so affluent. How can they be rich, and unhappy both? This is a foolish question, because all one has to do is look at how they are. Rich and unhappy!
No one can understand this, we have always believed that wealth resulted in happiness. And we don't want to be reminded, that other things are important also.
And it's not hard to see what these are - being treated properly by other people.
Monday, January 15, 2018
The Only Science I am Interested in, is Computer Science
Learning Computer Science is easy. All you need is a laptop with a fast Internet connection. Hundreds of courses are available, for free! But you have to be something of a nerd.
This strange new interest of yours, will be something of a disadvantage at first. But once you start making all that money, you will have no shortage of friends.
This strange new interest of yours, will be something of a disadvantage at first. But once you start making all that money, you will have no shortage of friends.
Trump is an American - and a Fairly Typical One, at That
Transformation - Fire and fury: the psychodrama of a very stable genius
This article makes heavy use of Freud's psychoanalysis, that most psychotherapists have abandoned.
It acknowledges the impact of early childhood experiences - without saying much about Trump's own. That, in many ways, was not typical at all - since his family was rich.
In that way, Trump is not the usual politician - claiming to be a man of the people. His message, one that Americans have accepted - is be like me, and get rich yourself.
The same message the Evangelicals use.
This article makes heavy use of Freud's psychoanalysis, that most psychotherapists have abandoned.
It acknowledges the impact of early childhood experiences - without saying much about Trump's own. That, in many ways, was not typical at all - since his family was rich.
In that way, Trump is not the usual politician - claiming to be a man of the people. His message, one that Americans have accepted - is be like me, and get rich yourself.
The same message the Evangelicals use.
The Computer Wants People to Obey It
Any successful technology is made by people to serve them - but the process of learning how to use that technology, makes people adapt to that technology, and changes who they are. In some fundamental ways, they are not usually aware of. Technology and the society that uses it, both evolve together.
This raises the question of just what technology is. The Industrial Revolution, for example - involved the invention, and use of machines - but was more than that. It was more like a religious fervor - involving a complete restructuring of society. And not necessarily for the better.
People did not decide to make such a huge change - but the force of circumstances, made them change anyway.
The latest change in circumstances, has been the Computer. That is also changing who we are, completely. And, as before, most people are not aware of this - and insist they are not being changed at all.
Computer people, by contrast - are aware of how they are changing society. This is what they concentrate on, with amazing intensity - making the Computer useful for People. And making People useful for the Computer. Both changes at the same time.
They occasionally ask themselves about the ethics of this. But only occasionally. They are Computer people, not Philosophers. And they easily revert to the Industrial mode of fast profits - at the expense of everyone else.
This raises the question of just what technology is. The Industrial Revolution, for example - involved the invention, and use of machines - but was more than that. It was more like a religious fervor - involving a complete restructuring of society. And not necessarily for the better.
People did not decide to make such a huge change - but the force of circumstances, made them change anyway.
The latest change in circumstances, has been the Computer. That is also changing who we are, completely. And, as before, most people are not aware of this - and insist they are not being changed at all.
Computer people, by contrast - are aware of how they are changing society. This is what they concentrate on, with amazing intensity - making the Computer useful for People. And making People useful for the Computer. Both changes at the same time.
They occasionally ask themselves about the ethics of this. But only occasionally. They are Computer people, not Philosophers. And they easily revert to the Industrial mode of fast profits - at the expense of everyone else.
Sunday, January 14, 2018
Americans cannot Function as a Country
Because they have always let other forces do this for them.
These forces were originally religious forces. That were much more powerful, and much more intelligent than they were.
But with the dawn of the Modern World, and the Reformation, these became the forces of Science and Industry. Which made them the richest people in history! And made them a different people.
They had learned a fundamental strategy - let forces larger than them, take over! And choose the forces that were the most profitable. Not the ones that were the most ethical.
This takes us up to the middle of the last Century, when America was its most powerful. Since then, it has gone into decline - and Americans have gone crazy, blaming one thing after another, for this decline. It never occurs to them, to blame themselves.
They made the same mistake, people had been making for thousands of years - they only thought of themselves, and no one else.
These forces were originally religious forces. That were much more powerful, and much more intelligent than they were.
But with the dawn of the Modern World, and the Reformation, these became the forces of Science and Industry. Which made them the richest people in history! And made them a different people.
They had learned a fundamental strategy - let forces larger than them, take over! And choose the forces that were the most profitable. Not the ones that were the most ethical.
This takes us up to the middle of the last Century, when America was its most powerful. Since then, it has gone into decline - and Americans have gone crazy, blaming one thing after another, for this decline. It never occurs to them, to blame themselves.
They made the same mistake, people had been making for thousands of years - they only thought of themselves, and no one else.
Saturday, January 13, 2018
Kindle Books with Audible Narration
This is something that I am enjoying on my Fire Tablet. As the narration proceeds, the text is highlighted, and the pages are turned automatically! If this is not decadence, what is?
This device really is a bargain - its advertisements are restricted, to the first page you see when you turn it on. I bought it with a stand, that keeps it erect at the right angle for easy viewing.
I am listening to Victoria's Daughters. If you click on this link, you can read an excellent summary of the book.
You could say this is royal gossip - but who doesn't enjoy listening to such high-level secrets!
This device really is a bargain - its advertisements are restricted, to the first page you see when you turn it on. I bought it with a stand, that keeps it erect at the right angle for easy viewing.
I am listening to Victoria's Daughters. If you click on this link, you can read an excellent summary of the book.
You could say this is royal gossip - but who doesn't enjoy listening to such high-level secrets!
The Sociology Book
Amazon
Most Sociology books are huge, and not available in a Kindle edition. This one is short, concise, inexpensive - and downloadable. What more could you want?
This is especially important to me, because I live in Costa Rica, where shipping books takes time, and costs money.
Most Sociology books are huge, and not available in a Kindle edition. This one is short, concise, inexpensive - and downloadable. What more could you want?
This is especially important to me, because I live in Costa Rica, where shipping books takes time, and costs money.
What The Masses Cannot Become
By speaking of the Masses, I am following the lead of Ortega y Gasset, in his book The Revolt of the Masses.
He was describing Europe in 1930, but his insights are still applicable today. The People have turned into the Masses. Something that was not anticipated, and after it happened - not recognized.
This was an irreversible change - once it happened, it could not be reversed. And it was a complete change - the people it happened to, were not aware of it - and continue to be unaware of it.
Our intellectuals can now speak of Mass Culture - but they can do this, because they are not part of it, themselves.
There is a huge communication gap between the two groups, that cannot be bridged.
He was describing Europe in 1930, but his insights are still applicable today. The People have turned into the Masses. Something that was not anticipated, and after it happened - not recognized.
This was an irreversible change - once it happened, it could not be reversed. And it was a complete change - the people it happened to, were not aware of it - and continue to be unaware of it.
Our intellectuals can now speak of Mass Culture - but they can do this, because they are not part of it, themselves.
There is a huge communication gap between the two groups, that cannot be bridged.
Friday, January 12, 2018
Military–industrial complex
Wikipedia
This was in Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address to the nation, in 1960. and I remember it well.
And I wondered where he got such a brilliant idea - since he was hardly a brilliant person himself - he could hardly compose a coherent English sentence.
This article shows it was a common idea at the time - and his speech writers included it, to make him seem intelligent also.
They certainly fooled me.
This was in Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address to the nation, in 1960. and I remember it well.
And I wondered where he got such a brilliant idea - since he was hardly a brilliant person himself - he could hardly compose a coherent English sentence.
This article shows it was a common idea at the time - and his speech writers included it, to make him seem intelligent also.
They certainly fooled me.
We were Machines, We are now Computers
From the middle of the 19th Century, to the middle of the 20th - we became machines. We are now becoming Computers.
This is such a huge change, we cannot comprehend it - but it is happening anyway, whether we want it to happen, or not. People do not decide how they want to change - other things do this for them. And the Computer is now this other thing.
Machines had the advantage of being visible - you could see how they operate. You cannot see how the Computer operates, or how its Software operates. But it operates anyway.
This Software operates at two levels - at the lowest level there is code, instructions for the Computer to follow. But there are higher levels - that determine how this code is organized. And at these levels, things get complicated - because different people want to do things, different ways. And some of these ways, in my opinion, are not so useful.
And society itself is divided into - (1) those who do not understand, but want to be told what to do (99 percent of the population) - and (2) those who do understand, but (since they are so few) cannot do much about it.
This is a combination that cannot work. The best we can do, is acknowledge that it is not working.
This is such a huge change, we cannot comprehend it - but it is happening anyway, whether we want it to happen, or not. People do not decide how they want to change - other things do this for them. And the Computer is now this other thing.
Machines had the advantage of being visible - you could see how they operate. You cannot see how the Computer operates, or how its Software operates. But it operates anyway.
This Software operates at two levels - at the lowest level there is code, instructions for the Computer to follow. But there are higher levels - that determine how this code is organized. And at these levels, things get complicated - because different people want to do things, different ways. And some of these ways, in my opinion, are not so useful.
And society itself is divided into - (1) those who do not understand, but want to be told what to do (99 percent of the population) - and (2) those who do understand, but (since they are so few) cannot do much about it.
This is a combination that cannot work. The best we can do, is acknowledge that it is not working.
Thursday, January 11, 2018
The Impact of the Computer
I can explain this best by referring to my own life.
I graduated as an Electronic Engineer, from the U of Illinois, in 1959. This meant I was an expert in Vacuum Tubes. This was the technology that made Electronics possible. These tubes were highly developed, mass-produced, and inexpensive.
If you had a problem with your car radio, you took it to your drugstore, where they had a tube tester. You checked the tubes, one by one - and it you found a defective one, you bought a replacement for it, from the drugstore - who had a good supply of them in stock. Anything unusual they could order, for next day delivery.
I specialized in Radar. The latest one, the FPS-35 was so powerful that the one located on Montauk Point, on the tip of Long Island - could detect the liftoff of missiles from Cape Kennedy, in Florida! This was a three-story building, full of vacuum tubes - with an antenna on the top of the building, half the size of the football field! It now stands deserted, as part of a State Park.
I worked as an Engineer, for 20 years, and made good money at it. But then the Transistor, and Solid State devices appeared - and made vacuum tubes obsolete! This was 1980, and I was out of a job - and completely out of a job.
But there were jobs, in Computers, in Southern California. We didn't know this at first, and called our new jobs High Tech. But then the Personal Computer came along - and we could see where our future would be.
I moved to Silicon Valley, where the Internet took over. We didn't know how it would take over, for about 10 years - and still don't know how it does this. completely. But it has taken over anyway. And I am using it to write this blog.
Then the Cloud appeared - I won't try to explain it to you, but take my word for it - it is out of this world!
But I am saving the best part for last - all this computer stuff, is making money - and a lot of it!
I graduated as an Electronic Engineer, from the U of Illinois, in 1959. This meant I was an expert in Vacuum Tubes. This was the technology that made Electronics possible. These tubes were highly developed, mass-produced, and inexpensive.
If you had a problem with your car radio, you took it to your drugstore, where they had a tube tester. You checked the tubes, one by one - and it you found a defective one, you bought a replacement for it, from the drugstore - who had a good supply of them in stock. Anything unusual they could order, for next day delivery.
I specialized in Radar. The latest one, the FPS-35 was so powerful that the one located on Montauk Point, on the tip of Long Island - could detect the liftoff of missiles from Cape Kennedy, in Florida! This was a three-story building, full of vacuum tubes - with an antenna on the top of the building, half the size of the football field! It now stands deserted, as part of a State Park.
I worked as an Engineer, for 20 years, and made good money at it. But then the Transistor, and Solid State devices appeared - and made vacuum tubes obsolete! This was 1980, and I was out of a job - and completely out of a job.
But there were jobs, in Computers, in Southern California. We didn't know this at first, and called our new jobs High Tech. But then the Personal Computer came along - and we could see where our future would be.
I moved to Silicon Valley, where the Internet took over. We didn't know how it would take over, for about 10 years - and still don't know how it does this. completely. But it has taken over anyway. And I am using it to write this blog.
Then the Cloud appeared - I won't try to explain it to you, but take my word for it - it is out of this world!
But I am saving the best part for last - all this computer stuff, is making money - and a lot of it!
Something Bigger than The People has Taken Over
I continue to read The Great Transformation, and Polanyi's analysis continues to fascinate me. The transformation he refers to was the transformation caused by the Industrial Revolution, or the Market Economy.
He does not mention one important effect, however - how this huge change affected people's ability to understand their new world. They knew something big had happened - but also that they were not supposed to understand it. And this prohibition has persisted to this day.
This situation is not new - those in power have often suppressed dissent - sometimes violently. And people under their control, have done the safe thing - and kept their mouths shut.
This created two kinds of subjects to discuss - safe subjects, and forbidden subjects. And people knew instinctively what these were. These social instincts were part of what made them human - and had served them well for thousands of years.
Now, all of a sudden - these instincts were not serving them so well. They had to think about a new situation - and that often meant being critical of it.
There were plenty new thinkers around, and some of their ideas were attractive. People had to choose between them - but they also had to be like everyone else. They were pulled two ways at once.
Their most important choice was - which group to belong to? And once they made that choice - they had to defend it. This sometimes conflicted with their personal choices - but usually the group choice won out.
All this was made much more difficult, because issues were often poorly defined. Complicated situations are common, and are not well suited, for the simple thinking, that people want to make.
He does not mention one important effect, however - how this huge change affected people's ability to understand their new world. They knew something big had happened - but also that they were not supposed to understand it. And this prohibition has persisted to this day.
This situation is not new - those in power have often suppressed dissent - sometimes violently. And people under their control, have done the safe thing - and kept their mouths shut.
This created two kinds of subjects to discuss - safe subjects, and forbidden subjects. And people knew instinctively what these were. These social instincts were part of what made them human - and had served them well for thousands of years.
Now, all of a sudden - these instincts were not serving them so well. They had to think about a new situation - and that often meant being critical of it.
There were plenty new thinkers around, and some of their ideas were attractive. People had to choose between them - but they also had to be like everyone else. They were pulled two ways at once.
Their most important choice was - which group to belong to? And once they made that choice - they had to defend it. This sometimes conflicted with their personal choices - but usually the group choice won out.
All this was made much more difficult, because issues were often poorly defined. Complicated situations are common, and are not well suited, for the simple thinking, that people want to make.
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
A swarm of home-made drones has bombed a Russian airbase
New Scientist
On the night of 5 January and into the early hours of the next day, Russian forces in Syria came under attack by a “massive application of unmanned aerial vehicles”, says the Russian Ministry of Defence. According to reports, 13 small drones descended on Russian forces, but none did significant damage.
Many drones carry a video camera and are then piloted remotely from just a few kilometres away. But Russia says this attack was launched from more than 50 kilometres away and the drones were guided by GPS. This would require the coordinates of the target to be known in advance.
On the night of 5 January and into the early hours of the next day, Russian forces in Syria came under attack by a “massive application of unmanned aerial vehicles”, says the Russian Ministry of Defence. According to reports, 13 small drones descended on Russian forces, but none did significant damage.
Many drones carry a video camera and are then piloted remotely from just a few kilometres away. But Russia says this attack was launched from more than 50 kilometres away and the drones were guided by GPS. This would require the coordinates of the target to be known in advance.
Mass Man in America
I am reading The Revolt of the Masses in the new translation, that only cost me $3.99.
In the Introduction, the translator tells us that Ortega remained Europe-centered all his life - and understood little of America - that was quickly taking the place of Europe in world affairs.
His emphasis on the masses was unique, and made him famous. And much of what he says there also applies to America. This book was published in 1930, before things really got bad - in Europe and America.
I am still struggling to understand America myself - but I am convinced that America, with its Computers, are inventing a new mass culture of its own.
That is becoming a global culture.
In the Introduction, the translator tells us that Ortega remained Europe-centered all his life - and understood little of America - that was quickly taking the place of Europe in world affairs.
His emphasis on the masses was unique, and made him famous. And much of what he says there also applies to America. This book was published in 1930, before things really got bad - in Europe and America.
I am still struggling to understand America myself - but I am convinced that America, with its Computers, are inventing a new mass culture of its own.
That is becoming a global culture.
When Deportation Is a Death Sentence
New Yorker
My family had extensive contacts in Mexico and Honduras. But knew nothing of what was going on there. They were only interested in what was going on in their little RLDS church - that had no interest in, or an understanding of, the world it was in. For them, their church was everything - and the rest of the world was nothing.
The same could be said of Americans in general - they have no interest in their world, or what goes on there. And they elected a President who is the same way - only interested in himself. And not in the thousands of immigrants who will die, when they are forced to return to their countries.
They have one cardinal rule - the don't want to know about it. And it can be nearly anything.
This ignorance protects them from the horrible world. But also makes the world even more horrible. This result, they think - is none of their business, none of their responsibility.
My family had extensive contacts in Mexico and Honduras. But knew nothing of what was going on there. They were only interested in what was going on in their little RLDS church - that had no interest in, or an understanding of, the world it was in. For them, their church was everything - and the rest of the world was nothing.
The same could be said of Americans in general - they have no interest in their world, or what goes on there. And they elected a President who is the same way - only interested in himself. And not in the thousands of immigrants who will die, when they are forced to return to their countries.
They have one cardinal rule - the don't want to know about it. And it can be nearly anything.
This ignorance protects them from the horrible world. But also makes the world even more horrible. This result, they think - is none of their business, none of their responsibility.
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
IntelliJ or Visual Studio
I continue to advance my meager programming skills. And I continue to evaluate the best way to do this. Who should I get in bed with - Google or Microsoft?
The solution, for the time being, is a combination of software and hardware. A Windows 10 computer, and Microsoft's ASP.NET software. I need plenty of hand-holding and Microsoft's tutorials do a good job of this.
Microsoft used to be the Evil Empire - but discovered that being liked was better than being hated. Big surprise, huh?
The solution, for the time being, is a combination of software and hardware. A Windows 10 computer, and Microsoft's ASP.NET software. I need plenty of hand-holding and Microsoft's tutorials do a good job of this.
Microsoft used to be the Evil Empire - but discovered that being liked was better than being hated. Big surprise, huh?
Software is Not Interested in People
It is only interested in Computers. Obvious, huh?
This is not obvious to most people, however, because Software has done a terrific job of making Computers act like people. Especially the latest one - the Phone, the friendly little computer you can hold in your hand - that will do everything for you.
We need to realize there are two fundamental categories - Life, and everything else. And there is a huge difference between the two. That Software people are trying to make us forget.
There are huge advantages in making the Computer seem like a person - in making it user-friendly. But also huge dangers - its users will think it really is a person. And not only a person, but a super person, that is smarter than they are.
This is a mistake people have been making for a long time. They have allowed their things to control them. As Emerson said "Things are in the saddle, and ride mankind!"
And this suits most people just fine. They want something else to rule them, and make them better. For thousands of years, this has been a ruling class - but ruling machines will work just as well, perhaps better.
I must say more about these machines - that people have always used. They built the pyramids, that still impress us. This Machine worked by a simple division of labor - different groups of people did different jobs. And the Machine organized their efforts. And they were rewarded, with Bread, Beer, and Onions.
Our present economy is not that different - people work at their jobs - but get money, instead of beer and bread.
This is not obvious to most people, however, because Software has done a terrific job of making Computers act like people. Especially the latest one - the Phone, the friendly little computer you can hold in your hand - that will do everything for you.
We need to realize there are two fundamental categories - Life, and everything else. And there is a huge difference between the two. That Software people are trying to make us forget.
There are huge advantages in making the Computer seem like a person - in making it user-friendly. But also huge dangers - its users will think it really is a person. And not only a person, but a super person, that is smarter than they are.
This is a mistake people have been making for a long time. They have allowed their things to control them. As Emerson said "Things are in the saddle, and ride mankind!"
And this suits most people just fine. They want something else to rule them, and make them better. For thousands of years, this has been a ruling class - but ruling machines will work just as well, perhaps better.
I must say more about these machines - that people have always used. They built the pyramids, that still impress us. This Machine worked by a simple division of labor - different groups of people did different jobs. And the Machine organized their efforts. And they were rewarded, with Bread, Beer, and Onions.
Our present economy is not that different - people work at their jobs - but get money, instead of beer and bread.
Monday, January 8, 2018
When Opera was Important
It was important not too long ago - before the beginning of the last Century - when a lot of things changed.
The buildings are left - magnificent structures, that still impress us. But operas are longer performed in them - for two reasons, they are now too expensive - and they now seem ridiculous to us - for reasons we cannot make explicit - but we are certain of.
Let us consider first, the matter of money. We now have a different Economy, which makes different things important. Opera is so low on this list, it almost falls off of it.
The same could be said of Classical Music - its performers have few job opportunities.
And no one feels badly about this.
The buildings are left - magnificent structures, that still impress us. But operas are longer performed in them - for two reasons, they are now too expensive - and they now seem ridiculous to us - for reasons we cannot make explicit - but we are certain of.
Let us consider first, the matter of money. We now have a different Economy, which makes different things important. Opera is so low on this list, it almost falls off of it.
The same could be said of Classical Music - its performers have few job opportunities.
And no one feels badly about this.
Aunt Jemima
Wikipedia
I had some Aunt Jemima pancakes for breakfast this morning.
I had always assumed she was a black slave in the Plantation South. But to make sure. I looked her up on Wikipedia - and got a surprise.
She was invented by businessmen in the state of Missouri! And was impersonated by Nancy Green in the Chicago Columbian Exposition.
Her slogan was "I's in town, honey!" And she was as black as the Ace of Spades.
I had some Aunt Jemima pancakes for breakfast this morning.
I had always assumed she was a black slave in the Plantation South. But to make sure. I looked her up on Wikipedia - and got a surprise.
She was invented by businessmen in the state of Missouri! And was impersonated by Nancy Green in the Chicago Columbian Exposition.
Her slogan was "I's in town, honey!" And she was as black as the Ace of Spades.
People now Hate Everything - and for Good Reason
Because everything hates them.
After making that blank statement, a few caveats are in order - quite a few, in fact.
There is no denying the huge losses of life, in the Industrial wars of - the American Civil War, WWI and WWII. And in the smaller wars that now dot the world.
In every war, people hate each other - and hate each other passionately. There is no sugar-coating this.
Most wars could have been prevented - if the opposing parties had taken the trouble to understand each other. But that was too much trouble, and going to war was easier. Even if, in the last analysis, they solved nothing.
People have always been inclined toward War - but these had always been local. Global communications have now made global War - not only possible, but a fact of life for everyone.
But a fact of life, most people deny. Who wants to see something so terrible? Better to sweep it under the rug - and forget it.
And this also applies closer to home - in family life. Where conditions are terrible also. And the effort spent denying this, has reached stratospheric proportions.
After making that blank statement, a few caveats are in order - quite a few, in fact.
There is no denying the huge losses of life, in the Industrial wars of - the American Civil War, WWI and WWII. And in the smaller wars that now dot the world.
In every war, people hate each other - and hate each other passionately. There is no sugar-coating this.
Most wars could have been prevented - if the opposing parties had taken the trouble to understand each other. But that was too much trouble, and going to war was easier. Even if, in the last analysis, they solved nothing.
People have always been inclined toward War - but these had always been local. Global communications have now made global War - not only possible, but a fact of life for everyone.
But a fact of life, most people deny. Who wants to see something so terrible? Better to sweep it under the rug - and forget it.
And this also applies closer to home - in family life. Where conditions are terrible also. And the effort spent denying this, has reached stratospheric proportions.
Sunday, January 7, 2018
The Art of the Castrati
Cecila Bartoli
I hardly know what to make of this. It's an explosion of talent - all of it Italian.
The Castrati were young men, with promising talent as singers, who were castrated before puberty - so their voices remained high - as explained in the referenced Wikipedia entry.
In this video an attractive young woman is the center of attention - and she makes the most of it. The setting is an opera house, with no one in it. And the orchestra is seated on the stage - behind the singer. That allows some innovative camera work.
The real star of the show, however, is the extremely complicated music - that she handles with amazing ease.
The real star of the show, however, is the extremely complicated music - that she handles with amazing ease.
The Business Suit
This is the standard attire of one class of people - business people. It proclaims they are important people, and have money behind them. Which may, or may not be true - but the message is the same in either case.
Business is now all-important and all-powerful - the religion of our times. It would make us rich, it promised - if we let it control everything. Now it has controlled everything for quite some time, however - people are noticing that the promised riches have failed to materialize - for most of them.
What is its response? Maybe we didn't deliver all we promised - but that doesn't matter. We are the one true faith - and we have to be followed anyway.
However, another faith has arisen - based on the Computer. These people do not wear business suits - and wouldn't be caught dead wearing one.
Business is now all-important and all-powerful - the religion of our times. It would make us rich, it promised - if we let it control everything. Now it has controlled everything for quite some time, however - people are noticing that the promised riches have failed to materialize - for most of them.
What is its response? Maybe we didn't deliver all we promised - but that doesn't matter. We are the one true faith - and we have to be followed anyway.
However, another faith has arisen - based on the Computer. These people do not wear business suits - and wouldn't be caught dead wearing one.
Mass Insanity
Insanity is one of the hazards of being human - of having a huge, complicated brain, whose functioning is uncertain. When this brain is merged with other brains - the results are even more uncertain. And mass insanity is possible.
All this has been known for a very long time, and commented on frequently. But Mass Communications (the Newspapers, and now the Social Media) have made this problem worse.
And the worst effect of all - is the inability of the masses to notice this. Their brains have been damaged beyond repair.
All this has been known for a very long time, and commented on frequently. But Mass Communications (the Newspapers, and now the Social Media) have made this problem worse.
And the worst effect of all - is the inability of the masses to notice this. Their brains have been damaged beyond repair.
Saturday, January 6, 2018
What We Think We Are
People have always believed in two types of beings - the Natural and the Supernatural. The first needs no explanation - it's just the way things are.
And people have always excelled at understanding how this worked. This allowed us to live comfortably anywhere on earth. Quite an accomplishment!
Back then, we could live with the Natural and the Supernatural easily. But this easy way of life did not last - we became Civilized. A huge change, that changed us completely.
But we insisted that the supernatural part of us remained unchanged. This belief (in the Soul) we inherited from the Hebrews. And was adopted by Christianity and Islam both.
We think we are Natural and Supernatural both! And the Supernatural part of us (our Souls) remain unchanged throughout time - and will return (with our bodies) at the end of time. And in some sects of Buddhism - this soul is reincarnated with each birth. We are born with the soul of someone else!
In the 21st Century, we tend to dismiss our belief in the Soul, as unimportant - a big mistake!
When we think of Human history, we can divide it easily into the Ancient World and the Modern World - in what we call Western Civilization. The Modern World was divided further by the Reformation - into two worlds, the Protestant (Industrial and Affluent) - and the Catholic (Ignorant and Poor).
Now I must return to what I started to write about - what we think we are.
And the we I am referring to are Americans. America began as an Enlightenment experiment - but changed into an Industrial (or Market) economy. A huge difference - but one Americans can overlook, because they think their souls remained unchanged - even as everything else changed.
No matter what changes - they will believe that nothing essential changes. Which means they can behave as badly as they please - without damaging anything.
And people have always excelled at understanding how this worked. This allowed us to live comfortably anywhere on earth. Quite an accomplishment!
Back then, we could live with the Natural and the Supernatural easily. But this easy way of life did not last - we became Civilized. A huge change, that changed us completely.
But we insisted that the supernatural part of us remained unchanged. This belief (in the Soul) we inherited from the Hebrews. And was adopted by Christianity and Islam both.
We think we are Natural and Supernatural both! And the Supernatural part of us (our Souls) remain unchanged throughout time - and will return (with our bodies) at the end of time. And in some sects of Buddhism - this soul is reincarnated with each birth. We are born with the soul of someone else!
In the 21st Century, we tend to dismiss our belief in the Soul, as unimportant - a big mistake!
When we think of Human history, we can divide it easily into the Ancient World and the Modern World - in what we call Western Civilization. The Modern World was divided further by the Reformation - into two worlds, the Protestant (Industrial and Affluent) - and the Catholic (Ignorant and Poor).
Now I must return to what I started to write about - what we think we are.
And the we I am referring to are Americans. America began as an Enlightenment experiment - but changed into an Industrial (or Market) economy. A huge difference - but one Americans can overlook, because they think their souls remained unchanged - even as everything else changed.
No matter what changes - they will believe that nothing essential changes. Which means they can behave as badly as they please - without damaging anything.
Friday, January 5, 2018
The Rise and Fall of Anglonomics
Medium Daily Digest
The subtitle is - How the English Speaking World is Destroying its Future.
I wish I could say something clever about this - but his writing is so clever, it leaves me speechless.
The subtitle is - How the English Speaking World is Destroying its Future.
I wish I could say something clever about this - but his writing is so clever, it leaves me speechless.
Poor Integration between the Laptop and the Cloud
This was brought home to me, when I tried to learn Angular2 - a whiz-bang product that Google is proud of.
I tried three different ways of learning it - Angular University's year-long course, WebStorm (produced by IntelliJ, a high-powered outfit if ever there was one) and the book Learning Angular - provided by O'Reilly's Safari service - that uses the Angular site's Quick Start procedure.
In every case, I ended up off the track, and stranded in the weeds.
Because computer technology has advanced too fast. It moved from the Desktop personal computer to the Laptop, in the Nineties. This was a huge improvement in hardware, and we also got the IDE (Microsoft's Visual Studio and NetBeans) - a huge improvement in software. Both made programmers able to understand what they were doing - and more productive, as a result.
But the Cloud arrived, like the Second Coming - bringing Heaven on Earth. Or maybe something else. Whatever it was, we were poorly prepared to handle it.
Everyone in the Software ecosystem is saying "We are wonderful, we are wonderful - and we don't mind saying that!"
Is this wacky, or what?
I tried three different ways of learning it - Angular University's year-long course, WebStorm (produced by IntelliJ, a high-powered outfit if ever there was one) and the book Learning Angular - provided by O'Reilly's Safari service - that uses the Angular site's Quick Start procedure.
In every case, I ended up off the track, and stranded in the weeds.
Because computer technology has advanced too fast. It moved from the Desktop personal computer to the Laptop, in the Nineties. This was a huge improvement in hardware, and we also got the IDE (Microsoft's Visual Studio and NetBeans) - a huge improvement in software. Both made programmers able to understand what they were doing - and more productive, as a result.
But the Cloud arrived, like the Second Coming - bringing Heaven on Earth. Or maybe something else. Whatever it was, we were poorly prepared to handle it.
Everyone in the Software ecosystem is saying "We are wonderful, we are wonderful - and we don't mind saying that!"
Is this wacky, or what?
Egypt First
Foreign Affairs
This is too good an article to pass up.
Egypt’s willingness to go its own way has been a consistent feature of the country’s foreign policy since at least July 2013, when a popularly-backed military coup ousted President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood. Under the new presidency of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Cairo has gradually been formulating a new foreign policy doctrine based on ideological commitments to anti-Islamism, respect for traditional and often retrograde notions of sovereignty and non-interference, and a defiantly nationalistic reassertion of Egypt’s freedom of maneuver within the region. Taken together, they are leading Egypt away from its traditional allies and toward a more independent—and uncertain—future.
This is too good an article to pass up.
Egypt’s willingness to go its own way has been a consistent feature of the country’s foreign policy since at least July 2013, when a popularly-backed military coup ousted President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood. Under the new presidency of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Cairo has gradually been formulating a new foreign policy doctrine based on ideological commitments to anti-Islamism, respect for traditional and often retrograde notions of sovereignty and non-interference, and a defiantly nationalistic reassertion of Egypt’s freedom of maneuver within the region. Taken together, they are leading Egypt away from its traditional allies and toward a more independent—and uncertain—future.
It's an easy read.
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Coping with Incompetence
This is one of my biggest challenges. Dealing with people (and organizations) who do not know what they are doing.
Although, at a different level they do know what they are doing - they are messing everything up, and enjoy doing this. Perhaps this should be added to the list of human pleasures - the satisfaction some people feel when they make others suffer.
However, this is already known, and labeled - masochism, and its twin, sadism. It's something of a relief, to me in my old age - to realize that the world I grew up in, back in another century - was masochistic, and not only that: incompetent as well.
I was living in a world that was collapsing socially - but advancing technically. And the two overlapped, to produce great confusion.
Social collapse has happened before, quite a few times - but the technical advances made possible by the computer have never happened before. The net result is that computer technology, is keeping alive a society that was failing - and would not have lasted long.
How will all this turn out? No one knows - perhaps an environmental collapse will flood much of the world - and people will say "Maybe we did something wrong!"
Although, at a different level they do know what they are doing - they are messing everything up, and enjoy doing this. Perhaps this should be added to the list of human pleasures - the satisfaction some people feel when they make others suffer.
However, this is already known, and labeled - masochism, and its twin, sadism. It's something of a relief, to me in my old age - to realize that the world I grew up in, back in another century - was masochistic, and not only that: incompetent as well.
I was living in a world that was collapsing socially - but advancing technically. And the two overlapped, to produce great confusion.
Social collapse has happened before, quite a few times - but the technical advances made possible by the computer have never happened before. The net result is that computer technology, is keeping alive a society that was failing - and would not have lasted long.
How will all this turn out? No one knows - perhaps an environmental collapse will flood much of the world - and people will say "Maybe we did something wrong!"
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Americans know America is Good
And they know this
with complete certainty. Even though the record is clear –
Americans have been no better than any other people. And sometimes a
great deal worse.
They will admit this
– but insist this does not matter. What matters is what they
believe – nothing else matters.
And they are right,
the only thing that matters, for them – is what they believe. What
other people believe, does not matter (for them).
In this way, they
are normal – only interested in themselves. Anyone who insists they
should be interested in other people – is not like them, and can be
dealt with severely.
What we have here,
are two ways of thinking – the conscious mind, and the unconscious
mind.
The discovery of the
unconscious mind, about 100 years ago, was one of our important
discoveries. And one we have tried to forget, ever since.
Consciously,
Americans are products of the Enlightenment, and its Scientific
discoveries – Unconsciously, they regress to Medieval types.
What have People Become?
This is what we should be asking ourselves - but cannot, because what people have become, has never happened before. And we have no way of putting this into words, or understanding it.
We can only say "People have become something else - they have never been before." And this change is irreversible. And we cannot predict the future, since we do not understand the present.
All we can do is watch how things work out - and keep our fingers crossed.
The way things have worked out in America, cannot be understood. The forces involved cannot be identified, or understood.
This has happened before - in any time of great change. Such as the events happening two thousand years ago, when Christianity arose, and Rome fell. The people back then, had no idea what was going on. And the results were catastrophic.
The same thing is going on now - it is called creative destruction. The destruction is obvious enough, but the creativity is not.
However, this gives us something to observe, and put into words - great destructiveness.
That we can say, for sure.
We can only say "People have become something else - they have never been before." And this change is irreversible. And we cannot predict the future, since we do not understand the present.
All we can do is watch how things work out - and keep our fingers crossed.
The way things have worked out in America, cannot be understood. The forces involved cannot be identified, or understood.
This has happened before - in any time of great change. Such as the events happening two thousand years ago, when Christianity arose, and Rome fell. The people back then, had no idea what was going on. And the results were catastrophic.
The same thing is going on now - it is called creative destruction. The destruction is obvious enough, but the creativity is not.
However, this gives us something to observe, and put into words - great destructiveness.
That we can say, for sure.
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
Who Rules the World?
Amazon
Chomsky is the Intellectual most Americans hate - and not just a little bit, either.
He has been arrested more times than any man alive. He was placed on President Richard Nixon's Enemies List. And was critical (to say the least) of JFK and Reagan for their activities in Latin America.
But is still writing books, such as this one.
Chomsky is the Intellectual most Americans hate - and not just a little bit, either.
He has been arrested more times than any man alive. He was placed on President Richard Nixon's Enemies List. And was critical (to say the least) of JFK and Reagan for their activities in Latin America.
But is still writing books, such as this one.
Iowa went big for Trump, but there are signs its voters are souring on the president
Washington Post
This is a hard read, but I made myself read all of it carefully.
I was born and grew up, in my Father's hometown of Ft. Madison, Iowa - in the southeast corner of the state, right next to Illinois and Missouri. About as Midwestern as you could get.
I later moved to the East Coast, and then the West Coast - and had little contact with my origins. I was shocked when it went for Trump.
What the heck was going on? No one really knows, but whatever it was - it had finally decided to surface, and take control itself.
This is a hard read, but I made myself read all of it carefully.
I was born and grew up, in my Father's hometown of Ft. Madison, Iowa - in the southeast corner of the state, right next to Illinois and Missouri. About as Midwestern as you could get.
I later moved to the East Coast, and then the West Coast - and had little contact with my origins. I was shocked when it went for Trump.
What the heck was going on? No one really knows, but whatever it was - it had finally decided to surface, and take control itself.
They must have War
This could be said of almost any people. And it certainly is true of Americans, who had the first Industrial War, with shocking casualties - their Civil War. Europe did the same thing, with even worst destruction - in WWI. This was followed by the Depression, and then WWII. All very destructive.
Americans now have their Afghanistan War - their longest war ever. This is not much of a war, but it satisfies America's need to have a war somewhere - and wastes huge amounts of money.
In every case, the combatants felt they had to go to war. Which is sometimes true - if a country is being invaded. Or if the winner gets the riches of the loser. Or for no reason at all - except the powerful need to have a war.
But the worst effect of all - is the need to not know what we are like. A need that is now global in size. People everywhere have to not know, what is going on.
But watch their Televisions for the News, instead.
Americans now have their Afghanistan War - their longest war ever. This is not much of a war, but it satisfies America's need to have a war somewhere - and wastes huge amounts of money.
In every case, the combatants felt they had to go to war. Which is sometimes true - if a country is being invaded. Or if the winner gets the riches of the loser. Or for no reason at all - except the powerful need to have a war.
But the worst effect of all - is the need to not know what we are like. A need that is now global in size. People everywhere have to not know, what is going on.
But watch their Televisions for the News, instead.
Monday, January 1, 2018
Marx and Software
I am reading Classical Sociological Theory - and enjoying it.
To my surprise, it begins with the work of Karl Marx - someone I was prepared to hate. But after reading him, I can begin to like him. I quote from page 23 of the book:
In the new world of the future, human beings will become conscious producers, and free to engage in creative pursuits, beyond the dictates of the labor market.
This was written in 1844. Computers and Software would not come along until a hundred years later. When they did arrive, they would make Capitalism stronger and weaker at the same time.
Software developers (and everyone else, for that matter) would work in two economies - the Market Economy and the Computer Economy.
People will still say "Nothing has changed!" When everything has changed.
The Market is Working Better Than Ever
This is a continuation of my last posting The Market Economy.
I am convinced this is a subject well worth our continuing interest. And cannot help but notice that most people give it no attention - and don't even know that it exists.
Which means the Market is working better than ever - but most things are not.
Our governments, for example - that are in very bad shape. But no one notices this, because their shopping centers are as busy as ever. If plenty of goods are on display - this means everything is ok. No one wants to look any deeper.
I am speaking of Americans, of course - in most of the rest of the world, they have no shopping centers to look at - and have shortages of everything. The Market has worked for them, but in a negative fashion - it has impoverished them.
But no one, and I mean no one - can question the workings of the Market, in making the rich and the poor.
In the ancient world, everything was controlled by the gods - who did not treat people very well. In today's world, the market has the same function - but people are not aware of this - as they were of the gods - who spoke to them directly.
People cannot hear, what the Market is telling them - but they follow its instructions without thinking about it. They are parts of a vast machine, where every part affects other parts.
They are afraid, if they stop to think about this - all this machinery will stop working. And the world will end!
I am convinced this is a subject well worth our continuing interest. And cannot help but notice that most people give it no attention - and don't even know that it exists.
Which means the Market is working better than ever - but most things are not.
Our governments, for example - that are in very bad shape. But no one notices this, because their shopping centers are as busy as ever. If plenty of goods are on display - this means everything is ok. No one wants to look any deeper.
I am speaking of Americans, of course - in most of the rest of the world, they have no shopping centers to look at - and have shortages of everything. The Market has worked for them, but in a negative fashion - it has impoverished them.
But no one, and I mean no one - can question the workings of the Market, in making the rich and the poor.
In the ancient world, everything was controlled by the gods - who did not treat people very well. In today's world, the market has the same function - but people are not aware of this - as they were of the gods - who spoke to them directly.
People cannot hear, what the Market is telling them - but they follow its instructions without thinking about it. They are parts of a vast machine, where every part affects other parts.
They are afraid, if they stop to think about this - all this machinery will stop working. And the world will end!
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