I'm sorry if my comments on Jay Hanson's message sounded like a personal
attack, or if they incited others to attack Mr. Hanson. I really don't
think much is gained by calling each other names. It may be naive of
me, but I rather hoped that Mr. Hanson might respond positively to my
remarks and change his style -- I thought he might have something positive
to contribute, instead of just attacks on others, and might be willing
to suspend his anti-economist diatribe long enough to say something
constructive or useful.
When I started the Social Technology mailing list (see my home page,
for into) it was partly an attempt to get away from all the endless
arguments. As I said in an announcement here on futurework,
socialtechnology has a bias against argument and in favour of
algorithms. For me technology is know-how, and the future of society
will depend on accumulating our store of practical knowledge, not on
heated arguments or ad hominem attacks.
Is there anything Jay Hanson knows how to do, that he could teach us?
Has he any positive contribution to our store of practical knowledge?
I don't know, and from his mail message and web site it is hard to
tell. However, he did circulate a message from someone else that
suggested revoking Philip Morris's charter, and that is an interesting
idea, worth hearing about. I like to hear about new ideas, and hope
Mr. Hansom will circulate more of them, either his own or others.
dpw
Douglas P. Wilson [EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.island.net/~dpwilson/index.html
