From: Lee Corbin (lcorbin@tsoft.com)
Date: Tue Dec 24 2002 - 23:24:43 MST
Adrian writes
> Lee Corbin wrote:
>
> > The giant sheets could indeed be used to warm polar regions
> > and cool tropical regions, but of course we are too afraid
> > to CHANGE anything because no matter now many people would
> > ultimately benefit, some people would be inconvenienced.
> > (Not to mention many animals.)
>
> Neg. That may be one reason some people give, but the real reason is
> that the effects of such climate change are simply not well known.
Yes, but the effects of what we do seldom are well-known.
There is too little risk taking at present, IMO, and
indicates a too conservative mind set that civilization
as a whole is falling into.
Kevin Kelly wrote a book in 1994 or so entitled "Out of
Control". I didn't read it because it appeared only to
cover material that I was absorbing elsewhere.
My reading of history suggests that progress occurs only
when things are "out of control". That is, progress
occurs almost always when societies en masse have no
control over the processes that are affecting them.
But a keen goal of our present civilization appears to
be to place everything that could possibly harm or
threaten us "under control".
Lee
P.S. About Kelly's "Out of Control", one reviewer wrote:
I agree with the "Chicago reader" who said this book could've used an editor, but it's one of the best poorly-written books I've
read too.
Kelly's cheerleading for the decentralized, "hive-mind" mentality smacks of the giddy 1940's Tomorrowland propaganda -- oblivious to
market realities, people's resistance to change and the fact that simple technologies always win head-to-head competitions with more
complex technologies.
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