From: Laws, David (lawsd@magic.dcrt.nih.gov)
Date: Thu Apr 17 1997 - 21:23:17 MDT
I actually find it sad when 'money' is looked down upon. It is the
singular driving force througout history. I suspect anyone who doesn't
want 'more money'. It is the means of obtaining that which you desire. It
is the means of doing that which you wish to do. It is a far better way of
doing so than to cut down acres of forest to plant a crop that you barter
for the same end.
Profit brings advance.
When mining asteroids becomes profitable you'll see amazing advances in
space travel. Why? Because you won't go broke developing a better way.
I'm tired of bashing the rich. Heck, I wish I were one. Only when you
make so much money that it doesn't matter will you not mind losing money on
an idea that doesn't prove correct. IBM made billions on the ideas of it's
pure research that only came to fruit years later (mostly by tapping some
poor bloke on the shoulder who tried to patent something and say 'Ahem,
sorry, WE did that years ago. There's a market now and WE will exploit
it.' How? It could afford pure research. Combine ambition with desire
with talent with money. An unbeatable combination. SOMEBODY HAS to have
the wear-withall to finance the others.
When there is a market for an idea, the idea makes money. You can't
develop a cold-fusion reactor unless you can afford to develop and build
one, and no one is going to become homeless hoping to do so.
Perhaps in a 'Star Trek' future when some folk are happy to take your
filthy stinky trash to the disposal for nothing because they can live in a
mansion as big as the person happy to run an interplanetary conglomerate
because anyone can get it for free because there is no money (but there
is in the rest of the galaxy so I'm REALLY stumped), but not in today's
reality.
Anyway, who says you have to be poor to be famous, feel thrill in your
achievement, or proud of your accomplishment?
-----Original Message-----
> I see no reason why it cannot work. I just find it sad that the only
> incentive in today's world is money, and not pride, or fame, or the
> pure thrill of success, or the feeling of achievement gained when you
see
> a private fantasy tuen into a reality.
> Nobody believes in their dreams any more, only if they get rewarded
> with the surrogate american dream of MONEY MONEY MONEY!!
> It is a sad state of affairs.
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