Walsingham

Ouch. I'm lucky enough to have only found out once that my girlfriend was cheating on me. And that was enough. Ad by lucky I mean it probably happened more than that, but it's the only time I know about.

I've been mulling it over, and it occurs to me that Egypt has been a lynchpin in US policy in the mideast since the Suez crisis. Iran may view backing the MB as the best way of neutralising Egypt from the game; which would leave it as an extremely strong player, comparatively speaking. A radical Egypt would also put tremendous pressure on Israel, and we know how bat**** Iran is on Israel. Further it occurs to me that, having pu t down their own spontaneous demonstrations that the IRGC would be quite expert on coaching the MB in what not to do.

I don't think that's Numbers' point, Zor. Knowing something and that knowledge changing anything is not a direct link. It needs to have two things happen first. Possibly three. I'm thinking on my feet here. 1. The receiver has to interpret the information into a form of useful awareness. This requires some sort of skill, and usually at least a little training. - The public simply don't possess these skills en masse. 2. The receiver has to be motivated to act on the resulting awareness. - Again, the public are often unmotivated to act outside of disaster situations. And disaster situations are the times they are most likely to be suffering impairment the foundations of step 1. 3. The receiver has to act to exert change on the environment producing the information they don't like. This means the skilled understanding of the topic to guide an action plan, and usually some organised effort, which is a function of skill and preparation. - This, again, is a big problem for Joe Public. As the issues surrounding us get more complex, and the rules we operate by expand with them, and our social organisations become so insubstantial that they are satisfactorily expressed by facebook... I really can't see free information helping anything.

Reprinted with kind permission from www.stratfor.com

If we're not careful we're going to try and build a perfect society. This is pehaps the point. You're talking about a perfect democracy full of free information. I'm saying that won't work because the democracy will have enemies outside its government. Your saying the converse won't work because the democracy will have enemies inside its own goverment. However, unlike you (I guess) I'm not arguing for one extreme or another. I'm simply arguing against the extreme notion of having completely free information exposure.

You mean like those squids that live on the bottom of the ocean feeding from bacteria living in the exhaust of underwater volcanoes? Kind of. Breaking down the complex chemicals. Watching soap operas on submerged vidscreens. Playing canasta.

Story

Spoken like a gentleman. I was grouchy last night too, so maybe it was the moon or something.

ON the bright side at least you'll have had your RDA of iron.

I just sneezed so powerfully I hurt my back and popped my rib at the same time.

I see, speaking of intellectually lazy, are you actually using the title of a book that I'll wager large you have never read to cast aspersions on it's ideas? Your use of the terms "Sowell and his ilk" makes your opinions of the man pretty plain. You know what bugs me about the left is the smug certitude that economic (and therefore human) behaviour is something that can or should be tightly controlled. The folks who think that way are often the same ones who entertain the hubristic notions that they know better than everyone else how everyone should be living their lives. Speaking of reading you should take a look at Hayeks masterpiece "The Road to Serfdom". It was published in the '40s but is frighteningly relevant now in the age of Obamanomics. It can be had for free on google books. Hold on, GD. I think Enoch's proved his chops in enough debates to warrant a little more civility.

I just had an idea for a new race for WH40k, born in the chemical soup of the sump beneath the underhive. Not sure what it'd look like or how it would behave. Possibly mimic some human traits?

The essential problem which you chaps seem to be missing (with the exception of Numbers) is that democracy the event/system is a very different beast from democracy the written theory. Democracies are born through, sustained by, and end in non-democratic behaviour. Just as they are born in, sustained by, and end in democratic behaviour. By which I mean compare the actions of sceurity agencies like the XXX committee, and the free election of repressive regimes. Personally I don't see this as a contradiction peculiar to democracy. I can cool myself down by having a hot glass of tea, for example. Or I can warm myself up, but will at some point need to cool down when I reach my preferred temperature. I'm going to take the hit here to my argumentative standing by drawing the example of the enigma machine. Possessing the ability to decode the enigma communications of Germany in WW2 was essential to winning the war. One could therefore very simply argue that the public had a right to know about our possessing that capability in deciding whether to support the continuation of the war. But had they known then the Germans would have known too, and the advantage would have been lost. Democracy as we know it would almost certainly not exist. This is an important point, because to return to my point, real democracy is a system that is vulnerable to more than academic debate. The notion that it is a manifest destiny of Man is - to my mind - born of the 19th and 20th century notions of colonial supremacy and nothing more.

Burst out laughing at this. Sorry. No offence meant, Egypt. I agree that Iran is going to poorly represented in Egypt, and if they have any sense they'd be bongoing themselves at the thought of an MB run government controlling Arab general policy and the Suez canal. The MB's mates in Iraq kill hundreds if not thousands of Shiites each year simply for being Shiites.

What about the shut down of the internet? Call me old skool, but I don't call the internet as serious as explodey metal death stuff. Besides which shutting down the internet was pre-planned. I doubt the same thing was expected of the security services scrapping with tanks.

I was going to post this in its own thread, but since this thread is re activated: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/...d-uprising.html Wikileaks leak news of how the Egyptian embassy helped pro democracy activists in secret. Nice to see wikileaks helping democracy so enthusiastically. On top of the recent revelations (by Al Jazeera) which embarassed negotiators in the arab israeli peace process, can we PLEASE finally abandon this insane notion that leaking everything is brilliant?

Reports coming in of police and military units clashing in Cairo. If true this would be an extremely significant sign.

tsk tsk, hair of the dog in the morning mate. Best cure. so true my friend...but only if I had some. I'm beginning to think I must be getting old. My hangovers last all day now, and I keep forgetting what I'm doing. Idea: have tattoo which reads "Reminder: be awesome." and underneath it: "P.S: stretch me." Heh!

My feeling is that Obama will have to back anything approximating more liberal democracy. The trouble is I don't know anything like enough about Egyptian politics and political culture to estimate whether such a change is possible.

Just play it on hardcore. Game gets even better all round.

tsk tsk, hair of the dog in the morning mate. Best cure. so true my friend...but only if I had some. I'm beginning to think I must be getting old. My hangovers last all day now, and I keep forgetting what I'm doing. Idea: have tattoo which reads "Reminder: be awesome."

Speaking of which, don't you think it's weird that they are taking tough action on D&D, but not the endemic violence in the US system?

I'm torn between being excited and very alarmed. Anyone else with me?

Would of fit really nicely into New Vegas bigcrazewolf I'd bet you've already found this one, but just in case: .