Steve and Kingsley, (01)
SN
>> We all have many illusions to abandon, and, I fear, not a whole
>> lot of time to adapt our cultures to the new modalities of power
>> before the inevitable corruption makes orderly adaptation even harder. (02)
KI
> Yep!! (03)
I also agree. But the only point I disagree with is that there
is anything fundamentally new in the relationships. The basic
principles have not changed since prehistoric times: (04)
* Golden rule: He who has the gold makes the rules. (05)
* Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. (06)
* Feudalism, laissez-faire capitalism, fascism, and communism
are *identical*. The only difference is in terminology. (07)
The technology may be different, but the people who have the gold
-- the leaders of big governments and big businesses -- have not
changed in the slightest. Our only chance of survival is to use
the same technology to keep tabs on the leaders, to play them
against one another, and to keep any from gaining a monopoly. (08)
And by the way, I don't have any hope in principles of morality
or religion. I agree with Hegel that the Protestant Revolution
was the greatest thing that happened to Christianity -- but not
because the Protestants were any better. It's just that the
competition between them kept either from getting absolute power. (09)
John (010)
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