Monday, June 08, 2015
Moot
Instead of language, Professor Polistra decided to highlight a few Moot Points that are circulating lately. These are ideas or advocacies that seem to make sense, seem to apply to certain situations. A little analysis shows that there is no situation where the idea or institution works properly. It works where it isn't needed, fails where it's needed.
"Futility is the nemesis of democracy" --- Schwellenbach.
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"Democracy" and "civic engagement"
Good Government idiots chastise us for apathy. Nope. We're not apathetic, we're perfectly rational. There are two supposed routes for "civic engagement": "voting" and money. "Voting" has zero effect for everyone, so it's not even worth calling moot. It's just a ritual. Mootness applies to money. If you are an aristocrat, your money will be welcomed but it won't matter because the politicians already follow your orders. If you are a heretic, it doesn't matter how much money you contribute. Your desires do not exist.
= = = = =
Privacy laws and classified secrets
In every context these laws fail on both sides of their alleged purpose. Medical privacy prevents doctors and police from seeing important parts of a patient's history, and makes normal public health procedures impossible, but doesn't stop identity hackers. Juvenile crime privacy prevents juries from seeing the full picture of a professional criminal, but doesn't stop gangs from seeing the full picture of a good employee. CIA-style classification prevents citizens from understanding what the government is doing, but doesn't hide anything from supposed "enemies".
PRIVACY KILLS.
= = = = =
You don't see a sucker
"If you're invited to a poker game and you don't see a sucker at the table, it's you."
Constantly quoted by econ types. Absolutely useless.
If you're skilled and experienced enough at gambling that you can SPOT the presence or absence of a sucker, you're also skilled enough that you aren't going to BE the sucker. You may not be a sure winner, but you'll probably survive.
If you're actually going to BE the sucker, you aren't skilled enough to distinguish the types or skill levels already in the game, so the advice won't help.
= = = = =
Home repair warranty service
You pay monthly, and in return the service covers SOME expenses like water heaters or furnaces. These are not huge or frequent expenses. If you live responsibly with a cushion of savings, you can cover these expenses directly. If you live on credit, your credit card will cover them just as it covers everything else. So where's the niche for the warranty service?
= = = = =
The supposed benefits of small class size or small parishes
Teachers unions are always pushing for small class size, even though everyone knows that it doesn't make a big difference.
Now the Satanic "mainline" "churches" are claiming that a shrinking parish is a good thing, for the same supposed reasons.
Nope. Both of these claims are moot in different ways. Both are false advertising in the same way.
What's really happening is that the customer base of both institutions is fading. Both institutions have rounded the bend into pure bureaucracy, where Parkinson compels constant growth of workforce as the work itself fades to zero.
In schools, the unions are trying to reduce class size from about 25 to about 20. This will NOT make any difference at all. A competent teacher with proper disciplinary support can handle up to 40. If you don't have a competent teacher or proper disciplinary support, class size is NOT your problem. In strictly numerical terms, the advantage of a small class doesn't really cut in until you're down to 3 or 4. In other words, private tutoring. Trouble is, the parents who can afford private tutoring are already paying for it. Their kids have never been in public schools.
In churches, a congregation with a few dozen people will NOT be able to support a pastor unless the few dozen people are extremely rich. But if you are extremely rich, you are already paying a full-time counselor and a full-time Life Coach or whatever it's called.
A public school, or a church with a building and staff and pastor, must remain above a minimum size. Reducing below that minimum turns the institution into something entirely different, which requires an entirely different level of bureaucracy and financing.
Instead of language, Professor Polistra decided to highlight a few Moot Points that are circulating lately. These are ideas or advocacies that seem to make sense, seem to apply to certain situations. A little analysis shows that there is no situation where the idea or institution works properly. It works where it isn't needed, fails where it's needed.
"Futility is the nemesis of democracy" --- Schwellenbach.
= = = = =
"Democracy" and "civic engagement"
Good Government idiots chastise us for apathy. Nope. We're not apathetic, we're perfectly rational. There are two supposed routes for "civic engagement": "voting" and money. "Voting" has zero effect for everyone, so it's not even worth calling moot. It's just a ritual. Mootness applies to money. If you are an aristocrat, your money will be welcomed but it won't matter because the politicians already follow your orders. If you are a heretic, it doesn't matter how much money you contribute. Your desires do not exist.
= = = = =
Privacy laws and classified secrets
In every context these laws fail on both sides of their alleged purpose. Medical privacy prevents doctors and police from seeing important parts of a patient's history, and makes normal public health procedures impossible, but doesn't stop identity hackers. Juvenile crime privacy prevents juries from seeing the full picture of a professional criminal, but doesn't stop gangs from seeing the full picture of a good employee. CIA-style classification prevents citizens from understanding what the government is doing, but doesn't hide anything from supposed "enemies".
PRIVACY KILLS.
= = = = =
You don't see a sucker
"If you're invited to a poker game and you don't see a sucker at the table, it's you."
Constantly quoted by econ types. Absolutely useless.
If you're skilled and experienced enough at gambling that you can SPOT the presence or absence of a sucker, you're also skilled enough that you aren't going to BE the sucker. You may not be a sure winner, but you'll probably survive.
If you're actually going to BE the sucker, you aren't skilled enough to distinguish the types or skill levels already in the game, so the advice won't help.
= = = = =
Home repair warranty service
You pay monthly, and in return the service covers SOME expenses like water heaters or furnaces. These are not huge or frequent expenses. If you live responsibly with a cushion of savings, you can cover these expenses directly. If you live on credit, your credit card will cover them just as it covers everything else. So where's the niche for the warranty service?
= = = = =
The supposed benefits of small class size or small parishes
Teachers unions are always pushing for small class size, even though everyone knows that it doesn't make a big difference.
Now the Satanic "mainline" "churches" are claiming that a shrinking parish is a good thing, for the same supposed reasons.
Nope. Both of these claims are moot in different ways. Both are false advertising in the same way.
What's really happening is that the customer base of both institutions is fading. Both institutions have rounded the bend into pure bureaucracy, where Parkinson compels constant growth of workforce as the work itself fades to zero.
In schools, the unions are trying to reduce class size from about 25 to about 20. This will NOT make any difference at all. A competent teacher with proper disciplinary support can handle up to 40. If you don't have a competent teacher or proper disciplinary support, class size is NOT your problem. In strictly numerical terms, the advantage of a small class doesn't really cut in until you're down to 3 or 4. In other words, private tutoring. Trouble is, the parents who can afford private tutoring are already paying for it. Their kids have never been in public schools.
In churches, a congregation with a few dozen people will NOT be able to support a pastor unless the few dozen people are extremely rich. But if you are extremely rich, you are already paying a full-time counselor and a full-time Life Coach or whatever it's called.
A public school, or a church with a building and staff and pastor, must remain above a minimum size. Reducing below that minimum turns the institution into something entirely different, which requires an entirely different level of bureaucracy and financing.
Labels: Age of Stings, Language update
¶ 3:07 AM
