[lit-ideas] Re: perfection
- From: "Veronica Caley" <molleo1@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2012 18:00:59 -0400
I am skeptical re this:"The Swedes are reputedly considering legislation to
regulate a man's excretory posture.)"
I am a great fan of e-books. My only complaint with them is that I can't read
maps, genealogical tables and such. So I do that on the computer. Being able
to read inexpensively is only part of the question. The other ibis what people
are reading. I have not read a book recommended by a friend in years, except
here and there some nut case lady detective hero.
I disagree with your comment re over regulation by government. For starters, I
would regulate every bank operating in Europe and North America. As things
now stand, many of them are still too big to fail, that is, will need tax payer
bail out sometime in the future.
Re education availability on line is a wonderful thing. Unfortunately,
education ought to include ethics and I don't see that except as an academic
endeavor, not as a way of life for millions of us. And many who viewed hier
education as a path to a job is probably not going to avail himself of on line
courses from great universities.
More sad news today re civilization: All CA state parks but one will be shut
down. The exception is being paid for by a millionaire.
Re population, I don't worry about decline in numbers. I worry more about
breeding ourselves off the planet if not by eating everything but running out
of water. The Muslims will make up for population decline among European and
North Americans of European stock. That is a worry for Christians. I only
care about extreme moral rules by any religion, especially as they fall on
women. And the inclination of religions to intrude themselves into the
political process to push their views on people not of their faith.
Veronica Caley
Milford, MI
----- Original Message -----
From: Thomas Hart
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, June 18, 2012 9:12 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: perfection
Civilization may be in decline, but the symptoms are not those that Ms. Caley
suggests. I would suggest that a more pertinent symptom is the omnipresent
desire to invade even the most intimate details of a person's life. (The Swedes
are reputedly considering legislation to regulate a man's excretory posture.)
Couple that with a declining birth rate, government over-regulation, and the
looming fiscal disaster that threatens to engulf Europe and the West, and you
have better signs of Western decline/suicide.
As to the bookmobile, might I point out that all of those books were at one
time bought. He might be distributing his own, or he might be distributing
donations, in which case he may simply be a parasite, preying upon people's
charitable impulses to attain fame, good repute, etc.
More promising though is the existence of Amazon, Apple, and others that are
in the ebook business. The cost of books that aren't on dead trees is usually
far lower (free, $.99, 9.99 being typical prices) than books on paper. They
take up less room. They do less damage to forests, though that is negated by
the tendency of legislatures to churn multi-thousand page laws. You can also
find an enormous library of classic and not so classic lit on the web.
iTunes U, Udacity, Mitx, and similar ventures bring quality education to a
vaster audience than is possible through standard means. My wife just finished
a Yale course on the history of epidemics, and we're doing a Harvard class on
Jewish and Christian views of the Hebrew Bible. I've done classes from MIT,
Yale, Berkeley, Missouri State, and Notre Dame.
The big question is whether the forces of progress, i.e., capitalism and free
markets, or the forces of tyranny, big government, oppressive taxation,
religious oppression, going to win.
"All women are created equal.
Then some become Marines"
Katy Perry video for "Part of me"
Thomas Hart
tehart@xxxxxxx
On Jun 18, 2012, at 12:06 PM, Veronica Caley wrote:
What a wonderful thing to hear. In contrast, we are closing down libraries
or limiting hours, while shortening school days or increasing class size.
Measure of a civilization in decline I think.
Veronica Caley
Milford, MI
----- Original Message -----
From: Julie Krueger
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, June 17, 2012 12:00 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] perfection
Argentina-based Raul Lemesoff created the Arma De Instruccion Masiva
(Weapon of Mass Instruction), a converted 1979 Ford Falcon formerly belonging
to the Argentine armed forces, to distribute free books to people on the
streets of Buenos Aires.
Julie Krueger
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