Comments on: Who Wants Security? http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/ Giorgio Maone's answers to the Web, the Universe, and Everything Tue, 06 Jan 2009 05:38:05 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.3 By: Marc Diethelm http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8565 Marc Diethelm Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:52:28 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8565 > Who Wants Security? Recent examples of people with too much power changing the law, so their crimes cannot be prosecuted: Berlusconi, US Telcos, Bush administration. And never forget Reagan and the Contras! > I just added software programmers to Hollywood stars who should better not use their "prominence" to espouse their political views. Better to stick with what you know. ;-) Completely disagree. Power attracts the corruptible. Absolute power attracts the absolutely corruptible. Best not to leave it to them, or else you'll end up with famine, trade wars, pollution, corruption, corporate crime, global warming, war mongering, insurgency, inflated prices, loss of liberty, unprecedented mass extinction, illiteracy, monopolies, inequality and arms races. Oh wait. Too late! Maybe if I 'stick to what I know' the problems will go away... ;-) > Who Wants Security?

Recent examples of people with too much power changing the law, so their crimes cannot be prosecuted: Berlusconi, US Telcos, Bush administration. And never forget Reagan and the Contras!

> I just added software programmers to Hollywood stars who should better not use their "prominence" to espouse their political views. Better to stick with what you know. ;-)

Completely disagree. Power attracts the corruptible. Absolute power attracts the absolutely corruptible. Best not to leave it to them, or else you’ll end up with famine, trade wars, pollution, corruption, corporate crime, global warming, war mongering, insurgency, inflated prices, loss of liberty, unprecedented mass extinction, illiteracy, monopolies, inequality and arms races. Oh wait. Too late! Maybe if I ’stick to what I know’ the problems will go away… ;-)

]]> By: Michael http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8555 Michael Mon, 07 Jul 2008 03:50:53 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8555 Compare what Laszlo (above) points to with this: Copy the Italian version to the clipboard and pass it through Google Translate (or use the URL if you prefer). There are significant differences in wording to a native English speaker (spin?). It's a useful technique for finding out what's going on outside the 'anglosphere'. Compare what Laszlo (above) points to with this: Copy the Italian version to the clipboard and pass it through Google Translate (or use the URL if you prefer). There are significant differences in wording to a native English speaker (spin?). It’s a useful technique for finding out what’s going on outside the ‘anglosphere’.

]]> By: Giorgio http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8548 Giorgio Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:48:54 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8548 @<b>dave</b>: By reading the Wikipedia article and your clarification, "uneconomic growth" is a process in which monetary growth becomes not "economically sustainable", and therefore makes "monetary degrowth" needed. But then, is there an English Wikipedia entry talking about this kind of "necessary" degrowth, or slow down (<em>décroissance</em>), as suggested by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Georgescu-Roegen" rel="nofollow">Georgescu-Roegen</a>'s "entropy law"? @dave:
By reading the Wikipedia article and your clarification, “uneconomic growth” is a process in which monetary growth becomes not “economically sustainable”, and therefore makes “monetary degrowth” needed.
But then, is there an English Wikipedia entry talking about this kind of “necessary” degrowth, or slow down (décroissance), as suggested by Georgescu-Roegen’s “entropy law”?

]]> By: dave http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8547 dave Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:24:03 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8547 You're being mislead by the fact that the Wikipedia article is using English economic jargon. "Degrowth", as described in the article you linked to, refers to an economic path which contracts traditional monetary measures, but increases broader well being. "Uneconomic growth" refers to the opposite -- an economic path which increases traditional monetary measures, but decreases broader well being. So it's a negative word, but it describes the _opposite_ process. There is a specific effort in modern English-speaking economics to constantly point out that economics is about well being, for which money is only rarely a good substitute measure. The phrase "economic growth" is used when you want to talk about broader well being rather than just money. The article you linked to is talking about what an English-speaking economist would call "monetary degrowth" -- thus "economic degrowth" as the alternate name for what's in the Wikipedia article. So the phrase makes a strong lexical point, but exactly the opposite of the one you thought. You’re being mislead by the fact that the Wikipedia article is using English economic jargon. "Degrowth", as described in the article you linked to, refers to an economic path which contracts traditional monetary measures, but increases broader well being. "Uneconomic growth" refers to the opposite — an economic path which increases traditional monetary measures, but decreases broader well being. So it’s a negative word, but it describes the _opposite_ process.

There is a specific effort in modern English-speaking economics to constantly point out that economics is about well being, for which money is only rarely a good substitute measure. The phrase "economic growth" is used when you want to talk about broader well being rather than just money. The article you linked to is talking about what an English-speaking economist would call "monetary degrowth" — thus "economic degrowth" as the alternate name for what’s in the Wikipedia article.

So the phrase makes a strong lexical point, but exactly the opposite of the one you thought.

]]> By: Giorgio http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8545 Giorgio Sun, 06 Jul 2008 21:51:36 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8545 @<b>laszlo</b>: thanks for the hint, and yes, I agree that the lexical choice is quite eloquent. @laszlo:
thanks for the hint, and yes, I agree that the lexical choice is quite eloquent.

]]> By: laszlo http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8544 laszlo Sun, 06 Jul 2008 21:42:36 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8544 [2] The linked article is the first Google Search result in English for 'Degrowth', and likely a good introductory resource. While both Italian and French Wikipedia sites have articles about this topic, I could not find anything on the English site. Why? Because in English it's commonly called 'uneconomic growth' instead of 'economic degrowth''? On the other hand the selection of a negative rather than a neutral term for the same thing says enough about the general attitude towards it in the Anglosphere. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uneconomic_growth [2] The linked article is the first Google Search result in English for ‘Degrowth’, and likely a good introductory resource. While both Italian and French Wikipedia sites have articles about this topic, I could not find anything on the English site. Why?

Because in English it’s commonly called ‘uneconomic growth’ instead of ‘economic degrowth”? On the other hand the selection of a negative rather than a neutral term for the same thing says enough about the general attitude towards it in the Anglosphere.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uneconomic_growth

]]> By: Peter Lairo http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8542 Peter Lairo Sun, 06 Jul 2008 21:37:41 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8542 <blockquote>BTW, are you really a fellow Pastafarian?</blockquote> Of course. It's the only true religion ... just like all other religions. ;-)

BTW, are you really a fellow Pastafarian?

Of course. It’s the only true religion … just like all other religions. ;-)

]]> By: Giorgio http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8540 Giorgio Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:53:30 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8540 @<b>Peter Lairo</b>: BTW, are you really a fellow Pastafarian? @Peter Lairo:
BTW, are you really a fellow Pastafarian?

]]> By: Peter Lairo http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8539 Peter Lairo Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:03:20 +0000 http://hackademix.net/2008/07/06/who-wants-security/#comment-8539 I just added software programmers to Hollywood stars who should better not use their "prominence" to espouse their political views. Better to stick with what you know. ;-) I just added software programmers to Hollywood stars who should better not use their "prominence" to espouse their political views. Better to stick with what you know. ;-)

]]>