Friday, June 21, 2019

The Near-Extinction of Thoughtfulness

News story:
Read this important terse analysis.

Two very similar reactions by two influential people:
He obviously intended to type “ensure” ("stupid threats like this ensure that they won’t"), but thought about it for a few seconds and decided, correctly, that “make it more likely” was more accurate...even though it's less snappily satisfying.

That pause for reflection, with diligent follow-thru, is a nearly extinct move (outside of the crustiest journalists...who are constantly punished by the Left for their measuredness). I treasure it when I spot it.
So that's the new-school approach: thinking/writing like an addled teenager. Trump didn't lose "some" credibility, or even just "credibility". He's lost all credibility. EVERY IOTA of it.


The second guy's an expert, and a lawyer, so if I were to challenge him on this, he'd sheepishly concede the overstatement. Whereas I'd imagine many readers will see no problem with it. Trump is the worst possible president (he's not. He's a mere "4". We're spoiled.), and has no credibility whatsoever (he has poor credibility). Every bad thing is the worst possible thing; every bad move is the worst possible move; and thus our species slogs miserably through utopia toward its inexorable extinction.

1 comment:

Anonymous coward said...

I agree. Both conservatives and liberals need to watch their bias. Conservatives are more likely to be in science denial in regards to climate change. Just as liberals are more likely to be in science denial in regards to vaccines. It is easy to just focus on the conservative flaws since a conservative president is in power.

On a side note, I am personally worried about automation and the loss of jobs and wages. As automation destroys jobs the supply of labor exceeds the demand driving down wages. I know I should be grateful, we are all spoiled, but I can't stop. This could lead to a high concentration of wealth and power. I wouldn't trust a liberal nor conservative with such power and wealth.

I used a self-checkout at the Giant since I was in a hurry and I felt conflicted.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/nov/24/four-futures-life-after-capitalism-peter-frase-review-robots

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