tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.comments2024-03-18T17:17:00.423+13:00Not PCPeter Cresswellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comBlogger53821125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-46508826672419190482024-03-18T17:17:00.423+13:002024-03-18T17:17:00.423+13:00Unless it’s a highly regulated or state-owned indu...Unless it’s a highly regulated or state-owned industry like public transport, in which case they treat consumers like cattle, or worse. Kiwiwithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10507667837257013301noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-75478730490659052702024-03-18T13:30:38.457+13:002024-03-18T13:30:38.457+13:00@ Tom: In our relationships with others, it's ...@ Tom: In our relationships with others, it's in our interests to find win-win outcomes. It's only the dishonest or incompetent who attempt to shortcut reality and get what they want from others without it. They always fail in the long run though. You're correct that this is often what people call "selfish" but it confuses the issue by implying that acting this way is in our self-interest, when in reality it's not. I can only presume that anyone honest who uses the term "selfish" to describe self-sabotaging behavior lacks a good understanding of what is in their interests and what is not.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-4479088760569419662024-03-18T11:30:26.857+13:002024-03-18T11:30:26.857+13:00AI _can_ improve the productivity of coders, but a...AI _can_ improve the productivity of coders, but at a cost: it increases code churn and complexity. <br /><br />It also most certainly _does_ introduce bugs; in extreme cases, hallucinating non-existent libraries and standard library functions. I've experienced the former myself, with an LLM coding tool writing code to consume a Lisp MQTT library that simply didn't exist.<br /><br />There's also the interesting question of whether an LLM model trained on code constitutes a derivative work of that code. If the courts rule that it does, many of the existing LLMs will need re-work, because they've been trained on code release under licenses that constrain derivative works.<br /><br />The author is correct that LLMs will change many lines of work. But it's a massively over-hyped technology, in a similar way that autonomous cars were overhyped. <br /><br />In fact, autonomous cars are a great example. Cruise had to employ ~ 1.5 human supervisors per "autonomous" car they produced, to the extent that there's a joke in Indian IT circles that AI stands for "Absent Indians". As with creative LLM tools, they are a great _aid_ to humans, but still require direct human oversight as they're not general AIs.Duncan Baynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08067439189657560427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-14876336944572211352024-03-18T11:02:45.074+13:002024-03-18T11:02:45.074+13:00... in case you're wondering who it is that...... in case you're wondering who it is that's shutting down TV news operations here.<br />Peter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-9125970530131120262024-03-17T07:40:47.353+13:002024-03-17T07:40:47.353+13:00I just read this substack article the other day an...I just read this substack article the other day and thought back to this whole debate and what it means for our political and civil society, <a href="https://newsfromuncibal.substack.com/p/know-your-enemy" rel="nofollow">Know Your Enemy</a>, where he looks at British conservative political philosopher Oakeshott:<br /><br /><i>Unless you are an unusually decisive person there will have been at least one episode in your life when you have agonised about such a choice. And though you probably didn’t think about it this way at the time, there would no doubt have been a small part (perhaps a big part) of you that actually would have quite liked to not have to make the decision at all – or, better yet, have some higher power make it on your behalf.<br /><br />And we likewise also I think have all had moments in our lives when we have been stressed, depressed, bereaved, or just very tired, and have wanted to withdraw from the cold, hard world and retreat, literally or metaphorically, back under the bed covers.<br />...<br />Here, Oakeshott’s prognosis was bleak: modernity was one long, sad tale in which the propensity to adopt the perspective of the individual manqué was growing ever stronger among Western populations. The desire to engage with life as an autonomous, responsible, self-governing agent was diminishing; it was being replaced by an obsession with security and an acceptance of ‘servility’ as the price to pay for safety.</i><br /><br />And if there are politicians out there who tell people that if they vote a certain way they won’t have to make as many decisions in life, because the politicians will make those for the voter, then the ‘individual manqués’ will naturally go for it and the pressure will grow on the individualists to increasingly just throw in the towel on their decisions as well – or at least a lot of them.<br /><br />Say hello to the British Labour Party and New Zealand Labour and every other Left-wing party in the West - with our modern "right-wing" parties not far behind them.Tom Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17840988228699338463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-2660295328619352192024-03-15T13:23:26.189+13:002024-03-15T13:23:26.189+13:00@Tom: It's a fact that most honest people live...@Tom: It's a fact that most honest people live their own lives with implicit self-interest at least, else they wouldn't survive and do as well as they do.<br /><br />But that's not what's popularly equated as selfishness — which is more like the empty narcissists our culture calls “selfish.”<br /><br />Ayn Rand called the example of those empty narcissists 'selfishness without a self.'<br /><br />Don Watkins writes about it <a href="https://www.earthlyidealism.com/p/the-only-argument-against-egoism" rel="nofollow">here</a>: https://www.earthlyidealism.com/p/the-only-argument-against-egoismPeter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-10379016619729921482024-03-15T10:41:49.133+13:002024-03-15T10:41:49.133+13:00I've long thought that any time people talk ab...I've long thought that any time people talk about self-interest they need to show some explicit differences between that and selfishness.<br /><br />That's because the altruism folk actually "win" their arguments in public as much by conflating the self-interest and selfishness as by going on about giving and kindness and so forth.<br /><br />Sp PC, do you have any source recommended that tackles that difference in basic terms that can be used in everyday life?Tom Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17840988228699338463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-51759009084621609772024-03-14T23:06:04.855+13:002024-03-14T23:06:04.855+13:00I partly agree in that the path to happiness is se...I partly agree in that the path to happiness is seldom found entirely in taking concrete actions such as those suggested by Tony Robbins. Yet it’s also seldom found in abstract goals such as searching for your inner vision, and denying action till you’ve found it. That’s not necessarily what the author is advocating, but it’s often the way advice like this is interpreted.<br /><br />More often the path to happiness is found from taking action first and then refining from that your vision, and further action. Not waiting for an abstract vision that inspires you before taking action. Action needs to come first, even if it’s terribly uncertain, and from that comes increasing certainty of what your next action should be.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-41953974360002788052024-03-14T22:03:40.436+13:002024-03-14T22:03:40.436+13:00I think the proper way to frame this is not to den...I think the proper way to frame this is not to deny that colonial powers got rich off the back of its colonies. If there wasn’t profit to be made from the colonies, there wouldn’t have been colonies. Acknowledge that they did become rich off the back of the colonies, and that the colonies grew richer too as a result. All trade is about win-win.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-86677190247398028812024-03-14T19:12:06.157+13:002024-03-14T19:12:06.157+13:00WRT this bullshit claim I've often thought tha...WRT this bullshit claim I've often thought that the best argument against it is the simple fact that Japan and Germany became immensely richer after they turfed their colonies and colonialist ideas.<br /><br />Of course the Far Lefters (Wallerstein and company), with their argument bleeding into "The Moderate Left", have simply re-purposed the colonialist argument into their critique of capitalism; outsourcing, etc.Tom Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17840988228699338463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-44830527386353998092024-03-14T16:03:56.032+13:002024-03-14T16:03:56.032+13:00Quite agree with Trevs_Elbow.
A large percentage...Quite agree with Trevs_Elbow. <br />A large percentage of Muslims do find the UK a good place to live, full of opportunities. How does this debunk the "myth" that Muslims are poorly integrated & uniquely hostile to the UK?<br /><br />There's an assumption here based on western standards of gratitude, but we're talking about the Islamic Worldview.Nigelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05853869607053608182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-37772106659333717442024-03-13T16:23:30.388+13:002024-03-13T16:23:30.388+13:00Very interesting and thought-provoking post.
Dave...Very interesting and thought-provoking post.<br /><br />Dave LennyDave Lennynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-49607098400551711332024-03-13T10:41:44.763+13:002024-03-13T10:41:44.763+13:00> ill-educated act
Lowering the quality of edu...> ill-educated act<br /><br />Lowering the quality of education has a political purpose.Duncan Baynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08067439189657560427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-35921508791422494992024-03-13T08:40:17.625+13:002024-03-13T08:40:17.625+13:00But what does polling of UK Muslims say about want...But what does polling of UK Muslims say about wanting to introduce Sharia law? What does polling of UK Muslims say about the role of women in society and the rights of women in society?<br /><br />Of course the UK is a land of opportunity for migrant Muslim populations when compared to places like Kashmir (War torn and not very wealthy), Pakistan ( a state on the verge of collapse and prone to all sorts of political machinations up to and including military backed coups etc), or parts of the Middle East ruled by authoritarian regimes (i.e. pretty much all of the region)<br /><br />The excerpt you have reproduced has nothing to say about the questions above which are cultural questions and go to the heart of whether UK Muslims in part or in whole are seeking to overturn UK cultural and legal norms (based on UK Common law) even though Muslims are a minority in that place.<br /><br />The whole place of Islam in the West is not a simple question viewed through a live and let live libertarian lens. And the reason for that is Islam is a totalitarian world view encompassing religion and law as a singular item without the Wests established, if a little frayed, separation of State and Religion. <br /><br />Islam brooks no competitor or opposing views once it has the ability to exercise political power in a place. This has been demonstrated over and over and over through Islams history since its inception in the 7th century A.D.<br /><br />Fundamentalist Islam is not a friend of a free Western cultural sphere. Never has been and never will be UNLESS the whole of Islam undertakes a reformation, which has a chance of happening close to zeroTrevs_elbownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-91229991599983815552024-03-11T12:33:59.808+13:002024-03-11T12:33:59.808+13:00Well said.
The only sense in which "the trad...Well said.<br /><br />The only sense in which "the traditional economic model" should be adjusted is that perhaps the advertising market in our small nation could adequately finance one news service, but can't do TV1 and TV3 combined when TV1 is propped up by government. Perhaps if TV3 alone were in the market and TV1 weren't subsidised up to this point, there would be enough advertising revenue to at least sustain one.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-20401878382262660122024-03-07T23:11:10.001+13:002024-03-07T23:11:10.001+13:00That seems to be the exact right wing version of t...That seems to be the exact right wing version of the left wing argument against ‘hate speech’. Forget objective threats, it makes me fearful, therefore it should be criminalised to protect me from my fear.. I wonder, what’s a good term for the right wing version of what we call ‘snowflakes’ on the left?MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-38485011555922463932024-03-07T22:50:16.378+13:002024-03-07T22:50:16.378+13:00PC: if we had an abundance of politicians worthy o...PC: if we had an abundance of politicians worthy of our support I’d agree. Rule out those with any tinge of doubt on them, and just support those who don’t. But we don’t have that luxury. Therefore if someone appears to be going more good than harm, even if not perfect, isn’t it in our interest to give them the benefit of doubt rather than quickly dismiss them as scum? Is calling them all scum a rational or emotional response?MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-40088825279977600972024-03-07T10:05:09.700+13:002024-03-07T10:05:09.700+13:00@MarkT: Nah, I'd argue politicians are guilty ...@MarkT: Nah, I'd argue politicians are guilty until they prove themselves innocent. Especially when there's so little oversight of these expenses except for public derision.Peter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-69346771352607929802024-03-07T09:30:34.510+13:002024-03-07T09:30:34.510+13:00@Tinman: It's not within government's legi...@Tinman: It's not within government's legitimate ambit to police clothing, or signs.<br /><br />The only legitimate question to be answered for pre-emptive police action would be: "Does X constitute an objective threat." If 'X' were, say, my neighbour setting up a machine-gun nest on my boundary, then there's clearly a strong case for pre-emptive action (but, properly, I'd still need to argue that in a court of law). But a bit of cloth with a picture of a fist on it? Not so much.<br /><br />Physical intimidation itself is a threat — as is an actual threat, or an actual call for physical violence — and as such should of course be policed. As any good police force SHOULD be doing., and should have been doing for some time. There's no need to violate free speech to police those violations of legitimate law. <br /><br />As Mr Grant says "If a group is intimidating the public, they can and should be arrested; no matter what they are wearing. If they are wearing patches and not threatening the public they should remain outside the reach of the law." They need the former (they think) only because they're unwilling to properly tackle the latter. But they should.Peter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-90781086368343611512024-03-07T07:55:54.284+13:002024-03-07T07:55:54.284+13:00Oh, link works for me -- takes you to various vers...Oh, link works for me -- takes you to various versions of the book, in which you can then find the chapter.<br /><br />Yes, you're right, Mr Belloc is a mixed fellow: an inconsistent thinker, a clever children's poet; e.g., <br /><br />'The Microbe'<br />The Microbe is so very small <br />You cannot make him out at all, <br />But many sanguine people hope <br />To see him through a microscope.Peter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-24570710888386006622024-03-06T23:44:20.102+13:002024-03-06T23:44:20.102+13:00The link didn’t work, but I googled the author to ...The link didn’t work, but I googled the author to get a sense of what he was about and the context in which he made these statements. My understanding was somewhat vague and incomplete, so it’s possible I’ve got it wrong, but here’s where I got to:<br /><br />In the context in which he lived (2 world wars) , the “barbarian” was the omnipresent threat of war from aggressors, and this was the main threat to peace and rationality. So he was right to be castigating the barbarian.<br /><br />In the context in which we live, the “barbarian” is regarded as anyone who says something that may offend conventional sensibilities. Sensibilities that are often weak and soft and need to be offended to preserve liberty. So in that sense I’m happy to be the barbarian.<br /><br />Based on what I read about his personality and history, I’m unclear if he were alive today whether he would be for me or against me. I’m thinking more likely against me based on what I read, but I’d be pleased to be corrected.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-65565438057621651912024-03-06T16:30:25.387+13:002024-03-06T16:30:25.387+13:00Sir, I would agree if I considered, or you could c...Sir, I would agree if I considered, or you could convince me, that a gang "patch" was clothing<br /><br />It is not. It is a sign designed to intimidate. It is only "clothing" if anything people wear, watches, rings, jewellery, a tan is also classed as "clothing".<br /><br />Originally that sign was to intimidate other gangs' members but has been used for a long time now to intimidate the general public.<br /><br />The sign is in fact no different than, for instance, a button stating: "Jews Killed Christ" or a T-shirt bearing the words "All Muslims Are Terrorists".<br /><br />I have no doubt you, nor the apparently (based on his recent output) rather confused Mr Grant would object strongly to two examples being publicly displayed.<br /><br />I and many others, strongly object to a sign being worn that says: "Do as I say or my friends may injure you."Tinmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02749937729383913466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-77870067521747477802024-03-06T14:48:47.046+13:002024-03-06T14:48:47.046+13:00I have to largely agree with Ocean 1 on this one. ...I have to largely agree with Ocean 1 on this one. There's clearly some rorts going on, but I haven't seen enough evidence to convince me that everyone you quote is scum - in particular say Todd Stephenson of ACT who lives far down south. How do you know the costs he's claimed aren't the real and legitimate cost of his job?<br /><br />As for the semantics over what "entitlement" means, there's clearly two different definitions depending on context. One is what you should rightfully and legitimately claim. The other is an expectation you are owed something when morally you are not.MarkThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06199883270652041621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-24499773969897831572024-03-06T12:05:32.880+13:002024-03-06T12:05:32.880+13:00These particular entities didn't write the rul...These particular entities didn't write the rules.<br />And the taxpayer's defense against abuse of public office is to vote for someone else.<br />It won't have escaped your attention that this is what's just happened.<br />So yeah, I find your label unwarranted.<br /><br />PS: I didn't choose it, the page plucked it from google, it's more specific than "anonymous" and I'm happy with it. if you depend on attributing an opinion to a name I'd suggest you're likely more interested in playing the man rather than the ball.Ocean1https://www.blogger.com/profile/07822502156088362739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11906042.post-70495733493965270242024-03-06T11:24:27.722+13:002024-03-06T11:24:27.722+13:00@Ocean1: Indeed, I agree we should keep the contex...@Ocean1: Indeed, I agree we should keep the context fully in mind. <br />The context in this case being that these entities write the rules granting themselves these "entitlements," they write the rules taking that money from the taxpayer to pay them, and then they abuse the sense of responsibility that is the taxpayer's only defence against that abuse.<br />And you wonder why I would call them "scum," i.e., | noun | 1 : a layer of something unpleasant or unwanted that forms on top of a liquid; 2 : a dishonest, unkind, or unpleasant personPeter Cresswellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10699845031503699181noreply@blogger.com