It is the general board, but the subject matter of this discussion (while interesting to me) may be walking too close to the line of "political" for Scott (and others).

Libertarian ideas are not new to me (in a basic sense) + probably held more appeal to me 15 years ago (when I was reading Ayn Rand) than they do now, though I largely do still have those leanings (so find some agreement in some things you say). It represents an idealistic extreme, much like communism represents an extreme (that is idealistic to some people).

I like your "innocuous placeholder" government view, but I do find that there are areas where a government has something more to offer. Here is a concrete example (in my field): In science + technology, new ideas come out of early stage *fundamental* research. In industry, the focus is on profitability today. Industry is keen to fund research that has a decent likelihood of producing something useful in the short term. Fundamental research does not usually do that, but it is still valuable! A government institution (while possibly inefficient) can provide funding to fundamental research (that it would otherwise not get from industry), some of which is ground breaking + game changing + stimulates new industry (+ some of which is crap). This is simply because the government's priority is long term development of industry vs short term profitability for a specific corporation. That some of the research is not worth funding is irrelevant if some *fantastic* research does get funded. Think of it as early stage "early stage VC".

Imho, along those lines, one of the more important things to look at when choosing a government is do they have a long term view, or are the goals 4 years in nature!

So my point is that libertarianism, while good in some ways, is utopian... there is a balance point where we can obtain a maximum usefulness from government without undue waste. And of course the specific balance point is different for different people!

and by doom + gloom, I mean that I don't agree with the depth of your predictions, not that the predictions are wrong, not that repricing is bad, or that the binge is good (and I've commented for years that we've been experiencing significant inflation (contrary to "expert" commentary), through deflation of quality at constant price)...

I think we largely agree, except to the extent. Like before, I'd be happy to discuss further off the board, but I'd better stop here...

James...

posted by 67.158.74...

• Alright you Canadians, No Snaab, Wed, 24 Nov 2010 20:51:19
  • I thought this would be about two Thanksgiving holidays, MI-Roger , Sat, 27 Nov 2010 10:54:30
  • what gives? low interest rates ..., Trev, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 14:10:21
  • Echo bubbles, Reality, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 09:51:35
    • while I partially agree..., James, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 19:04:42
      • Re: while I partially agree..., Bill Homer , Fri, 26 Nov 2010 07:46:32
        • But at the same time..., Noel, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 14:43:47
        • it has been a contractor gravy train..., James, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 08:11:32
      • Re: while I partially agree..., Reality, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 20:27:19
        • Re: while I partially agree..., James, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 08:32:49
          • Re: while I partially agree..., Reality, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 10:16:04
            • Re: while I partially agree..., James, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 12:15:02
              • Re: while I partially agree..., Reality, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 13:10:00
                • buyer encouragement..., James, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 16:41:53
                  • Re: buyer encouragement..., Reality, Fri, 26 Nov 2010 18:17:47
                    • left vs right, James, Sat, 27 Nov 2010 09:02:34
                      • Multi-Dimensional, Reality, Sun, 28 Nov 2010 17:45:48
                        • balance + the Nolan chart, James, Mon, 29 Nov 2010 08:58:56
                          • Re: balance + the Nolan chart, Tim, Mon, 29 Nov 2010 19:18:09
                            • I'll guess I'll bite one last time I guess..., James, Tue, 30 Nov 2010 03:53:50 <-- Viewing This Message
                              • I was listening to the same NPR segment on Monday, Reality, Thu, 2 Dec 2010 22:42:27
                                • a different angle..., James, Sun, 5 Dec 2010 03:50:31
                                • NPR?, James, Sat, 4 Dec 2010 15:07:16
                                  • Re: NPR?, Reality, Tue, 7 Dec 2010 15:30:17
                                    • Re: NPR?, James, Wed, 8 Dec 2010 11:36:49
                                      • Agreement, Reality, Wed, 8 Dec 2010 14:58:07
                                        • Re: Agreement, James, Wed, 8 Dec 2010 16:13:40
  • Re: Alright you Canadians, James, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 08:39:28
  • Re: Alright you Canadians, JohnA , Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:43:14
  • Re: Alright you Canadians, gilbertb, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:15:06
  • Same down here in Australia..., sab, Wed, 24 Nov 2010 21:32:32
    • You haven't seen stupid house prices, No Snaab, Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:56:00

No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.

• Prev by Date: you want next level up. but why?, James, Tue, 30 Nov 2010 02:49:28
• Next by Date: Re: Phoenix Car show (No Saab & mini rant), Gargoyle, Tue, 30 Nov 2010 04:39:32
• Main General Bulletin Board

StateOfNine.com

SaabClub.com

Jak Stoll Performance

M Car Covers

Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2024 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]

Random Saabnet.com Member Gallery Photos (Click Image)