Skip to main content

Reagan and Camelot




All too often we hear from Republicans the resonance of past, Ronald Reagan.  There has become a purity test, not unlike a litmus test, for all contenders. Who can most resemble Reagan?  Who can take us back to Camelot?  

This seems to be one fundamental critique of the candidacy of Donald Trump.  He is definitely not a reborn Reagan and doesn’t even so pretend, though the last two standing try to outbid each other for this mantle.   Like it or not, Reagan is gone, not to be reborn anytime soon.  What the “Donald” has done is energize a new base of folks, not unlike Reagan, to a new banner.  It has incensed the old guard who is trying hard to displace him.  The replacement for the displaced is someone they also don’t like, but as luck would have it, dislike less than the evil incarnate Donald. 

Like him or not, Trump has brought forth new ideas mixed with a blend of the old. He has involved and energized many more people than the Republican establishment could ever do.  He is also loud, crude, and disorganized.  To the Republicans, he has become a curse upon what should be, what could be, and what must be.   He must go!!

And probably he will go leaving the very rich entrenched promoters happy but unhappy with their only real alternative.   The election will likely be a contest between the old guards on both sides, each trying to live in their youth or childhood, projecting what was into the future.   All this demonstrates that conservatism dominates both camps.  Yes. All this portends a new President trying to preside from a past now long gone.   Each will be armed with about two pages of talking points and will not dare deviate or improvise one single bit. 

My goodness, are we come to this?  We don’t have a poverty of choice, a confusion of choice, or a medley of choice.  We have no choice.  The one may spend us into annihilation, the other may lead us to a war of the same. Trump could do both.

If a college or even high school education was a disqualification for political office, we might expect what we have.  But not these days.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Behavioral Science and Problem-Solving

I.                                       I.                 Introduction.                Concerning our general behavior, it’s high about time we all had some understanding of how we operate on ourselves, and it is just as important how we are operated on by others. This is the wheelhouse of behavioral sciences. It is a vast subject. It touches our lives constantly. It’s influence is pervasive and can be so subtle we never notice it. Behavioral sciences profoundly affect our ability and success at problem-solving, from the elementary level to highly complex wicked problems. This is discussed in Section IV. We begin with the basics of behavioral sciences, Section II, and then through the lens of multiple categories and examples, Section III. II.     ...

Where is AI (Artificial Intelligence) Going?

  How to view Artificial Intelligence (AI).  Imagine you go to the store to buy a TV, but all they have are 1950s models, black and white, circular screens, picture rolls, and picture imperfect, no remote. You’d say no thanks. Back in the day, they sold wildly. The TV was a must-have for everyone with $250 to spend* (about $3000 today). Compared to where AI is today, this is more or less where TVs were 70 years ago. In only a few decades AI will be advanced beyond comprehension, just like TVs today are from the 50s viewpoint. Just like we could not imagine where the video concept was going back then, we cannot really imagine where AI is going. Buckle up. But it will be spectacular.    *Back then minimum wage was $0.75/hr. Thus, a TV cost more than eight weeks' wages. ------------------------- 

Principles of Insufficiency and Sufficiency

   The principles we use but don't know it.  1.      Introduction . Every field, scientific or otherwise, rests on foundational principles—think buoyancy, behavior, or democracy. Here, we explore a unique subset: principles modified by "insufficiency" and "sufficiency." While you may never have heard of them, you use them often. These terms frame principles that blend theory, practicality, and aspiration, by offering distinct perspectives. Insufficiency often implies inaction unless justified, while sufficiency suggests something exists or must be done. We’ll examine key examples and introduce a new principle with potential significance. As a principle of principles of these is that something or some action is not done enough while others may be done too much. The first six (§2-6) of our principles are in the literature, and you can easily search them online. The others are relatively new, but fit the concepts in the real world. At times, these pri...