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Technology has always found its greatest consumer in a
nation's war and defense efforts. Since the last attempts at a
"Star Wars" defense system, has technology changed
considerably enough to make the latest Missile Defense
initiatives more successful? Can such an application of
science be successful? Is a militarized space inevitable,
necessary or impossible?
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(10899 previous messages)
rshow55
- 01:32pm Apr 1, 2003 EST (#
10900 of 10900)
Can we do a better job of finding truth? YES. Click
"rshow55" for some things Lchic and I have done and worked for
on this thread.
"It only prescribes consistency - that we
not have our actions (toward another) be out of harmony with
our desires (toward a reversed situation action). It tests
our moral coherence. If we violate the golden rule, then
we're violating the spirit of fairness and concern that lie
at the heart of morality. .
" The golden rule, with roots in a wide
range of world cultures, is well suited to be a standard to
which different cultures could appeal in resolving
conflicts. As the world becomes more and more a single
interacting global community, the need for such a common
standard is becoming more urgent."
A key issue, that I think is underappreciated, is deception
. We are all in need of correct information, for fundamental
reasons -- and we need it in such a complex world that we
cannot predict what facts that we have not checked we will
have to rely on. Lies, taken as correct, can and often do have
very bad consequences.
An essential requirement, to make the Golden Rule more
operational, is to find ways to increase the incidence of
factually correct information, and reduce the amount that is
deceptive.
Checking is a moral issue, as well as a practical one,
right here.
_______________
When Arab leaders say, with some plausibility, that
lying is the golden rule of the (Bush)
administration," - - that's cause for concern.
The golden rule is a condition of symmettry - not
necesarily charity.
The natural world is very full of different plants and
animals - in ecosystems - in all sorts of interaction.
Every species, and every system of species, involves
many cases of order and symmettry and
enough harmony for function in context.
What kind of order do we want?
What kind of symmettry?
There's an interesting kind of symmettry that I happen to
like. Enemies very often say things about each other that are
true.
If we could find ways to cut the deception some -
when it matters - we could make much safer and more decent
arrangements.
Some patterns of order are very much more desirable
than others.
Some patterns of symmettry are very much more
desirable than other.
There are a lot of things I'd like a chance to tell
Saddam and his followers about some things they might do, and
might ask for, to improve things.
If Inside Saddam's mind By Pepe Escobar http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC14Ak05.html
contains points that are true - there's room for improvement.
Not that the leader of Iraq is unique in having faults -
including serious ones.
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