Recently a model 1873 Winchester carbine was discovered in a national park. It was manufactured in 1882 but it's unknown when it was left in the park since many of those weapons are still in use after a century. The rifle had been there long enough for the stock to weather like and old fence rail and the metal to collect a patina of rust. The point is that quality material and workmanship created a mechanical device in the 19th century that possibly survived the elements for 130 years.
The rifle's survival is not so unique since museums are filled with the relics of past centuries. In the early 20th century: children played with cast iron toys, porcelain dolls and real wood blocks; important documents were written on parchment and books printed on high quality rag paper. Buildings were constructed of bricks and stone. Things were made to last and often served generations. A time capsule from 1795 containing relics from America's revolutionary era was opened this year in Boston. The rifle and Paul Reverie's silver attest to the fact that quality survives.
World War Two left much of the world in ruins and for the most part the survivors were more interested in building new than saving the old. A lot of heritage was burned and buried to make room for the new. A mystique built up around a throwaway society. Building new fed economies with a constant demand for replacements.
Don't repair; buy new toasters, automobiles even buildings creating more jobs and more wealth. Creating quality with parchment, iron, stone and steel gave way to disposable composites. Why worry, things only had to last a generation before being torn down, melted or buried to make room for taller buildings, bigger coliseums, fancier cars, flashy toys and the latest kitchen gadgets. Sometimes the latest didn't even last a generation before ending up on a trash pile, broken victims of new fads of the throwaway culture. Even grandma's heirloom jewelry sank into the melting pot to for a more modern rebirth.
A few poor examples of the era, discovered in long forgotten warehouses, now bring high prices at antique auctions. Its probable that dealers will soon flock to once closed societies like Cuba where heritage rests in a post war time warp. They had better move fast for the throwaway culture will soon export plastic replacements.
Archeologist of the future may only have a few bits of biodegraded plastic to judge the 21st century's throwaway culture. They will still have the pottery, gold and glass of prehistory to attest to the decline of civilizations.
The 1873 Winchester will probably still be around, but what from this century will be in time capsules and cornerstones of buildings torn down each generation? What relics will the archeologist discover when they open our landfill mounds? What quality relics will be saved to mark the passing of this century? It is possible that the only antiques of the 21st century to reach the 22nd will be old people maintained by new life support.
Saturday, January 24, 2015
Conflict 011115
It has been generally accepted that babies are born as blank slates where everything is yet to be written. Science has proven newborns are more like blackboards covered with fine chalk dust left by prenatal experiences. Acknowledging Genes, DNA, mothers who listen to classical music or abuse drugs, all babies are open to environmental input and delivered into a human world at war with itself.
From the days of the cavemen type "A" personalities have risen to leadership by blaming "Those" other people. The first marks on babies' slates are about fear, anger and hate. Those ancient leaders conditioned their followers to the ideas that it was Those other people who are responsible for all the troubles. Over time and despite "civilized enlightenment" demonization continues to seize whole populations. Conflicts raged to exhaustion only to rise again on new generations repeating old allegations.
By age 12 children have developed most of their core values and beliefs. The scribbling on the slates come from parents, schoolmates, politicians and doom merchants. Few ever question the truth of various claims because they are constantly reinforced within a given culture. The other guys are evil; they are responsible for all your woes. Similar to Stone Age leaders, modern opinion mavens amplify, broadcast and focus attention on Those people and away from their own failures. The demonization spans generations and it is difficult to break the convenience of suspicion and blame of Those people.
Early Christians found it convenient to blame the Jews for all their troubles. Hundreds of years later these spurious charges directly led to the Holocaust. For a while after the end of WWII anti Semitic rhetoric died down but the old claims are again being widely circulated. The Cold War began decades before there ever was a Soviet Union. Marx published his manifesto as the world began to industrialized and emerging capitalist sized on its rumored contents to attribute all labor disputes as foreign Communist inspired. When the Soviets overthrew a corrupt regime in Russia the capitalist found communist revolutionaries behind every rock to justify violent suppression of workers. Decades of demonizing Communism prevented any peace as the Soviets gave in to their own fears and demonic rhetoric. The Soviet Union has been gone for almost three decades but old cold warriors on all sides are again stirring the same old rhetorical pot.
Everyone has had a shot at bringing peace between Israel and Palestine over the decades but that conflict lingers. While the antagonist have grown old and seek a settlement the babies born during the conflict were conditioned by mutual demonization and now keep the culture of conflict spinning across the region.
All efforts to break the free of racism, xenophobia and the quest for political advantages are doomed to fail by the constant regeneration of ancient fears. Resolution intentions are at the mercy of politicians, clerics, business interest and media characters that see it is in their own interest to socialize new generations into the culture of conflict.
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Outsource 011115
Buy new tech devices on the market today and if there is any documentation included its writing has probably been outsourced to non-native speaking students. After becoming totally confused, find the support telephone number. With a sense of relief dial the number and after navigating through the button menu drill a discovery is made that another group of students in a different country are manning the outsourced help desk. It's soon apparent that their translation of the translation has also confused them. Attempts at clarification of the resulting confusions are now a chaotic brain melt.
Why do billion dollar companies outsource their support desks to China, India, Mexico, Philippines, etc? Simple poor students there work cheap.
Students aren't the only poor and help desk aren't the only outsourced occupations. The textile industry is an example of outsourcing, outsourcing. Fabric in woven in one country, cut in another and sewing in still another before receiving name brand labels in a fourth. The cottage industries of the 18th and 19th century are now the mainstays of international commerce. Automobile component production is outsourced around the globe. Banks and insurance companies outsource administration and risk. Even giant corporations are outsourcing themselves to foreign countries for tax advantages. The good news is that products and services are cheaper; poor people are eating; education and skills diffusion is lighting up the darkest parts of the world. All this made possible by instantaneous communication and fast delivery systems.
The bad news is that outsourcing is addictive quickly becoming a dependency even for governments. Many national armies now depend on sophisticated foreign support and manufactured weapons systems. Super smart electronics depend on components outsourced to SE Asia. In the continuing Afghan/ Iraq wars the American Army outsources many of the task normally preformed by soldiers to foreign companies. These companies do KP, stand guard and even drive massive Mercedes "honey wagons"
making the rounds of foreign porta-potties on "secure" bases. Washington saw outsourcing security and services for the Army as a way to keep down the numbers reported to Congress. Successful in deceiving Congress and the public the government is now the Mecca of outsourcing as Washington fills with outsourcing reps biding on contracts for both domestic and foreign jobs once accomplished by government agencies. City governments were quick to follow Washington's lead outsourcing procurements off shore or to domestic companies. There are now more rent-a-cops protecting the country than official police forces. Often cities fly American flags made in Taiwan. With outsourcing the true size of government is deceiving those paying the bills.
Not to be out done, criminal organizations now outsource frauds, scams, identity theft, drugs even human trafficking. Greater profit for less risk while blaming crime on foreigners. Those irritating mealtime calls shows that even telemarketers now outsource.
Before picking up a phone, outsource to a foreign answering service for a little get even.
Why do billion dollar companies outsource their support desks to China, India, Mexico, Philippines, etc? Simple poor students there work cheap.
Students aren't the only poor and help desk aren't the only outsourced occupations. The textile industry is an example of outsourcing, outsourcing. Fabric in woven in one country, cut in another and sewing in still another before receiving name brand labels in a fourth. The cottage industries of the 18th and 19th century are now the mainstays of international commerce. Automobile component production is outsourced around the globe. Banks and insurance companies outsource administration and risk. Even giant corporations are outsourcing themselves to foreign countries for tax advantages. The good news is that products and services are cheaper; poor people are eating; education and skills diffusion is lighting up the darkest parts of the world. All this made possible by instantaneous communication and fast delivery systems.
The bad news is that outsourcing is addictive quickly becoming a dependency even for governments. Many national armies now depend on sophisticated foreign support and manufactured weapons systems. Super smart electronics depend on components outsourced to SE Asia. In the continuing Afghan/ Iraq wars the American Army outsources many of the task normally preformed by soldiers to foreign companies. These companies do KP, stand guard and even drive massive Mercedes "honey wagons"
making the rounds of foreign porta-potties on "secure" bases. Washington saw outsourcing security and services for the Army as a way to keep down the numbers reported to Congress. Successful in deceiving Congress and the public the government is now the Mecca of outsourcing as Washington fills with outsourcing reps biding on contracts for both domestic and foreign jobs once accomplished by government agencies. City governments were quick to follow Washington's lead outsourcing procurements off shore or to domestic companies. There are now more rent-a-cops protecting the country than official police forces. Often cities fly American flags made in Taiwan. With outsourcing the true size of government is deceiving those paying the bills.
Not to be out done, criminal organizations now outsource frauds, scams, identity theft, drugs even human trafficking. Greater profit for less risk while blaming crime on foreigners. Those irritating mealtime calls shows that even telemarketers now outsource.
Before picking up a phone, outsource to a foreign answering service for a little get even.
Saturday, January 10, 2015
Blinders 010515
Back in the horse and buggy days blinders were often worn by horses to keep them from being distracted by the events around them. In today's supersonic world it seems that it's the drivers that are wearing blinders, maintaining their view of the horse's rear end.
Governments may still be enraptured by their limited view of horses' rears but it's a New World that the blinders are hiding. Actually New World geopolitical realities may not be all that new as the current dynamics look a lot like those of the 19th century. Public corruption is rampant, robber barons are now international cartels, law enforcement violently suppresses all dissent, imperialist powers jockey for territorial control, labor is oppressed by big business and big business openly buys legislators and favorable protections support by creative judicial interpretations.
The most disturbing trend however is the slow disappearance of the middle classes. It is not the rich who advocate social equality, and it is not the poor that instigate social revolutions. The poor can't afford revolutions knowing they will bear the human cost. The rich oppose everything that threatens their position at the top of the food chain. It is a downward mobile middle class that embraces violent overthrow of the status quo. To paraphrase, "The rich get richer, the poor can't get any poorer so it's the middle where dissent grows."
Around the globe resistance is growing and violence increasing. Focused on the horses' bottoms politicians find excuses, "foreign influences, criminal elements, minorities, radicals or terrorist" and order ever-greater police oppression. History is replete, from Cossacks to company police to law enforcement and eventually regular armies are called in to break a few heads in support of the powerful. There are always enough that enjoy cracking heads so dissent become resistance. Politicians are quick to fill prisons with political prisoners. Contrary to political claims insurgencies do not just happen, nor are they foreign inspired. They are purely domestic in origin and the result political blunders, lack of solutions, attempted public deceptions and violent over reactions.
All dissent does not lead to insurgency but broad common anger and charismatic leadership can quickly tear the nations' social fabric. A hostile foreign power can not start an insurgency but it can provide material support and recognition to insurgents, leading to civil wars and eventual State collapse. A State that has angered its neighbors in the past may well find that they are supporting natives intent on its overthrow.
In pursuit of power politicians pour rhetorical gas on the fires of dissent, cut the budget of fire fighters and enact draconian head cracking laws that overcrowd prisons where violence is taught. This is a wide spread global problem, which is contagious and ignores borders. It is time for politicians pull their heads out, expand their vision from the horse's rear and come to understand that they do not rule people but rather they govern for the people. They should look around, stop being part of the problem, innovate solutions and exercise real leadership before the horses dump in their laps.
Governments may still be enraptured by their limited view of horses' rears but it's a New World that the blinders are hiding. Actually New World geopolitical realities may not be all that new as the current dynamics look a lot like those of the 19th century. Public corruption is rampant, robber barons are now international cartels, law enforcement violently suppresses all dissent, imperialist powers jockey for territorial control, labor is oppressed by big business and big business openly buys legislators and favorable protections support by creative judicial interpretations.
The most disturbing trend however is the slow disappearance of the middle classes. It is not the rich who advocate social equality, and it is not the poor that instigate social revolutions. The poor can't afford revolutions knowing they will bear the human cost. The rich oppose everything that threatens their position at the top of the food chain. It is a downward mobile middle class that embraces violent overthrow of the status quo. To paraphrase, "The rich get richer, the poor can't get any poorer so it's the middle where dissent grows."
Around the globe resistance is growing and violence increasing. Focused on the horses' bottoms politicians find excuses, "foreign influences, criminal elements, minorities, radicals or terrorist" and order ever-greater police oppression. History is replete, from Cossacks to company police to law enforcement and eventually regular armies are called in to break a few heads in support of the powerful. There are always enough that enjoy cracking heads so dissent become resistance. Politicians are quick to fill prisons with political prisoners. Contrary to political claims insurgencies do not just happen, nor are they foreign inspired. They are purely domestic in origin and the result political blunders, lack of solutions, attempted public deceptions and violent over reactions.
All dissent does not lead to insurgency but broad common anger and charismatic leadership can quickly tear the nations' social fabric. A hostile foreign power can not start an insurgency but it can provide material support and recognition to insurgents, leading to civil wars and eventual State collapse. A State that has angered its neighbors in the past may well find that they are supporting natives intent on its overthrow.
In pursuit of power politicians pour rhetorical gas on the fires of dissent, cut the budget of fire fighters and enact draconian head cracking laws that overcrowd prisons where violence is taught. This is a wide spread global problem, which is contagious and ignores borders. It is time for politicians pull their heads out, expand their vision from the horse's rear and come to understand that they do not rule people but rather they govern for the people. They should look around, stop being part of the problem, innovate solutions and exercise real leadership before the horses dump in their laps.
Darkness 121214
Politicians and media embrace simple explanations of events. It could be that they are simple minded but its more likely that they are insulting the public with their self image of superiority. It is easy to see that they often feel that the public is to stupid to notice their deceptions and outright lies in pursuit of their own agendas.
Unfortunately these gatekeepers of knowledge are not far wrong. The public is complicit in its increasing ignorance. In the not to distance past people read, anything and everything including many competing newspapers. Newspapers were never all that trustworthy with, "just the facts" nor the truth but readers could usually pin down who said what, when, where, how and sometimes even why. Print has fallen on sad times. Remaining major newspapers have slipped from a hundred pages a day to maybe that many a week, even the comics have slimmed down. Serious books once measured in pounds with thousands of pages have been replace by electronic books of 20 pages, 50 if there is enough sex included.
Politicians love the new reality; they can throw out a quick sound bite on any subject and deny they said it because it's not easy to track. The electronic media love sound bites because they fit between commercials. The public loves sound bites because they can seem intelligent without having to study or dirty their fingers with printer's ink. Born and matured in the 20th century electronic media is casting darkness over the 21st century.
The reality is that events are the products of a confluence of many factors that react in a particular time and space moment. A plane crashed, the sound bite "pilot error." The facts might be the ground controller spilled hot coffee in his lap and lost focus while ice built up on the wings because a mechanic left a rag in a poorly designed vent and the pilot missed it all because he was studying the latest government regulation, get the picture?
Television is blamed for the death of print, but think about it. Buy a new four-foot television and tune into one of the many news shows for the latest jokes and sound bites. There are three different messages speeding across the bottom of the screen while two more are crawling the other direction across the top, on the right is a column of some unrelated information. Viewers are left watching a ten-inch picture of some visual while a disembodied voice talks about something else; confusion replaces enlightenment. Independent studies have shown that people who receive all their news by television are less informed than people who receive no direct information.
The new Dark Age will have bright lights, color, music and laughs but contribute little to knowledge. Knowledge in the 21st century is not carved in stone nor inscribed on parchment. A thousand years from now space travelers studying our century will open our time capsules and find biodegraded CDs. Of course there may be a few isolated monks hiding in decaying libraries inscribing the decline and fall of mankind on a more permanent medium. Is there hope, sure light a candle in the darkness by demanding real explanations, debate and answers recorded in real libraries.
Unfortunately these gatekeepers of knowledge are not far wrong. The public is complicit in its increasing ignorance. In the not to distance past people read, anything and everything including many competing newspapers. Newspapers were never all that trustworthy with, "just the facts" nor the truth but readers could usually pin down who said what, when, where, how and sometimes even why. Print has fallen on sad times. Remaining major newspapers have slipped from a hundred pages a day to maybe that many a week, even the comics have slimmed down. Serious books once measured in pounds with thousands of pages have been replace by electronic books of 20 pages, 50 if there is enough sex included.
Politicians love the new reality; they can throw out a quick sound bite on any subject and deny they said it because it's not easy to track. The electronic media love sound bites because they fit between commercials. The public loves sound bites because they can seem intelligent without having to study or dirty their fingers with printer's ink. Born and matured in the 20th century electronic media is casting darkness over the 21st century.
The reality is that events are the products of a confluence of many factors that react in a particular time and space moment. A plane crashed, the sound bite "pilot error." The facts might be the ground controller spilled hot coffee in his lap and lost focus while ice built up on the wings because a mechanic left a rag in a poorly designed vent and the pilot missed it all because he was studying the latest government regulation, get the picture?
Television is blamed for the death of print, but think about it. Buy a new four-foot television and tune into one of the many news shows for the latest jokes and sound bites. There are three different messages speeding across the bottom of the screen while two more are crawling the other direction across the top, on the right is a column of some unrelated information. Viewers are left watching a ten-inch picture of some visual while a disembodied voice talks about something else; confusion replaces enlightenment. Independent studies have shown that people who receive all their news by television are less informed than people who receive no direct information.
The new Dark Age will have bright lights, color, music and laughs but contribute little to knowledge. Knowledge in the 21st century is not carved in stone nor inscribed on parchment. A thousand years from now space travelers studying our century will open our time capsules and find biodegraded CDs. Of course there may be a few isolated monks hiding in decaying libraries inscribing the decline and fall of mankind on a more permanent medium. Is there hope, sure light a candle in the darkness by demanding real explanations, debate and answers recorded in real libraries.
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