Homestead mailing list

[Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>]

On Jun 11, 2008, at 11:39 AM, Clansgian AT wmconnect.com wrote:

> > > Your view of good appointments differs from mine.
>
> My view of good appointments and your view of good appointments is  
> utterly
> beside the point.

Well, I want people to know how I feel about these things. So my views  
are quite the point to me.
It is almost certain that my views will have zero effect on what  
happens.

>  And I'd point out that's the whole point!  (Hey, I could
> write Jack Sparrow's lines for the next PotC!)

Fantasizing is healthy, go for it. What is the whole point?
> And it illustrates why the absolute minimum government is the only  
> sane
> stance.

Few believe that. Even most of those who pay lip service to the  
premise make hypocrites of themselves by their actions. Most want less  
government except for THEIR priorities and programs. Test this  
yourself. Make the short list of the functions you want government to  
be responsible for. Then ask your friends to do the same. Compare.
> What's it called ... thinking .... the Jeavons Paradox.  As  
> something becomes
> more efficient, we tend to use MORE of it rather than less.  Gas  
> being a good
> example.  As gas mileage went up, rather than entering a long age of  
> cheap
> transportation, we bought more cars and drove them longer distances.

Gas does not make determinations. People do.

I will have to research and think about this Jeavons Paradox. If your  
gardening becomes more efficient, will you just do more of it? Or will  
you expand your activities?
> One rarely escapes the paradox.  If 'competent' people had  
> prosecuted the
> wars in Afghanistan and Iraq with far less waste, history and human  
> nature show
> we would have waged MORE war, not less.   </HTML>

I don't see it.