Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

internetworkers - Re: [internetworkers] citizen apathy

internetworkers AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "David R. Matusiak" <dave AT matusiak.org>
  • To: internetworkers AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [internetworkers] citizen apathy
  • Date: Thu, 10 Oct 2002 21:08:11 -0400

i think you are both right -- in your own respective ways.

now, correct me if i'm wrong, but i feel that Eric is talking about "perceptions" and Steven is talking about "facts". and i would argue that neither can be discounted.

it is "generally perceived" that the Bushies are ultra-mega-billionaires with mad crazy connections in the oil industry. probably less commonly perceived is the notion that America loves us some oil. (i wish everyone in the USA was able to see this and then adjust their own consumption accordingly).

however, one cannot deny the staying power of facts in argument and they must be honored. it is nice to know all the intimate details of past goings-on, but what relevance can be transferred in light of "common (mis)perception"?

this is why i think both are important. for the most part, we should attempt to use facts to inform opinions. and maybe someday down the road we can make headway on this whole perception thing. ;)

thanks again for the debate. hopefully you'll stick around for the next wave.

On Thursday, October 10, 2002, at 07:49 PM, Steven Champeon wrote:

on Thu, Oct 10, 2002 at 04:10:29PM -0700, Eric Wolfram wrote:
At 03:36 PM 10/10/02 -0700, you wrote:
It's East Coast vs. West Coast in this rock-em sock-em dustup. Could
someone remind me what the original argument was about?

LOL. Since I'm the n00b on this great list, and out of respect for all the
good people who read this list, I graciously admit defeat. Mr. Champion is
obviously "true to his name" and I humble agree to his ample implications.
Specifically: The ruling Bush family isn't obscenely richer then almost
anyone on this planet, they don't make any money in the oil business, and
America is not dependent on oil at all.

I don't know who this Mr. Champion is, but he sure has a lot of funny
ideas. Fortunately, I don't actually subscribe to any of them, as you
can clearly see from my posts on the matter, if you'll take the time
to actually read them :)

Anyway. I'm done with this thread. It's obvious that asking for some
evidence is not only viewed as a ridiculous ploy, but when evidence is
offered, it's decried as an attempt to manipulate the flow of the
conversation. Quel Horreur!

Lest Earick's misrepresentations fool anyone here, I'd just like to
say that Mr. Wolfrum missed the point of what I was trying to say,
which was merely that his attempts to "follow the money" didn't make
any sense to me, and that painting a picture for rhetoric's sake is
fun, but not very useful if you're actually curious about the real
world and the way it works.

Of course Bush Pere made money consulting for oil companies, and of
course we're dependent on oil. But to single him or his bumbling
progeny out as some kind of Star Chamber ruling class is just funny
at best. If they were that rich, the President would be working for
/them/. Sadly, they're just cogs in a far wider machine.





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page