Category Archives: Technology and Society

Business, Economics, Media Criticism, Political Commentary, Technology and Society

Crony Capitalism

10 Comments

The GOP needs to fight it by becoming the party of innovation:

This revelation, that new small businesses primarily create jobs and economic growth, demands a complete rethinking of economic policy for the United States. If Republicans understand this and thereby embrace the mantle of innovation, not only will they be expediting a new wave of ingenuity, but they will also share credit with entrepreneurs for the next tech boom.

This requires creating a regulatory and legal climate that fosters “permission-less innovation.” True innovators often can’t afford—either in terms of money or mental energy—to hire lobbyists and change the law. Entrepreneurs should not be wasting their start-up capital on lawyers, consultants, and PAC donations.

Given the stakes—the future of the economy—a political party that is not serious about technology and innovation is a party that is not serious about economic growth and job creation. Thus far, the Republican Party is not serious about technology and innovation. Republicans talk about regulatory reform but in practice do little about it.

Good luck with that, for the Stupid Party.

Business, Political Commentary, Space, Technology and Society, War Commentary

Merde Just Got Real

75 Comments

Rogozin is cutting off sales of RD-180s, and threatening to end ISS participation in 2020.

The former is much more concerning than the latter. 2020 is a long way off, and we have time to resolve that one way or the other. But Atlas V is out of business in a couple years if they don’t come up with a solution. Which is bad news for Boeing and Sierra Nevada in terms of commercial crew.

Mathematics, Media Criticism, Philosophy, Political Commentary, Science And Society, Space, Technology and Society

A World Without Humans

7 Comments

We don’t worry enough about it.

I think that AI is a much bigger danger than “climate change.” Of course, some people dream of the end of humanity. Many of them are the same ones who worry too much about climate change.

[Update a few minutes later]

Peripherally related: More thoughts on much of the Left’s apparent hatred of humanity:

You know, it’s almost as if, having lost the doctrine of original sin and Christian forgiveness, these poor women are left with nothing but the free-floating, universalized guilt that makes them hate themselves and life. Maybe that’s unfair. I don’t know these ladies. But life hatred — humanity hatred, self-hatred and ultimately God hatred — seem to permeate so much of radical leftism. Feminism and Marxism with their revulsion at human nature, environmentalism with its elevation of greenery over humankind, radical groups like PETA that put the love of animals before the love of neighbor, the sweaty insistence on self-esteem and feeling good about yourself, giving praise, praise, praise for nothing, nothing, nothing, the ceaseless need to define your opposition as hateful… and abortion as a positive. It all smacks of self-hatred, doesn’t it? The love of death over life.

Actually, Bob Zubrin wrote a good book about that.