Date: Wed, 3 Apr 1996 02:58:36 -0600
Subject: Re: Rahul's thread - Howie's effects ?


Jukka, I'm interested in resuming the 3rd world/globalization thread,
although we should really organize a cyberseminar. Right now, I'm a little
burned out and don't feel like amassing the information necessary.

Your characterization of my views on science,history, and meaning is
completely wrong. Did you read my last couple of posts?

I'd like to get back on questions of science and technology policy, but I
really don't care for the breezy identification of these questions with
fundamental questions of the meaning of science. Not only was this idea
created by people with no understanding of complexity, very few seem to
realize the very limited explanatory power of such an approach.

About superiority. I'm ready to take up these questions in a civil manner,
now that you've backed off from your original tone. It does seem to me,
though, that assumptions of superiority by scientists viz a viz people who
are ignorant of science but make sweeping claims about it, though possibly
invalid, are certainly far more justified than the reverse, though also far
less common. Any approach that jumbles up the interpretation of quantum
mechanics, the funding mechanisms of scientific institutions, the desire of
Estee Lauder to sell perfumes, the Gulf War, the behavior of Mr. Spock in
Star Trek, and the construction of history into one grand totalizing
narrative is bound to be an incoherent mishmash. Why eat baby food if you
don't have to?

Rahul




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