Throughout history, poverty is the normal condition of man. Advances which permit this norm to be exceeded — here and there, now and then — are the work of an extremely small minority, frequently despised, often condemned, and almost always opposed by all right-thinking people. Whenever this tiny minority is kept from creating, or (as sometimes happens) is driven out of a society, the people then slip back into abject poverty.
This is known as “bad luck.”. --Robert A. Heinlein
Heinlein was an interesting fellow. Smart, yes. As smart as he thought he was, most probably not.
The arguably one good book he wrote was "Stranger in a Strange Land", but it was full of hippie, ubermench, Christ-marginilizing, sexually deviant commie propaganda.
He gets pushed in a lot of academia because the egotism of his writing appeals to the hidden egotism of the professors. "Boohoo humanity sucks, but we know better!"
That stuff you're citing was Heinlein's stab at that culture, not a treatise on why we should like it. He wrote some great stories, but I certainly wouldn't elevate him to some kind of infallible, god-like status. Even he confessed he was a shitty writer who happened to stumble into some good luck. His work was entertaining, but you can definitely see his quality plunge (like a car off a cliff) as he got older.
He has many good stories. It's important to contextualize them in the time he wrote them, and then to see what he was satirizing or commenting on. Most of us still understand TANSTAAFL. I think that mindset is lost on the current young generation.
No, he hated monopolies etc too, and this was before computers were serious. Think more "Mike Rowe" and running your own single machinist factory making "Your one widget."
People that actually make things are hated (envied, perhaps) by the Ivory Tower, and the Power Brokers. When you shut the effing country ... if we'd done just a little bit more we'd be Venezuela in a month.
Musk talked about this in his latest Joe Rogan appearance too. He expressed how he doesn't care for people like Warren Buffet, and mentioned how we need to get back to supporting manufacturing and making actual physical things again.
Not sure why people are knocking Heinlein. Served in the Navy. His book Starship Trooper was a good essay on leadership the purpose of soldiers and war. Basically boils down Clausewitz in about 3 pages in there. Also preditcs youth crime and delinquancy. Along with a few goodies like optical matching guidance systems. Not bad for something written in the fifties. Not sure what happened after that.
It could be a difference of interpretation but when I see "creating," anything with the suffix of -crat (to rule, or rule by) and -archy (government and again, rule) I assume that's not what Heinlein meant.
You've let them convince you that some people in tech know everything. From all we know, the people who know how to fix the world are retired at 41, fishing in their lakehouse in the mountains somewhere, or in the white house, or screaming about interdementional aliens.
Throughout history, poverty is the normal condition of man. Advances which permit this norm to be exceeded — here and there, now and then — are the work of an extremely small minority, frequently despised, often condemned, and almost always opposed by all right-thinking people. Whenever this tiny minority is kept from creating, or (as sometimes happens) is driven out of a society, the people then slip back into abject poverty. This is known as “bad luck.”. --Robert A. Heinlein
Heinlein was an interesting fellow. Smart, yes. As smart as he thought he was, most probably not.
The arguably one good book he wrote was "Stranger in a Strange Land", but it was full of hippie, ubermench, Christ-marginilizing, sexually deviant commie propaganda.
He gets pushed in a lot of academia because the egotism of his writing appeals to the hidden egotism of the professors. "Boohoo humanity sucks, but we know better!"
Great track by Iron Maiden though
This!
I read everything Heinlein wrote, twice.
"Stranger in a Strange Land" was not his best work, acclaimed by those who did not understand the genius of the man.
Glory Road was the better book, fight me.
That stuff you're citing was Heinlein's stab at that culture, not a treatise on why we should like it. He wrote some great stories, but I certainly wouldn't elevate him to some kind of infallible, god-like status. Even he confessed he was a shitty writer who happened to stumble into some good luck. His work was entertaining, but you can definitely see his quality plunge (like a car off a cliff) as he got older.
He has many good stories. It's important to contextualize them in the time he wrote them, and then to see what he was satirizing or commenting on. Most of us still understand TANSTAAFL. I think that mindset is lost on the current young generation.
So... technocrat oligarchy?
No thanks.
We don't need the "elites" to save us. I know a lot of guys who will never have to work a day in their life, and they are completely useless.
On the other hand, the more middle-class people I know are far more thrifty and self-reliant. Overwhelmingly so, in fact.
This Heinlein guy sounds like a dumbass.
No, he hated monopolies etc too, and this was before computers were serious. Think more "Mike Rowe" and running your own single machinist factory making "Your one widget."
People that actually make things are hated (envied, perhaps) by the Ivory Tower, and the Power Brokers. When you shut the effing country ... if we'd done just a little bit more we'd be Venezuela in a month.
The dems were certainly trying as hard as they could to get us there
were
?!?!?!?!
I'm in Washington. Send lawyers, money and, well, ....
Musk talked about this in his latest Joe Rogan appearance too. He expressed how he doesn't care for people like Warren Buffet, and mentioned how we need to get back to supporting manufacturing and making actual physical things again.
Not sure why people are knocking Heinlein. Served in the Navy. His book Starship Trooper was a good essay on leadership the purpose of soldiers and war. Basically boils down Clausewitz in about 3 pages in there. Also preditcs youth crime and delinquancy. Along with a few goodies like optical matching guidance systems. Not bad for something written in the fifties. Not sure what happened after that.
It could be a difference of interpretation but when I see "creating," anything with the suffix of -crat (to rule, or rule by) and -archy (government and again, rule) I assume that's not what Heinlein meant.
You've let them convince you that some people in tech know everything. From all we know, the people who know how to fix the world are retired at 41, fishing in their lakehouse in the mountains somewhere, or in the white house, or screaming about interdementional aliens.
What utter nonsense.
The natural state of man is to survive and to survive means to produce, and through productivity create wealth and stability.
Guys like this confuse wealth with currency.
Don’t quote that scam artist
To whom do you refer?
Hrm. Are you confusing Heinlein with Hubbard?
If not, what scams did Heinlein pull?
Y'all raised a bunch of bitches - CS Lewis
FTFY: Y'all raised a bunch of little bitches - CS Lewis
The diminutive is important :)