Ralph Osterhout describes the "perverse symbiotic relationship" between the children's toy industry and military innovation. EG is the celebration of the American entertainment industry. Since 1984, Richard Saul Wurman has created extraordinary gatherings about learning and understanding. EG is a rich extension of these ideas - a conference that explores the attitude of understanding in music, film, television, radio, technology, advertising, gaming, interactivity and the web - The ...
January 15th, 2009 - 4:01 pm
In five days, no.
January 15th, 2009 - 4:08 pm
One regime being changed for another doesn’t alter the fact that it’s still a regime.
January 15th, 2009 - 4:16 pm
Damn… you didn’t fall for that one! Americans seem to think the Obama Administration will solve everything.
January 15th, 2009 - 4:17 pm
And what does that tell you about American attitudes towards problems that their culture has caused?
January 15th, 2009 - 6:24 pm
“Only the grand scale and technocratic impersonality of the crimes conceived and directed by the [U.S.] ruling elite acting under cover of state authority distinguish them from garden variety killers.”
January 16th, 2009 - 7:58 am
HA! Sorry. Didn’t mean to beat on ya!
January 16th, 2009 - 8:04 am
‘Kill a man, you’re a murderer. Kill a thousand, you’re a king. Kill them all, and you’re a god!’
Or, something like that.
January 16th, 2009 - 1:59 pm
“This video is so naive. If war ever solved anything you’d only ever be reading about it in an ancient history book. Wars still persist.” — PseudoVoodoo. Wars never solve anything? Why don’t you ask the city fathers of Carthage if violence and war ever settled anything? Oh wait… you can’t; they’ve been “solved” by war. Society and in some cases multiple societies have a moral obligation to oppose tyranny and violence from others. Defending yourself or your country is not wrong!
January 17th, 2009 - 6:56 pm
The demise of the USSR may be analogous to the demise of Carthage. Both could presage the decline of the victorious superpower of the day.
January 17th, 2009 - 7:03 pm
“Diplomacy doesn’t work with terrorists.”
True, but killing innocent civilians in an attempt to defeat terrorists merely breeds more terrorists. Unless you are simple-minded enough to think that terrorists are hatched out of terrorist eggs from a terrorist mother high on a terrorist clifftop just outside Terrortown. Terrorists are not born, they are made. If you don’t understand this then you are part of the problem.
January 17th, 2009 - 7:05 pm
Possibly. I do think each person is responsible for watching those in power so that the declines and abuses seen in the Roman Empire don’t occur here. In a lot of cases however, I think we’re already going down the road that Rome did. “bread and circuses” anyone?
January 17th, 2009 - 9:16 pm
Rome was a republic with some disenfranchised masses and an elite senate that were supposed to prevent a dictator from taking too much power. Augustus would have admired the patriot act.
January 17th, 2009 - 9:25 pm
Yes and USED it. Don’t forget the Pax Romana was a result of Augustus’ policies and work. I never feel the ends justify the means but… 2 plus centuries of peace and prosperity is nothing to sneeze at.
January 18th, 2009 - 5:00 am
What a great American he is !! Ralph’s presentation was one of the finest I’ve ever heard. A new Presidential Cabinet post for technology should be created & this guy put in charge of it, no nonsence straight shooter
January 20th, 2009 - 7:30 pm
well said, Badger.
January 22nd, 2009 - 4:58 pm
Pax Romana was a PR exercise. It only existed for the Roman elite. Look what happened after Augustus decided to consoloidate the Empire and create a line of succession…an inevitable downward spiral to Nero, Domitian and the Barbarians at the gates of Rome.
January 22nd, 2009 - 5:26 pm
Heh, I get it Pax Romana a “PR” excercise
I would put out there that any sufficiently “comfortable” society, one which has a mostly content populace will eventually decay into a “Nero” situation. Complacent and “fat and happy” are bad things when coupled with an ambitious leader or group of leaders. As I said before, as long as the populace can vote itself more “bread & circuses” it will. This inevitably leads to the Nero decay.
January 22nd, 2009 - 5:28 pm
Therefore my belief that this enormous economic stimulus package should be recognized as yet another attempt by the ruling elite to distract us with “bread & circuses” and nevermind mass media and professional wrestling!
May 12th, 2009 - 12:15 pm
This guy is a fucking hero and ANYONE who disagrees with me (ie: liberals) can go fuck themselves
June 26th, 2009 - 7:04 am
this will make war run like games having a minimap knowing where your are where your allies are etc amazing
July 19th, 2009 - 12:39 pm
yeah except if your shot, you can’t get another life
July 19th, 2009 - 5:23 pm
im sure theyll be working on repsawn points dont you worry about it :p
July 20th, 2009 - 3:31 am
Ha lol
September 16th, 2009 - 11:09 am
The war information was interesting, but there was hardly any information about how toys and war are connected.
September 20th, 2009 - 10:04 pm
1. there are no terrorists
2. just wait, one day these nice tools are going to be used against us