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Science is Political 2.0's avatar

Happy New Year, Josh,, I remember when I first got on Substack.. I was and still am very interested in your approach to Problem solving and Transparency. The TRANSPARENCY part is what reminded me of you. I wanted you to know I will giving your approach some NEW thought.. thanks and input thanks to the ICR.. which the Institute of Creative Research, which based Creative Intelligent Design by our Creator with many science contributors. One of the more fascinating subjects for me available. :) This week's issue discusses advances in Genetic research that are amazing to me. (new discoveries) which weren't known when I was a student; as I read it I realized why the advanced Cell Biology at the 400 level did not make sense: because it was INCORRECT. I will tell you more, but the article also brought up the cooperative behavioral insect societies like Ants, and Bees.. and I took advanced Insect Biology at the Graduate level at GMU (it was an elective for me to graduate) my B.S is in Molecular Biology I don't know if you remember that, but I started thinking about those "caste' systems in the Ant colonies.. really interesting. ANYWAY. I haven't been on Substack.. and if you go and look you will see I went to Antigua West Indies in October 2024 which more than ROCKED my world I came down w/ traveler's diarrhea.. two weeks later (parasites/amoebic water borne).. and I did a review of al my "Jungle microbiology".. let's put it that way. I am recuperating but it has been a slow recuperation w/my IBD. SO I AM WELL.. and I am really glad that PART OF YOUR MESSAGE ABOUT TRANSPARENCY in the PROCESS OPEN SHARED KNOWLEDGE IN TRUTH is MANIFESTING.. :) So take care,, Josh. and I hope you will have peaceful holidays.. :) Isabell

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Steve Martin's avatar

I agree with your values and goals. And though I agree with your "should" of human nature, I am more cynical of the "is" of collective human nature.

Historically, I am skeptical of any examples of systems or heuristics immune from the sociopaths among us. As the metaphor of a mandelbrot set illustrates., self-correction of some parts or processes necessitates self-destruction of others. Systems are both made and gamed by people, so anything made by people can be corrupted. If history teaches us nothing else, what can be weaponized will be.

If the best of your ideas can resolve the problem of "ponerology" (that Lord Acton thingy about "Power corrupts" and the flipside of how concentrations of power attract the corruptible), we may have a chance. Mechanical reductionism may be effective in the short term and for specific problems. Long term, I am less optimistic.

Despite it all, I wish you a late Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.

Cheers from Japan

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