Dear Mr. Lingens /Austrian Author and economist/, I don’t know if you are doing well to sing the praises of the beauty of debt while comparing little Austria with the big US. Remember, since about the 1990s, not only the whole world, but also many Americans are beginning to talk about the decline of their country (and the most clear-sighted observers of the U.S. are still to be found in the US themselves). The United States in a debt binge – role model for the rest of the world? weiterlesen
Kategorie: general
Future – God’s eighth Day of Creation?
When studying and trying to understand the past, we always do so in order to cope with the present and be better equipped for the future – that’s a truism. But our endeavors become difficult when the past provides us with contradictory signals so that the future turns into mystery. Then it can happen that our certainties waver and we look for completely new orientations and even concepts. Future – God’s eighth Day of Creation? weiterlesen
Adolf Hitler in private – a jolly good Fellow?
Experts are surrounded by their own aura. They know everything about a certain subject, which they have usually studied all their lives – this seems to make them unassailable. But why, then, does a popular German saying deny them a truly profound knowledge? There is often but a single step from specialism to professional blindness! Adolf Hitler in private – a jolly good Fellow? weiterlesen
Silly question: Are humans free?
No, the question is only stupid because it is thought to be so. Not long ago leading German neurologists like Roth and Singer considered their fellow men expressis verbis naive, if not downright stupid, if they did not want to recognize that from a scientific point of view – man does not possess freedom of will.*1* Silly question: Are humans free? weiterlesen
Max Weber – Jared Diamond – Joseph Henrich
There are fundamental questions that every human being and probably every people and epoch ask themselves. Who or what am I? Why and how am I different from others? What is it that makes me singular? Max Weber, Jared Diamond, and Joseph Henrich have each asked this question in their own yet very similar ways. Max Weber – Jared Diamond – Joseph Henrich weiterlesen
Freedom perished in Rome. What about freedom in the United States?
Rome, the greatest ancient world power, owed its rise to a frugal, self-sacrificing peasantry that sent its sons into military service – except the eldest one, who remained on the farm. Indeed, at the beginning of its surprising ascendency, Rome could boast of a great abundance of children – the demographic sine-qua-non for its expansion. But the imperial successes, especially the victory over Carthage, which opened up northern Africa to the Romans as an almost limitless granary, undermined the strength of the Italic peasantry. Freedom perished in Rome. What about freedom in the United States? weiterlesen
Meritocracy – should Technology rule?
In 1958, a young British author achieved overnight fame with his satirical writing „The Rise of the Meritocracy“. He had correctly identified a trend of the times. Meritocracy – should Technology rule? weiterlesen
Corona – but what about the role of humanness and China?
From the outset, two positions stood in sharp opposition to each other. Up to the present day, many physicians and epidemologists maintain, that in historical comparison Covid-19 is a harmless event – in other terms the measures taken against it must be considered excessive. Corona – but what about the role of humanness and China? weiterlesen
Yes, we can – No, we must! Build a better, sustainable World
When contemporaries talk about the dark years of Nazi rule, they want to make us believe, consciously or not, that they themselves would have been immune to the poison of inhuman propaganda. The fact is, however, that about 99 percent of Germans did not openly resist the regime, and a large part of them were eager to clap their hands at the big parades. Yes, we can – No, we must! Build a better, sustainable World weiterlesen
Are we still in control of our Brave New Artificial World? (Decomplexation I)
All countries that have the means to do so regard the digitization of information and its transmission as one of the most important technical tasks. In this way, growing volumes of data can be utilized in ever shorter time intervals. Nuclear power plants, ballistic missiles, drones, driverless cars, and surgical procedures can be controlled remotely. State surveillance of entire populations is just as possible as influencing the voting behavior of perfectly screened citizens. Are we still in control of our Brave New Artificial World? (Decomplexation I) weiterlesen
The Demise of American Democracy
When the highest representatives of a community are eager to throw mud at each other. When arguments merely serve as a façade to convey anger, mockery or contempt, then history has just turned a corner. One period has come to an end, a new one begins. Since September 29, 2020 we know that in the United States of America democracy is undergoing a process of rapid disintegration – it is being torn apart by diverging forces.
Ye shall know them by their Fruits!
This classic saying from the New Testament (Matthew 7:16) confronts effect and cause. A bad effect is not likely to have a good cause, and vice versa. Thorns do not bear grapes, and we find no figs on thistles. We should therefore not rely on fine words and theories. What counts are the effects that arise from them.