Text 44646, 135 rader
Skriven 2006-12-24 00:04:00 av Michiel van der Vlist (2:280/5555)
  Kommentar till text 44593 av bob klahn (1:275/311)
Ärende: Insults
===============
Hello bob!

On Saturday December 23 2006 11:25, you wrote to me:

 bk>>>  I wouldn't, but others would, and you are points behind in
 bk>>>  defending yourself from the start.

 MvdV>> Since I was never accused, I see no reason to go into defence mode.

 bk>  Seems to me you were being accused.

By whom?

 MvdV>> In this particular case that may not be too difficult, but
 MvdV>> be aware that respecting the one's culture may conflict
 MvdV>> with respecting another one's culture. One can not please
 MvdV>> everyone all of the time.

 bk>  Now I do believe that's a bit confused.

Why? Is it really so difficult for you to imagine a conflict between cultures
that leads to a situation where one can not please both?

 bk> One of the favorite jokes here is to teach speakers of other
 bk> languages, offensive words without warning them they are offensive.

Americans do not have a monopoly on that.....

 bk>>>>> Some things really are wrong.

 MvdV>>>> You are wrong. It depends on culture. What is wrong in one
 MvdV>>>> culture can be perfectly all right in another. There is no
 MvdV>>>> absolute right or wrong.

 bk>>>  No, some things are truly wrong. Regardless of culture.

 MvdV>> Such as?

 bk>  Murder.

As in Thou shalt not kill? So how about the death penalty? To some that is
government sanctioned murder. And what about soldiers killing people in a war?
Seems to be all right according to the president of the US.

 bk>  Slavery.

T'was perfectly all right in ancient Rome. As in many other countries less than
200 years ago.

 bk>  Rape.

I am not sure about that, but I doubt rape is universally condoned in every
culture.

 bk>>> Some cultures accept things that are truly wrong, but that
 bk>>> doesn't mean they are not wrong.

 MvdV>> What generally accepted superior authority decides what is
 MvdV>> truly wrong and what is just wrong depending on culture?

 bk> Aside from me? Ok, I believe in evolutionary morality. What is found
 bk> to be right and wrong evolve for the best for the human race.

And who decides what is best for the human race?

 bk> It may not be 'devine', but I believe those things are so firmly
 bk> established as wrong that I will say they are without reservation.

Cannibalism was perfectly acceptable in New Guinea until white man put a stop
to it. The society build on it was very stable. So stable in fact that a
disease had evolved to thrive on it. (Kuru) Who is to say that that branch of
evolution was not the best for mankind?

 MvdV>> than a college graduate would be an economically stable
 MvdV>> situation.

 MvdV>> I don't think a cleaning person earning substantially more
 MvdV>> than a college graduate would be a stable situation.

 bk> Why not? There is nothing in the law of supply and demand that says
 bk> any level of education is inherently better paid than any other.

If people can earn substantially more money with unskilled labour than with a
college education few people would invest in getting an education.

 bk> Besides, what makes you so sure a college grad would not clean houses?

He may be forced to accept such a job, but of couse the minute something better
turns up, he is out.

 bk>  My wife used to clean houses, after she got her degree, between her
 bk> regular jobs. My son in law had a master's degree in mechanical
 bk> engineering and a masters in economics and he was delivering pizza,
 bk> while my daughter was in grad school. It's all in what the immediate
 bk> economic situation is.

In the long run, people with an education should earn more on average or else
they would stop investing in education.

 bk>  Had a famous story told here, back in one of our recessions,
 bk>  about a couple physicists going to an airport, leaving a
 bk>  conference, sharing a cab. As they rode to the airport they
 bk>  discussed physics, with the cab driver joining the conversation
 bk>  as he had a degree in physics, but the economy was down.

Yeah, yeah, my father told me similar stories about the thirties here. But that
illustrates my points, that was not a stable economical situation.

 bk>>>  Agreed, and I understand where you are coming from on this.
 bk>>>  I have read the rest of the exchange, or much of it. I don't
 bk>>>  think he understands what you are saying, but I do.

 MvdV>> Oh, I think he understands very well. He is not as myopic
 MvdV>> as he sometimes pretends to be. He will never admit it of
 MvdV>> course. That would spoil his image.

 bk>  His image of being myopic? Ok, I suppose he might not want to
 bk>  spoil that.

His image of the tough macho guy who treats his wife as property.

 bk>   HEY!

 bk>   Myopic just means nearsighted.

I know, I worked in an eye hospital... ;-)

 bk>  I been wearing glasses for myopia since I was 14. Is that a shot????

No, to make it a shot you have to fill the glasses....

Cheers, Michiel

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