Funny Carrot

It came out of the bag like this. I swear!!!

YouTube Guerilla Tactics II

Last week a person made a comment to me on a YouTube video concerning Alex Jones and the ludicrous remarks he had against the Zeitgeist Movement. The person went by the handle of AndyMcNabStab and his core disagreement revolves around the first Zeitgeist movie, which has very little to do with the Zeitgeist Movement and should be viewed as a personal performance piece by Peter Joseph. However, some individuals viewed that as an attack on their religious beliefs and subsequently claim that the movement is a New Age "luciferian" propaganda effort aimed at steering people away from God.

It's understandable that people would react after seeing Zeitgeist the Movie. I'm not an atheist and as such I thought the critique directed towards religion was unwise since some people can't help themselves making negative associations when their beliefs are questioned. I also wouldn't stand for any 'dark teachings' should I detect it in the Zeitgeist Movement. However, I haven't seen any. Which in my book makes the claims of this Andy person totally irrelevant. But then again, he wouldn't be the first person to use the religious angle to spout critique while his real argument is something else. Possibly plain economics.

The YouTube channel of this person also has a number of videos of violent video games and where he boasts to have taken out opponents using only a knife. Safe to say that the Biblical 'love thy neighbor' still needs some work with this character. Conclusion; the guy is mostly likely a troll.

What's perhaps most interesting is the number of 'likes' he received. He got 7 likes within a short period of time, and that is highly unlikely on a video that doesn't get that many hits anymore. I asked him the question if he generated those likes himself and he replied in the affirmative, the end justifying the means. No matter how you twist and spin this, this is internet guerilla tactics. If you can generate 7 likes you can also generate 7 dislikes. Not 1 person 1 vote but maximize your influence as you see fit. Voter fraud..

Ironically, people like Andy here would probably also object to stricter regulations on the internet while they have no problem abusing the system themselves. Their conduct shows who they are.
Sadly, this is just one person. Many more circle around videos belonging to the Zeitgeist Movement like vultures, ready to plunge down when they think they see a carcass. But maybe I should take the high ground and close with a sentence from the Bible. "You'll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?" (Matthew 7:16)

Is There Such A Thing As Morals In Capitalism?

While millions starve on this planet, banks like Goldman Sachs make millions speculating with food prices. Read the article here. Maybe criticism of Ludwig von Mises' "economic calculation problem" should have an addendum called "the moral calculation problem."

Hypnocat

Look into my eyes...human. Now, get me some food. It's cold and I'm freezing my butt off..

Lie Strong

Well, Lance finally came clean that he wasn't so 'clean' after all while riding as a professional cyclist. While I haven't seen the interview with Oprah Winfrey I have read a number of articles on the web and some remark that while Armstrong admits to having used sport enhancing drugs by no means does he reveal everything. Of course his previous position on this matter was untenable. With so many former team mates going on record that they witnessed Lance sticking a needle in his arm kinda ruins the perception of a clean athlete.

I've been a fan of cycling practically all of my life. Learned to appreciate the sport in the early 80s from watching it on television and riding against nasty Dutch headwinds on my way to football practice. When Lance Armstrong started winning the Tour de France, like most people, I felt a great deal of sympathy for him because he was a cancer survivor. I thought it was phenomenal that a person could come back from such a terrible disease and after multiple operations to achieve the highest standard in sports. But I guess that sympathy was partly misplaced.

Could go on a tantrum how Lance is a fraud and so on but that also seems in vain. I do wonder if he's going to pay back (some of) the price money he earned while riding 'under the influence?' Read that Lance is estimated to have $125.000.000 in his bank account. In the past he tried to cut many deals, offering money for investigations to stop, so he's a good old Texas businessman. Likewise, I wonder if he received sums for the Oprah interview?

I'm not shocked or mad, this is what competition and the acquisition of money does to many people, with cycling being one of those more clear examples. It simply makes people corrupt.

R.I.P. Aaron Swartz

Where's The Next Sector?

Just last week I was having a talk with a supervisor in a supermarket about how money is debt and that in combination with technology and automation the (capitalistic) system can no longer hold. The talk originated because of the prices that went up here in Holland (taxes). One of many tax increases over the last few years. I remarked that the government is basically at a loss and can only suck money from the working class.

But then the topic of automation also came up. Reminiscing about my teenage years I pointed out that in the 1980s I often visited the local library and there were at least 5 women working there throughout the day. In the 1990s that changed dramatically. No longer did you hand your books over to a person. They had made machines for that which scanned barcodes. No longer were there many people there. Just 1 or 2.

Just this afternoon I came across an article in the Daily Mail that shows a restaurant operated by robots. Women who worked at libraries might have transferred to the service sector as waitresses but if this particular job is replaced by robots then where is the next sector?
Often I have had discussions on the internet with proponents of Chicago or Austrian Economics and I'm amazed at how stubborn they can be. They have this notion that the market will create jobs again and again, seemingly oblivious to the fact that with every new step in automation you lose jobs and working hours. Technology and automation will render capitalism obsolete. Time to face the facts...