Re: Humanity 3000 Debate

Tom Abel (abeltd@NERVM.NERDC.UFL.EDU)
Fri, 15 Jan 1999 14:58:46 -0500


Don and Norman,

My intention was to offer a serious alternative to Francis's interesting
propositions for the next millennium. I probably could have held the
sarcasm a bit, sorry about that, I was trying to make a forceful argument.
It's very rare that I would post anything to one of these lists. But there
was nothing venting about my model for the world. The position I took was
extreme, but by design in order to make sharp the contrasts. I hope you'll
see it in the spirit of discussion. Nobody can see the future. Definitely
not me. But I would argue that complex systems (especially with a
thermodynamic emphasis) can offer an intriguing lens for viewing that
future. Ha!, what's maybe most amazing is how such disparate fortune
telling can come from some of the same starting points.

TA

P.S. Sorry about any double posting. I keep getting messages that say my
posting was a failure, but obviously someone is getting it. And I'm not
getting it, but maybe I requested that when I signed on.

At 11:10 AM 1/15/99 -0500, you wrote:
>Don Mikulecky seconds the thought!
>
>Norman K. McPhail wrote:
>
>> This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
>> --------------42405E7225B0AD3EC1A8835F
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>> This all star debate between Tom Abel the zero sum fatalist and Francis
>> Heylighen the closet nazi is a great match up. I can hardly wait for
>> round two.
>>
>> NKM
>> -
>
>I must say that reading as much of that as I could stand makes me wonder if
>these discussions are anything but a place for folks to vent. I don't see
>much sign of progess!Respectfully, but sadly,
>Don Mikulecky

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