I am thoroughly amused by this discussion.
Jay has nothing to gain by spreading information as he does. Whether you think his message is right or wrong, I don't believe it is possible to assign some sort of nefarious purpose to him. I believe him when he says he spreads his gospel for the benefit of all, with no self interest whatsoever except perhaps for the knowledge and insight he might get through vigorous discussion with folks from all walks of life.
As to gold's environmental problems, if Jay is responsible for them, I'd like to know how. Best to blame India's central bank and its 200 ton purchase, China's accumulation, Paulson, etc. Jay and the rest of us are tiny fish in a huge ocean.
And what about the income generated for dirt poor miners who would otherwise be unemployed and unable to provide for their families? What would you offer them in exchange for their livelihoods? High tech video games?
But the criticism suffers from the same problem inherent in elmat's arguments when he suggests the US is a gun-crazy, utterly violent society, namely, the pot calling the kettle black. The social, cultural and environmental damage caused by increasingly sophisticated high tech toys is not to be sneezed at.
One can argue that increasingly obese children and their obese and soon to be diabetic parents whose ideas of fun is to gobble pizza and high fructose corn syrup infused Coke while sitting on a sofa playing video games for hours on end is huge tax on our health care system for which the developers of these games are to some measure responsible.
If the high tech companies are making any effort to promote good health via exercise and moderation in the use of video games, it is an effort on such small scale that it has so far escaped my attention.
And what about balance of payments and other economic issues? Sure, the games are developed here, but the machines are invariably manufactured elsewhere. Don't the designers and manufacturers of these devices have some responsibility to keep jobs in the US? It can also be argued with some credibility that they are to some measure responsible for some of our economic woes.
And what about the environmental costs of all the high tech equipment which is eventually discarded? Where do the mountains of discarded plastic and toxic material end up? I daresay that high tech 'industry' is responsible for more environmental problems than gold mining.
As to elmat, he did what the market forced him to do. After insulting the posters on his thread, banning on stupid whims, etc., caused mostly by posting under the influence, he found out during Jay's brief absence that very few were interested in his Larouchian rants, racism, and trivialities. If he wanted the board to survive, he had to give up as moderator. Simple as that.
Why don't you prevail on elmat to start another board, where he is lord and master, where he can go on and on about Brazil, Larouchian politics, and ban anyone who dares challenge him with impunity? I am certain it would be the cyber equivalent of a ghost town but at least you and him could co-exist in perfect harmony.
Back to my original point: my amusement. Yeah, I find it amusing that there are adults who make claim to 'maturity' but fail to see that reality is complex and truth elusive, that simple formulations rarely work. |
