[ExI] Forbidden Words

[spike]

From: extropy-chat [mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of William Flynn Wallace



>>The FBI has a list too.  They are not allowed to use “grossly negligence".  spike\

The wording of the citation was modified.  I wrote:

​> ​The FBI has a list too.  They are not allowed to use “grossly negligent.”

Under some circumstances, the similar-sounding terms “grossly negligent” and “extremely careless” take on not just different meanings, they take on functionally opposite meanings.  It is explained here:

http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/07/politics/james-comey-hillary-clinton-grassley/index.html

>… does our gov. more and more resemble a religion? 

It does and has for some time.

>… How is that different from 'Our God is the only true God?" 

It is a lot like that.  That’s why we have libertarians and atheists.  We know what religion is, and we know what government power is, we know what it does.

>…And there is no one to tell them different - they have the power. Scary 

This is the well-known danger of power.  It falls into the wrong hands.  We who live in a democratic republic are left to choose which wrong hands the power falls into.

BillW, if you don’t know the importance of “grossly negligent” vs “extremely careless” do get on Google and find out how those are opposites under some circumstances.

In the meantime, note that we are in an interesting time from an Orwellian perspective.  In Nineteen Eighty Four, Orwell described a dysfunctional government in which the officials were watched constantly, but the inner circle had the option of turning off their monitors.  Now we face the question: do we allow government officials to communicate with the option of turning off the monitoring process?  In this case, it means their workings are not archived.  Who gets that?  What if the party in power gets that privilege but the opposing party does not?  Is that not a chain reaction leading to a complete totalitarian grip on power?

spike

 

 

 

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