[tt] [FoRK] WTF?

[Eugen Leitl]

----- Forwarded message from "J. Andrew Rogers" <andrew at ceruleansystems.com> -----

From: "J. Andrew Rogers" <andrew at ceruleansystems.com>
Date: Tue, 22 May 2007 20:26:20 -0700
To: Friends of Rohit Khare <fork at xent.com>
Subject: Re: [FoRK] WTF?
X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.752.2)
Reply-To: Friends of Rohit Khare <fork at xent.com>


On May 17, 2007, at 8:34 PM, Jeff Bone wrote:
>What are we doing, here, people?


Is that the royal 'we'?


>Yet --- to what end?  I mean, for me, the end to date has been:   
>this list is mostly a sort of intellectual grindstone.


Welcome to the water cooler. In my experience, the really interesting  
discussions do not occur in public places where anyone can barge in.   
Conspiracies Of World (or market) Domination rarely plan their  
machinations in the public square.  Unless, of course, that would  
serve the Conspiracy.  Being candid is strategically important.


>How can we, this enlightened, Rohit-ed, few --- plot the destiny of  
>the species, and perhaps the entire ultimate outcome of organized  
>matter in the universe in whole?
>
>This is an honest question.  I really want to hear any ideas,  
>challenges, etc...  regardless.  If nothing else, this question is  
>feedback into a next-gen sci-fi novel between collaborators on this  
>list, to be named but currently in discussion.  At worse, it's  
>that;  at best, a blueprint for future collaboration, and  
>navigation...


Every few years someone raises the same point on every mailing list  
of note.  I think they had the exact same discussion on the  
Caterpillar Breeders mailing list about six months ago.


I would refute a tacit assumption you are making with the following  
observation:  almost no one is as interesting, intelligent,  
disciplined, and ambitious in meatspace as they appear to be when  
chatting on a mailing list.  Real evil conspiracies do not survive  
weak links and require a very special kind of person, though any old  
sociopath will work in a pinch.  Most people on this list are Evil  
Conspiracy material in the same way that most people are Startup  
Entrepreneur material; just about everyone thinks they have the  
mettle required, but few actually do or survive long enough to learn  
their lessons and develop it.  Naturally, no one here thinks I'm  
talking about them, myself included. ;-)

Another observation I'd make is that people who are getting things  
done never have time to talk about it.  And when they do talk about  
it, it is usually toward some larger end.  In short, plotting the  
ultimate future of the human race involves working with people not  
prone to idle chitchat.  Just me writing this email means that  
innocent kittens will die and beer will go flat when it did not have  
to be that way.  Seriously, my most productive Conspiracy Approved  
times have been when I'm completely focused on getting things done  
rather than focusing on talking about Conspiracy; I still talk, but  
it is implementation and strategic planning of elements.  No one will  
be laughing when I corner the Internet Pet Food market.

In short, if you are deadly serious then this is the wrong forum.   
Long-term implementation requires consistent and unrelenting  
execution, which requires all sorts of tedium not well suited for a  
mailing list.  IMHO, of course.

Cheers,

J. Andrew Rogers



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