tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044318176622758692.post2529334570690511805..comments2024-03-01T03:51:38.081-05:00Comments on Allergic to Bull: Aliens Cause Islamofacist Terrorism: Mueller and Stewart Use False Science to Argue for Surrender in the War on TerrorA.W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/10876021589516844048noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044318176622758692.post-87338485953481572372012-09-04T17:30:16.906-04:002012-09-04T17:30:16.906-04:00Our enemies have made clear in their statements th...Our enemies have made clear in their statements that if we do not fight back, they will increase their attacks until they successfully defeat us.<br /><br />His analysis doesn't take into account the fact that basic game theory and basic military theory requires that you oppose even weak players while they are trying to evolve the ability to effectively harm you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044318176622758692.post-31613054627973220142012-09-02T13:52:06.314-04:002012-09-02T13:52:06.314-04:00A comment on the value of a human life:
We do rou...A comment on the value of a human life:<br /><br />We do routinely place a finite value on human life. This happens in wrongful death suits, product liability suits, and frankly, when people buy life insurance. Nobody has ever awarded an infinite amount of money for the loss of a human life.<br />We see this kind of decision made in smaller ways, as well. Those who died in the Revolutionary War decided that the cost of possibly dying was worth the benefit of freedom from British rule. Outside of war and battle, we make choices based on how important life is to us. We engage in sports that have a small chance of killing us. We drive in cars while some number of people die in auto accidents every year. We eat junk food. We've decided that all of these activities are more rewarding to us than the extra twelve and a half minutes of lifespan they cost us on average.<br /><br />That being said, it is true the chance of dying in a terrorist attack is (so far) less than the chance of dying in a bathtub accident. But that doesn't mean we can't take reasonable steps to mitigate both. Terrorism, being the result of human choices, can be deterred. If it's made plain that committing terrorism will cost the terrorist and his cause more than it benefits, that's a deterrent. Bathtubs, on the other hand, are notoriously indifferent to deterrence, so we mitigate bathtub accidents with high-friction stickers on the bottom -- a technique that would probably not work with terrorists.Karlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09767954910569442805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044318176622758692.post-11905771016221926942012-09-01T05:01:09.363-04:002012-09-01T05:01:09.363-04:00I'm a small "l" libertarian because ...I'm a small "l" libertarian because I disagree with the LP on matters such as national defense and immigration. Another area where the general public has trouble accepting libertarianism is the drug war.<br /><br />The Republican party is generally seen as being conservative, both fiscally and socially. (Though they're actually weak on fiscal conservatism and ineffectual at social conservatism.) While the democrats are seen as fiscally and socially liberal. (They most assuredly excel at both social and fiscal liberalism.) The LP is fiscally conservative and socially liberal.<br /><br />Members of the LP will often say that the American public sees matters generally the same way the LP does. My experience, though, is that most people are fiscally conservative but socially moderate -- we often are pro-choice but with caveats, or feel that immigration policies are necessary, or the war on drugs could be weakened without chucking it altogether. For me, this equates with the basic tenets of the Tea Party; so I think if we're headed in the direction of a third party, it will need to be something centered on a fiscally conservative, socially moderate ideology.<br /><br />I couldn't read the article you pointed to, because it's no longer available on that site. :-/ However, having argued with hardcore libertarians on national defense, I'm sure you fairly represented the authors' views.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044318176622758692.post-69472589155078467162012-09-01T04:06:43.855-04:002012-09-01T04:06:43.855-04:00Most of the Libertarians I have personally encount...Most of the Libertarians I have personally encountered are nowhere near as rigorous.<br /><br />In fact, most seemed like dopers and other libertines looking for the veneer of respectability a political affiliation can, on occasion, provide.Russhttp://www.emersons.netnoreply@blogger.com