I don't understand why Marvin Minsky hates America so much that he wants to put the government in charge of assessing such risks. The government is an incredibly complex device for distilling a tiny amount of individual ignorance from each voter into a moonshine of batshittery.

I'm not exactly sure what a "moonshine of batshittery" is, but you've got my vote.

I'm guess it's from the phrase 'batshit crazy'.

But yeah, he's got my vote too...

It's presumptuous to say that voters effect any real change in government policy.

Perhaps you have more effect by voting (i.e. switching) TV channels. The public opinion seems to be very important for government policy - and popular shows can be and are seen as a barometer for it, I guess.

A book I want to read on that exact subject: http://miami.indymedia.org/news/2008/05/11008.php

We could fund the Department of Homeland Arithmetic with lottery revenues!

People who are quite aware of the mathematics behind gambling still do it. Gambling exploits instincts rather than ignorance.

Uh, wouldn't this actually be called something like "the US Department of Education"?

It's been a rousing success, too - it's allowed our Ministry of Truth to claim things like "comrades! Our production of students that pass the standardized test is up 85% this quarter!".

It's all about families, man. Good families teach people what's really important - not federal departments of anonymoustaxeatingbureaucrat.

And when a large proportion of families (broken, dysfunctional, otherwise unable) fail to teach kids what's important: what then?

I don't know many good answers to that question - but in my bones I know that the federal government isn't one of them.

People didn't worry about that (i.e. formal education systems) until only recently, but I guess what's "important" has gotten more complex and the rate of "dysfunction" has increased.

What now?