Grand unified books thread

[Jacob]

I'm not sure that pre-historical economic drivers of conflict are particularly relevant in the current situation.

[Admiral Yi]

China will invade us because the surplus dudes need sex partners.

[Oexmelin]

I'm not sure that pre-historical economic drivers of conflict are particularly relevant in the current situation.

Yes. Especially those past monolopies.

[The Brain]

You know, having finished War Before Civilization, it implies that war with China is even more inevitible than I thought, especially under the current leadership.

Basically, the more heavily tribes traded with each other, the more likely they were to go to war with each other unless they voluntarily established arbitrary monolopies (i.e. one tribe produces pottery, one produces obsidian blades, etc.). The breaking of such monopolies almost inevitably lead to war.

Chinese dominance in manufacturing and Trump's determination to break that comes to mind.

Did the author quantify the uncertainty?

[Eddie Teach]

Uncertainty at 99.3%

[The Minsky Moment]

China will invade us because the surplus dudes need sex partners.

That's why they are dumping resources into advanced robotics research.

[crazy canuck]

China will invade us because the surplus dudes need sex partners.

That's why they are dumping resources into advanced robotics research.

To provide sex partners or military hardware for the invasion - or both?

[The Minsky Moment]

optionality

[grumbler]

Basically, the more heavily tribes traded with each other, the more likely they were to go to war with each other unless they voluntarily established arbitrary monolopies (i.e. one tribe produces pottery, one produces obsidian blades, etc.). The breaking of such monopolies almost inevitably lead to war.

That's an absurd contention.  Societies in close enough contact to trade probably were also in close enough contact to have causes to go to war with one another, but it is silly to argue that it is the trade that causes the war.  Not even the arbitrary monolopies of melanesia thought that.

Chinese dominance in manufacturing and Trump's determination to break that comes to mind.

Trump is not determined to "break" China's trade imbalance; he is determined to play the same grift he has relied on his whole life:  to make his winning opponents see total victory as too drawn-out and expensive to be worthwhile, so they throw him a bone and accept his conditional surrender.

China won't fall for it, but it will take Trump longer than he has left in office to realize that they won't fall for that.  War with China is as likely as peace in the Middle East, if Trump has anything to do with it.

[Admiral Yi]

Man, the Chernow book is not very kind to Jefferson and Madison.  Jefferson in particular comes off as a crackpot.

[Gups]

Man, the Chernow book is not very kind to Jefferson and Madison.  Jefferson in particular comes off as a crackpot.

He gives Adams a good kicking too. But he really seems to hate Jefferson. Is that a common view? I'd always assumed he was regarded as one of the all time greats.

[sbr]

I don't know how much of it is because of Chernow, but Jefferson is my least favorite foundling father and it isn't close.  Outside of writing the DoI he was a mostly a piece of shit.

[jimmy olsen]

Man, the Chernow book is not very kind to Jefferson and Madison.  Jefferson in particular comes off as a crackpot.

He gives Adams a good kicking too. But he really seems to hate Jefferson. Is that a common view? I'd always assumed he was regarded as one of the all time greats.

He's regarded as one of the greats, but I defy anyone to read about his 2 terms as president and not think he was just awful. He lucked into the Louisiana purchase and that's about it.

[grumbler]

Man, the Chernow book is not very kind to Jefferson and Madison.  Jefferson in particular comes off as a crackpot.

Jefferson had a lot of very impractical ideas about how the nation should and would develop.  Beside fucking his slave and selling off his own kids, of course.

[Admiral Yi]

He gives Adams a good kicking too. But he really seems to hate Jefferson. Is that a common view? I'd always assumed he was regarded as one of the all time greats.

Besides the slave owning and slave fucking I didn't realize there were any knocks against him.

Good luck when it's time to redo Rushmore.