It is a commonplace that the history of civilisation is largely the history of weapons. In particular, the connection between the discovery of gunpowder and the overthrow of feudalism by the bourgeoisie has been pointed out over and over again. And though I have no doubt exceptions can be brought forward, I think the following rule would be found to be generally true that ages in which the dominant weapon is expensive or difficult to make will be ages of despotism, whereas when the dominant weapon is cheap and simple, the common people have a chance. Thus, for example, tanks, battleships and bombing planes are inherently tyrannical weapons, while rifles, muskets, long-bows and hand-grenades are inherently democratic weapons. A complex weapon makes the strong stronger, while a simple weapon --so long as there is no answer to it-- gives claws to the weak.
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There is an insistent tendency among serious social scientists to think of any institution which features rhymed and singing commercials, intense and lachrymose voices urging highly improbable enjoyment, caricatures of the human esophagus in normal and impaired operation, and which hints implausibly at opportunities for antiseptic seduction as inherently trivial. This is a great mistake. The industrial system is profoundly dependent on commercial television and could not exist in its present form without it.
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Mankind is inherently evil. We have laws, committees, religion, and norms to simply protect us from ourselves with the intent to delay our inevitable self-destruction.
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A moment of silence is not inherently religious.
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This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us.
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Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of carelessness, incapacity, or neglect.
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The very word 'secrecy' is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings.
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Life is inherently risky. There is only one big risk you should avoid at all costs, and that is the risk of doing nothing.
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Being a parent is such serious business that we dare not take it too seriously. Children are inherently funny. So are parents. We all are at o...
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Yes, risk-taking is inherently failure-prone. Otherwise, it would be called sure-thing taking.
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