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Andrew Kadel's avatar

Exactly Dave. On all 3 counts. I hope any repercussions around your APSA actions are positive for you, or at least manageable without too much strife.

These demographic things by economists are so very ridiculous. As a lifelong theologian and student of religion I recognize mythmaking when I see it. Economists are theologians of capitalism (Marxist economists are dissenters but still capitalism centric). The models that they produce are for the preservation, defense and adjustment of their world. You basically cease to be an economist once you start to imagine big differences in how people, at scale, organize their material existence.

Thing is, with climate change etc, things in the next 100-150 years are likely to make substantial changes. Maybe they will happen gradually and smoothly so the bulk of people don't realize it when it happens, maybe not. But at a world average temperature that stabilizes at about, say, 1.75 degrees C. above the pre-industrial baseline, adaptations will need to be made to more storms, wildfires, droughts, etc. People make such adaptations--for instance, you stop building beachfront houses & more people move out of deserts. Governments will likely change, borders & settlement patterns will likely change, economic systems will likely change. But lest we think we have to panic, look at borders, organization of production, governments, etc before 1830 or 1760. Things change. Concepts like economic growth and GDP may simply be quaint and antiquated for the 5 or 3 or 9 billion people who populate the world in 1773. And economists may be indulged as freemasons are today.

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Cheez Whiz's avatar

1) wow. He studied the utility of ChatGPT by studying consultants? Talk about carrying coals to Newcastle. A friend of my worked at a travel agency in SF with the bulk of the business being business travel. He said without a doubt the worst clients were from Boston Consulting. Demanding assholes who literally wanted him to pick up their dry cleaning.

2) example the Nth that conservatives choose to argue in bad faith because they believe it's their best option.

3) Economists man, economists.

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