Sarah Palin is to Washington as Paris Hilton is to Hollywood.

Why is she famous again? Failing 3 times to get elected to office isn't an accomplishment. I honestly think the media only gives her attention because viewers seem to enjoy disliking her. Like the political equivalent of Paris Hilton.

>> ^chilaxe:

So you're arguing against markets (meritocracy)

Markets aren't meritocracy.
>> ^chilaxe:

and in favor of collectivism & experientialism ('feel good' degrees paid for by somebody else)

Honestly, I don't really know what I'm in favor of. Given all the discussions I have here, I'm pretty sure your conception of "collectivism" differs from mine, and I only have a vague notion of what you're trying to say when you refer to "experientialism." It doesn't matter though, because your parenthetical ascribes a position to me that I have already explicitly disavowed (along with the premise it's based on).
>> ^chilaxe:
It does seem relevant then whether or not meritocracy causes greater contributions to humankind

It's no more relevant than talking about the ecological impact of unicorn migration, seeing how meritocracy doesn't exist.
>> ^chilaxe:
(it appears to, if we compare my outcomes to those of my lazy collectivist friends)

Anecdotes aren't data. Especially considering the cognitive biases of the source.
>> ^chilaxe:
"Would you really stop working on it if you got paid less, or if everyone got paid the same no matter what they did?"
Yes I would, and that's one of the reasons I stopped working in academia early on.
I'm asking you to respond to a hypothetical, specifically what would you do if material wealth wasn't connected to how you spent your time? Would you just become a couch potato? Or would you still feel driven to do something worthwhile, because being idle doesn't appeal to you?

I think if you are who you say you are, you'd still choose to do things that are useful and meaningful to society in such a situation. I know I would.

>> ^chilaxe:
I realized most human problems are self-caused and aren't relevant to rationalists (same as the make-believe problem of student loans).

Too bad you aren't a rationalist, then.
>> ^chilaxe:
But fortunately it's not generally necessary to make the choice between passion and career... individuals have general interests, and they can follow the most socioeconomically valued paths within those interests.

Sure it is. Who becomes a janitor because it was their passion? Lots of people get channeled into jobs that don't align with their passions, largely for reasons beyond their control.

As for "socioeconomically valued paths" my point is that that's a pretty strong external constraint on your ability to choose how to live your life, and that "freedom" doesn't entail making those constraints and pressures stronger.

One can make the argument that a society with that level of paternalism is more beneficial for everyone (I sometimes even believe that myself), but one can't seriously contend that such pressures constitute the very definition of freedom.

But if your goal for society is to promote rationality, markets aren't your mechanism.

Bill Nye doesn't get paid more than Sean Hannity, and Judge Judy gets paid more than the entire Supreme Court. There is no meritocracy, and there is no connection between rational behavior and their reward. Hannity and Judge Judy both would probably lose their jobs if they started publicly promoting rationality instead of inanity. Not to mention, Paris Hilton can probably buy and sell them all.

One can play a certain shell game with this, and say that it's rational for the producers to pay Hannity to be publicly inane because it's going to make them money, but this just further amplifies my point -- markets give rational people incentive to do irrational and destructive things, like give Sean Hannity a TV show, or try to rig the real-estate market, or to base a business on encouraging young women to become prostitutes.

She has a huge business because she was born into money. If that wasn't the case and she was born poor, no one would know or care who Paris Hilton was. Period. And yes, she really is stupid.

>> ^Kofi:

What does the phrase "think yo" mean? She keeps using it after compliments.


It's a personal reminder.

>> ^chilaxe:

@<a rel="nofollow" href="http://videosift.com/member/messenger" title="member since August 23rd, 2006" class="profilelink">messenger
If people have different definitions of things, public discussion of the different definitions seems to be fair game.
Yeah, making good collective decisions seems problematic, but making good personal decisions works, and that's why I watch the Greed is Good video often http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONXpaBQnBvE&feature=related
I think the difference between being intelligent today and 100 years ago is that the internet allows smart people to become much smarter relative to non-smart people than was possible 100 years ago. Also, maybe in a few decades being rich will give people access to biotech innovations like increased lifespans, so I think there's a better argument than ever before for building our personal human capital.


Don't equate rich and smart though.


Paris Hilton....

>> ^Sketch:

Their reality shows produce cultural heroes like her! Our reality shows produce Snookie and The Situation...


Snookie just hasn't experienced the adversity that will drive her to realize her greatness. She needs to be oppressed more. Also Paris Hilton. Sarah Palin had a reality show, right? Her too.

Well she did make a sex video. And she doesn't have a rap sheet like Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton. For one of the "famous for being famous" crowd, she's practically a saint.

Prince should really cut her some slack. At least she didn't change her name to a symbol, or an emoticon, or a smell, or whatever the fuck. >> ^dystopianfuturetoday:

Who is Kim Kardashian anyway? Some lawyer's daughter who was on a reality show? Has she ever accomplished anything worthwhile or is she just another spoiled rich girl who has never had to work a day in her life?

I fucking HATE HATE HATE HATE those STUPID fucking, idiotic, retarded looking sunglasses. Good lord. Nobody should ever wear anything that Paris Hilton's dumb ass wears.

God. When will these sunglasses go away? They don't look good on anybody.

>> ^rottenseed:

>> ^Yogi:
I've been noticing the schadenfreude runs thick when it comes to this situation with Lohan. People around the internet are splooging with glee over the fact that she'll be sent to prison...
Why? I get some people have sad little pathetic lives and they're very happy to smile at someone else's horrible life. Why so much joy though? It's very upsetting to me.

We're sick of no-nothing socialites (Paris Hilton and gang) getting off with a slap on the wrist because of who they are. It is frustrating to people that realize if they did the same thing, the hammer of "justice" would come down on them with full force. Just because she made some shitty movies, she shouldn't have different rights than you or I.


I've got the answer...turn off the damn TV and don't look at any entertainment magazines. Also keep on the look out for out of control socialite cars. I get the wanting to make sure all people are treated equally, the way to do that is to stop elevating them by watching their bullshit shows. We created them, then we get mad when they act like they're above us all? BS, turn off the TV, stop making gods of regular people.

In reply to this comment by rottenseed:
>> ^Yogi:

I've been noticing the schadenfreude runs thick when it comes to this situation with Lohan. People around the internet are splooging with glee over the fact that she'll be sent to prison...
Why? I get some people have sad little pathetic lives and they're very happy to smile at someone else's horrible life. Why so much joy though? It's very upsetting to me.

We're sick of no-nothing socialites (Paris Hilton and gang) getting off with a slap on the wrist because of who they are. It is frustrating to people that realize if they did the same thing, the hammer of "justice" would come down on them with full force. Just because she made some shitty movies, she shouldn't have different rights than you or I.

>> ^Yogi:

I've been noticing the schadenfreude runs thick when it comes to this situation with Lohan. People around the internet are splooging with glee over the fact that she'll be sent to prison...
Why? I get some people have sad little pathetic lives and they're very happy to smile at someone else's horrible life. Why so much joy though? It's very upsetting to me.

We're sick of no-nothing socialites (Paris Hilton and gang) getting off with a slap on the wrist because of who they are. It is frustrating to people that realize if they did the same thing, the hammer of "justice" would come down on them with full force. Just because she made some shitty movies, she shouldn't have different rights than you or I.

>> ^ponceleon:

>> ^kronosposeidon:
I dare Tony Hayward to drink just one glass of water from the Gulf Coast right now. Let him prove to us that the oil and dispersant levels are nothing to worry about. motherfucker

Well, as much of a fuck up as it is, I'm not sure your statement makes much sense... the gulf is salt-water. Even if it was clean, he'd probably not be well-advised to drink a full glass of it!

Drinking just one glass of regular old ocean water ain't gonna hurt you. Now I wouldn't drink a glass if it were suspected that irukandji were in it, but then I don't really have to worry about that unless I'm visitng @dag. And I wouldn't drink ocean water from any coast that Paris Hilton frequents. And I definitely wouldn't touch the shit in the Gulf these days.

Speaking of drinking bad water, the father of the U.S. Navy's nuclear propulsion program, Hyman Rickover, actually drank primary coolant from a ship's nuclear reactor before Congress to prove that it was safe. That actually is a dumb thing to do, because that's the same water the circulates directly through the reactor itself, both cooling it and moderating the reactions in the fuel cells. But then he didn't die until he was 86. YMMV.

So, how about those Yankees?

Can we say America is any better? Paris Hilton selling burgers?

Should be renamed 'Girls will be Dicks'

I'm with the others, I hate guys being portrayed like this, just as much as I'm sure girls hate being portrayed as only being like Paris Hilton.