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Disentangling Facts From Fantasy In the World of Edison and Tesla
dsinc writes "Forbes' Alex Knapp writes about the Tesla idolatry and confusing his genius for godhood: 'Tesla wasn't an ignored god-hero. Thomas Edison wasn't the devil. They were both brilliant, strong-willed men who helped build our modern world. They both did great things and awful things. They were both brilliantly right about some things and just as brilliantly wrong about others. They had foibles, quirks, passions, misunderstandings and moments of wonder.'"
Tesla was hundreds of years ahead of his time. He developed technology to transit power through the air itself (of course none of this technology would allow TV, radio, or satellite to function if it were in use today). He invented radio (and won a lawsuit against marconi in the US supreme Court finding he invented it and marconi ripped it off). There is enormous speculation about his death and his later work in dealing with bending space-time -- many claim he succeeded. He was however, considered somewhat of a showman, and by some ,a charlatan, but his achievements speak for themselves. Tesla was someone who existed in another reality of his own creation. He was born 100 years apart from me on the same day. I think I can understand how he felt.
It's a lot easier to be socialist when your defense and medical R&D are covered by other countries.
I wish the US would see this and stop doing so for the rest of the world. It's really annoying as a US citizen to be spending 4 times (as a percentage of GDP) on our military as Germany (I think we can trust them now). Yet we pretty much mandate it to be so.
Additionally we pay more for the same medicine because our government refuses to take a stand on this issue, while other governments do. I'd like to see a law that no medicine or medical devices can be sold in the US for over the average price in the rest of the G8.
The rest of the world partly agrees with you. The US euphemism 'defence' really means 'offence' and the world could do with a lot less US offence. As far as medical research, whilst the US is a very valuable contributor, there are also areas where US patent law and laws about stem cells and similar actually impede the research of other nations. I think we will be alright without that too if it comes to that.
That's still better than Gates.
Microsoft manages to infect all forms of human intellectual activity with its "computer is a fussy little creature that shows pretty little windows" mentality. It preventied all kinds of progress that would require people who do not specialize in writing glossy-looking GUI programs to operate on any kind of data in any meaningful manner. Only decades, maybe centuries later, mankind has a chance to change its relationship with computers.
Contrary to the popular belief, there indeed is no God.