Figures. It is very easy to subtle condition computer models. And then you just mess around with the parameters until you get the desired outcome. Of course you do not report on the conditioning process.

Flying cards are energetically stupid, safety-wise stupid and traffic-capacity-wise stupid. That means they may not ever happen except for meaningless stunts. Those that want them are like little children crying "I want! I want! I want!" all over without realizing that this physical reality has limits. Really pathetic.

That is called the Dunning-Kruger effect: From a certain level of stupidity downwards, people have trouble recognizing how stupid they are, while conversely bright people usually realize how limited they are. Self-assessment is a tricky thing.

Indeed. There is some need for coordination, but that does not mean deciding things for people, just to make sure decisions are made. This can be done in a way that the coordinator just makes sure that everybody concerned gets to participate. A good manager works that way. A bad manager just grabs power.

I read some while ago that "those on power have banded together against their citizens". Seems to describe things adequately. It becomes more obvious when looking in from the outside: From an European perspective, the two US parties looks so similar that it is hard to distinguish them. Both are basically right-wing conservative parties, the one a tiny bit more extreme than the other, but not in a meaningful way. (I am sure Europe will follow this "model" in due time...)

Well, with the advent of modern methods of controlling the masses (pioneered in the 3rd Reich and in Stalinism, and now successfully applied in the US, Russia and other nations), democracy is about to lose its only advantage: That it is hard to replace with totalitarianism. Sure, an educated, bright population can still make Democracy work, but that type of population has become exceedingly rare.

Nonsense. The difference is whether those on top coordinate or decide. The first is non-hierarchical with regard to power. The second is. The rare good manager knows that he serves his workers and that it is his job to remove obstacles. The failed manager thinks that it is his job to rule his underlings.

I always find it funny that Rand had to rely on the welfare system later in life. Apparently she was not willing to live up to her own expectations when it meant that she was going to suffer. What an incredible hypocrite. That about shows the quality level of her "insights".

Yes, it is. This is an exception from the general rule.

Unfortunately, that can be the road to hell. The 3rd Reich grew on providing a lot of jobs for the starving masses. Suddenly they were not starving anymore and they were grateful. See how that turned out. It decidedly needs more to keep thinks in check.

Well, totalitarianism is universally bad, because it has no place for humans, just for roles. Hierarchical organizations are typically not totalitarianism, as they usually do not dominate your life and there are ways out and you usually had a choice whether to be part of it or not in the first place. As to Democracy, it is pretty bad, but still better than the known alternatives. But "The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter. - Winston Churchill" applies very much to Democracy. If, like for example in the US, the population is easily manipulated bu fear, Democracy fails and is typically replaced first by a police-state and then by totalitarianism. Really, the main advantage of Democracy is that it is difficult to turn it into to totalitarianism, but that only remains true as long as the voters understand that this is the main advantage.

Indeed. If the choice is to flee or bow your head, many people will do the latter out of practicality. And fighting against totalitarianism is always exceedingly expensive to the individual.

A) Peer review does not ensure quality.
B) Cherry-picking some peer-reviewed research over other allows easy manipulation
C) What is good for groups may not be desirable at all because it has unacceptable negative impact on individuals.

Common occurrence. May be connected to the fact that many people have trouble dealing with the limitations of their own insights, so they refuse to try at all. Opens them up for any sort of manipulation. And yes, the banking system is badly broken.

The very definition of totalitarianism is that you do not get a choice in the matter. This "research" stinks of propaganda that may be part of a slow effort to bring people around to actually welcome totalitarianism.