You are conflating no answer with no value in having an education on the subject.

A mathematician may not have a solution to the Riemann hypothesis, but is certainly more informed than a layman.

Similarly, people who have studied politics, philosophy, or ethics may not have a definitive answer on a particular topic; however, to argue that a layman's answer is of equal value to that of an educated expert's answer in that domain is disingenuous. Furthermore, there are certainly quantitative elements to both political science and international relations.

Yes, there are some subjects that are qualitative, with no definite answers -- however, that does not mean that all answers are equal.

However, you cannot conflate faith with these other subjects, not even theology. Indeed, theology is different from faith because it is the study of religions. It is not the same as "belief", which has no grounding in any reality.

That is not to say that faith is any less valuable -- merely that it is not in the same league as any of the other subjects that you mentioned.

I hope you enjoyed the rest of the post. I have taken a few classes under Professor Nichols, and he is a hoot. I really enjoy reading the rest of his blog as well, mostly because he has a very non-partisan yet informed worldview on a variety of topics.

Professor Tom Nichols, who teaches at Harvard and the Naval War College, has a great piece called the "Death of Expertise."

I quote:

Indeed, to a certain segment of the American public, the idea that one person knows more than another person is an appalling thought, and perhaps even a not-too-subtle attempt to put down one's fellow citizen. It's certainly thought to be rude: to judge from social media and op-eds, the claim of expertise -- and especially any claim that expertise should guide the outcome of a disagreement -- is now considered by many people to be worse than a direct personal insult.

This is a very bad thing. Yes, it's true that experts can make mistakes, as disasters from thalidomide to the Challenger explosion tragically remind us. But mostly, experts have a pretty good batting average compared to laymen: doctors, whatever their errors, seem to do better with most illnesses than faith healers or your Aunt Ginny and her special chicken gut poultice. To reject the notion of expertise, and to replace it with a sanctimonious insistence that every person has a right to his or her own opinion, is just plain silly.

Worse, it's dangerous. The death of expertise is a rejection not only of knowledge, but of the ways in which we gain knowledge and learn about things. It's a rejection of science. It's a rejection, really, of the foundation of Western civilization: yes, that paternalistic, racist, ethnocentric approach to knowledge that created the nuclear bomb, the Edsel, and New Coke, but which also keeps diabetics alive, lands mammoth airliners in the dark, and writes documents like the Charter of the United Nations.

Spying on their citizens - Check

The difference here is that we the people still have the right to question the government, and organizations like the EFF continue to fight for it.

Economic stagnation - Check

You must be joking. American economy is anything but stagnant. Between 2009-2013, the U.S. GDP growth 1.9%, which is pretty good compared to most other OECD countries.

It may be "stagnant" when you compare it to a country like China at 7.7%, but that is simply not sustainable, not without artificial currency manipulation.

Riots - Check

A few days of media blitz over a police shootout is not the same as protesters fighting for democracy.

High unemployment - Check

What on earth are you talking about? The U.S. unemployment is at 5.9% as of September 2014 and China's is estimated at ~4.5%.

Here's what we used at Clearwire for OOB management of radio sites.

http://www.digi.com/products/w...

Or worst, The Postman by David Brin.

Most start off with, "This call may be recorded for..." I consider that permission.

That was also back when if the sysadmin thought you had gone too far, your account would just be closed and a warning message about you sent to other admins in the area. Back then it was easy to blacklist someone from every ISP within the local calling area. Remember when we had to pay by the minute for long distance?

My parrot will say "Want more" when I'm eating something he wants. If he likes it he will say "Good shit, Maynard." or "Good shit cheese" if it's cheese. Once I gave him American Cheese and he threw it to the ground and said, "No! Good shit cheese!", so I gave him some Swiss.

When he wants to go back to his cage to sleep he'll say, "Wanna go to bed?" and if I leave the lights on he'll say, "Lights off."

Yes, there are often times he says things and makes noise for no good reason, but hey, we all do that.

Do YOU make a habit of fixing stuff which you neither like nor want nor use?

Yes, I'm a Windows sysadmin.

1kW @ 2.45GHz is called a microwave oven. Now getting a magnetron to modulate is and exercise left to the student.

Agree! Though I was a sixer, I miss those days. Wire wrap board, some '138s and JEDIC RAM. Put a 6522 (or 8255? in your case), maybe a 6551 and you have a computer. I had a hacked image of CBM BASIC that would take I/O from a serial chip. Did wonderful things with that.

I miss the 8052AH-BASIC very much, made a payphone controller board out of that one. That was one hell of a chip. So quick to code on. Self sensing serial speed, had the software to burn an EPROM, Give it +5, a colorburst xtal, and hang a 8k SRAM on it with a Dallas SmartSocket and Bob's your uncle.

Ah, the days when you could run down to Radio Shack at 8:40pm and buy some TTL glue and the wire wrap supplies to finish a project.

And the ladies will get "landing lights" down their legs. Just remember, no means no, and no touch and go allowed. Circle the strip until you get clearance, or find another field.

sh! Don't tell them.

Tcsh, tcsh, tcsh on you!