X-Message-Number: 26913
Date: Fri, 2 Sep 2005 09:54:03 -0400
From: Thomas Donaldson <>
Subject: replies to 2 Sept msgs

Some comments on msgs:

1. For Jon:
   First, the important thing about web pages is how well they explain
   their subject. If they are 10 years old and explain it well, then
   they remain superior to one that is a month old and is very 
   confusing.

   Second, as human beings (or even someday superhuman beings) we will
   remain subject to accidents. We simply have to keep our eyes ou
   for possible dangers. Since the variety of dangers is very large,
   it's hard to be more specific than that. However ideally it's
   better to stay away from areas subject to earthquakes, storms,
   volcanic eruptions, and political upheavals. I said "ideally"
   here because sometimes just such areas give other resources
   and opportunities that outweigh their dangers.

2. For DisasterMan:
   Here we go again. Among other things, many NON-US airlines simply
   haven't felt the problems of the US airlines. Qantas and local
   Australian airlines have raised their fares to match the increased
   fuel cost, and aren't showing financial trouble. Second, remember
   what I said about South Africa during apartheid: they had no oil
   at all, and no one at all would sell oil to them. So they used
   chemistry to make it from coal.

   Any problems we run into with supply of oil are purely temporary.
   Any airline or other transport agency might individually go
   bankrupt, but others who planned things out better would not. If
   all US airlines went bankrupt (unlikely: some lines are still 
   doing well) remember that many other countries fly airlines into
   the US. Ultimately, of course, we'll end up using something
   else to give power to our cars, trucks, and airliners, and 
   it will be suppliers of oil who will start worrying.

            Best wishes and long long life to all,

                Thomas Donaldson

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