Scholastic Rip Off

Admin1: Rip Van Winkle awakens in the 21st century after a hundred-year snooze and he is bewildered by what he sees. Women dash about half naked and go aworking for big corporations which did not even exist then. Women and men talk to small metal devices pinned to their ears or they have white strings dangling from their ears. Young people instead of working sit at home on sofas, moving miniature athletes around on electronic screens. Airports, hospitals, shopping malls--every place Rip goes just baffles him. But when he finally walks into a schoolroom, the old man knows exactly where he is. "This is a school," he declares. "We used to have these back in 1906. Only now the blackboards are green."

Doctor Gravytee: Poor old Rip is ignorant of Alphysics. The rate of change of giant bureaucracies is asymptotically close to zero. Scholasticism is one of the oldest and biggest bureaucracies in existence.

A1: I see. Scholasticism transcends national boundaries, it is a protected monopoly, it has no incentive to change. Therefore it does not change. As long it can grow it never changes.

Dr. G: It changes so slowly that it is not even perceptible.

A1: What happens if instead of Rip, Newton woke up from his slumber and came visit us?

Dr. G: Newton would be delighted to see that the religion he established, the Newtonism based on the faith he called Newton's Soul, is stronger than ever. At Newton's death no schools in the new continent taught Newtonism. In the new continent Benjamin Franklin was considered a true scientist not Newton. Newton will be glad to see that the old British colony is now teaching its students the British Newtonist religion as the state religion.

A1: But Newtonism is science not religion.

Dr. G: This is the point. Since Newtonism is taught to you as science when you learned your alphabet you cannot tell that Newtonism is religion. Newton will be so happy to see that his religion is still taught as science.

A1: What happens if Benjamin Franklin came to visit our century?

Dr. G: Benjamin Franklin would be shocked to see that a British religion is being taught to the students of the nation he saved from the British colonization.

A1: Franklin denied the authority of the King of Britain and the authority of the self-declared British King of Mechanics. Now he sees that British colonialists infiltrated the nation at its core. That must be devastating to Benjamin Franklin.

Dr. G: Exactly. Newton wanted to meet the great Benjamin Franklin as if to make him a favor but Franklin could never find the time. Why? Franklin was a free born. He was a citizen not a subject. He could think for himself. He had no need for the authority of the British King or the authority of the British science deity.

A1: This is so true. The reason Benjamin Franklin was able to discover the true laws of electricity was because he denied the authority of the British Newton.

Dr. G: Obviously. But Newton will be happy to see that in alphysics textbook used today in US schools Benjamin Franklin is not mentioned but Newton is mentioned as the god of science taking credit even for the discovery of science of electricity discovered by Franklin.

A1: This cannot be just to Franklin. By teaching the British Newtonist religion to our children we are betraying our heritage. We are betraying the legacy of founding fathers! We are actually teaching our children a 17th century British occult religion instead of science of Benjamin Franklin! Just thinking about this gives me shudders.

Dr. G: That's why Newton is the greatest marketing genius of all times. Newton will see that he was right in every marketing move he made. But Newton is also worried.

A1: Why?

Dr. G: Newton is worried about the Internet. He doesn't like what he sees. Newton is for absolute authority for his disciples who call themselves today physicists. Once citizens have free access to knowledge the authority of the Newtonian Doctors of Philosophy is diluted. The authority of the Newtonian Doctors of Philosophy who call themselves today physicists and cosmologists are based on the fraud that they propagate namely that they know something citizens do not know. Today citizens can easily verify that Doctors of Philosophy are charlatans. They are the latest version of the old shamans except that today they are licensed to practice shamanism when they obtain their license to practice shamanism, the PhD.

A1: Newton's worry is not justified. Internet is already doctored by the Newtonian doctors.

Dr. G: Well. Funny isn't it. Citizens can never win against the Doctors. Citizens are free and independent so they act freely and independently. Doctors act as a group of Newtonist zealots and they are stronger.

A1: We the people already missed one opportunity to get rid of the Doctors when the printing press was invented. Today the Internet is almost lost to Doctors.

Dr. G: Newton will win again.