A FREE SPEECH! My First Audio Blog

The dulcid tones and opinionated voice of moi!

what price specialisation?

A friend of mine recently expressed his reluctance to go to his solicitor on a legal issue because he fretted “I’ll get a legal opinion.” He was afraid that the solicitor would give him a solicitors opinion and really he didnt want the offcial line, he wanted a broader approach. What he was really lamenting was the effects of specialisation.
“China is the next great empire” I’ve said it myself and I’ve read it in I don’t know how many business papers and magazines. Solicitors, economists and a plethora of other professions are operating within the confines of their own specialities. They kinda tend to examine the situations with a certian set of glasses. This was highlighted to me in a  rather astonishing article in the Australian by Mark Steyn who, in joining a debate about abortion revealed some staggering thoughts/statistics about the death or Europe, the rise of Islam and the answer to the question as to whether China will be the hyperpower of the 21st Century? His answer was a resounding “no” and all because of another little speciality; demographics. Mark Steyn in The Australian.

Chomsky

I was one of the lucky 2500 (thanks Mark) who got to see Chomsky at the RDS in Dublin (apparently there were approx 4000 more on the waiting list and Bryan still hasn’t forgiven me for being 50 feet from one of his heros.)
If I might be allowed a few comments. In a sense he was preaching to the converted, mind you no sane right wing war mongerer :O) would have ventured into the lions den and hoped to come out alive if they had challenged Chomsky. Olivia O Leary MC’ed and tried to bring a smidgen of balance into the affar but was given short shrift from the man.

He also seemed to be frustratibgly reassured of the rightness of his position and flew over topics when us great uneducated massess might have appreciated a bit more detail. It was like being out at your wife’s companie’s christmas party and not getting the in jokes.

Having said all that, he was erudite, knowledgeable, damning and consistent in a way that was rather refreshing. His take on Nurmenburg was disturbing, the war on terror, enlightneing; and his simple exposition on the principle of universality was Socratic to say the least.