<< The very foundation of my argument is that government is incapable of managing sustainability >>

Ok Jardine, got that firmly implanted in my brain, thankyou.

But….the next step is still completely mysterious, I’m afraid!

<< Because… government is not capable of knowing the values it would need to achieve, to achieve sustainability. >>

Government is capable of soliciting the best minds in the country, noting overseas research, and asking for views from across all sectors of our society, in order to get the best possible idea of what sustainability actually is and how it could be achieved, is it not?

In fact, this is exactly what our federal government did back in 1994.

So your assertion that government is somehow incapable of managing a sustainability paradigm just completely doesn’t gel with me.

All I can see at the moment is an extremeIy illogical assertion, and a whole lot of guff about me being illogical coming from one who seems to be the most illogical poster I have yet encountered on OLO!

No offence, as I really do want to have a meaningful discussion with you. But at the moment it is looking rather ominous!

JKJ,

"But the discussion will be pointless if you are not interested in learning how your beliefs are wrong. If you're not interested, please say so, and we'll just leave the conversation at my having categorically disproved your entire argument, and you being completely unable to answer my argument, except by persisting in illogical beliefs."

I always think it's a shame that Graham doesn't provide a prize or even a sticker for people around here who are fond of declaring themselves the "winner".

JKJ would have a whole closet full of fake silver (real plastic) trophies and a revered collection of sticker books to pass on to his descendents if that was the case.

Ludwig
"Government is capable of soliciting the best minds in the country, noting overseas research, and asking for views from across all sectors of our society, in order to get the best possible idea of what sustainability actually is and how it could be achieved..."

Does this mean you don't know what sustainability actually is?

Can you define it? If so, I'll show why I think government can't achieve it, and you can show why you think it can.

Poirot
Your opinion about my personality is irrelevant to the question whether the govenrment is capable of managing environmentally sustainable development. But you can always be relied on to come down on the side of unlimited arbitrary power for no defensible reason, can't you?

JKJ,

Why don't you show it then?

I don't know that I'm on the side of unlimited arbitrary power...my homeschooling would contradict that stance. I found it necessary to psychologically start from scratch regarding what does and does not constitute "learning" or "education" when I first started. I'm often quite confused about where I stand on such issues in general - and perhaps the answer lies somewhere between the two extremes.

You always seem to chuck out a few confected questions and if people don't address them to your satisfaction, you jump straight up onto the soap box to declare yourself the victor...as if the substance of the debate is secondary to the competition between those involved

Sorry, if I take an interest in the psychology at work around here...but I find it fascinating (apparently I'm "haughty" according to one other poster here...I find it fascinating that that's how I behave or am perceived).

"...or am perceived"

Sorry, that's probably my fault for making the Elizabeth McGovern link elsewhere. But that had as much to do with her little moustache, Poirot, as with her role as Cora.

Not at all, WmTrevor.

I'm sure if I was more like Cora, I'd be much nicer and more refined (and I wouldn't occasionally resort to words like "bollocks":)