Ideas: Inertia Theory and Similarising Effect Theory

RH:

1. Newton's First Law, Inertia, may be stated: "An object at rest tends to remain at rest while an object in motion tends to remain in motion in a straight line unless acted on by an external force."

2. I believe that Newton's First Law applies not only to celestial bodies and smaller everyday masses, but even more so to Govt and all Human affairs.

3. In other words, INERTIA is the great human condition and it explains much of our successes and failures and anyone who seeks to change the world or his country -- like Hatoyama -- will more likely succeed if he takes into account this very human Inertia.

4. Some examples of Inertia:

a. In 1965, LIE KY wept on tv announcing that Singapore was kicked out of Malaysia. He knew Singapore was finished, will collapse. But to his amazement, weeks and months followed and life went on business as usual. The big British trading houses in Malaysia, and the numerous Chinese businesses, continued to send their goods to Singapore for export. Slowly, LIE realised that Singapore would not collapse. So Singapore, like Hongkong, continued to thrive and prosper, to this day. Lesson? States, govts and humans tend to continue doing the same things day after day unless acted on by an external force big enough to change that. A trajectory, once set, is almost impossible to change, which is why hated dictators like LIE can continue indefinitely and Singapore can continue to prosper on the trajectory [including British administration, law, port hub commerce, etc] set by the British, as in Hongkong.

b. Recent US disasters like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina did not collapse New York and New Orleans. Life went on business as usual and people did not lay down and gave up hope but instead turned up for work within days.

c. Zimbabwe has printed Z$100t notes but life still goes on business as usual and Mugabe remains in power.

d. Millions starved to death in China and North Korea not long ago but life went on business as usual and the govts remained entrenched.

5. All these show, not so much the resilence of humans, but their lack of imagination and creativity, and inability to think of alternatives to their predicaments, so thus quietly accepting their fate whatever that may be, even starving to death. In other words, continuing in a straight line until acted on by a big enough external force.

6. Yet it is this inertia that saved mankind and humans and while we should understand it, we should not eradicate or reform it to such an extent we do the human race in, or our countries and communities in. For example, it takes a pretty plodding, uncreative, unimaginative kind of man to wake early every morning, carry pails of water from the river to water his crops and keep doing this every day until he can harvest and eat. A less unimaginative and less uncreative man would refuse to daily toil and resort to killing and robbery to get the other man's harvest. Hence, you have the 2 classic types of people, the primary food producers and those who prey on what they produce. Today, nothing has changed. There are those who produce and those who live off that produce while they themselves produce little or nothing. Marx described them as the capitalists vs the workers, or bourgeoisie vs the proletariat. Today, politicians, even those in govt, are the bourgeoisie, too, living off their people. Politicians, including govts, not only serve their own interests and agendas, but have become the problem, not the solution. If we could somehow govern ourselves without politicians, we'd all be better off. Today, a kind of Govt By Referendum is already possible but it will not happen unless 'acted on by an external force', thanks to Inertia. Without an external force, people will continue to remain in inertia, unimaginative and uncreative in a straight line trajectory.

7. What if people are NOT unimaginative and uncreative? Look at the most imaginative and creative country in history -- the US -- and the most unimaginative and most uncreative -- China -- and choose which you would want to create, assuming you can conjure up enough 'external force' to overcome the inertia.

8. The US has given the world the internet, computers, MNCs, earth-destroying military technologies, most of its popular culture from rap and moonwalk to blockbuster 3D movies; but also drugs, serial killers, random drive-by shootings, Woodstock hippie-ism, schoolkids who attend school only for fun and to organise parties, workers so switched off and uncontrollable they produce shoddy goods they themselves won't buy, etc.

9. On the other hand, China has 1b more people than the US but produces far less ideas and inventions. It is so plodding its students routinely practise 100 sums a day and score near full marks in universities overseas. If Chinese were to suddenly become like Americans, China would fracture in less than a decade.

10. Happily or unhappily, nothing much will happen, thanks to inertia. This inertia explains why the "OBAMA first term is turning out to be a Bush third term". Why the US is still in Afghanistan and pursuing pretty much the same anti-Russia policies following the straight line trajectory from the Cold War, especially in Central Asia. Inertia also explains why China, which could easily squeeze the US simply by dumping some or all US$, cannot. Not that it cannot, but more because China doesn't have the imagination or creativity to imagine what would or could be the result, so better to do nothing -- inertia.

11. Inertia is so much the, not just a, human condition, that it applies to individual humans as well as their govts and societies. Many Americans have become unconventional and taken to drugs, free sex, school shooting sprees, even kidnap and murder, and dropped out of 'mainstream' life, but they are a tiny minority and the vast majority still work 9-5, Mon-Fri, with 3 weeks annual leave, and keep at it year after year.

12. The American trajectory was set in the last 230 years or so while the China trajectory was set in the last 5,000 years or so, which implies that probably, the American trajectory is easier to change than China's. This probably explains the greater experimentation in lifestyle, culture, business organisation and methods in the US, and the overall greater imagination and creativity, not forgetting this could be bad.

13. OBAMA won his Presidency on the promise of Change, but it looks like he cannot create enough of the kind of 'force' that could change trajectories. He needs a 9/11 kind of force that helped BUSH change trajectory and invade Iraq. OBAMA himself has to understand why he is also following a trajectory before he can change it. Similarly for Hatoyama. He not only has to understand what is and why Japan is following a trajectory, like everybody else, but why the economic trajectory has remained unchanged for a dozen years -- if he wishes to change it. Then, he has to find a 9/11 force to succeed. It will not be easy and I wish him all the luck in the world.

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14. The above 13 paras more or less conclude my theory on Newton's First Law in Govt and Human Affairs, or my Inertia Theory. It stands by itself regardless of my second theory below on Imagination and Creativity even if this be discredited.

15. I call this second theory the "Similarising Effect".

16. I have noticed that many, if not most, geniuses work alone or even are loners. Throughout history, the wise men of the tribe was often alone, exempted from the normal hundrum work of producing food, tending animals, the usual 'drawers of water and hewers of wood', etc. Often, when the wise men needed inspiration or insights, they would go alone to the holy mountain to get inspired. The question is, why alone? Can't they think great thoughts and insights while bustling around their community actively involved in all the daily affairs? It seems not. Not only are they alone or loners in habit and temperament, from a practical standpoint, they obviously cannot think unusual thoughts, and therefore potentially great thoughts, if they need to hew wood and draw water. In short, they have to be alone.

17. I would go further and postulate that these geniuses or wise men cannot think different if they are surrounded by too much sameness. In other words, if they allow themselves to be surrounded by too many people, too much sameness, they BECOME just like them, like their surroundings, and lose their genius or wisdom. They have to go alone to the mountain. Even in the midst of their community, they have to be alone, to gain their great insights and wisdom.

18. This could be because of the Similarising Effect. I believe that all human beings, and maybe animals and even plants, too, tend to become more and more like one another with constant interaction and over time. I say this because all 6.8b of us here on earth now are almost exactly the same, AND THIS IS ASTOUNDING! Why should we all, all 6.8b of us, have 2 eyes, a nose, 2 ears, etc, and even more astoundingly, our eyes see exactly the same subtle shades of colour when our retinas absorb the same wavelengths of light! Our nose perceive the same subtle perfume, our tongues taste the same pepper or lime tastes. All of us and our traits, fall into the Bell Curve with only a tiny few at both ends of the bell. This is astounding, or should be. How come there aren't many dwarfs and giants, people with 3 eyes, 10 hands, etc, when we are all busily evolving and mutating? Thus, there must be a powerful, physical, force that makes us more and more similar to one another, when we are close and interact enough in community.

19. There is an obvious evolutionary benefit to sameness. The more same we all are, the less different and therefore, less conflicts there are, and we all get along fine. Even babies instinctively notice people who are different. This is inborn and being the same, or rather, NOT being different, means being accepted by others and the community, and therefore important for survival. To be different, like a gay, usually means ostracism, even hatred and physical attacks. Thus, my Similarising Effect helps explain xenophobia, too.

20. Note that community members are very alike but different communities are different. For example, all 1.3b Chinese are so similar we instantly recognise them as Chinese but can instantly tell them apart from Whites or Blacks, by several traits including height and body size, etc. This can be explained by assuming that the Similarising Effect 'makes people living and interacting closely, more and more alike', while across communities, they are all different because they are not close enough or interact enough, over time.

21. We know the terms 'herd mentality' and 'groupthink'. These are well understood but the explanation is my Similarising Effect. When you are close enough and interact enough, over time, you become like those you are close to. EVEN THINK THE SAME, TOO. This is why people who are alone, or loners, are able to think different. They are free from the powerful Similarising Effect.

22. I cannot end without a practical advice. If you want to think different thoughts and thereby potentially great thoughts, the last thing you want to do is convene a meeting or committee. You'd do better to ask everybody to go into isolation and think, before meeting to discuss. Long term, you should always go into retreat, preferably alone, for as much time as possible. This way, you are more likely to think different, free from the Similarising Effect. That said, thinking is a skill and the more you do it, the better you are at it. Sadly, most people don't think so they cannot think. Once you have started, it gets easier and easier. This is why geniuses can think such astoundingly different thoughts and keep doing it at will. Be alone and gain the world of understanding.

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RH: ME ON VIDEO DESCRIBING lky lhl wks NUMEROUS ELECTION RIGGINGS:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/search/label/Video%20RH%20on%20LKY%20LHL%20WKS%20cheating%20elections

MY ACQUAINTANCE, MR DAVID DUCLOS, A FORMER POLICE INSPECTOR, AND HIS LAWYER FRIEND, EYEWITNESSED LEE KUAN YEW RIGGING THE 1997 CHENG SAN GRC ELECTION. READ MORE AT MY BLOG ENTITLED "I CAME, I SAW, I SOLVED IT" :
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/

MY ONLINE POLICE REPORT ON LKY LHL WKS CHEATING ELECTIONS:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/2009/06/police-report-lee-ky-lhl-wks-cheating_02.html

THE MOST COMPLETE RUBBISHING OF LEEconomics EVER:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-wrote-it.blogspot.com/2009/06/most-complete-rubbishing-of-leeconomics.html

[ALSO AT THE ABOVE BLOG, LIE KUAN YEW's LIES, CORRUPTION, WRONGFUL JAILING, TORTURE AND BEATING TO DEATH OF INNOCENT POLITICAL PRISONERS LIKE MR CHAN HOCK HUA]

READ ALSO MARTYN SEE's INTERVIEW WITH ME AT:
http://singaporerebel.blogspot.com/

ALSO AT:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-wrote-it.blogspot.com/2007/03/filmmaker-martyn-see-interviews-robert.html

FOR QUICK, IRREVERENT REASONS WHY LIE KY DESERVES A NOBEL:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/search/label/Not%20nominated%20for%20a%20Nobel%20so%20LIE%20KY%20gives%20himself%20many%20others

MY ARCHIVE OF WORKS AT:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-wrote-it.blogspot.com/

PHOTOS OF LIE KY SCRATCHING MY WIFE's NEW CAR:
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/search/label/LIE%20KY%20scratched%20my%20car%20S%242800%20to%20repair

NOT GUILTY BUT TORTURED, DEGRADED 15 YEARS FOR PUBLICITY, FUN
http://i-came-i-saw-i-solved-it.blogspot.com/2009/05/not-guilty-but-tortured-degraded-15.html

MAKING HOME MOVIES IS THIS EASY:

http://i-came-i-saw-i-wrote-it.blogspot.com/2009/08/making-home-movies-is-this-easy.html
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