[Edu-sig] Recanting

[Arthur]

kirby urner wrote:

>
> But with all of these intellectual currents, it's really about the
> people, the community, just as Python is a lot about the Python
> community (Perl about Perl's -- which I'm awed by).  I'm one of the
> players, the one doing to most to build a bridge to/from Python Nation
> shall we say, but many more are working other angles.

Seems to put some of us at a disadvantage.  This "Genius and their 
Posse" stuff is a lot of what seems to go on.  You seem - from my 
perspective - to be immersed in it, and comfortable with it, and have 
names set aside for those of us who aren't. If I thought of it as a 
neutral current I could live with it better.  It feels to me like an 
anti-intellectual current,.And worse than that. 

What I take away from the 20th century is something about 
dehumanization.  I see hero worship as a form of exactly that.  It seems 
to be important to you that every school child know the name of Fuller, 
and Guido, and Kay. Pata Pata was built on the "shoulders of giants", 
indeed.  Thousands of them content to write and contri bute their device 
drivers, and move on - metaphorically speaking.

I resent this Genius thrust, and particularly resent being resented it 
for resenting it.

Art