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A broken clock is right twice a day

Sunday, September 28, 2008 by Dave Winer.

First a disclaimer. Andrew Keen's book is a piece of trash, he says things that enflame people just to enflame them, I don't want to do anything to encourage him. Permalink to this paragraph

That said... Permalink to this paragraph

He was on a Gillmor Gang last week discussing Sarah Palin with Steve and Michael Markman, and he said something profoundly correct, and surprisingly validates his theory about the Cult of the Amateur. Permalink to this paragraph

A picture named clock.gifSarah Palin is the ultimate expression of the lunacy of the belief, that I don't share, that amateurs should replace professionals in every walk of life. That's the false premise of Keen's book, that anyone is advocating this, but clearly the Republicans do actually believe that being President is something that any schnook can, and should do. It's so obviously not true, incredibly dangerous thinking, so dangerous it borders on treason.  Permalink to this paragraph

It's provably ridiculous. Permalink to this paragraph

Would you get on a plane if you knew the person flying the plane had never flown one before? Permalink to this paragraph

Would you let a surgeon operate on you if you knew he or she hadn't been to medical school? Permalink to this paragraph

Do you think that operating the US government, and the military, is less complex and specialized as flying a plane or operating on a human being? Permalink to this paragraph

And before you say that Obama doesn't have the experience either, don't insult your own intelligence. No one has experience being President when they take the job for the first time. Not McCain, not Roosevelt or Reagan or Bush.  Permalink to this paragraph

I read a piece this morning by Fareed Zakaria who said Palin was unqualified. That's overly polite. That someone like her can get as far as she has reveals a serious flaw in our form of government.  Permalink to this paragraph

Update: Andrew Keen respondsPermalink to this paragraph




     

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A picture named dave.jpgDave Winer, 53, pioneered the development of weblogs, syndication (RSS), podcasting, outlining, and web content management software; former contributing editor at Wired Magazine, research fellow at Harvard Law School, entrepreneur, and investor in web media companies. A native New Yorker, he received a Master's in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin, a Bachelor's in Mathematics from Tulane University and currently lives in Berkeley, California.

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