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I never said he was my hero. I'm not familiar with the bombing comment. Could be. Louis Armstrong loved the sound of his horn too. I didn't compare him to Newton; I merely pointed out that his ideas are reaching a lot of people, and that on certain aspects he appears to be obviously right. Newton might have been a smart ass too; I don't care at this point.
The fact that you are referring to him as a necessary attachment to his ideas is exactly the problem I am referring to. I'd rather have an accurate weather forecast from an obnoxious social pariah than an inaccurate one from the usual Goldilocks. The forecast lasts five minutes and the weather goes on all day.
Darwin and Newton didn't invent anything but merely pointed out aspects of relationships within an existing reality. Same with the others. There will, in all probability, be a long emergency with or without Kunstler. By the way, today's Flustercluck presents the reality of the Oiliad in a way I've not seen before. Like him or not, and lots don't, he has an agile mind and an ability to express himself. Keep the wheat, chuck the chaff.
I'll agree that there are times when he rubs me the wrong way, and his flaws are no doubt in the public record, but it isn't about him, or you or me. That's my point. Maybe Shakespeare was a drunken lout. Didn't affect the run of his plays. Lots of our heroes have or had all sorts of personality quirks. I won't even get into Hollywood.
Newton is credited by many with the invention of the reflecting telescope. He was also pretty good with math.
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blnewton.htm
These were noted scientists who almost single handedly advanced their fields by a generation and will probably remain famous as long as the printed word. Kunstler is a journalist who uses heated language and occasionally rude words to describe what others have already discovered. Whether or not you like his work, to compare his stature to the names you mention is at best ridiculous.
Richard C
Yep. Newton used his position as president of the royal society to badmouth his intellectual rivals mercilessly. Lost the plot and spent years researching fairies and angels in his later years. Darwin, on the other hand, was a decent chap :)