Sunday, September 7, 2008

Friedman on ‘drill, drill, drill’: It’s like someone chanting ‘IBM Selectric typewriters’ during the IT revolution.

Friedman on ‘drill, drill, drill’: It’s like someone chanting ‘IBM Selectric typewriters’ during the IT revolution.: On NBC’s Meet The Press this morning:

FRIEDMAN: I’m actually not against drilling. What I’m against is making that the center of our focus because we are on the eve of a new revolution, the energy technology revolution. It would be, Tom, as if on the eve of the IT revolution, the revolution of PCs and the internet, someone was up there standing and demanding, “IBM Selectric typewriters, IBM Selectric typewriters.” That’s what “drill, drill, drill” is the equivalent of today.
(Via Think Progress.)

I agree with the sentiment, but Friedman's comment is historically inaccurate. There were quite a few such people back then (and mainframe vs minicomputer, and mini vs PC, and assembler vs C). They just didn't have the lobbying clout of the drillers.

1 comment:

steve said...

I'm usually not a fan of Friedman - his nationalism and poor attention to history bother me. But I'm happy to have him go after this issue as he has a good pulpit and he is pushing hard pointing out folly in energy policies of both parties (especially the Republicans)

Bill Nye identifies the need for "green hawks" (in the military and national "security" sense) and TF probably falls into that camp. If that helps move us towards the goal, I'm all for it