James Burke : Connections, Episode 6, "Thunder in the Skies", 3 of 5 (CC)

[TheLastBrainLeft]

I wonder if Burke realizes how good he makes free market capitalism look. This entire bit with the coins is the best example.

[sneakyninjacrow]

@TheLastBrainLeft Really? I thought he made it look a bit dreary.

[CMVBrielman]

@sneakyninjacrow Why? All that progress and innovation, just from the pursuit of cold hard cash. Enlightened Self Interest. Heck, even unenlightened self interest does the trick. Reviewing this series, how many of those inventions depend on someone just trying to make a buck?

[chthonicmind]

@CMVBrielman- but he also points out how capitalists will try to exploit that mindset to manipulate the laws to give them monopolies. He also points out how fragile the world we live in really is. There are also many points in the show where self-interest by craftsmen who control the access to the making of guilds reject advances in technology entirely because it isn't in their interests to embrace the advances. It's also sometimes in the interest of people to rob, torture, rape etc

[TheLastBrainLeft]

@chthonicmind Capitalism can be abused. However, as current events portray, too many people are blaming the fundamentals of capitalism itself, not it's abusers.

[banacheq]

Look up "Coke (fuel)" on wikipedia.

[beepandbop]

What kind of coke is Burke talking about?

The kind of coke used so that iron is not smelted with impurities.