| Contrary to the Hobbesian prediction of anarchy | | | | aggravated by a spreading notion in Western |
| (freedom) and brutish or unproductive results in | | | | society that all opinions should be given equal |
| the event that elites (often termed 'beneficent | | | | weight and are valid until proven wrong. In this |
| paternalism') aren't fostered: we find lots of | | | | Post-Modern democratization of ideas, utter |
| evidence that team play and open organizational | | | | speculation by the uninformed ranks alongside the |
| structure actually creates more civilized and | | | | reasoned hypotheses of scholars and other |
| productive governance. Lincoln Electric in Cleveland | | | | experts in the field."(9)The Midwest Archaeology |
| is a well-documented example of how sharing the | | | | Conference held at the Radisson in St. Paul, |
| wealth and responsibility builds communication and | | | | Minnesota in the November before this article was |
| profit. A Brazilian city named Porto Allegro that | | | | printed found a completely different and more |
| opened itself to citizen involvement and socialist | | | | complete investigational answer. They had only |
| ideals is flourishing as corruption wanes. It was | | | | one 'debunker' dissenter who thought Wiseman |
| predicted they would fail financially but more than | | | | might be right. The historian with the records |
| a decade of good results has been the outcome. | | | | from the royal court of Norway. The top linguist |
| Singapore reduces government as a percentage | | | | who showed the flaws in earlier scholarship. No |
| of GDP and is fully modernized. Instead of | | | | one alive at the time this stone was discovered |
| 'expertise' being the solution, it might well be these | | | | could have known what information was held |
| technocrats in bureaucracies are the | | | | within the syntax and vernacular usages of the |
| problem.Archaeology Magazine has a frequent | | | | time it actually was written or inscribed. It was |
| contributor named Professor Wiseman who | | | | shortly thereafter that scholars saw these things |
| comes under our critical gaze for all his fine | | | | yet it has been a hundred years and many books |
| 'expertise'. He truly has struck a sore spot in our | | | | have been written. Three questionable witnesses |
| view of what is real about the Runestone at | | | | have said their father or grandfather forged the |
| Kensington. Most importantly he did his duty just | | | | stone. I guess you could liken them to jailhouse |
| after he was proven wrong in a conference of | | | | confessions but why did they need three |
| 'experts' from many of his own colleagues as well | | | | different 'confessors' when only one did it in each |
| as other disciplines. It was February, 2001 when | | | | case? The chemical engineer and all the other |
| we read his 'Camelot in Kentucky' attack on the | | | | archaeologists present at this meeting were |
| most speculative of all articles that hit the | | | | engaged in "utter speculation by the uninformed |
| newsstands in early 2001, about Europeans in | | | | ranks" according to Prof. Wiseman and |
| America or Diffusionist History. Shortly thereafter | | | | Archaeology Magazine.There are people today |
| this organ of the gods of archaeology had a piece | | | | engaged in ridiculing Farley Mowat because he is |
| on the natural landforms of the desert that | | | | showing how the Scots of St. Albans came here |
| became the Sphinx and Pyramids. No credit due | | | | before the Norse (if there is any difference |
| to man and science in ancient times is allowed, it | | | | between Pictish Scots and Gothic Norse) who |
| seems. In fact all of us are mere 'post-modern | | | | settled L'Anse-aux-Meadows. You would think |
| speculative' trash as he would have it. We hit the | | | | these people would know when they are beat, |
| ceiling and laughed simultaneously. Let's allow his | | | | but the BIG LIE affects a large percentage of |
| own words to prove our point (again)."Perhaps | | | | people who never really evaluate the facts. |
| unwittingly, Stengel follows in the footsteps of the | | | | Mowat was a key factor in the battle to get the |
| hyper-diffusionists, raising old hoaxes exposed long | | | | Norse point of view across in his book Westviking. |
| ago. He brings up once again the Kensington, | | | | One such ridiculer or paid hatchetman said Mowat |
| Minnesota, Rune Stone with its account of | | | | has no experience in the north of the Canadian |
| Scandinavian visitors in 1392, which over the past | | | | Arctic. My oldest brother's first wife's father was |
| century has been repeatedly rejected as a | | | | a missionary in the Arctic before becoming a |
| forgery by scholars, most recently by Stephen | | | | Chartered Accountant. He lived with Farley for |
| Williams, a curator emeritus of Harvard's Peabody | | | | two years there. Farley came to our lake and |
| Museum, in his book Fantastic | | | | visited, but I never met him. Let me assure you |
| Archaeology...Refutation of baseless speculation | | | | the experts often have no integrity. Their |
| {That is YOU, if you are thinking!} and repeated | | | | example is part of the reason why our kids lie |
| resurrection of previously exposed frauds and | | | | and cheat (on tests in American schools, Reader's |
| forgeries is a seemingly endless task. So it seems | | | | Digest said 78% ADMIT cheating.) or grow up to |
| to the teachers who must explain year after | | | | be lawyers and politicians.Author of Diverse Druids |
| year to new groups of students that reports of | | | | Columnist for The ES Press Magazine |
| Celtic inscriptions in the Precolumbian Midwest or | | | | Guest 'expert' at World-Mysteries. |
| Phoenicians in Brazil are false. The problem is | | | | |