---
id: 2026-02-27T19:00:57-0500
title: 2026-02-27 19:00:57
tags:
  - status/draft
  - topic/hobbies/writing
daily: "[[2026-02-27]]"
date-created: 2026-02-27T19:00:57-05:00
---
# 2026-02-27 19:00:57

## Attribution

> [!info]
> This is a more objective explanation of my opinion on attribution
> see the previous note [[2026-02-27_17-48-43]]
> for a less formal discussion.

> [!quote] [[README#Attribution]]
> ## Attribution
>
> Please do not credit my work
> unless you are obligated to by formal standards.

I'll concede that I hold this preference
in large part _because_ it's unpopular,
but let it not be said that I don't have reasons.

The academic value of written work is,
with very few exceptions,[^1]
independent of its author.

[^1]: Testimony of firsthand witnesses to events,
    though biases and the deterioration of memory
    make it not so much better than baseless speculation
    when compared to video evidence.

This point is not controversial,
it is understood that Warren Buffet's analysis of the stock market can be flawed
even though he is a very successful trader.

If despite this you ...
I am lead to two conclusions:

1. you believe the author's person is relevant (you are foolish)
2. you believe _I_ believe the author's person is relevant (you believe I am foolish)

But I rarely believe either of these in earnest
because the fallibility of experts is almost universally understood.

I'm not educated, but I've known many subject matter experts;
electricians that have been so
for over half as long as the profession has existed in earnest.
I have known them to be as fallible,
but I know you've been in my shoes
and experienced the same in your own profession,
so we can share this secret and recognize
that no expert's word can be trusted
on the merit of their "experience".

> [!quote] John Dewey, _Experience and Education_ (1938)
> Experience is inevitable, learning is not.[^2]

Damn it.

[^2]: Dewey never says this in _Experience and Education_,
    or really anything so quotable.
    It's a popular paraphrasing of ideas expressed throughout the book,
    however from a cursory reading it doesn't seem to be one
    Dewey would agree was especially relevant.

This being the case, I'm lead to a secret third option:

3. You believe the idea is relevant,
    but want to deny responsibility for its application.

Lorem ipsum set amet...

I consider it a glowing endorsement
when my ideas are thought good enough by others to claim as their own,
and I'm tempted to say that those frustrated by the same
need an ego adjustment.
