• CrushKillDestroySwag@hexbear.net
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          1 year ago

          person a: describes his ideological and practical disagreements with something

          person b: but have you considered that it’s really popular!!??

          stellar logic bud

          • space_comrade [he/him]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            10
            ·
            edit-2
            1 year ago

            Measurement systems, especially time measurement, is the one thing everybody should absolutely agree on for the sake of sanity of everyone. Of course the metric system is arbitrary bullshit but so is every other system, and metric at least tries to be less arbitrary to an extent. Yeah of course the most popular system is going to originate from a cultural hegemon but that’s fine as long as everybody agrees on it.

            Measurement systems being propagated throughout the world technically would constitute as colonialism I guess but honestly I see no sense in opposing the metric system other than pure spite.

            • CrushKillDestroySwag@hexbear.net
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              Measurement systems, especially time measurement, is the one thing everybody should absolutely agree on for the sake of sanity of everyone.

              I disagree with this premise. I think that standardization is highly valuable, but there’s absolutely no reason everyone everywhere should use the same systems.

              • space_comrade [he/him]@hexbear.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                5
                ·
                1 year ago

                I think that standardization is highly valuable, but there’s absolutely no reason everyone everywhere should use the same systems.

                I mean I guess there are exceptions like remote tribes living mostly independently of the global human civilization but other than that I can’t see a reason why you wouldn’t want a standardized measurement system.

                • CrushKillDestroySwag@hexbear.net
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  ·
                  1 year ago

                  Measurements should be relevant to daily life, and come in increments that are useful to daily tasks. Metric was primarily designed to look good on paper, which isn’t surprising when you consider that it was dreamed up by a bunch of fancy lads who never made things with their hands. We’re all kind of stuck with it now for a lot of reasons, but I believe that it is suboptimal.

                  • Egon [they/them]@hexbear.net
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    4
                    ·
                    edit-2
                    1 year ago

                    The imperial system isn’t based on day to day use either though. A yard is the length of some kings arm, not some universal signifyer. The foot is the length of Henry I’s foot. An inch is three grains of barley laid end-to-end.

              • a_blanqui_slate [none/use name, any]@hexbear.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                4
                ·
                edit-2
                1 year ago

                Having actually tried to teach dimensional analysis and conversion factors to students, the fact that we even have two commonly used systems is too many.

                We’ve already crashed a spaceship because of this. The practical need for any group of people in regular communication to adopt a single unit system far outways any ideological objections to it.

        • mar_k [he/him]@hexbear.net
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          10
          ·
          1 year ago

          Lol the other day I learned the measurement for a yard was determined by an English king sticking his arm out and measuring the distance from his nose to his thumb

          • Dolores [love/loves]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            4
            ·
            1 year ago

            if you seem to think a ‘colonial’ standard of measurement is bad because it was imposed by force (metric wasn’t in the vast majority of metric countries btw), the ‘indigenous’ one would need to be meaningfully different. but old measuring standards were arbitrary impositions from old ruling classes

            • CrushKillDestroySwag@hexbear.net
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              old measuring standards were arbitrary impositions from old ruling classes

              As opposed to metric, which was an arbitrary imposition by the French ruling class.

              • Dolores [love/loves]@hexbear.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                3
                ·
                1 year ago

                how is that worse? if you’re going to argue this is a knock against metric, the ‘french ruling class’ needs to be worse than whichever royal nonce decided the length of an ell.

                btw when did the french conquer south america? it’s so weird they’re all using metric but i can’t remember the date when Napoleon came round and forced them all to switch

                  • Dolores [love/loves]@hexbear.net
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    4
                    ·
                    1 year ago

                    gold reading comprehension star for you ⭐ you’ve successfully arrived at my point but you seem to think its yours.

                    i’m equivocating between the imposition of measurement systems through coercive force and arguing it is not a valid complaint against metric—so you agree?