Comment

Comment by Peter Tam on April 4, 2008 at 10:01am

It is more or less the same as I said. Whatever people say and do something, the market will accept the right (sometimes the wrong, in a short time) one. The market is not someone, but the trends of the consumption. There were many things lost, from the long past times, due to the poor understanding and/or lack of mention of the people and society.

Anyway, hope everything can be going on well. Yes, it won't be loose if someone insist on it without stopping.

Comment by Jason Haeger on April 3, 2008 at 12:02pm

I'm going to call metaphysical hogwash on the suggestion.

If "espresso" is only what the market thinks it is, then it isn't anything at all as its properties would be unstable, and there would be no metaphysical definition, and thus, no real ontology.

A rose is still a rose even if people change their minds about what a rose is.

The problem that we are running into is a failure to agree on the metaphysical properties of whatever menu item you care to mention.

The suggestion, then, becomes not defining the drinks, but deciding which existing properties we choose to accept in our paradigm of the item in question. The ontology doesn't change. Only our perception changes.

Even so, is any one person, organization, or group of people in such a position as to decide what the socially accepted paradigm will be?

I know of one person who thinks this should be the job of the Barista Guild and its international counterparts. I'm not entirely sure I agree, and I'm not sure anyone is really in such a position to be able to make these decisions.

Evolution happens. Enjoy the ride.