# Government By Mad Scientists? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 3, 2014, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267 "2014-12-03T23:14:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/41 "2014-12-06T01:37:06Z")
North Korea? ---
**Author:** ![mugsy1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6bbea6/32.png) [@mugsy1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mugsy1)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/42 "2014-12-06T10:46:44Z")
I can’t believe I just read through all that rubbish! :o What has happened to the world that we no longer have anything better to do? I blame TV! ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/43 "2014-12-06T12:46:50Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > North Korea? Nah. The scientists don’t run the show. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2014, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/44 "2014-12-06T15:58:31Z")
**Moderator Note** > [@mugsy1](#): > > I can’t believe I just read through all that rubbish! > > :o > > What has happened to the world that we no longer have anything better to do? > > I blame TV! Responses like this that merely express your low opinion of one or more posts are not acceptable in the General Questions forum. Please do not do this again. The General Questions Rules & FAQs sticky at the top of the forum explains this and other rules specific to this forum. No warning issued. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/45 "2014-12-07T06:29:42Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > North Korea? > [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Nah. > The scientists don’t run the show. Who knows who’s running the show there? But someone is developing the nuclear program. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/46 "2014-12-07T08:46:38Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > Well, is it one mad scientist, acting as a dictator, or a small group of mad scientists, functioning as an oligarchy, or a whole lot of mad scientists, who get to vote, elect representatives and officials from amongst their number, and so forth, in which case it would be a sort of democracy, but with a very restricted franchise. I think that last variation is an aristocracy or meritocracy, if you have to be a scientist and mad. ---
**Author:** ![mugsy1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6bbea6/32.png) [@mugsy1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mugsy1)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2014, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/47 "2014-12-07T10:07:11Z")
My apologies to the forum. It was meant tongue in cheek and not in anyway disparaging of any particular posters. In fact, I thought the whole thread was meant to be tongue in cheek. Sorry. I am new, please forgive me. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2014, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/48 "2014-12-08T02:38:30Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Exactly - What sort of Mad Hypotheses do they test? Has anyone ever submitted an article for Mad Peer-Review? I routinely submit papers to Paradigma. I have been published numerous times. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/49 "2014-12-09T00:52:53Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > North Korea? > [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Nah. > The scientists don’t run the show. > [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Who knows who’s running the show there? But someone is developing the nuclear program. They think the recent Sony hack [has its roots in North Korea](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-07/sony-s-darkseoul-breach-stretched-from-thai-hotel-to-hollywood.html?hootPostID=f507b5062c7a5bcff4c9591c005900ab). I’m telling you, the scientists are running amok there. ---
**Author:** ![Aquadementia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aquadementia/32/555_2.png) [@Aquadementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquadementia)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/50 "2014-12-09T01:42:50Z")
Since scientolgy is taken, and they’d sue, it would have to be a **Ragepublic**. ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/51 "2014-12-13T12:47:01Z")
A narcissitocracy, with Mad Scientist weapons to enforce it. It seems one needs the conviction that one’s own very needs and ideas matter more than those of anyone else’s, and that those justify the means of takeover. I refer to the example of Dr. Horrible, whose inventions qualify him as a Mad Scientist. But, though he occasionallyr eferences social concern, his interest is demonstably not in improving the world, but in impressing a girl and getting revenge on the person who bullied him in school. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/52 "2014-12-15T17:22:02Z")
Reminds me of this scene from [a _Kim Possible_ fic](https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2466293/1/Not_Quite_Heroes) where Shego asks Drakken what he’d do with the world if he ever managed to take it over: > [@](#): > > “I always saw myself in more of a supervisory role,” he finally said. “Not so much in all the nitty-gritty everyday government. I’ll just… allow the current governments to continue what they’re doing. Underneath my supervision, of course. And they’ll only bother me when… there’s a problem. Yes, I’d be more of a high level problem solver. Something goes wrong and they’ll come to me, properly appreciative of my genius of course, and I’ll find a way to fix it. Then I retire to my lab until I’m needed again.” Drakken nodded his head to Shego, finally relaxing. It had been a bit sticky for a moment, but the plan was fairly obvious once he thought about it. > > “So let me see if I understand this,” said Shego. There was an odd tension in her voice. “You’d let the world pretty much run like it does now, except people will cheer you and respect your… genius. And when the world has problems, they’ll come to you, and you as ruler will go out and help people with their problems.” > > “Precisely,” said Drakken. > > “I bet you could even have some way of letting people contact you directly with their problems. Say a website of some sort where people could send their requests for help,” said Shego. She was carefully controlling herself. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/53 "2014-12-15T20:38:09Z")
From Google’s English to Greek, mad (insane) is “parafron” and scientist is “epistomas,” so combining that with “-ocracy” gives us _ **Parafronepistomasocracy** _. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2014, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267/54 "2014-12-17T15:50:18Z")
> [@mugsy1](#): > > My apologies to the forum. > > It was meant tongue in cheek and not in anyway disparaging of any particular posters. In fact, I thought the whole thread was meant to be tongue in cheek. Sorry. > > I am new, please forgive me. This occasionally comes up. Putting “/ sarcasm” next to everything is no fun for everybody. And the mods occasionally have to pause from polishing their jackboots to weigh in even if _they_ get it, but feel responsible for the slim minority of readers who might get the wrong idea of GQ, which as is well known is as gentle as a 19th century men’s club in London, except for The Drones, where a goodish amount of bread rolls is tossed about. For example, a post of mine was zapped for anti-Semitism, which made for [this predictably humorous thread.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=724893) Welcome aboard. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/government-by-mad-scientists/706267.md?page=2)