I've had the same feeling for a long time. To be a Jaron Lanier-type public intellectual, you need to have some humility and curiousity. PG seems to think he's figured everything out already.
I would say of Jaron Lanier that he also believed had figured everything out already, he just turned out to be wrong, which can be a bit of an experience to deal with.
Why anyone would elevate either of these two to "public intellectual" is beyond my grasp.
Why anyone would elevate either of these two to "public intellectual" is beyond my grasp.