There are limits. It's not about arbitrary negative stmuli and the entire idea only applies to certain kinds of systems. These criteria are covered in Taleb's books. The limits are well known in biology.
My gut is my main gripe is with many of the examples used. They often ignore that they are all on things that are in a healthy state of growth and that what is largely happening is that growth is refocused based on stimuli. More, there is no guarantee that you can refocus growth based on feedback in a way that will be ideal for future stimuli.
Which, I confess is silly for me to really get upset about. Luckily, I'm confident I'm sounding far more upset on this message board than I am on it. :D
