... something about helping people to recognise their own worth in what they are rather than what they possess or project ...
*** just wooly clouds floating through the blue sky of a warm August afternoon *** Francis On 23 Aug., 16:13, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > I must admit I can't hack university study - something of an admission > since I teach the stuff. I'm not good at thinking the way others want > me to. However, I still broadly agree knowledge is useful and not > having it generally dangerous. Much could be debated here. I'll > chicken out a bit and put forward 'double aspect theory'. > This claims that mental and physical systems are really both > properties of a deeper reality which itself is neither mental nor > physical. Its most famous advocate in the West was Baruch Spinoza > (1632 - 77). Mind and matter are aspects of the same thing - 'god'. > Mind and matter may be rather similar kinds of entities, one > transmitting and the other receiving (Hume). All talk of mind and > matter can be reduced (Russell) to 'events' which are not > instrinsically either. Vam could no doubt point to a much longer > 'Eastern' history of all this than I am capable of. The scientific > account of the physical world is quite unlike the common sense > version. > > Such considerations are all very well, but we live in a world that > does not respect knowledge much. This is a world of bent politicians > and all kinds of ways of influencing situations other than through > truth and open demonstration. Deception is everywhere, not least > amongst those claiming to tell us the truth. The species that > uniformly claims to want peace is always at war in history. One could > say we have a 'Barbarian Temperament', yet our history is so bad we > only now have the dawning glimmer that the 'Barbarians' were usually > more peaceful. poetic, artistic and decent than those who delivered > our history to us (Chaz was really good on this and I miss him in > here). As I write, Ponting (the greatest postwar Aussie batter) is > run out - I am easily distracted by trivia. Now Michael Clarke is run > out with a fluke - a decision only giveable through modern > technology. Test Match Special can set you free! > > These cricket events are happening 'live as I write' (I do know to > most they are as interesting as something better wiped off the bottom > of a shoe - I imagine Gabby being so enthralled as to contemplate > suicide as preferable to reading on!) - I am genuinely lifted by this > obvious nonsense. My friend Vam might well lift a metaphorical glass > to celebrate his friend's delight, barely concealing how much sweeter > the future revenge over this motley crew of 'born abroad' "Englishmen" > will be in a later Indian Summer. > > My point, not argued, is that we need some kind of 101 of living, not > philosophy. I would turn the technology of being able to stage events > to peace, to mobilise a peace that turns what is war to the trivia of > cricket, knitting - something that makes the swell of pride a residual > organ of an entertainment of a long lost history we can laugh at in > all seriousness. Even the human appendix is now known to have modern > use ('good bacteria' hide in there when we are ill). My 101 would > contain questions about how we can form polls of peace and plenty that > cannot be stolen by a few idiots with guns. In this sense, I feel > education is failing us as our young skip to school. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/minds-eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
