Steve said:
... He [Rorty] is saying that reality doesn't hand us criteria. Where do you 
think criteria come from if they don't arise out of the course of human 
practices of inquiry? 

dmb says:
Again, this is a false dilemma. Again, you say all standards of knowledge are 
conventional or such standards are simply handed to us by nature. Again, I'm 
saying those are not the only options.

Steve said:
Asking about the practical consequences is a great idea, but it is a practice 
that arose out of other human practices for inquiry rather than handed to us by 
nature. It is not basic in the sense of "given." 



dmb says:
Again, this is another reiteration of the same false dilemma. Again, you saying 
all standards of knowledge are conventional or they are simply handed to us by 
nature. Again, I'm saying those are not the only options. I'm not buying this 
all-or-nothingism any more than I buy the idea that one is either an absolutist 
or a relativist. In all these cases, I'm saying there are more than just two 
stark options. I'm saying that experience constrains our beliefs and that 
experience is not created by us. 

Is it safe to assume that you know what "false dilemma" means? Is there some 
reason to reject the idea of a middle way?James and Pirsig are all about the 
middle way. Pragmatism was invented as a middle way between empiricism and 
rationalism, ZAMM is all about fusing the romantic and the classic and Lila 
seeks to balance DQ and sq. 

My point? You're presenting a false dilemma. False means fake or untrue. 
Dilemma means two options. I think both options are objectionable and would not 
choose either of them. 


                                          
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