of >From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Mon Mar 01 18:52:40 1999 >Received: from [193.243.229.112] by hotmail.com (1.0) with SMTP id MHotMail309779585315683435065324693253986672596110; Mon Mar 01 18:52:40 1999 >Received: (from majordomo@localhost) > by mill.venus.co.uk (8.8.6/8.8.6) id CAA09453 > for moq_discuss-outgoing; Tue, 2 Mar 1999 02:49:54 GMT >Received: from ns1.world-net.net ([EMAIL PROTECTED] [204.57.72.18]) > by mill.venus.co.uk (8.8.6/8.8.6) with ESMTP id CAA09448 > for <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Tue, 2 Mar 1999 02:49:47 GMT >Received: from unknown (s2p5-165.world-net.net [207.235.91.165]) > by ns1.world-net.net (8.8.6/8.8.6.Beta3) with SMTP id UAA12917 > for <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Mon, 1 Mar 1999 20:49:39 -0600 (CST) >Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >In-Reply-To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >References: Conversation <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> with last message <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >X-MSMail-Priority: Normal >X-Priority: 3 >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >MIME-Version: 1.0 >From: "Kevin Sanchez" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Re: MD Responsibility >Date: Mon, 01 Mar 99 06:23:44 PST >Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252"; X-MAPIextension=".TXT" >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Precedence: bulk >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >Dear Kevin, You said: > >Many philosophers and politicians will use many terms to label "social >quality." One of these is collective responsibility. In Lila, one may >search in vain to find many moral labels. But if we examine the concepts, >not much remains absent on an axiological level. > > I. Moral Duty >Pirsig implicity invokes the concept of moral duty. He wrestles with >himself on the morality of several subjects - copulating with Lila, leaving >Lila with Rigel, selling movie rights, etc. In these situations, Pirsig >questioned his moral duty to Quality. Indeed, he states: >-"Not just life, but everything, is an ethical activity." - (p181) >-"In general, given a choice of two courses to follow and all other things >being equal, that choice which is more Dynamic, that is, at a higher level >of evolution, is more moral." - (p183) >-On pages 187-9, Pirsig speaks of our "moral codes." Intellectual morality >trumphs social morality, social morality trumphs biological morality, and >so on. >-"Quality is morality. Make no mistake about it. They're identical. And if >Quality is the primary reality of the world then that means morality is >also the primary reality of the world. The world is primarily a moral >order. But it's a moral order that neither Rigel nor the posing Victorians >had ever, in their wildest dreams, though about or heard about." - (p111) > > II. Collective Responsibility >The mention of Victorians moves us to the concepts of "social quality" and >collective responsibility. Pirsig's stance is both profound and clear: its >the moral responsibility of society to cage our destructive biological >impulses such as aggression and ignorance. But its also society's moral >responsibility to not attempt to cage intellectual thoughts. We have a >collective responsibility to stop crime and also a collective >responsibility to advocate the First Amendment. These are not the words of >an existentialist loner. Indeed he indicts the 60s generation for accepting >criminal activity and for rejecting social control. (Page 348-9,51.) To >Pirsig, this is immoral because social quality ought to contain biological >quality. It is indeed our collective responsibility. Pirsig identifies the >failure to do so as the root problem of the 20th century. We must, Pirisig >writes emphatically, "destroy destructive biological patterns with complete >moral ruthlessness, the way a doctor destroys germs, before these >biological patterns destroy civilization itself." - (p358) > >If that isn't a collective call to responsibility, I have never heard one. Excellent! This is very Cosmotheist, of Robert M. Pirsig, and what responsibility to Civilization, we have, is made quite clear in that statement " to destroy germs " before they destroy Civilization itself!!! Best regards, Paul. > > > > > Sincerely, > Kevin Sanchez > > >MOQ Homepage - http://www.moq.org >Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/ > ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com MOQ Homepage - http://www.moq.org Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
