Bang on Joe. We stand (fail & fall) - together (makes fist, raises it skyward:)
On Wed, 28 Nov 2018 at 15:53, Joe Deken <newblank...@newblankets.org> wrote: > I'd like to mak a contribution to discussing inclusiveness in Pd. I'm not > sure I'll succeed; I'm uncomfortable Plato's regime of abstractions and > ideals. I'm even less comfortable when confronted by any/all labels which > try to express and encompass any unique and precious human life. What then > could I offer "inclusiveness and Pd?" Please allow some points simply > from my personal experience. > > Note below: I'll divvy up my remarks here and number them -- allowing > you easily to stop reading anywhere along the line. And if you decide to > stop reading quickly. I still give you my sincere "thanks for > listening." > > 0) I am thankful to all people of goodwill who *act on their commitment.* > -- particularly to you who downplay *controversy and polarization* around > diverse alternative particular tactics we may actively employ. I'll start > simply with a link to the inclusiveness video which PA indicated, which > does not require youtube: > > http://newblankets.org/worth_a_look/equality_audio_industry.webm > > Further (personal) perspective on inclusiveness and diversity ... > > 1) I'm fairly old and have worked on many things which I now realize have > been useless or worse. But I have been a parent to five children. My > first child was a daughter, Kate. Honestly I couldn't tell you if Kate > "identifies as female" because she and I don't speak. Kate was born > beautiful and perfect and healthy with the smile of a cherub or a Buddha > that will never leave my eidetic consciousness. But > on the day Kate was born she was also recently deceased. This beautiful > perfect girl at that point (by only a matter of hours) beyond any possible > help. > > 2) So what? Shall we relay another medical malpractice tale, to bore us > all with its sheer repetitiveness? We could simply state that Kate's > parents trusted the wrong people and let her die. But a bit of truths is > not the truth; a picture is not a pixel. So it's worth considering > additional matters of fact and on the > record from that dark day in 1976: > The (male) obstetrician would not listen to Kate's (female & medical > professional) mother or take her seriously. Mom brought her unborn child > to this doc's hospital the evening before Kate's birth, in mortal > distress. > > 3) Without my resorting to abstractions, my daughter Kate's story forces > upon me this truth: Enormous harm is done by people whom we TRUST TOO MUCH > and by those who advertise that they "MEAN NO HARM." > Great harm is done simply through "experts" and other gatekeepers. > These "leaders" lack dedication to open observation; they lack the > simple modesty to question their own scope and skills. > Policymakers, warmongers and other experts casually absorb arrogance and > tunnel vision with their elitist miseducation. Elitism is a pollution as > endemic as plastics in our five major ocean gyres around the Earth. But > elitist self-preserving traditions and practices are also hostile and > lethal to us all. So let's face it: This pollution is another toxic waste > that "advanced society" has produced. And let us now remediate as best > we can. Sooner addressed, more lives rescued. > > 4) But no one likes sad stories. Not me. After Kate's death, it turns out > that I was blessed with three incomprehensible and awesome sons. And then > my youngest arrived twelve years after Kate -- a miracle daughter, Claire. > (Of coure _every_ child who survives their trip to arrive safely on our > little planet is a miracle. -- It's simply eye-opening to realize miracles > which are also everyday facts.) There could not be any words to say what > it is to have a living daughter who is a kindred spirit and a > mathematician and a first grade teacher? Rather a simple action: I'm > delighted to be able to send "PA's equality video from Pd-list" today to > my daughter Claire and her first-graders. > > 5) Why is my ramble relevant to all us denizens of Pd-land? I'll convey > an unoriginal viewpoint/observation I first learned from Chris McCormick. > But I now appreciate how vital this aspect is. And why? Through the > *works* of Miller and Katja and Iohannes and Fred Jan and Dan and Julian > and Connie and Susan and Liam and Alexandros ... (you fill in the blanks > you can keep your own list going as long as you like-- I'm out of ink but > not out of people.) > > Consider this: > > The free/open community must dedicate itself beyond producing the > finest and most worthwhile software that humankind has ever seen. > We also be working just as effectively together to cultivate > > -- better social practices in our self-organizing co-operative > community -- > > It simply stands to reason. Building an inclusive and welcoming > community is vital. If we don't nurture healthy and inclusive and > open communities, then our vaunted "free software" will never > actually be more > than a marginalized disguise for yet another class of elites -- > "producers" or "experts" or "professors" -- dribbling their discards out > to "consumers," clients and pupils for cash. > > 6) What is the "higher ground" for free/open communites?" How do we react > to "good causes" such as medicine or education or software-professionalism > that are practiced badly and/or with inept > tactics? From personal experience again, I can say that despite Kate's > death or maybe because of it, I also > eventually became Dean of a Medical school. "Better to light one candle > ..." > Or still personal and perhaps more relevant in terms of assisting > Pd-land: Our little non-profit, New Blankets was started in 2008. In > a real sense NB meant as an *antidote* to the so-called "public > benefit" non-profits I myself had spent 50 years vainly attempting > to assist. In the first ten years of New Blankets, I have thus been > immersed in Pd-land through friendship with "Miller and friends." Thus you > may discount any biased thing I say. But I will opine this objectively: > the Pd community is the finest example of what a free/open development > group can be. (If you think I'm wrong, please tell me where they're doing > it better. The quest is never ending.) > > 7) If you observe that I myself rarely post to Pd-list you may reasonably > bring charges against me of a) first-degree lurking and b) > off-topic-abuse. Guilty as charged. But when questions of equality and > inclusiveness arise, I simply don't recognize "off topic for Pd." For me > and the folks so kindly supporting New Blankets, these community-concerns > are a vital central activity. These commitments also mandate tolerance > and thick-skinned-ness and carelessness-to-take-offense. > Let us not obstruct any tactics which *may* help. Why attack or > obstruct any benevolent practitioners based where they place > themselves on any left-right political spectrum? Who cares how much > a > true contributor may believe/disbelieve any useful fictions like > "economic realities" or "intellectual property?" Rather, modesty dictates > to us to allow consider it possible for "People with the wrong > approach" to be righter than we are. They might be enlighted by insights > and techniques that have > simply escaped our own ken. > So let a thousand flowers bloom. Let's shamelessly seduce diversity > and inclusiveness over the threshold to join our tent-revivals > everywhere. Let's cherish an ecology which *relies on* diversity > and > *welcomes contributions* -- let's strengthen this energy however and > wherever it chooses to spring up. Beauty graces us all. > > 8) A wonderful guide to free/open social practice can be found in the > indigenous Six Nations "constitution" which the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) > people called their *Great Law of Peace*. > > Ref: > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Law_of_Peace > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Law_of_Peace#Published_accounts > > -- btw GLoP from the Haudenosaunee was a key influence on the American > settlers during colonial times. GloP makes these indigenous people and > their democratic federation (through Ben Franklin and > Thomas Jefferson's absorption of their treaties and traditions ) emerge as > truly the > "Forgotten Founders" of the U.S.Constitution itself. (And for the present > inclusiveness discussion, we should observe that the Haudenosaunee > matrilineal/matriarchy lessons were somehow ignored Franklin/Jefferson et > al in launching US of A. --- Hence the rightful recognition of U.S. > Founding Mothers has also been forgotten. > > Ref: > http://www.sixnationsindianmuseum.com/ > http://www.thegreatpeacemakers.com/iroquois-great-law-of-peace.html > > "Thy mind is made straight; thy head is now combed; the seven > crooks have been taken from thy body. Now thou, too, hast a New Mind." > —Deganawida (The Great Peacemaker) > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Pd-list@lists.iem.at mailing list > UNSUBSCRIBE and account-management -> > https://lists.puredata.info/listinfo/pd-list >
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