[MD] Intellectual and Social

[Arlo Bensinger]

[John]
My attribution of "smug superiority" wasn't over anyone's knowledge 
of theories, ideas or cosmologies, my attribution of smugness was 
toward the implicit assumption that the possession of said theories 
and ideas constituted an understanding of the emergence of life. 
Nobody understands life's emergence.  Nobody.

[Arlo]
As with all theories, those who hold them understand they are 
metaphors, analogies, descriptions that best serve to illuminate the 
unseeable Void. Despite the clamour from the talk-radio crowd, its 
not all "colors of theism". Explanatory power enhances the human 
condition. The MOQ, as an emergentist theory, holds far greater, and 
far batter, explanatory power than other theories that preceded it. 
What's funny to me is that the same bemoaning certain people have 
over "emegence theories" (that it contains an inherently 
unexplainable "oops") is the same thing they pay lipservice to in 
supporting the MOQ (a philosophy whose central term is undefined).

The MOQ "understands" life's emergence as the result of score of 
smaller, circling and radiating webs of response to DQ. Even if you 
read Steve Johnson's now somewhat dated book "Emergence: The 
Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software", or follow the 
eloquently insightful work of Douglas Hofstadter, you'll see this 
same "theme" echoed throughout. Like fractal imagery, as we "focus" 
up and down the pattern level we see the sea contained in a drop of 
water. We see patterns responding to Quality within their own agenic 
sphere, oblivious to the smaller pattern they themselves are composed 
and equally oblivious to the larger patterns of which they constitute 
but a small part.

[John]
They've got the exact age of the universe figured out, they've got 
the emergence of life figured out, and they transmit their theories 
as facts in the classroom and on the discovery/nova outlets which 
propogate the smugness to countless dimwitted millions.

[Arlo]
We are certainly creating better and better understandings, but this 
sort of inane reduction-to-theisticality is best left for talk-radio 
channels. I don't know anyone who says "its all figured out". Its 
always about learning, refining, coming to better and better 
positions of clarity. Yes, quantum physics has given us much better 
insight into the interactive fabric of the "cosmos", and SHOULD be 
"transmitted" in classrooms and on Discovery/Nova. The MOQ *is* a 
better metaphysics, and even though none of us (I hope) hold it to be 
the "last philosophy" of a people who "finally got it all figured 
out", it SHOULD be "transmitted" in classrooms and on Discovery/Nova 
(or perhaps the Philosophy Channel (wishful thinking)).

[John]
And yet, nature shows and classrooms are full of disinformation 
campaigns intended to give the masses the confident answers that the 
masses crave. It's little different to my thinking than the 
catechisms of the medieval church.

[Arlo]
Please tell me you don't really believe this nonsense? Hey, maybe you 
could join Sarah Palin has a commentator on FOX.


[John]
A known ignorance is better than an unconscious one.

[Arlo]
Only if it serves to move your towards understanding. Being willfully 
ignorant and using that as an excuse to promulgate erroneous 
criticisms is, IMHO, far worse.

And, as I said, there is nothing wrong in and of itself with "willful 
ignorance". Many people choose to shove their head in the ground or 
cover their ears and go "LALALALALA" when faced with things they 
don't want to know or understand. Fine. But then shut the hell about 
stuff you admit choosing ignorance on. If you deliberately choose to 
remain ignorant about quantum theories, don't go telling a quantum 
physicist his theories are wrong.

[John]
And AHA latching is what I think of as DQ.  That is, I see DQ as the 
realization of the good, in the moment.  So there is where the 
discussion would take place.

[Arlo]
Well, sure, AHA! is the necessary reaction to DQ that induces 
latching. Remember that "static patterns" are visible only in 
aggregate and from the top down. An atom forming carbon isn't 
choosing to "form a static pattern", its simply responding within its 
agenic sphere to Quality. As I said, conversely, we rarely see the 
"Bleech!" since those thing do NOT latch, and hence are fleeting. So 
when we look back and see only the AHA!s it make it seem like that's 
all there was. Illusion.

Again, if you take chance, or unpredictability, or uncertainty out of 
the mix, you eliminate "realization of the good, in the moment" 
because the whole cosmos becomes a supermarionation show for the Will 
of Quality.

[John]
Like, if I was actually smart enough to converse with all you high 
falutin' experts.

[Arlo]
High falutin'? Son, I say, pay attention, son, you're built too low, 
the fast ones go over your head. You got a hole in your glove.I keep 
pitchin' 'em and you keep missin' 'em. You gotta keep your eye on the 
ball. Eye?! Ball?! Eyeball! I almost had a gag son... (Nice kid but 
his minds about as bare as a cooch dancer's midrift).*

* Apologies and love to Foghorn.

[John]
Well I thought that was MY point, that the origins of life and 
everything were beyond the boundaries of my knowledge, by definition.

[Arlo]
Well, I guess we could've stopped at Newtonian physics then. Why 
bother with refining or extending or increasing what we can know? 
Indeed, why did Pirsig even bother to write his books, since this is the case?