[MD] Intellectual activity

[Heather Perella]

Hello Craig, Gene, David H., Platt (mentioned) and
others,

     Craig said:  "[1] Though I purchased my copy of
ZMM "within a
> societal framework", reading it fulfilled an
> intellectual value for me."

     Yes, the societal level of $ (this culture not
the San in Africa value $.  Our green pieces of paper
would have no value within their society, except to
burn maybe) can purchase a product that, once read,
can provide intellectual value to the reader.  $ has
nothing to do with the intellectual value of the book
other than that's how we bought it, unless, you go to
the library to borrow it for free or somebody gives it
to you for free or to borrow for free.

     Craig went on to say:  "[2] Hopefully, we can
find a way of making money
> that is intellectually fulfilling.  People who used
> to think of motorcycle mechanics as "grease
> monkeys", are surprised to find the intellectual
> side to it after reading ZMM."

     Yes, making $ from our intellectual activity, but
still, even the "grease monkeys" did not gain
intellectual value from the $, they gained it from
reading ZMM, unless you meant they gained intellectual
value from $ when these people, most people in this
culture, first learned what $ is.  Even now, our
philosophical discussion as to where $ fits into the
Pirsig levels is intellectual and the creativity comes
from the dynamic quality that is, yet, $ itself, has
nothing to do with this discussion, other than its'
means to pay for the computer, electric, and food that
I ate and used this morning to talk to you, but that
is something different from our actual philosophizing.

     Craig:  "[3]  In earning money we are satisfying
the values
> of others; in spending it we are satisfying our own
> values.  You're right: whether these values are
> static or dynamic varies with the individual."

     I went from negativity about $ to this discussion
about $ that has, dare I say made $ interesting for
me, but that's quality.
     $, especially this culture, can help bring
dynamic quality experiences, but isn't that placing of
$ values on any quality our social value of $ that can
bring DQ or SQ experiences?  In other words, these DQ
or SQ experiences exist on their own without the
involvement of $, but in this culture $ dictates
everything about our life that the lines blurr to
where $ begins and where $ ends.  Therefore the DQ or
SQ experiences could happen anyways and $ is a means
in this culture to achieve such SQ or DQ experiences. 

     When I take a walk in the woods, which by the way
since I am valuing building our living room, bedroom,
and babies room, etc... more than walking in the woods
so we can have these rooms in our house, this value of
walking in the woods is still something that is more
free to have in ones experience, especially if the
woods are within walking distance of the house.  Yet,
one could argue, as I believe Platt did before, that
the very boots one puts on to get to the woods cost $,
then the walk in the woods is attached to $.  Yet,
this is a real situation in which $ is attached and
blurred into our experiences, where the Iroquois that
hunted in this region would have just killed a deer
for shoes, we buy them using $.  
     The walk in the woods is always here for us, our
society has dictated how we will achieve this
experience, and in our culture we need $ to do so. 
That walk in the woods is not so tightly attached to
the social level value of $ for when I walk in the
woods, to not think about $ at times, $ may leave even
all intellectual activity so I might hear something
more dynamic, something more undefined and also I may
experience other static qualities of tree, bird, and
wind.

SA



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