[MD] Problems with Intellectual control of Society

[Arlo Bensinger]

[John]
What Arlo characterized as  A "very accurate read of Pirsig" is to my 
thinking, way too static.

[Arlo]
Static? Trying to understand what the man said is "too static"?? 
Look, again, I am not talking about "no dissent", I am saying 
"dissent is only possible against a clear backdrop".

The point is that if we are trying to understand what Pirsig "meant", 
and Pirsig said that DMB accurately represents this in this forum, 
then why the hostility and glee over his departure? And again, 
"trying to understand what Pirsig meant" is not a call for 
unassailable orthodoxy. Its a way of moving the dialogue forward, so 
that "babble" is not all we are left with. Yes, as I said to Ron, 
this is just one man talking at one point in time, one finger 
pointing at the moon, and Pirsig would want it treated as such. But I 
hardly think that means that trying to understand what he is actually 
saying is "static".

[John]
However you make a good point; Disharmony is an important stage, but 
not a goal or end result.

[Arlo]
Yeah, and again I am not positing "harmony" as "everyone agrees" or 
"everyone bows to the papal bull". Harmony, in this case to me, 
refers to a progression owing to the latching (static) of insights 
(dynamic). And I doubt DMB would ever say that its all about a papal 
bull, nor that we should accept Bob's word as an orthodoxical decree. 
But I think he may agree that for evolution to occur, there must be a 
clear state of non-ambiguity about what Pirsig "meant" and where 
others have "extended" or "corrected" him. I have a very clear idea 
of what Peirce was saying, and this does not make his words 
orthodoxical, but it provides a solid base from which I can extend, 
critique, examine or even refute what he said. And if I said "Peirce 
was talking about goldfish and daffodils", I would very much an 
"expert" on his writings to correct me. And I'd be cool with that.

This has gotten a bit away from my only intended point, and that is 
simply that seeing glee over DMBs departure, given that he had 
Pirsig's endorsement, very sad in a forum devoted to Pirsig's ideas.

[John]
"But all the students with whom I most identify are *failing!"*

[Arlo]
Well, DMB certainly "failed" here, didn't he?