[MD] the four straw men of the apocolypse

[david buchanan]

Krimel's Straw man #1) Life without concepts 

You have made repeated claims about the special status of the pre-intellectual, cutting edge of the aesthetic continuum or whatever. The realm before concepts as something we should strive to be in touch with. Despite my urging you have never said why that is desirable but you still go one about it. 

dmb's actual position #1) Life with concepts
To put it in terms of ZAMM, the purpose of including pre-conceptual experience is to integrate the romantic and classic minds into a expanded and improved form of rationality. The idea is to add Quality to concepts, not to subtract concepts from life. 


Krimel's Straw man #2) having everyone convert to Buddhism 
The Eastern notion of "reality" as a manifestation of Brahmin as presented through Maya or: Illusion as delusion has I believe been a recurring theme. Your claim that there is no reality outside of experience in particular seems a Bo-esque confusion of conception over perception.


dmb's actual position #2)
The claim that there is no reality outside of experience is William James's. The idea is to rule out what he called "trans-experiential entities", such as the Absolute. These are probably metaphysical fictions but even if they weren't there's no way to verify or confirm them because they are outside of experience, which is what "trans-experiential" means. Belief in them cannot be cashed out in experience. 
As with Zen Buddhism, philosophical mysticism and the perennial philosophy are also compatible with the MOQ and that means there is no imperative to convert anybody to anything in particular. 
 

Krimel's Straw man #3) atoms are decision makers  

Your ongoing defense of Pirsig you have consistently defended his use of "preference" as an alternative to "cause".


dmb's actual position #3)

You anthropomorphize the behavior of inorganic patterns in a way that Pirsig would never endorse and neither would anyone else. The actual idea is that it makes more sense to think of the "laws" of physics in a less mechanistic way. And of course with the way the field is these days, the probability of needing a quantum leap in re-conceptualizing these "laws" is very high.



Krimel's Straw man #4) the Romantic/Classic split is an invitation to spend your life singing Kumbaya.

Your predilection for the romantic and distain for the classic is legendary so yes again. 


dmb's actual position #4)

I never sang "Kumbaya" in my life. I've never even heard it sung, except on TV. And I don't remember anybody ever accusing me of being a romantic or having disdain for the classic, except from you. I wish I were more of a romantic, actually. This so-called legend is just a little story you wrote. In your mind, I suppose this story ends with your materialistic reductionism being somehow vindicated. Yea, that's classic in more ways than one. 


Krimel concluded:
I would happily take any or all of these criticisms back should you choose to renounce them. This would be the perfect time for you to do just that.


dmb says:
They're four straw men. Of course I'd renounce them. It would be easy to renounce them. In fact, I just did. 

Can't wait to see the part where you take back happily. At least you'll be happy for a change.



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