[MD] Taking Words Seriously

[david buchanan]

Steve said to dmb:
You misunderstood. (Big surprise!) .. the subtle difference between... 1. being educated on something you don't already know and 2. ...being told something that obviously you already know...



dmb says:
Right. Exactly. Your resentment is based on the belief that you already know, as if there isn't anything I could say that you don't already know. An expert like yourself can't be bothered with anything basic to the MOQ, especially if I'm using quotes you've seen before. Your cup is full already, right? 

As I see it, you and Matt both resent my long-standing accusation that you don't rightly understand Pirsig's central term; Dynamic Quality. In that sense, yes, I certainly belief that you both have something important to learn about the basics. "Central" is a more flattering word, but it also means "basic". 

Notice how that DQ element effected two separate conversations on two different topics, one with you and one with Matt? I tried to explain how following DQ was the key to both issues, the key to understanding free will in the MOQ and the key to creative intelligence in amateur philosophy. In both cases, you guys just won't hear it. You both refuse to listen because you're already convinced that Quality is just a compliment we pay to sentences - or whatever Rorty says. Statements like that show that you really are missing something rather big and basic. It pops up over and over in just about any topic precisely because the issue is so basic and central to the MOQ. Misreading something that central will almost inevitable lead you into all sorts of perplexities and dead ends. I'm sorry if that hurts your feelings, but don't you see that in the way you both tried to read Pirsig in our respective conversations? Matt, you could barely stand to acknowledge the role of DQ, describing it as a "blank page". Not the source and substance of everything, but a blank page! And, Steve, free will is all about the extent to which we follow DQ, which is exactly where you crash and burn too. 

Your resentment is based on the smug belief that you've got it all figured out, that you can't be told anything by the likes of me. And if I dare to presume to correct you, then I must be some kind of arrogant prick. And your credential are based on what, exactly? Refusing to listen for ten years does not mean you are an expert. It just means you're stubborn and way too full of yourself.