Posted by name on January 7, 2001, at 18:26:58
In reply to Now you've got me brooding... » name, posted by pandey_m on January 7, 2001, at 18:02:56
> I am too mixed up and ignorant to address this issue logically.
Try as we might to see ourselves as logical, our minds are not primarily logical. We have a capacity to develop logic, but even our logical constructs are often, (most often, I say) constructed to serve our emotional drives. We are animals first. By representing ourselves as some god-like supercomputers we miss the real nature of who we are, and end up diminishing the value of our animal selves, and of the rest of nature. In my opinion, that is.
>
> I suddenly see that political generalizations are too easy and glib a substitute for thinking.
>
> Thank you. What did you do to me? Like zen.You did it. You took a risk and exposed your thoughts in such a way as to allow reflection. Then you let go, allowing for change.
I am keenly aware that political generalizations are often a mask for perpetuating our emotionally driven perspectives. That awareness often causes problems for me, like the kid who pointed out the nakedness of an emporer who was otherwise enjoying his subjects' admiration of his beautiful, though strictly fictional, garb. It is hard for me to explain what value I find in political activity having realized it is for the most part some weird sport. That awareness, though, is oddly empowering.
> Why didnt someone ask me before whether I had bothered to spend some time looking at what it was that was being objected to?
That seems to be the nature of on-line communication. We benifit from speedy dialogue across geographic and cultural boundaries at the expense of precision. Anyway, it's not much different from face-to-face diaolgue, in that we often take stances in conversation that are hasty or mostly hyperbole, then we adjust our stance as conversation develops.
But anyway, this is more social than administrative, so I replied here. Brood on, if thats what you feel. You're not the only one.
poster:name
thread:3628
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20010105/msgs/3769.html