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/ Topic > Re: Philosophy in Chains! [#7] /
/ TOL > Philosophy and Religion > Philosophy in Chains! /
/ Philosophy Forums > General Phil. > Philosophy in Chains! /
/ Ngz: alt.philosophy,alt.religion.apologetics / 30March2003 /
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--> Dedicated to Miss Seven of Nine; surely the most borga-
liscious lady of means in the entire unexplored multiverse!
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"We should let ourselves be guided by what is common
to all. Yet, although the Logos is common to all,
most men live as if each of them had a private
intelligence of his own." -- Heraclitus
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Now this semi-ancient Logos-philosophy of ours is certainly
NOT intended to be an abstract and theoretical account or
explanation of the universe (and everything in it) that has
nothing at all to do with our daily lives. Such a philosophy
would indeed have little or no contact with Reality (as we
know it). And worse still, it would be essentially useless, as
is all philosophy that is "relevant" to how we think about the
world, but yet fails to make a lasting impression upon hearts
(ie. attitudes, dispositions, sentiments, etc). A philosophy
that "works", that is relevant to actual people in their
concrete lives, must address the whole human being; whereas
most logic-driven philosophy speaks only to the mind (as if
Human-Being were somehow a disconnected but rational creature).
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So Science (as understood by empiricism, 4X) conceives of
Reason as falling under the category of Logic, such that it is
Logic itself that become the locus of all true human being, and
the only real source of freedom. Science sees Human-Being as
99% mechanical and determined (ie. our animal or evolutionary
heritage), with about 1% of us that escapes natural and
historical and economic "laws". But only by way of a slavish
adherence to the "rules of logic"! As if Reason is somehow
derived or deduced from Logic (when it is just the opposite).
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But for Logos-philosophy, Reason cannot be reduced to Logic;
for logic is only a tool of Reason, where Reason is a universal
and unified mode of being, one that takes up and transforms all
levels of human being (ie. instinct, emotion, and cognition).
And where empiricism locates human freedom in the exercise of
logic, Logos-philosophy locates human freedom in the Spirit.
Only the Spirit can escape mechanistic determinism, for only
the spirit "inclines without necessitating" (Leibniz).
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Accordingly, this Logos-philosophy is intended to provide a
conceptual framework out of which those individuals who are
able can see, know, and understand themselves in relation to
their true inner-nature (ie. logos/spirit), in relation to
other people (most of whom are un-free), and in relation to
Reality as a whole. Freedom is thus understood basically as
'right relation with spirit' as lived and expressed by and
through logos.
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However, descriptions of the world and its creatures are
certainly not avoidable (for any philosophy), and so it may
not be out of line to offer here a brief description of the
human condition as it exists in the current world situation.
How then shall we characterize this lost and faithless
generation? Are they not like unto the Borg? A hybrid race of
domineering cyborgs; half-man and half-machine? Yes indeed;
for this is what our scientific, technical, and computerized
achievements have finally led us to. Wealth and riches beyond
the wildest dreams of the ancients, yes. And all for the low
low price of just your measly soul! :)
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But the good news is that we are *not* fated (as individuals,
at least) to be Borg. Resistance is NOT futile! Borg-Being
CAN be overcome. The bad news is that most people (who have
already made their peace with Borg-Being) will neither
appreciate nor accept the solution (to this dilemma of post-
modern technological humanity) that we offer. This is because
non-Borg-Being is *contrary* to Borg-Being in the same way
that authentic Being is contrary to inauthentic Being.
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Thus Borg-Being is at peace with deception, simplicity,
dishonesty, self-delusion, lies, and so forth, while non-Borg-
Being actively opposes and resists all these things, and
demands nothing less than complete honesty within the
individual person (and a willingness to accept the truth of
things regardless of the personal and/or social consequences).
Where Borg-Being is almost exclusively preoccupied with (even
captivated by) the fluctuating superficial appearance of
things as the dynamic core of all temporal changes, non-Borg-
Being is more concerned with the underlying and enduring
realities (eg. infinity, spirit, mystery, complexity, etc).
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And whereas Borg-Being defines Reality in terms of the
particular and concrete (as these appear to the senses),
non-Borg-Being sees the meaning of Reality in terms of the
universal and the historical. For Borg-Being life, the
universe, and everything, revolves around matter (ie. material
realities), and are all ultimately reduced to matter, non-
Borg-Being posits that life, the universe, and everything,
revolves around Logos (or Spirit), and takes its value and
meaning from its interactive relationship with this pervasive
cosmic-spirit (the precise nature of which is difficult to
define, of course). :D
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Borg-Being conceives of Human-Being as atomic, autonomous,
and radically disconnected from everything around it (ie. all
cosmic and human Being), while at the same time demanding that
everyone think the same thoughts, hold the same values and
beliefs, and define truth in terms of what is best for the
greatest numbers (ie. that which is most popular is most true).
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Thus the mass-mind of the Borg is not one collective unified
mind expressing itself through countless interconnected
individuals, but rather the Borg mass-mind is composed
of countless disconnected individuals thinking the same
thoughts, having the same feelings, holding the same values,
and sharing a collective definition of reality and the
meaning of all things. Thus, 4X, Death is more REAL than life.
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In contrast to this, non-Borg-Being conceives of Human Being
as an ongoing spiritual (and dialectical) process whereby
the individual person resides in the dynamic tension between
personal freedom and the necessary connection (ie. through
logos) with the cosmic-spirit. Here the primary reality is
not matter, but spirit, such that value and meaning arises
naturally out of the complex dialectical processes of human
history (and life in general).
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The world, then, has two sorts of beings in it. It has beings
that are of a mechanical nature: biological, technological,
or some mix of both. And it has beings of a logos nature who
struggle to transcend instinct and emotion, and so earn the
right to be "free spirits". Which of these two sorts of Being
you are, dear reader, may not be as obvious as one would like
it to be. Nevertheless, the choice IS in your hands. You
decide (or make) your own fate or destiny or the artlessness
of your life. What will it be: bondage and slavery (by
science)? Or love and freedom (in spirit)?
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Freedom, history, art, literature, music, harmony, wisdom,
Philosophy, etc etc, all derive from Spirit specifically
because Logos transcends the limited (but autonomous)
individual Empirical Self . . .
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Yes, resistance is NOT futile,
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For the Word IS the Way!
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- the almost semi-borgish one - textmann ;>
.P.S. "Men are born soft and supple. Dead, they are stiffx
and hard. Plants are born tender and pliant. Dead, they are
brittle and dry. Thus, whoever is stiff and inflexible is a
disciple of Death. Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple
of Life. The hard and stiff will be broken. The soft and
supple will prevail." -- from 'Tao Te Ching' by Lao Tzu
End of Dialogue!
textman
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