June 2011
Security of Property
That man might be prosperous, he must possess a portion of the surface of his planet, adapted, however small, to his order of locomotion, research, action, and enjoyment. His property is that which he earns honestly, a skill, perhaps, he acquires at school, the material gains he profits in the workforce, or a character trait he refines in the crucibles of life.
To acquire the best property, man...
Problem Solving
Because the possibility of error in a given idea is not synonymous with it being wrong in its every particular, man can best problem solve and draw within closer proximity to the truth of his existence by adopting an error-correcting model for fixing belief. Such a model will require man to discern, interpret, and reconcile mistakes should new information warrant it, and then qualify his...
Acceptance of Facts
The acquisition of truth, like knowledge, like facts, is always partial, always situated in a context of competing values, always presented in one of many possible frameworks of interpretation. Any presumptuous claim that admits of a failsafe, such as “the one and only objective interpretation,” is always inescapably tainted by man’s beliefs, assumptions, goals, and desires. This is readily ...
“I recognize the danger of hubris. It’s flattering to suppose, as many religions...”
– Scott Russell Sanders (via azspot)
vruz: suppose unicorns fly and rainbows are sparks of colliding clouds. no matter how poetical you put it (and I for one, absolutely love good poetry) all these suppositions explain absolutely nothing. (additionally, they’re lousy poetry)
a supposition is not...
“The Tree of Life” is not intended to be understood. It does not offer tidy...”
– The Sistine Chapel of Cinema – “The Tree of Life” (via azspot)
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Lacking Prejudice
Man is unable to escape from bias; propaganda in some form or another will always play a decisive role in his dealings with others. The notion that there is such a thing as immunity or isolation from provincialism is itself a most provincial notion. Intellectuals and zealots alike must cease from insisting on their creeds as pure descriptions of nature and give up the claim to having access to an...
Research shows what you say about others says a... →
heartmindspirit:
“How positively you see others is linked to how happy, kind-hearted and emotionally stable you are, according to new research by a Wake Forest University psychology professor. “Your perceptions of others reveal so much about your own personality,” says Dustin Wood, assistant professor of psychology at Wake Forest and lead author of the study, about his findings. By asking study...
On Friendship
As far as the origins and destinies of men are concerned, all are alike. All have ever desired to acquire new practices and information that will help them alleviate pain, animate health, extend longevity, stifle loneliness, and purify the sympathies, joys, tastes, and kindred feelings of their nature. In short, all men have ever desired eternal life and friendship. While it is true that all...
“Perhaps all the dragons in our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see...”
– Rainer Maria Rilke (via heartmindspirit)
On Creativity
Matter and energy are indestructible and everlasting. As such, there is no creation ex nihilo, i.e. from nothing. There is only ordering of elements: movement from simple to complex; growth from one degree to a greater degree, and from part to whole. Creation is never completely original: it is always a combination of prior realities. Originality means nothing more than the timing and sequencing...
Three Arguments Against the Singularity →
I can’t prove that there isn’t going to be a hard take-off singularity in which a human-equivalent AI rapidly bootstraps itself to de-facto god-hood. Nor can I prove that mind uploading won’t work, or that we are or aren’t living in a simulation. Any of these things would require me to prove the impossibility of a highly complex activity which nobody has really attempted so...
On Achievement
If a thing is wanted, a man must try and secure it. Self effort, the conscious operation of will, as originating, directing, and controlling all voluntary motion, is the power upon which all faith is predicated, and is the great, infinite principle by which man lifts his eyes beyond his groveling sphere and begins to contemplate the limits of his own abode. As he ages and matures, he begins to...
On Self-Esteem
To hold realistic respect for ourselves we must learn to sympathize with our fellowmen in their distresses, and rejoice with them in their joys. Man must train himself, with all his might, to exercise charitable judgment on behalf of his neighbor, for what he judges in others he judges in himself. The conception of self-esteem makes it possible to measure our worth in relation to how we...
The New God Argument
If we will not go extinct before becoming posthumans then, given assumptions consistent with contemporary science and technological trends, posthumans probably already exist that are more benevolent than us and that created our world. If prehumans are probable then posthumans probably already exist. If posthumans probably increased faster in destructive than defensive capacity then posthumans...
Are We All Mormons in the Matrix? →
Either (1) consciousness is not a matter of computation and cannot be simulated, or (2) we never do simulate it as a matter of fact (perhaps because we destroy ourselves in the interim), or (3) we stand a good chance of living in a simulation—to which I add a theological twist: This simulated cosmos might be every bit as ridiculous as Joseph Smith said it was.
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Sam Harris asks, “Should we be Mormons in the...
In a recent post to his blog, Sam Harris asks, “Should we be Mormons in the Matrix?” Sam is (in)famous for his atheism and anti-religiosity. He has authored bestselling books “The End of Faith” and “Letter to a Christian Nation”, and has commented in the past that “Mormonism is objectively less likely to be true than Christianity … because Mormonism is just Christianity plus some rather...
Seeing Truth in Manufactured Settings
According to quantum physicists, the universe is in some way determined by our observation of it. We are not merely spectators in a cosmic theater but are also active participants in changing the nature of what we observe. We fill in, so to speak, the otherwise chaotic dots and dashes of a reality that would not be our reality if we were not here to observe it. For some, this Bohrian view takes us...
On Commanding Respect
Man is best respected by his peers when he makes no pretension to remain remote from them. If he frees himself of a genuine and participating feel for the life-pulse of those who struggle around him, he will never know of the amazing workshop of love that others can engender in him.
The proper manner of commanding respect is inseparably connected with the powers of goodness, and the powers of...
The Search
Lessing once wrote…
The true value of a man is not determined by his possession, supposed or real, of Truth, but rather by his sincere exertion to get to the Truth. It is not possession of the Truth, but rather the pursuit of Truth by which he extends his powers and in which his ever-growing perfectibility is to be found. Possession makes one passive, indolent, and proud. If God were to...
On Sex
Sex is inseparable with the powers of creation and is necessary first, for the perpetuation of the human race, and second, as the seedling for which the education of happy, civilized persons can grow and flourish within warm, loving homes. Sex is not merely a matter of procreation but should also be enjoyed as something sacredly recreational. It should only be experienced within the bounds of a...
