Monday, October 12, 2020

873: Is Our World Largely OK....?

 In the previous project we wondered about the question what we are. Are we good people or bad people.

  

This "OR" is typical for our way of binary thinking, but it puts you on the wrong foot. We have come to the conclusion that we aren't either good or bad, 

  

but that there is a grey area, maybe even 50 shades of grey, where most shades refer to the fact that most people are ok.

   

Now we stand for the next question. If most people are OK, then you might expect that the world such people create is mainly OK too.

  

Did we make of this world a good place or a bad place to live in? Here again you meet this binary OR. 

   

Let me be technically more correct. In our debates we LOVE to use the exclusie disjunction. Something is black OR white. The color "blite" doesn't exist. You HAVE to choose.

   

When the debate is among parties that have different opinions, but share some common ground yet we see the inclusive disjunction used.

   

This means that we assume that either A is true OR B is true, but maybe A and B can be both true too. All three options would lead to a true conclusion of the debate.

  

For example, in the US you are either Republican OR Democrat. There is no middle of the road. You could refer to Independents, but they are trapped when they want to vote.

  

Abortion is in the Netherlands not an issue. There are people against OR pro. So the political parties held a meeting, concluded that both views had a point and found a compromise. That's the inclusive or.

   

So, is the world we live in a good OR a bad place to be? Debating this question using the EXCLUSIVE OR isn't really meaningful.

  

Like our belief that most people are ok, can we come to a conclusion that most of our world is OK too? Let's have a look...

   

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, many perceived a radiant view. 

  

In the first place on a political level, because all countries would welcome our liberal democracy. The era of totalitarian temptations was definitely over.

  

Second, economically, because market forces were going to solve all problems. The nation state may have held out for a while, but would play a more modest role in the future. 

  

Thirdly, in the technological field, because the digital revolution was going to improve our lives drastically. 

  

The new possibilities for a Free exchange of information, experiences and ideas on the Internet would lead to unprecedented cultural flowering. 

   

There were at most a few clouds - questions related to the environment - but given the possibilities of the new era, we would certainly solve them. For the rest we saw a clear blue sky. 

  

We are now thirty years later and we are faced with so many problems that hardly anyone can remember the optimism of that time, forty years ago. What the hell happened?

   

The answer to this question is going to be a long list, so lets preserve that for the next lecture...

   

Thank you for your attention again....


MacMillan The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd edition
Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 1995
 http://plato.stanford.edu/contents.htm
Gabriel van den Brink:"Ruw Ontwaken uit een Neoliberale Droom",, 2020

The Discussion


[13:15] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): thank you Herman

[13:16] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): interesting

[13:16] herman Bergson: and hello Savannah :-)

[13:16] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): hello Savannah

[13:16] CB Axel: Hello, Savannah.

[13:16] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hi Savanah

[13:16] Savannah (storyofyoursmile): Hello everyone :)

[13:16] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): isnt tht how the European Union got together ?

[13:16] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): so many countries with diverse thinking

[13:16] herman Bergson: How do you mean Gemma?

[13:17] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): acceptig different opinions

[13:17] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): adn solving the issues

[13:17] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aaa i think so too

[13:17] herman Bergson: Well...it began as an economic cooperation....the Union od Steel and Coal...

[13:17] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): and now

[13:18] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): is sort of what ..

[13:18] herman Bergson: Coal and Steal Union....must have been in the 50s

[13:18] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): not falling apart but

[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): the accelerator lab CERN started for the same reason , No more wars ever again, lets do something good and creative together instead, for science and development

[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): which today have govern us things like WWW, Cancer treatment and the Higgs Boon among other things

[13:18] herman Bergson: Well...Europe has come a long way and due to global developments it is strengthening as a union towards the outside

[13:19] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): yes and good

[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aaa

[13:19] herman Bergson: Inside they quarrel still a lot ^_^

[13:19] herman Bergson: And there are questionable developments in Hungary and Poland

[13:19] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): right

[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm indeed

[13:19] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): internet

[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): going in all the wrong direction

[13:20] herman Bergson: But these developments are noticed and debated on...

[13:21] herman Bergson: But our basic starting point is 1989 when the Berlin Wall fell and many believed that democracy and The Market had won the battle

[13:21] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): ah yes

[13:22] herman Bergson: The question is....where do we stand now.....?

[13:22] herman Bergson: and the basic thesis is that neoliberalism is down the drain....failed completely

[13:23] herman Bergson: Besides...the covid crisis shows us how vulnerable we are in fact

[13:23] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): did it ? Long list to look forward to

[13:23] herman Bergson: Gonna be interesting Gemma :-)

[13:23] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): i bet~!!!!!

[13:23] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm

[13:23] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): indeed

[13:23] herman Bergson: Just one thought......

[13:23] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): is Tuesday on the blog?

[13:24] Faust (faust.saenz): I was thinking about imagining 2 axis one with our tendencies to care for one another and  the other to harm one another. A 2nd illustration could address the causes of those tendencies both good and bad. Some outcomes good and bad have a common origin like oxytocin. map it all out. get underneath the present political theatre. dig into the biological foundations of political orientation.

[13:24] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): I forgot to get it

[13:24] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): yesterday

[13:24] herman Bergson: Due to COVID...take restaurants and bars......they have to shut down for weeks, maybe months.....

[13:24] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): more

[13:24] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): second wave possible now

[13:24] herman Bergson: Means....the owners have no income.....

[13:24] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): seems starting

[13:25] herman Bergson: How does society solve this problem....

[13:25] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): that is a very good question

[13:25] herman Bergson: It means we have to thin of new ways to distribute and share resources....

[13:25] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yep

[13:26] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): maybe they can make a take away from their restaurants if people want to bye their food

[13:26] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): outside is safer

[13:26] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): some do and did

[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): that they have done with several places here

[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): increased that part

[13:26] herman Bergson: Is a society meant to make profits as much as possible or is it meant to live together in a comfortable way

[13:26] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): but with winter coming outside eating is going

[13:27] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): no bye the food and eat it at home

[13:27] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): yes

[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): sadly one of my fav hamburger restaurants making the most delicious burgets ive ever tasted were forced to close

[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): a small place no big chain but wow tasty things they made

[13:27] herman Bergson: So COVID forces us to rethink how we distribute the wealth that is gathered by our society

[13:27] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): s many of the restaurants do not do that

[13:27] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): fast food is ok

[13:27] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): high end do well

[13:28] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): the ones in the middle are starting to go bankrupt

[13:28] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): they are not equipped for take out

[13:28] herman Bergson: Society has to be equipped for the task to help out in such a situation

[13:28] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): fingers crossed but already lost three of my favorites

[13:29] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm

[13:29] herman Bergson: and it isn't

[13:29] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): right

[13:29] herman Bergson: That is what our project will be about ^_^

[13:29] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): willl be interesting

[13:30] herman Bergson: Main narrative will be...how did we get here and how do we get out of it :-))

[13:30] Faust (faust.saenz): Rutger Bregman claims the science indicates humans are basically good and breaks it down in great detail in his book Humankind. Here is a playlist i put together: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRAI_WnbL7Z3875nqXqd6katd3elDmALK

[13:30] herman Bergson: Our previous project was 100% about Bregman, Faust :-))

[13:30] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate) GIGGLES!!

[13:30] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): ...LOL...

[13:30] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): yes it was

[13:30] Faust (faust.saenz): :)

[13:30] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): shall look at some

[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako):

[13:31] herman Bergson: It is all in the blog :-))

[13:31] herman Bergson: Cool to be ahead of Faust today ^_^

[13:32] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont):

[13:32] herman Bergson: Well...guess we have to move on to the next lecture of Tuesday

[13:32] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): ♥ Thank Youuuuuuuuuu!! ♥

[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako):

[13:33] herman Bergson: unless you still have that final question or remark

[13:33] CB Axel: Thank you, Herman.

[13:33] bergfrau Apfelbaum: Thank you Herman and class!

[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako):

[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): nice again

[13:33] herman Bergson: then....Class dismissed...

[13:33] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): shall go play o the playa for tomorrow

[13:33] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): thank you Herman

[13:33] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): checking builds

[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ill cu soon

[13:33] Gemma (gemma.cleanslate): bye

[13:34] bergfrau Apfelbaum: byebye gemma:-) see you