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Issue result is a delightful surprise:

...and intellectual snobbery has the cognoscenti sneering at anyone who doesn't have an opinion on the semiological drift of Umberto Eco's works.

Damn right!

This, in all liklihood, shall be one of the last messages on the RMB here at P115.

As we move ever closer to the (re)founding of Philosophers, this region shall seek to archive the past debate. At times it has been thought provoking, interesting and challenging. The years of contributions from an incredibly diverse and commited cast of contemporaries has been a joy. It has been a pleasure to be on a long and winding journey with you all.

This region has a vast history, known for its sense of inclusion, intelligence, and patience. And with that Philosophers has an almost insurmountable mountain to overcome. However, we have reached the peak here, and another will come in time.

To the founder of the region, Dr George, from the beginnings of an on-line platform for a philosophy class for extra credit to an active community acorss the virtual world interested in the big questions: I say my thanks. Had it not been for a region like this, my time on NationStates would surely have been swift. It is my hope that the region of Philosophers will bring together others like here has over the previous 12 years.

This is the legacy of P115 now. And I wish it every success. We hope to find you there soon. You will be welcome.

The rose, Red Star of the West, Ruinenlust, and Worlthia

With the new admin team setup sounds like they may be making changes/adding features to the game.

I have propose the following idea if folks wanna voice some support/input on it.

viewtopic.php?f=15&t=506892

Basically a means for founderless regions like Hell and P115 to get a founder of sorts appointed, "Security Council proposal type could be targeted at a nation and a region at the same time, and would appoint the nation as Custodian of the region, giving it access to regional controls."

If there is a possibility of this, then absolutely, I voice my support, The Stalker.

Would this be required at SC level in-game for support in principle to add weight to the argument, or on the forum? I have had a quick glace, and see a proposed time is for WAD to have two years in that position, unfortunately, my WAD status has been broken over the years here. Wish this would have been in fruition prior to the founding of an offspring nation (but that is now doing very well, and has new life). That said, I have my doubts that this will ever come into play, and certainly not any time soon if it does.

Thanks for the heads up :). Also gonna approve our embassy request from Philosophers, The Stalker in Hell :)

Greetings friends,

All residents of regions that have an embassy with Forest are invited to take part in our 2021 writing contest.

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Forest Interregional Writing Contest 2021

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Forest's Ministry of Culture is proud to present the first annual Forest Interregional Writing Contest, an opportunity for writers from Forest and its embassy regions to share their creativity and compete for one of our region's highest accolades.

This handy guide should cover everything you need to know about how the contest will play out. There's lots of important information, including the lowdown on this year's theme, the rules, the members of the judging panel and (perhaps most importantly) the prestigious prizes available. Please take the time to have a read, then maybe read it again - and then read it one more time, just to be sure - before putting your thinking cap on and letting your creative side run wild!


The Categories

Entries can be submitted under one of three categories:

Poetry

Drama

Prose

Fiction in verse, poetry has been used for millennia to convey deep emotion and contentious ideas.

The immediate nature of works for the stage gives drama the profound ability to change hearts and minds.

Nothing allows readers to escape into another world (or re-examine their own) quite like reading a story.

Writers will be able to submit a maximum of one entry per category, so submitting a poem, a one-act play and a short story is allowed, but submitting two poems or two short stories is not allowed. There is no expectation that writers will submit multiple entries, and doing so won't improve your chances of winning as all entries are anonymised before being assessed by the judges. Writers should be sure to submit only their best work.


This Year's Theme Is...
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ANTHROPOCENE

For better or for worse, we're living in an epoch defined by human impact on the world around us. With vast improvements in quality of life comes microplastics and greenhouse gases. With social media connecting us to friends across the globe comes online abuse and privacy concerns. With more people fighting for social justice than ever before comes culture wars and far-right extremism. With the longest era of peace in human history comes the threat of nuclear annihilation.

While all entries must address this theme, we expect each writer will interpret the theme in a different way. Other themes may be examined within each entry so long as the above theme is central to the work.


The Rules

With great writing comes a bunch of rules:

  • There's no formal word limit. Use your intuition - if it's too long, the judges won't have the time or patience to read it.

  • Stick to the submission limit. Your first submission under each category will be accepted, the rest will be discarded.

  • Don't plagiarise the work of others. People who break this rule will be immediately disqualified and may be barred from future writing contests.

  • Keep your writing PG-13. All entries must remain in accordance with NationStates' policy on offensive material.

  • Don't share your writing or identify your writing in any way until the contest is over. This is so the judges can assess your work without the risk of bias.


Submitting An Entry

The submission period will open on Thursday the 15th of July (00:00 UTC) and will close on Sunday the 15th of August (23:59 UTC) - late entries will be discarded. Submissions must be sent to me, Terrabod, by telegram. If you choose to submit multiple entries, you can send them all at once (as long as each is clearly delimited) or in separate telegrams. Be sure to include a title for each entry!

Each entry will be anonymised by me and passed on to the judges who will work together to select the best entry in each category. This process is expected to take roughly two weeks, so I hope to be able to announce the winners on Wednesday the 1st of September. The winning entries will be published in the announcement dispatch for all to enjoy. While I wish I could publish all of the entries, this isn't possible - I encourage entrants to instead publish their own entry (or entries) within a dispatch after the contest is over.


The Judges

This year's judging panel consists of not one, but three Forest Keepers who have each played an esteemed role in Forest's history.

Chan island

This ex-Forest Keeper and current Foreign Minister is an experienced issue author and the creator of an incredibly well-developed national lore.

Forest Keeper by day, necromantic dark lord by night; the pirate currently occupying Forest's most senior position has dozens of published issues under his belt.

An influential figure in the General Assembly forums and a resolution writer to boot, this ex-Forest Keeper is one of our region's most respected voices.


The Winners

The writer of the single best entry in each category will be awarded one of the following:

  • The Forestian Literary Prize for Poetry, awarded to the writer of the best work of poetry submitted to the contest.

  • The Forestian Literary Prize for Drama, awarded to the writer of the best work of drama submitted to the contest.

  • The Forestian Literary Prize for Prose, awarded to the writer of the best work of prose submitted to the contest.

While these prizes are awarded to an OOC player, I don't mind if winners want to also RP/worldbuild it as an IC interregional prize received by one of their citizens.


If you have any unanswered questions, feel free to telegram me or tag me in a post on the Forest RMB.

Best of luck to all entrants, and have fun writing!

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Terrabod
Culture Minister of Forest

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Read dispatch

Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. It would be great to see some entries from P115!

Read our new quarterly newsletter from Philosophers.

Philosophers was born from Philosophy115 (P115) in May. The region was founded, fundamentally, owing to the founder nation Dr George ceasing to exist a couple of months prior. During that time, we password protected the region to proactively defend it against raiding. However, the pay-off was a community at significant risk of stagnation. We entered into the old trap of exchanging security and freedom debate which Freud has outlined amazingly well. The trade-off here was too gaping.  

Philosophers have expanded during the months, reaching 100 strong. We have actively sought long-standing and meaningful relationships across NationStates. Your support during these formative months has been welcome and needed. We have created a successor which has sought freedom, and as the mechanism of doing so did not exist within the current state of play, we, in the borrowed sentiment of Paulo Freire, acquired it rather than waiting to be gifted it.  

All residents of embassy regions can post on our RMB. If a subject we're talking about interests you, feel free to participate. As we seek to continue to develop Philosophers, we aim to keep in touch that little bit extra with our friends. In this, the proposal is a quarterly dispatch. Hopefully, this will not be too time-consuming and can highlight some of the activity from us, which may be a little interesting to eyeball. Our focus is on conversation and discussion. Although we are not, and nor have we ever, been a role-playing region, it is our fervent hope to continue to maintain, and enhance our relationships across the "world". 

We shall end it here but leave you with some inspiration words until the next dispatch:  

If you want people to remember you, borrow money from them.

Read dispatch

We aim to try and keep in touch a little more to our allies, and hopefully over the coming dispatches, we can showcase Philosophers that little bit more.

HOT off the presses!!

First (proper proper) e-newsletter by Philosophers.

We haven't yet paywalled the news, but there is likely a good reason for it.

This edition's theme is the important consideration of the climate emergency. Held within this edition is vital contributions to highlight this most important topic. With COP26 coming up, we think this a timely and a worthwhile contribution within NationStates.

Quarterly newsletter - 2nd Edition.
€100

Theme: Climate Emergency

Summary

As we enter into our second quarter as a fully functioning region, we celebrate the bizarre, and at times tinkering on the unconditional and unqualified insanity.

We enter into the first proper proper e-newsletter, and hence not quite, as the promised quarterly e-newsletter as advertised - reduplication fully intended. It was always going to be twins this first birth, and they always arrive early! The wall calendar has been marked with red ink now for the subsequent proper proper quarterly e-newsletter. I know - you're virtually salivating in anticipatory delight for more, like a lovely conditioned Pavlovian dog. That or share the bacon sandwich - please and thank you. Hopefully, this serves as a good example of what to expect. Yet alas, do not expect such engaged writing in all of them. That would require a severe alcohol problem like the wonderfully talented Christopher Hitchens for such ongoing quality.

At the end of the last cycle, we sat at 100 as our population. Today, we sit at 103 :). The power of the region continues to grow like the eye in the Lord of the Rings. Searching for meaning in an out of date Logotherapist shrink chair. Naturally, with more magical elves and orcs. Hence, I suppose, the potential of being sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Thankfully, I am a research assistant of Rosenhan's in being sane in an insane place. Or is it the other way around? Either way, I won't know "what's going on", Link sadly.

This quarter we focus on the climate emergency as the overarching theme.

Debate Highlights

Philosophers is focused on .. ahem. Philosophy. We always invite anyone to participate. And thankfully you can! We are getting closer to the ideal speech situation which was Habermas' dream, with every friendly guy, gal, gender fluid person or sentient robot who takes the time to stop by for a cup of java or glass of wine. Last weeks conversation centred around Jordan Peterson.

Let us dive in now to the actual actual 'stuff':

Metaphysics

The debate centred on the nature and meaning of "iconic". Very reminiscent of the most sold philosophy book of all time: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig.

Ecology and pandemics

During the ongoing Covid19 pandemic and COP26 we ask whether does the current ecological disaster mean that pandemics are more likely?

What is at least clear say Karl Dudman, a philosopher with an interest in science, is the way climate change and the pandemic are analogous depends on public consciousness and collective paraxis. Yet, we only take action when things are convenient otherwise we can ignore, argues Burrhus Frederic Skinner.

This is echoed by Ding Dong the Witch is Dead:. "Concern for the environment here should perhaps be couched in philosophical terms, like individual versus collective rights, though that conversation always hauls us back decades." One focused example of mention: tax, tax, tax. Supply and demand, and pricing control, as well as widely embedded technology such as video calling to reduce business air miles. Conclusions centred on: ethically you have that obligation, and presumably desire to care for the needs of the next generation.

Change of mind

If maths is about numbers, philosophy is about persuasive arguments and mind changing. We look at this from the perspective of BF Skinner and Noam Chomsky.

How would BF Skinner describe a "change of mind". Argues Burrhus Frederic Skinner: I suppose he would look at it as a point in time where all of our past experiences combined with current contingencies (including contingencies and rules arranged by ourselves and others) result in a significant and lasting behaviour change. The behaviour change might be something we do or don't do (such as smoking, praying, eating meat, etc.) and/or it could be how we talk and think about something.

Chomsky position takes a different lens, argues Ding Dong the Witch is Dead:

Consider Skinner's claim that "we sample and change verbal behaviour, not opinions," as, he says, behavioural analysis reveals. Taken literally, this means that if, under a credible threat of torture, I force someone to say, repeatedly, that the earth stands still, then I have changed his opinion. Comment is unnecessary.

Obviously, from the whole article I gather that Chomsky disagrees with Skinner on just about everything, but I thought it would be interesting to post this. This is no indication that I agree with Chomsky and not Skinner, by the way (!).

Burrhus Frederic Skinner rebuttal of a Chomskian analysis followed:

Chomsky made his career, in part, by criticizing Skinner. His rebuke of Skinner's book Verbal Behavior was brilliant in style but full of logical fallacies and misrepresentations. In other words, it was written to win an argument without too much concern for the truth. It catapulted Chomsky into the limelight and at least coincided with behaviourism losing its lustre. For anyone interested, here is an article reviewing Chomsky's critique and a response by MacCorquodale. It is written by David Palmer, with who I had the privilege of taking classes and is one of the leading thinkers on Skinner and his work LinkVerbal Behavior.

I am biased, but not a big fan of Chomsky. I believe he will be much like Freud - someone who made important contributions to their field but whose theories are largely dismissed. His theories have already lost a lot of support, although he continues to be larger than life personality.

Leadership

What is changing of mind without leadership?

The article by Isaiah Berlin, The Hedgehog and the Fox makes interesting reading on leadership traditions, as pointed out by Sunrise Trail The title is borrowed from Archilochus. The idea is that a fox knows many things but a hedgehog knows one big thing. Berlin expands on this idea to divide writers and thinkers into two categories. Foxes include William Shakespeare ("There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy), Molière, Goethe and James Joyce. Hedgehogs are Plato, Hegel, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche and Ibsen.

Burrhus Frederic Skinner borrows the notion of specificity and expertise by the populist writer Malcolm Gladwell: The hedgehog and the fox analogy has been promoted heavily in business - if you want your company to be great, you need to be more like the hedgehog. Have one main idea and be the best in the world at that one thing, rather than trying to be good at many things.

But can this be a poison chastise asks Rosa damascena: writers who are proficient in a specialised genre, if they have inclinations for self-doubt or even impostor syndrome, sometimes fall prey to the nagging question whether they are really real writers because, after all, they only write genre fiction. They even like to use similar situations more than once. Is that really writing? If any of you ever come across this phenomenon, feel free to reassure the writer in question by citing a few of the hedgehog writers you like and admire. :)

Economy

What is changing of mind and leadership without looking at the wider economic structure?

Worlthia argued that it seems to me, a rather accurate analogy, of this human condition, under the monetarist capitalism/socialism dichotomy, both are corrupt and perverter of human nature(rewards the bad social behaviours and punish the social good behaviours, at least in far too many places), and both failed and seems to me that the planet will be collapsing in some 2/3 generations, and for what?

At present, the system is not working both for the people it seeks to serve and certainly not for the environment.

Telgan argues as the political system and economic system are bedfellows; why or how wouldn't this be any different? Famous saying that democracy isn't perfect but beats all others. The issue with that is what sort of democracy do we have? We all go to the election booth every 4 or so years and cast judgement on two or if we are lucky no more than 4 or 5 real contenders. Very often all offering a broad vision of the same old with some dotting about the edges. Add some pointless dramatic 'polarization' of politics (entertainment), and job done for half a decade. I guess it is to be expected. The change will not come - that needs public opinion and attitudes to already be present and a political operation to fit the purpose at the right time. We have already had several movements in the recent past which helped plant the seed like the occupy movement but until there is a seismic shift over a fairly long period, the truth is little will change - right now.

Remedies explored came in true Popper style: there will be realignments. There needs to be. There always are. And they always come, seemingly, as a shock. Rarely, it is. Keep an eye on trends of public attitude and values. Right now, the system stays, but with hope, the rough edges are sanded down (as always they are for each capitalist generation to continue it: capitalism meets democracy and\or vice versa).

A spotlight was shone on communitarian responses also hold value as a response, at present. Organisations that encourage more freedoms tend to get better outcomes. Almost always the case, and almost always at a fraction of the cost of multi-layered management systems.

Active citizenship

And lastly, does all of that even matter without active citizenship, specifically lowering the voting age to 16?

Considering one of the glaring injustices is ecological overdraft: older generations living at the ecological expense of younger generations and future generations. I would be in favour of it, argues Rosa damascena.

Sunrise Trail points out that this is an area of consideration in Europe, and already is the case in a few countries, like Scotland, Cuba and Nicaragua. Telgan speaks about the basis of democracy as embed within the decision making processes. As many people should have the right to vote as possible to ensure we have a system that is engaged and is engaging!

Debate was centred on what lowering the voting age could mean: lowering active voting age is more a matter of increasing participation of younger people because having a say in decisions affecting one's future is a right; not because younger people would necessarily tend to make better decisions than older people. I don't have romantic notions about younger people being less corruptible, argues [nation].[/nation]Rosa damascena Telgan argued otherwise with differing focuses: a place in a plural voting system with younger people voting for wee Jimmy in a proportionate representative system where their values, needs, and rights are further protected in young peoples education and welfare from Mags whose focus is on say pension rights.

Polls

It is official and has been verified by the official chart company (of Philosophers). Some tampering had been noted, but in true style to get out of paying for royalties of those signed up to none of on-line sales (and hence more of a realistic slice of the pie), the vote remains solid. we can only work with what we have, until the Court Link decides.

The most Iconic album is Pink Floyd - Dark side of the Moon.

The average hours of a nightly kip is a healthy 7 hours.

Justin Trudeau leads the pack of world leaders Philosophers would like to spend the night with... Talking about philosophy here, obviously.

The Queen of Queens is, naturally, Boudicca.

Wall of Fame and Shame

Quartely Wall of Fame Thinker:

Adam Curtis

Sunrise Trail's review:The documentary is 2 hours 48 minutes long. The banks have defeated politics, cyberspace has been used in the cause of freedom, but increasingly to create echo chambers that enrich the likes of Facebook. This is a documentary with no specific vision to peddle

Quartely Wall of Shame Thinker:

Ayn Rand

Rosa damascena's review: I've never read anything by Ayn Rand, and as people often moan about how insufferably self-aggrandising she sounds, I doubt I will. Loud self-aggrandisement makes me wonder which fears are its causes.

Conclusions

We shall end it here. But in doing so, leaving you with some inspirational and practical advice:

A synonym is a word you use when you can’t spell the word you first thought of

Do say: ta ta for now.
Don't say: au revoir.

Until November 2021.

Read dispatch

Next edition will be published in November. Hope you enjoy the read.

Sunrise from the Sea and The rose

Dmitry of uglich x stakanov x alex baldw

Gay

Hi strangers noticed you were a rather small region so curious how you became friends with the Region of gay.

The rose and Ave lucifer

Long story short - our founder, Dr. George, had strong ties with Gay and a number of other regions for many years. When Dr. George CTE'd, we archived the region and the living members moved to Philosophers.

Sunrise from the Sea, The rose, and Ave lucifer

Dmitry of uglich x stakanov x alex baldw wrote:Hi strangers noticed you were a rather small region so curious how you became friends with the Region of gay.

Our founder Dr George was also BearNation, a founding member and for many years a dedicated officer of Gay.

“ BearNation Former Nation
Population: 36.459 billion
Founded: 17 years 126 days ago
Ceased to exist: 225 days ago
Factbooks: 3

The rose, Red Star of the West, and Ave lucifer

💀𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕪 𝕤𝕡𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕥𝕠𝕓𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕠 𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕡𝕙𝕚𝕝𝕠𝕤𝕠𝕡𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕤!💀

Sunrise from the Sea, The rose, Red Star of the West, and Ave lucifer

HOT off the presses. Philosophers Winter Edition News.

We have kept the prices low as a continued introductory offer. The first few are free; after that, we enter bankruptcy.

This marks the third edition of our news. Enjoy the read:

Quarterly Newsletter – 3rd Edition.
€100
November 2021

Theme: Marginalisation

Reviews

The reviews are in from our last international bestseller. Like a successful author, we share some of the world-class reviews, to try and sell you something you thought you didn't need on our very own dust cover. Thankfully, as we are fully digital, we don't worry about dust; just the impending doom of a power cut.

“Newsletters are wonderful, but couldn't you deliver them already scrunched up as a paper ball, ready for play? Well, I suppose humans like The Dora Milaje and Howard P Lovecraft might want something to read with their morning tea or coffee.”
Velociraptor

“I would like to second the paper ball delivery method. Or perhaps we can have two copies of each edition, one to read (and shred later) and one to shred right away?”
A Cat

Summary

As we enter into the dark and cold – dreich, dare I even say – weather, we can finally say Winter has come! Long are the days when Winter was coming. Shame! Shame! Shame! The nights are dark, and full of terror. Alas, a dragon is unlikely to take us away to the sunny beaches of King’s Landing. Instead, as we huddle for warmth, we can take some sense of solace that we have a Winter edition of the Philosophers newsletter. In these times, I advise you use this to fuel the fire (especially considering the cost of fuel now...). You’re welcome.

Philosophers continue to expand, like the waistline of a populace in lockdown. Over this quarter, our population increased by around the 140 percent mark to over 240 plus – breaking into the top 100 regions by population size. We continue to welcome everyone’s contributions on the RMB, from our friends abroad, to those who choose to call Philosophers home. We are not the most roleplay-centered of regions. What we lack here, we make up for in other domains.

Last quarter’s theme centered on the climate emergency, and the importance of looking after the ecosystem we all call home. As COP26 takes place as I write in my home city of Glasgow, we look for hope in tackling the climate change. This quarter, we focus on Marginalisation as our overarching theme from our wonderful contributions. As we bounce back from the terrors of looking into loved ones' eyes for months on end of forced isolation, we recognise that many haven’t been so lucky. We are all a little freer to enter back into the terrors of society. Looking after ourselves and one another has never been so critical. The networks we have with one another, and how we build back on the social capital we have missed out on is more essential today than in most points throughout living memory. As the pandemic struck, we were told, as though it was read, that “we were all in this together”. This is all too often the common trumpet horn by those who live detached lives, all too often unable to experience any type of emotion for others. We need, for our self-care, a route of minor escapism which can help process and offer an avenue of critical and deep reflective spaces for centering ourselves to action.

Debate Highlights

We take a look at the contributions from across Philosophers. The last three months have seen a flood of debate. Take a glass of wine, or five bottles, and settle in for the long read. But before we do, Philosophers went on a few (alas, virtual) holidays, and read a good few books whilst doing it. There must have been severe come down from the wine, however, when we contemplated what’s in the dark. Take a look at our polls below.

Polls

Holiday Highlights

The results are in from our virtual holiday of Mongolia. The area which philosophers opted to visit was LinkSacred Sites.

Virtual World Tour: Korean Peninsula, part 1. Which cultural practice caught your interest? The clear favourite: Island of Jeju seasonal rite.

Virtual World Tour: Korean Peninsula, part 2. The clear favourite: Daemokjang wooden architecture.

The animal we brought along on our holiday

Favourite animal tautonym poll. In botany, generic name and specific name are always at least somewhat different. In zoology naming conventions, they can be the same. The great favourite was Idea idea, Linnaeus’s idea, a butterfly.

Books we read

Favourite Shakespearean Tragedy. A majority of votes were shared between two plays, Macbeth edging Hamlet by 13 votes to 11.

Favourite Shakespearean Comedy. The runaway favourite: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Shakespeare’s late romances. The most popular choice was The Tempest… Now my charms are all o’erthrown.

And the eventual come-down when we got back from holiday

Lights Out: What is out there in the dark? Majority rule: A vast, expanding collection of stars and their planets teeming with uncanny life.

Violence

Could Plato’s Republic be created, and if yes, would the methods be peaceful or not? Asks one Philosopher. In true Thatcherite style, similar to the shock doctrine of Naomi Klein’s analysis of her premiership, according to Ding Dong the Witch is Dead, some “boots on the ground” is really the most steadfast way:

“An ideal society consists of three main classes of people – producers (craftsmen, farmers, artisans, etc.), auxiliaries (warriors), and guardians (rulers); a society is just when relations between these three classes are right. Each group must perform its appropriate function, and only that function, and each must be in the right position of power in relation to the others. Rulers must rule, auxiliaries must uphold rulers’ convictions, and producers must limit themselves to exercising whatever skills nature granted them (farming, blacksmithing, painting, etc.) Justice is a principle of specialization: a principle that requires that each person fulfil the societal role to which nature fitted him and not interfere in any other business.” “Wouldn’t all you need is a strong military and the prevailing religion on your side to maintain any system?”

Gone to Jericho adds to the debate where a diagnosis of the current political structures are geared toward tyrannical rule to establish a power base, anyway: “In the United States and United Kingdom, Trump and Johnson have made a point of being divisive figures, Orbán too, and Bolsonaro. Democracy can be tyranny by the majority. A benevolent dictatorship is not ideal, but when you have a gerrymandered first past the post system propped by harsh police and prison culture, you see why so few leaders make the attempt to unite their nation any more.”

A quick reading of Pinker would suggest we live in a fairly civilized state, where violence is no longer an adequate force in the political arenas of the nation-state, yet as we already can see across established nation-states, the role of power tools is only all too insidious for all those bar the powerful. Wacquant offers some analysis in regards to our penal system and the marginalized, arguing we have entered a post-welfare state towards a penal state: hyper-ghettoization. Why else has it been politically accepted (in some quarters, at the very least) to throw assertions around and be applauded, by the likes of Trump? Bring back Stanley Cohen’s classical analysis on the sense of otherness, please. For anyone interested in how a properly funded penal system could look like, I advise reading Bregman’s journalistic work of some of the Scandinavian models.

Empathy

Rosa damascena opens the debate to what is, and how do we experience “empathy”? “Do any of you ever perceive the so-called identifiable victim effect in yourself when thinking about others? Do you find it easier to care about a recognisable individual than about a large, vaguely defined group? I observe this in myself frequently, but not sure how to counteract the mechanism. With animals, if someone tries to awaken our sympathy, for example lobbying for a nature reserve, it tends to be more effective to appeal to our emotions showing us cute mammals or birds. The less similar to ourselves we perceive them to be, the more difficult it becomes to intuitively care.”

Sunrise Trail answers: “It is easier to care about an identifiable individual, but it’s also possible to care about a group that is suffering. Where I live, small boatloads of people occasionally make it from Mauritania. Think of all the boats that don’t make it. These refugees are not always welcome, especially during a pandemic, but with the disquiet, there is also compassion. If there’s a baby, that’s where the focus of concern goes.”

This is always an interesting field of study. Is it possible, or indeed, even desirable to be empathetic on all matters around us? There is some interesting published work, both from a psychological and sociological point of view. Let’s quickly break this down for the sake of pith, without looking at every theory out there (impossible task for this newsletter, and one I will scarcely attempt)...

In talking about our previous thread on violence, others have continued within their work to talk about areas of ghettoization towards the so-called “post-emotionalism” as termed by Rodgers. We reply on services, such as in most of Europe, to access quality health care without breaking the bank. The ideal of mutual assurance has been around for generations in the majority of the rich world. Oppose this with our furry friends who do not have access to a nationalised health service, and our opinions are reversed toward a sort of proto-emotionalism (raw and uncontrolled).
In regards to desirability, we can look at some of the research in psychology, and the ongoing debate between empathy and compassion by Paul Bloom’s book “Against Empathy: The case for rational compassion”.

English Literature / Shakespeare

Rosa damascena shares her favourite scene from Troilus and Cressida. Act 5, scene 8: Thersites survives the stupid Trojan war by refusing to fight in it.

Paris and Menelaus exeunt, fighting.
Enter Bastard.

Bastard: Turn, slave, and fight.
Thersites: What art thou?
Bastard: A bastard son of Priam’s.
Thersites: I am a bastard too. I love bastards. I am bastard begot, bastard instructed, bastard in mind, bastard in valor, in everything illegitimate. One bear will not bite another, and wherefore should one bastard? Take heed: the quarrel’s most ominous to us. If the son of a whore fight for a whore, he tempts judgment. Farewell, bastard. He exits.
Bastard: The devil take thee, coward! He exits.

Central Kadigan takes a nuanced approach to Shakespeare and decides what is the one for him. “I almost went with ‘Titus Andronicus’ just because the death and destruction is damn near total. I ended up voting for ‘Hamlet’ because it is the archetypal classic tragedy, but ‘Macbeth’, ‘Lear’, ‘Othello’ were all possible options. Much of the effectiveness of a tragedy hinges on the evilness of the villain. Iago in ‘Othello’ and Aaron in ‘Titus Andronicus’ are two of the most evil characters that Shakespeare wrote about. I’d have to say that Aaron may be more evil; while Iago destroys Othello because he is jealous, Aaron destroys Andronicus just because he’s bored.”

Central Kadigan gives us some analysis from what makes a Shakespeare play (my thanks, as I had never come across his writings properly, always hiding that day in the bike sheds, smoking something which Bill Clinton had tried, yet never actually inhaled): “As I recall, Shakespeare’s plays contain two plotlines, a major and a minor plot. It is believed that the minor plot was used to give the principal actors a brief break during the staging, and was often more lighthearted than the main plot. Anyway, in the version of Macbeth that we have today, there is only a major plotline. It is likely that what we have is a stripped-down version of the play – this would also explain why it is notably shorter than his other plays. It was common at the time to do short versions of plays, often achieved by removing subplot lines, if the performances were ‘by command’ to a VIP, such as to the King or a high-ranking aristocrat, bishop, or ambassador. In Act IV, Scene 1 of Macbeth, there is a procession of portraits of eight kings followed by a mirror. This would make sense, if King James VI/I Stuart was in the audience, the mirror, therefore, a way of putting him into the play. It follows then that we do not have the full version of Macbeth, but we have a version that was pared down for performance for King James. I found this all infinitely fascinating, and it makes us wonder how great the full version must have been!”

The last word has to go to Yootoepeeuh for their wonderful depiction of the bloody spectacle: “I once saw a performance of Titus Andronicus. There was a stagehand whose job was to mop up the fake blood between scenes so the actors didn’t slip and fall. Delightfully gruesome.” Wonderful stuff!

Right-Wing Politics

We ask why right-wing political parties have managed to infiltrate the mainstream political processes which should, arguably, find a sense of equilibrium and homeostasis, yet is evidently lacking within the polarisation of the politics. Arguably, this has been a long time coming, decades in the making. A look at some of the practical empirical evidence reveals that landslides in recent election cycles in the West (even under first past the post) have become razor-thin margins.

Digital Influencer argues that: “I feel like part of it is the decline of institutions. For example, in the U.S., trust in the media is very low, I think because, as the internet subverted the previous financial model of media organizations, the quality and objectivity of the mainstream media declined, in my personal opinion. Most people aren’t well versed in critical thinking, so instead of taking what a news outlet says on a case by case basis, they see the very real problems in a news outlet they perceive as being in opposition to their worldview, and assume everything about it is false and bad, and retreat to the news outlet that reinforces their world view but is even less reliable, seeing only what they want to see. The results of declines in other areas, like healthcare, rising inequality, political corruption, covid, etc., get filtered through these reactionary sources of information and into the minds of reactionary people.”

Rosa damascena gives a practical point of view of “closing” or narrowing the wider systems, and limiting the chains of interdependence of places that should be open, transparent, and forward-thinking.

Why isn’t Durkheim talked up more? Indeed, as we enter into an ever-closed system of society, with literal and metaphorical walls, people no longer are open to the same level of exploration. The ever gapping of the fragility of networks, away from solid and ‘real’ networks. Relationships can act as a cost/benefit analysis, always changing to benefit the person alone in so-called liquid times. Population centres become the playground of the detached, and prone to exploration, as opposed to the common good – all inherent within the lovely Bauman analysis. What once was ripe for collective action, and collective voice, becomes mute:

“What are societies doing right, where right-wing extremism and resentment against scientific approaches affect only smaller parts of a population? What’s going on there, for example in terms of income distribution and taxation? How are research institutions situated (physically and in terms of public discourse) in relation to society at large? Which societies would you look at as examples of greater resilience, and how does that resilience work?”

“A physical example: The campus university as an architectonic concept is a physical manifestation of borders between science and population as a whole. In an extreme case, it can be described like this: Nice buildings inside a fenced-in park, accessible only for authorised staff and students. No reason for non-members to ever go there, because there are no talks, workshops, or other events designed for everyone. (Except perhaps sports, which is just money-making show business and does nothing in terms of education.) If the campus university also offers its own housing for staff and students separated from the town as a whole, there’s no occasion for anyone to even have a university member as their next-door neighbour. A research lab where biohazard and other dangerous materials are handled, I’d certainly put into a closed building behind a fence, a gate, and security guards. But ordinary universities? Why close them off? They should be integrated into urban planning in general, interspersed with flats, offices, other public buildings, parks, and shops.”

Digital Influencer argues that open and free access to education is, possibly, one way out of the quagmire of right-wing and individualistic political discourses: “[H]aving courses and one-off classes that are free/cheap and easily accessible to the public, so non-student citizens can feel engaged in the discourse, and these courses could lead them down further intellectual paths. Through a low-income housing program, I got access to free one-off classes on plumbing and carpentry and they were great. I wish they had that for all subjects, at least more visibly, and some incentives for ‘normal people’ to go. I wish I had the knowledge to point to more resilient societies. I just have a vague perception of certain developed European countries doing better than us in the U.S. and U.K. Maybe someday I’ll have time to research places that are intellectually and democratically healthy in different ways, and why.”

However, not all are in total agreement. With the advent of chartered education, private schools promoting their ideals as opposed to rigorous critical thought, can be a potential pitfall, as Ding Dong the Witch is Dead advances: “All this talk of institutions being accessible is well and good but some schools and universities do more harm than good. Religious fundamentalism has created an anti-intellectualism in the United States which is at odds with science and rational thinking. Would you want Bob Jones University in the centre of your town?” Thankfully, there was no mention of the post-modern and post-Marxist critic Jordan Peterson.

The Matrix Paradox

All possible worlds asks the question on our lips since the reboot of the Matrix was announced: “Let’s say there was a virtual reality simulation where you’d have complete control over your life to the point that all suffering could be eliminated...What price would you be willing to pay to participate in it? And I don’t just mean money – how much of your actual freedom of choice and responsibility would you give up to live there? Hell, would you even choose virtual reality over the genuine, physical world?”

Responding to this was the self-answer of “My opinion on the matter, as you can probably guess, is that I would take part in the simulation under one condition: I hold Absolute Autonomy over myself. As long as I get to choose what I experience when I disconnect myself from a given situation (I’m assuming the existence of a game-like ‘Quit to main menu’ option) or how I just live my life there, everything else is secondary. This stems from my skeptical belief that we can’t even tell if we’re in a simulation right now, so we might as well make a simulation that is more comfortable than whatever avocado toast hellscape THIS is.”

Ober land was in a sense of agreement. Best of “both worlds” does seem a rather agreeable solution: “I agree that a ‘quit to main menu’ option is a must for entering this simulation. One requirement I’d have if I were to enter indefinitely, is if my friends move in too, and I’m able to hang with them in-sim. Like San Junipero from Black Mirror.”

Shanlix offered a more guarded response: “I would consider a virtual haven as a last resort option for one’s preservation, with someone at the end of their lifespan or in some kind of species ending scenario. As long as someone has a ‘use’ in the physical world, no matter how small (excluding theories that we’re already living in a simulation), then I believe that they should make full use of one’s capability in the ‘real’ world before considering a virtual afterlife. I guess it is a similar feeling for immersing yourself in a game. Although you have the choice of NEETing and playing some MMO all day, you still have responsibilities outside of the game.”

The Concept of Evil / Devil

In Liquid Times, we have Liquid Evil. Opposed to solid evil (and solid times), it moves like a stream down water. Difficult to see and difficult to fully grasp due to the privatisation of what was once the public sphere or a solid sphere with defined edges, especially in the (early and middle) manifestation of the state. Or least, so says Bauman. For the issues many have, we are reminded by the personification of liquid evil – Margaret Thatcher – that there is no alternative (TINA), yet we know that to avoid the trappings, that there must be. So let us jump into the debate.

The quality of the writing of Satan is questioned by Concordare: “Outside of Milton, I don’t find Satan a particularly interesting character... As for the Bible, I find it something of a mixed bag. There is some good writing in there; Ecclesiastes, Ruth, and some of the parables of Jesus spring quickly to mind.”

Ober land finds alternative joy and meaning in the concept of Satan: “I just genuinely find Satan inspiring. I see Satan as a being who tempts people to eat the Forbidden Fruit, whatever it may be in a given scenario. Your government bans weed? Weed is the Forbidden Fruit. Your parents won’t let you have a boyfriend/girlfriend? Having a boyfriend/girlfriend is the Forbidden Fruit. Satan’s the one who tempts you to defy these figures and partake in the Forbidden Fruit, and in doing so, these authorities cease to be your god, and you become your own god. That’s why Satan says ‘ye shall be as gods’ to Eve (Genesis 3:5).”

Boscolia questions the writing style and what this may mean for the identification of Satan: What makes you conclude that the serpent in the Garden of Eden is Satan? The text in Genesis doesn’t make that identification. Interestingly, though, “So the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals. You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life’ (Genesis 3:14). This does seem to suggest that before this punishment the serpent didn’t crawl. Did snakes in Eden have legs?”

Ober land defends the idea of Satan. We are getting closer and closer to our open gambit of what Evil is, and how difficult it can be to identify: “I believe the typical association of Satan or Lucifer with the serpent in the Garden comes from Revelation 12:9: ‘So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast out to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.’ Or from Revelation 20:2: ‘He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.’ I, and I believe most modern Theologians, would disagree with that interpretation… the serpent (of Eden) is meant as an allegory for human temptation, not as a personification of Lucifer. That which separates the serpent from the rest of God’s animals is the ability to speak. It is not some deific or demonic being, merely a cunning beast who tempts Eve. I must admit I’m not surprised that one who would idolize Satan would not really understand the scripture. Those who would read the Bible and come out inspired by Satan must not have read the Bible at all.”

This now takes us to more “logical” or dare one say Kantian tradition of the rejection of God and therefore, the Devil, through the use of logical and rational means. I am sure (no, positive), that this is open for debate. Kant himself did believe in God (very likely), but some of his work questions it in a rational sense. This is echoed in the following debate:

Central Kadigan writes: “As I was raised Roman Catholic. As an adult, the more I read about philosophy and science (I am a biochemist), the less convinced I was by “faith”. To me, belief in a supernatural deity is unnecessary, defies logic, and an extraordinary claim would require extraordinary proof, which does not exist.

That being said, I find the academic discussion of religion, particularly comparative religion, to be endlessly fascinating! The same way that scholars, and general readers, and even school kids are interested in Greek, Roman, and Egyptian myths. I think of it as ancient mythology and modern mythology.

There must be some criteria we use to separate what we think is true from what we think is untrue. For me, that test is logic, reason, and proof. If we accept as true that which defies logic and reason and for which there is no proof, then there is no limit to the absurdities that we would hold as true.

As a scientist – and as a thinking person in general – I see no need for a belief in a deity. There are certainly phenomena that we cannot yet explain, but the earnest search for understanding and truth is what makes us human. It is intellectually lazy and disingenuous to end inquiry and just say “the gods did it”. Well put, Kadigan!

This thread of thought is picked up by Telgan Alpha: “The idea of a God is truly abhorrent to me. The most totalitarian concept there has been in the history of modern civilisation. I would much rather put my faith in what I can be part of – networks of people. Imperfect, at times both good and evil (sometimes at once). But my faith here is more productive and realised daily.

There is no need to say where is the proof of God – as mentioned, “science” cannot prove the existence of magical wizards who take the Hogwarts Express either, but we, justifiably, enjoy the books and films and take it at face value it was not a high budget documentary, or based on reality – as no one has seen them so can we be 100 per cent sure? A little (okay a lot) hyperbolic language here, however, why we should place the concept of God in any higher regard to the existence of Santa is just cultural BS. My version of Santa could easily be the incorporeal being of infinite perfection. Indeed the being is to many children. Both are human-made, and at least Santa doesn’t have the insidious nonsense of correcting standards of religious morals (well, on the whole :) …)”.

Sunrise Trail adds to the argument: “Why suppose there is a God if there is no evidence for it? But I’ve seen this question asked: If there is a God who created the entire universe and ALL of its laws of physics, does God follow God’s own laws? Or can God supersede his own laws, such as travelling faster than the speed of light and thus being able to be in two different places at the same time? I have found this conclusion from Life’s Big Questions on BBC Future: Scientists don’t try to prove or disprove God’s existence because they know there isn’t an experiment that can ever detect God. And if you believe in God, it doesn’t matter what scientists discover about the Universe – any cosmos can be thought of as being consistent with God.”

Again using logic – in a fairly humorous way, Telgan Alpha adds: “I enjoyed reading the extract from the BBC regarding God, from Sunrise Trail. I am a little worried however in the final sentence. Just because something is consistent does not necessarily equate to the best fit of the argument as being valid.
The schoolboy / girl fallacy comes to mind:
1. All cats have four legs.
2. My dog has four legs.
3. Therefore, my dog is a cat.
This was wonderfully portrayed by the genius which was also the BBC in the outrageously hilarious Yes, Minister.”

The last word I believe can go to Stroke of Luck for the non-stop debate: “Why should God exist? Isn’t the presumption of a god based on cultural superstition from the past? God was needed to explain everything before we started looking for scientific facts. Instead of looking for God, why not keep looking at our world as objectively as we can and see what we can learn?”

Changing Minds

We turn again to a previous debate about the power of arguments, and the idea of how we evolve our positions in life. I guess what one may call a core reason for philosophy and psychology.

Rosa damascena begins off the debate: “We had a conversation some time ago, where we tried to remember on which occasions and how we had in the past changed our minds about something-or-other. I don’t think even one person recalled that they ever changed their mind about something because of ‘an argument with another person’, which the other person ‘won’.

Rosa damascena believes: “In practical terms, I think the best one can do is to ask one’s questions, explain one’s reasoning, listen, in short, have an open-ended conversation. And then leave it at that. Not expect much immediately or anything really. It’s more realistic to realise that if some other person at some point in their lives will change their mind on the subject in question, one’s own input will at best amount to a small fraction within their life experience and thought. If I dwell too much on the notion ‘I will argue so well that I am going to convince someone!’ the subject fades in favour of the ego.”

Sunrise Trail points towards passion and emotions as a possible cause of life’s big questions: “When I think of big, divisive questions I haven’t changed my mind over the years, e.g. Brexit, Scottish independence, Québec independence.
In the independence questions, I understand and can empathise with both sides of the question, so it’s easy to have calm, reasonable discussions with people who don’t agree with me. However, Brexit still gets me emotional.
I’ve given up trying to convince people of the rightness of my argument. I am no longer young and passionate. If anyone wanted to discuss various independence issues (Catalonia too), fine, but if anybody mentions Brexit approvingly in that trademark English nationalist way I get up and go to the loo where I may stay for some time. There is no point talking. They’re not going to change my mind, nor am I theirs. Yet it matters.”

Telgan Alpha is a little more relativistic: “I'm not sure. I have been won over throughout the years with critical and ongoing reflective thought. I am usually open to new ideas and concepts. And when some convincing evidence comes out or an interesting new way of looking at something, I have found myself being taken on the journey (if, naturally, convinced). Of course, many hardliners point to X variable and Y variable and note different conclusions and have a different method: often in old currency the ideologues or traditionalists. That isn’t to say we all fall foul to this, either. We would be daft to assume we were immune. That is fine too. This often happens professionally as well as politically: both tend to be interconnected for many of us anyway. The idea of action or no action, even in a professional setting, is a political act. Maybe that is because I come from it from a more radical standpoint – something which is an inherent value for me (within my concept of justice), and likely no matter the evidence to my contrary, I can point to X variable and Y variable and use whatever methods are best for the question I have rather than someone from an opposing side has. The concept of Just Gaming comes to mind here by Lyotard (and Thebaud).”

Boscolia echoes Rosa Damascena’s position: “It's true that people rarely if ever change their minds from view A to view B following an A versus B debate, but the exchange and discussion of ideas is anything but futile. As has been said, we change our own minds and our ideas grow and deepen over time. Reading and discussion provide the fertiliser for that growth. For me, it usually isn’t about switching from A to B, but about realising that both A and B are flawed and forming a deeper understanding of the question.
Knowledge is not the same as wisdom. What matters is not a set of true propositions A, B, C etc., otherwise education wouldn’t take years because all you’d need would be a fact sheet. Much modern philosophy has forgotten this because of the analytic experiment with importing the techniques of mathematics and formal logic, making the philosopher’s task one of assigning truth values to propositions. On this view the kind of skepticism that says we can’t know for sure we aren’t living in the Matrix or brains in a vat is a serious challenge. In real life we don’t expect certainty, and the same philosophers still cross the road even though they might get run over. Total certainty only exists in mathematics, and coming full circle this is the only discipline in which people do routinely switch their view from A to B in light of a valid argument.”

Central or Decentralised Power

The debate centres on national or regional independence in a globalised world. Some examples are looked at, and again, we could bring in Kant philosophy of the nation-state and to a world order, but alas, I have changed my mind :). The argument becomes centred on the concept of power, and where power should lie. Let us kick off the debate:

Sunrise Trail notes his multi-national make-up and sees the good in a sense of solid collective good (relatively) small collections of people can bring: “As a product of more than one country I approach the question of independence with caution. I think Québec and the rest of Canada are better off together, but some good friends persist in thinking otherwise. As for Scotland, my beloved partner is SNP to the core. Brexit and the election of the divisive Boris Johnson at Westminster cast aside any doubt, for the moment anyway. [Confession: We live in Spain :)].”

Telgan Alpha takes on a different approach and for two people from Scotland, with the on-going debate of the Scottish nation, things oddly remain grounded :): “Regarding independence of any nation or region – if that is what the settled will is, then I am all for it. I believe that Scotland should be an independent nation-state. Many I know aren’t, and their reasons when I hear it out all seem to be centred on a few missold points (in my opinion). But that is their opinion, and I respect that. A few times in the past I have tried to show evidence to disprove or offer a counter-argument, but the subject is quite emotive and very often logic or evidence doesn’t play much into it when the debate is centred on certain points. It is instead, on both sides, a value or belief issue, at least in part. And both sides play this to their advantage. What is the meaning of the state, the nation, and whatever else as equally as imagined takes the centre stage with the so-called big questions around – namely, currency and borders. As long as people have taken a bit of time and thought to come to their conclusions and don’t overly rely on tribunal nonsense, I am more than happy to hear good opposing approaches. Does this mean I will change my mind? I can honestly say, in all likelihood, no. Roll on the next independence ballot. My vote is a solid YES, for now. But I never say never, forever. This is a values issue as well. And I can say with a degree of certainty if the campaign becomes weird and takes a bizarre shift to a team that I believe will do an injustice to future talks and isn’t inclusive to how they plan to set up a new state, by vote is a solid no. The famous quip by Russell is in the back of mind:

I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong.

I am, to be true, a massive believer in localism. Decisions taken should be made as close to those affected by it as possible, in other words, by the people themselves. If you can move away from centralization – that being a larger nation-state, I do not think that is, inherently, a bad thing. I suppose I would be very much so accepting of a federalist set-up, but one with a weak executive which can pull larger resources to areas in need (economic, disaster relief, etc.). But as a world stage would be my personal dream. Unachievable, my me yes, at the present state of the majority attitudes. Can dream though.

The question has been raised in Quebec – and until there is a change in survey data, I wouldn’t see it fruitful to hold another election. If there is a majority of the democratically elected politicians who have offered this as a clear perspective, then that must create a mandate for the question to be again posed in Quebec.

As for Catalonia, the Spanish constitution will never allow for such a question to be granted officially in the region. There needs to be some type of mechanism where this is allowed. How the Spanish state treated the unofficial referendum a few years back troubles me. That said, the way the whole thing was run was a little bonkers, but the need for a consultative referendum to hold an official referendum should have been taken seriously, and with sincerity. Some minor flashbacks to the referendum on Scottish devolution in 1979.

Simply because the state has power does not give it the right to practice it at any cost. This needs to be constantly kept in check, with appropriate safeguards in place. The voting system in the UK of FPTP doesn’t even come close to offering the necessary safeguards where the governments holding power have been elected with 35 per cent of the vote, yet have evidenced their disdain at a referendum where a similar numbers result was repealed for not meeting an arbitrary turnout percentage.”

Sunrise Trail counters: “Québec is geographically huge but with a population of only 8.5 million. Demographically 80% have French as a mother tongue, and 5.5% have English (mostly in Montreal). The remainder is a large immigrant population (again in Montreal). Canada is a relatively loose federation and the provinces have considerable power.

People in Québec, certainly francophones, tend to think of Québec as their country, and look to Québec City rather than Ottawa as the centre of political life, but Québec has always had a huge influence on how the whole of Canada is run. A French-speaking person is often Canadian prime minister, e.g. Laurier, St-Laurent, Chrétien and two Trudeaus. Québec still accounts for nearly one-quarter of the Canadian population (it used to be one-third).

Scotland has always punched well above its weight in the United Kingdom. But Scotland accounts for only 8% of the U.K. population. England accounts for 84.5%. This enormous mismatch is exacerbated when the government at Westminster governs unapologetically for the good of its own mostly English supporters.

I agree with keeping things local for the most part, but there is something to be said for centralised power. My first example would be the European Union, which others say is the proof of the need for localism, but I see as a great good. Together nations are stronger in achieving common aims. Secondly, if you live in some reactionary hellhole (Texas), and you need protection from the majority, thank goodness for federal power.”

Rosa damascena strikes to the heart of the debate and thinks about power in terms of centralised or decentralised: “It’s so difficult, the question of what should be the responsibility and decision of which level. City, commune, district, nation, supra-national organizations, and levels in between...

In the coronavirus pandemic, for example, wherever I look on the globe, I find myself wishing for more power to whatever government level seems to be acting in the most responsible way. And I’m wishing for more checks and balances to curb the power of whichever level, to my understanding, is acting most irresponsibly. Which is entirely opportunistic and has no theoretical foundation at all. Where’s the sense in that? I guess the contents of political decisions are more important to me than whichever level enacts them. But absence of checks and balances is probably the worst, because stupid decisions on one level can wreak havoc without mitigation.

In the case of parties or movements in various countries that focus a lot on national borders and supra-national organizations (whichever ways), I try to look at what else they have to offer. What are their proposed policies on topics A-W? If their only focus is “national borders should be X”, or “more government power should be on level Y”, or “let’s leave/stay in state/supra-national organization Z”, I suspect them of being one trick ponies who will run out of ideas once the proposed reorganization has been enacted. Many of these movements also have long histories behind them, which makes them impossible to grasp unless one takes the time to read up on centuries past.”

Central Kadigan adds: “In a purely theoretical sense, and as a supporter of the ideals of democracy, I agree with you. However, as you alluded to, out here in the ‘real world’ the wheels of theory tend to fall off.

The main problem with such decentralization is that it can either be incomplete (with the central government retaining several key powers, and therefore not decentralized at all) or it is total (to the extent that the central government ceases to exist).

Looking at the history of the United States, we tried a weak and decentralized federal government like the one you mentioned. That government under the ‘Articles of Confederation’ lasted less than a dozen years, from 1777 until 1789. It was rather quickly realized that – as per the above paragraph – such a weak and decentralized federal government would either have to be a fiction (hindered in its ability to govern by trying to maintain the myth) or it wouldn’t exist at all.

In the end, it was realized that we could either fragment into several different independent nations, or we needed a strong and centralized federal government if we wanted to remain as one nation. On this topic, I highly recommend ‘The Quartet’, Joseph Ellis, 2015. Whether or not Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, John Jay, and James Madison lead us down the right path or not is a matter of debate.”

There is nothing more satisfying and daring in theoretical discussion than an actual empirical real-life example. And that is exactly what Nusakota alerts us to. We thank you for what I believe is one of the best contributions made so far. Take a read:

“My home country used to be very centralized, with the dictator basically controlling everything from the capital city using an army of soldiers on one hand, and an army of bureaucrats on the other. When he got deposed during the Asian Monetary Crises his successor decided to decentralize the nation, but since he feared separatism if he decentralized to the provincial level, he decentralized to the district level instead (that’s a county for you Americans). So now each and every district controlled basically everything apart from foreign policy and national defense and even had their own legislative assemblies to formulate local laws, with provinces only holding ‘coordination’ authority.

A lot of people, especially those living in the capital city, saw this as national suicide: the local government will mean that the nation would proceed to rip itself apart.

But that didn’t happen. Although authority was decentralized, the newly empowered districts always had a skills shortage, which meant they needed policy guidance from the central government. The local government did become more responsive to the local population, but at the same time, each district basically became a mini sultanate or petty kingdom.

Some were wonderful, one district managed to provide universal healthcare and free secondary school despite being a poor region without any big mining or industry interests in it. Another small city went from being among the filthiest in the nation to winning national cleanliness awards five years in a row, with a village running entirely off electricity from (garbage sourced) methane.

On the other hand, you have a city that was paralyzed when 40 of its 45 local legislators were arrested on a single corruption case. Or the multiple cases of dynasty building with one family pretty much turning an entire province into a mafia empire where the family matriarch became provincial governor and her family controlled most of the districts below her as well as the local bureaucracies.

In all though, it’s been a wild ride, since the end effect is that we have about 530 empowered district governments all running around, doing a lot of policy experimentation. Although government today is more wasteful and has more corruption than the dictatorship era, nearly all of the successful central government programs have come from copying district-level programs and scaling them up. So in that way, central government policy has become more efficient and effective. Also, since a lot of the corruption is done by locals instead of the elites at the capital, more of the corrupted money is at least being spent at their local communities anyway, instead of some foreign casino.

Previously during the dictatorship era, the legitimacy and success of local politicians flowed upwards, all local executives (Mayors, governors, district heads) were appointed by presidential decree, and although elections for the local legislature happened, they were shams and they only had power to ‘propose’ candidates.

Now with competitive and fair elections for all levels of government, local candidates at the very least need to bribe the local electorate instead of the national elites. These local electorates, even if there are definitely local power holders and entrenched interests still have interests tying them closer to home.

So instead of say, wining and dining (+ shadier stuff) the Minister of Interior Affairs (who is a close confidante of the president) – local candidates now fund the roof renovation of the local mosque, buy new drums and flutes for the local high-school marching band, and distribute envelopes full of money to local voters during election day (we call it the ‘dawn attack’ since that’s when they tend to do it).

So the candidate works with locals to get elected, owes IOUs to locals, and corrupts government funds with local collaborationists.

For example he/she decides the local uniform budget for civil servants goes to his cousin’s clothing company – a small and inefficient cottage affair that had previously cheaply supplied campaign apparel. The government office renovation contract goes to an old family friend who donates part of the budget to the re-election fund, and so forth and so forth. If anything, it’s easier to money launder through informal networks then deposit money through a bank into a foreign shell company, as there are government agencies specifically tasked to track dubious financial transactions and transfers, especially those made to overseas.”

Halloween Event

As the world faced the impossible odds of a Zombie Apocalypse, the scientists and experts all focused on the cure. The usual research of the cat meow and how beards help protect the face from a punch was stopped (Ig Nobel Prize, 2021). Although the cure did prove to be the cat’s pyjamas and extra protection against zombie bites with facial hair no doubt all proved invaluable to the efforts.

The efforts of course created a zeal for red wine (well, we hope wine) as Gytha Nanny Ogg points out in their observations:

Mr Shoe is undead and a valued member of the Ankh Morpork City Watch. But HE keeps his undeadness to himself. Us curers cure the zombies as are shamblin about zombifying others! Who didn't ask for it.
Curing is thirsty work.
...can I offer everyone a drink of scumble?

During the course of the zombie uprising, there was a broad consensus that something must be done – anything! Some took it upon themselves to conjure up the will of magic:

Granny Weatherwax sniffed the air. There was something rotten in the state of Lancre. A faint shuffling sound.... Another whiff of moving rotting flesh reached her (rather well-shaped) nose. ‘It isn’t right,’ she mumbled to herself. ‘Thems as are dead oughta stay dead, and at peace and done.’ Somebody ought to Do Something about it. With a sigh, she reached for her erratic broomstick. ‘Out we go. This is getting out of hand. Need to assemble the coven.’

The Statistics

Infected: 0.0% (zero zombies, 267 billion survivors)
Z-Rating: -11.0 Safe Haven.
Most survivors, no zombies: ranked 40th in the world.
Most survivors: ranked 51st in the world.

Halloween Poll

Discworld Philosophers v. Zombies. Residents of Philosophers were invited to dress up as their favourite Discworld character. The most votes went to Granny Weatherwax.

Wall of Fame and Shame

Wall of Fame Thinker

Reporter cautions us...

“The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it.” Terry Pratchett, Diggers

...and puts the world into perspective:

“Granny Weatherwax was not lost. She wasn’t the kind of person who ever became lost. It was just that, at the moment, while she knew exactly where SHE was, she didn’t know the position of anywhere else.” Terry Pratchett, Wyrd Sisters

What is this marvel? A writer who can encourage us to think and laugh? A wholehearted endorsement comes from Ding Dong the Witch is Dead: “I love Terry Pratchett and Discworld, his comic fantasies. I’ve read most of the books, and there were a lot of them.” If you haven’t read any of the comic fantasy books by Terry Pratchett, they are wonderful fun.

Wall of Shame Thinker

In a twist of events, Ayn Rand again leads the pack on our wall of shame. If this keeps up, we shall consider renaming this segment after her. An honour most can only dream of!

“Why is our society faced with so much extreme right-wingery these days? Boris Johnson and his hopeless Ayn Rand groupies mess up time after time and are still five points ahead in the polls. Places like Poland, Hungary and Texas (good grief, Texas) compete to see who can be most reactionary in the democratic, western world home of the Enlightenment. …. I try to put myself in the shoes of others and empathise, but there comes a point when all you can do is stay in your flat, shut the door, lock it securely and pray the madness doesn’t slip in through the keyhole.” Ding Dong the Witch is Dead

Book Club

With the might and global reach of Oprah, or in our case, the recasting of Richard and Judy’s talk show (as seen on Watch, not channel 4), we bring to you our almighty sticker of the Philosophers Book Club!

Book recommendation of the Quarter: The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Wengrow.

“Most thinking about [the state and humanity] in the contemporary West is just endless spinning between the views of Hobbes and Rousseau, neither of which has any basis in what we actually know about our distant ancestors and the development of human civilization. The truth is far stranger, more interesting, and has much more exciting implications about the possibility of organizing society.” Andisol

Conclusion

As we almost leave this year behind, we look forward to spending time with loved ones. This year has been a time of constant flux and constant change. We have all come through difficult times, yet what really shines through is the resilience we show each and every day. No matter how small or big. Like new jobs in the Great Resignation era or new homes fit for the Linkoutside world Link(just be careful of Amazon deliveries).

Again, we leave you with some inspiration to brighten up your day, or perhaps darken it, or was it something else? Who knows. We have already forgotten, quite frankly. Ah lockdown and memory problems ( Link – hopefully no more!).

Dear optimist, pessimist and realist
While you guys were arguing about the glass, I drank it.
Sincerely, the opportunist.

Do say: 2022 will be the year of a new job.
Don’t say: There are no houses to move into.

We wish all of our friends a very happy festive season. Until the year 2022.

Read dispatch

Until the fourth edition in early 2022.

Sunrise from the Sea and The rose

Happy holidays, Philosophers.

https://i.imgur.com/MukPUCh.mp4

Telgan, Sunrise from the Sea, and Bonvisana

Merry Christmas form all of us here in Portugal!
Happy Holidays!

Telgan Alpha wrote:

Quarterly Newsletter – 3rd Edition.
€100
November 2021

Theme: Marginalisation

Reviews

The reviews are in from our last international bestseller. Like a successful author, we share some of the world-class reviews, to try and sell you something you thought you didn't need on our very own dust cover. Thankfully, as we are fully digital, we don't worry about dust; just the impending doom of a power cut.

“Newsletters are wonderful, but couldn't you deliver them already scrunched up as a paper ball, ready for play? Well, I suppose humans like The Dora Milaje and Howard P Lovecraft might want something to read with their morning tea or coffee.”
Velociraptor

“I would like to second the paper ball delivery method. Or perhaps we can have two copies of each edition, one to read (and shred later) and one to shred right away?”
A Cat

Summary

As we enter into the dark and cold – dreich, dare I even say – weather, we can finally say Winter has come! Long are the days when Winter was coming. Shame! Shame! Shame! The nights are dark, and full of terror. Alas, a dragon is unlikely to take us away to the sunny beaches of King’s Landing. Instead, as we huddle for warmth, we can take some sense of solace that we have a Winter edition of the Philosophers newsletter. In these times, I advise you use this to fuel the fire (especially considering the cost of fuel now...). You’re welcome.

Philosophers continue to expand, like the waistline of a populace in lockdown. Over this quarter, our population increased by around the 140 percent mark to over 240 plus – breaking into the top 100 regions by population size. We continue to welcome everyone’s contributions on the RMB, from our friends abroad, to those who choose to call Philosophers home. We are not the most roleplay-centered of regions. What we lack here, we make up for in other domains.

Last quarter’s theme centered on the climate emergency, and the importance of looking after the ecosystem we all call home. As COP26 takes place as I write in my home city of Glasgow, we look for hope in tackling the climate change. This quarter, we focus on Marginalisation as our overarching theme from our wonderful contributions. As we bounce back from the terrors of looking into loved ones' eyes for months on end of forced isolation, we recognise that many haven’t been so lucky. We are all a little freer to enter back into the terrors of society. Looking after ourselves and one another has never been so critical. The networks we have with one another, and how we build back on the social capital we have missed out on is more essential today than in most points throughout living memory. As the pandemic struck, we were told, as though it was read, that “we were all in this together”. This is all too often the common trumpet horn by those who live detached lives, all too often unable to experience any type of emotion for others. We need, for our self-care, a route of minor escapism which can help process and offer an avenue of critical and deep reflective spaces for centering ourselves to action.

Debate Highlights

We take a look at the contributions from across Philosophers. The last three months have seen a flood of debate. Take a glass of wine, or five bottles, and settle in for the long read. But before we do, Philosophers went on a few (alas, virtual) holidays, and read a good few books whilst doing it. There must have been severe come down from the wine, however, when we contemplated what’s in the dark. Take a look at our polls below.

Polls

Holiday Highlights

The results are in from our virtual holiday of Mongolia. The area which philosophers opted to visit was LinkSacred Sites.

Virtual World Tour: Korean Peninsula, part 1. Which cultural practice caught your interest? The clear favourite: Island of Jeju seasonal rite.

Virtual World Tour: Korean Peninsula, part 2. The clear favourite: Daemokjang wooden architecture.

The animal we brought along on our holiday

Favourite animal tautonym poll. In botany, generic name and specific name are always at least somewhat different. In zoology naming conventions, they can be the same. The great favourite was Idea idea, Linnaeus’s idea, a butterfly.

Books we read

Favourite Shakespearean Tragedy. A majority of votes were shared between two plays, Macbeth edging Hamlet by 13 votes to 11.

Favourite Shakespearean Comedy. The runaway favourite: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Shakespeare’s late romances. The most popular choice was The Tempest… Now my charms are all o’erthrown.

And the eventual come-down when we got back from holiday

Lights Out: What is out there in the dark? Majority rule: A vast, expanding collection of stars and their planets teeming with uncanny life.

Violence

Could Plato’s Republic be created, and if yes, would the methods be peaceful or not? Asks one Philosopher. In true Thatcherite style, similar to the shock doctrine of Naomi Klein’s analysis of her premiership, according to Ding Dong the Witch is Dead, some “boots on the ground” is really the most steadfast way:

“An ideal society consists of three main classes of people – producers (craftsmen, farmers, artisans, etc.), auxiliaries (warriors), and guardians (rulers); a society is just when relations between these three classes are right. Each group must perform its appropriate function, and only that function, and each must be in the right position of power in relation to the others. Rulers must rule, auxiliaries must uphold rulers’ convictions, and producers must limit themselves to exercising whatever skills nature granted them (farming, blacksmithing, painting, etc.) Justice is a principle of specialization: a principle that requires that each person fulfil the societal role to which nature fitted him and not interfere in any other business.” “Wouldn’t all you need is a strong military and the prevailing religion on your side to maintain any system?”

Gone to Jericho adds to the debate where a diagnosis of the current political structures are geared toward tyrannical rule to establish a power base, anyway: “In the United States and United Kingdom, Trump and Johnson have made a point of being divisive figures, Orbán too, and Bolsonaro. Democracy can be tyranny by the majority. A benevolent dictatorship is not ideal, but when you have a gerrymandered first past the post system propped by harsh police and prison culture, you see why so few leaders make the attempt to unite their nation any more.”

A quick reading of Pinker would suggest we live in a fairly civilized state, where violence is no longer an adequate force in the political arenas of the nation-state, yet as we already can see across established nation-states, the role of power tools is only all too insidious for all those bar the powerful. Wacquant offers some analysis in regards to our penal system and the marginalized, arguing we have entered a post-welfare state towards a penal state: hyper-ghettoization. Why else has it been politically accepted (in some quarters, at the very least) to throw assertions around and be applauded, by the likes of Trump? Bring back Stanley Cohen’s classical analysis on the sense of otherness, please. For anyone interested in how a properly funded penal system could look like, I advise reading Bregman’s journalistic work of some of the Scandinavian models.

Empathy

Rosa damascena opens the debate to what is, and how do we experience “empathy”? “Do any of you ever perceive the so-called identifiable victim effect in yourself when thinking about others? Do you find it easier to care about a recognisable individual than about a large, vaguely defined group? I observe this in myself frequently, but not sure how to counteract the mechanism. With animals, if someone tries to awaken our sympathy, for example lobbying for a nature reserve, it tends to be more effective to appeal to our emotions showing us cute mammals or birds. The less similar to ourselves we perceive them to be, the more difficult it becomes to intuitively care.”

Sunrise Trail answers: “It is easier to care about an identifiable individual, but it’s also possible to care about a group that is suffering. Where I live, small boatloads of people occasionally make it from Mauritania. Think of all the boats that don’t make it. These refugees are not always welcome, especially during a pandemic, but with the disquiet, there is also compassion. If there’s a baby, that’s where the focus of concern goes.”

This is always an interesting field of study. Is it possible, or indeed, even desirable to be empathetic on all matters around us? There is some interesting published work, both from a psychological and sociological point of view. Let’s quickly break this down for the sake of pith, without looking at every theory out there (impossible task for this newsletter, and one I will scarcely attempt)...

In talking about our previous thread on violence, others have continued within their work to talk about areas of ghettoization towards the so-called “post-emotionalism” as termed by Rodgers. We reply on services, such as in most of Europe, to access quality health care without breaking the bank. The ideal of mutual assurance has been around for generations in the majority of the rich world. Oppose this with our furry friends who do not have access to a nationalised health service, and our opinions are reversed toward a sort of proto-emotionalism (raw and uncontrolled).
In regards to desirability, we can look at some of the research in psychology, and the ongoing debate between empathy and compassion by Paul Bloom’s book “Against Empathy: The case for rational compassion”.

English Literature / Shakespeare

Rosa damascena shares her favourite scene from Troilus and Cressida. Act 5, scene 8: Thersites survives the stupid Trojan war by refusing to fight in it.

Paris and Menelaus exeunt, fighting.
Enter Bastard.

Bastard: Turn, slave, and fight.
Thersites: What art thou?
Bastard: A bastard son of Priam’s.
Thersites: I am a bastard too. I love bastards. I am bastard begot, bastard instructed, bastard in mind, bastard in valor, in everything illegitimate. One bear will not bite another, and wherefore should one bastard? Take heed: the quarrel’s most ominous to us. If the son of a whore fight for a whore, he tempts judgment. Farewell, bastard. He exits.
Bastard: The devil take thee, coward! He exits.

Central Kadigan takes a nuanced approach to Shakespeare and decides what is the one for him. “I almost went with ‘Titus Andronicus’ just because the death and destruction is damn near total. I ended up voting for ‘Hamlet’ because it is the archetypal classic tragedy, but ‘Macbeth’, ‘Lear’, ‘Othello’ were all possible options. Much of the effectiveness of a tragedy hinges on the evilness of the villain. Iago in ‘Othello’ and Aaron in ‘Titus Andronicus’ are two of the most evil characters that Shakespeare wrote about. I’d have to say that Aaron may be more evil; while Iago destroys Othello because he is jealous, Aaron destroys Andronicus just because he’s bored.”

Central Kadigan gives us some analysis from what makes a Shakespeare play (my thanks, as I had never come across his writings properly, always hiding that day in the bike sheds, smoking something which Bill Clinton had tried, yet never actually inhaled): “As I recall, Shakespeare’s plays contain two plotlines, a major and a minor plot. It is believed that the minor plot was used to give the principal actors a brief break during the staging, and was often more lighthearted than the main plot. Anyway, in the version of Macbeth that we have today, there is only a major plotline. It is likely that what we have is a stripped-down version of the play – this would also explain why it is notably shorter than his other plays. It was common at the time to do short versions of plays, often achieved by removing subplot lines, if the performances were ‘by command’ to a VIP, such as to the King or a high-ranking aristocrat, bishop, or ambassador. In Act IV, Scene 1 of Macbeth, there is a procession of portraits of eight kings followed by a mirror. This would make sense, if King James VI/I Stuart was in the audience, the mirror, therefore, a way of putting him into the play. It follows then that we do not have the full version of Macbeth, but we have a version that was pared down for performance for King James. I found this all infinitely fascinating, and it makes us wonder how great the full version must have been!”

The last word has to go to Yootoepeeuh for their wonderful depiction of the bloody spectacle: “I once saw a performance of Titus Andronicus. There was a stagehand whose job was to mop up the fake blood between scenes so the actors didn’t slip and fall. Delightfully gruesome.” Wonderful stuff!

Right-Wing Politics

We ask why right-wing political parties have managed to infiltrate the mainstream political processes which should, arguably, find a sense of equilibrium and homeostasis, yet is evidently lacking within the polarisation of the politics. Arguably, this has been a long time coming, decades in the making. A look at some of the practical empirical evidence reveals that landslides in recent election cycles in the West (even under first past the post) have become razor-thin margins.

Digital Influencer argues that: “I feel like part of it is the decline of institutions. For example, in the U.S., trust in the media is very low, I think because, as the internet subverted the previous financial model of media organizations, the quality and objectivity of the mainstream media declined, in my personal opinion. Most people aren’t well versed in critical thinking, so instead of taking what a news outlet says on a case by case basis, they see the very real problems in a news outlet they perceive as being in opposition to their worldview, and assume everything about it is false and bad, and retreat to the news outlet that reinforces their world view but is even less reliable, seeing only what they want to see. The results of declines in other areas, like healthcare, rising inequality, political corruption, covid, etc., get filtered through these reactionary sources of information and into the minds of reactionary people.”

Rosa damascena gives a practical point of view of “closing” or narrowing the wider systems, and limiting the chains of interdependence of places that should be open, transparent, and forward-thinking.

Why isn’t Durkheim talked up more? Indeed, as we enter into an ever-closed system of society, with literal and metaphorical walls, people no longer are open to the same level of exploration. The ever gapping of the fragility of networks, away from solid and ‘real’ networks. Relationships can act as a cost/benefit analysis, always changing to benefit the person alone in so-called liquid times. Population centres become the playground of the detached, and prone to exploration, as opposed to the common good – all inherent within the lovely Bauman analysis. What once was ripe for collective action, and collective voice, becomes mute:

“What are societies doing right, where right-wing extremism and resentment against scientific approaches affect only smaller parts of a population? What’s going on there, for example in terms of income distribution and taxation? How are research institutions situated (physically and in terms of public discourse) in relation to society at large? Which societies would you look at as examples of greater resilience, and how does that resilience work?”

“A physical example: The campus university as an architectonic concept is a physical manifestation of borders between science and population as a whole. In an extreme case, it can be described like this: Nice buildings inside a fenced-in park, accessible only for authorised staff and students. No reason for non-members to ever go there, because there are no talks, workshops, or other events designed for everyone. (Except perhaps sports, which is just money-making show business and does nothing in terms of education.) If the campus university also offers its own housing for staff and students separated from the town as a whole, there’s no occasion for anyone to even have a university member as their next-door neighbour. A research lab where biohazard and other dangerous materials are handled, I’d certainly put into a closed building behind a fence, a gate, and security guards. But ordinary universities? Why close them off? They should be integrated into urban planning in general, interspersed with flats, offices, other public buildings, parks, and shops.”

Digital Influencer argues that open and free access to education is, possibly, one way out of the quagmire of right-wing and individualistic political discourses: “[H]aving courses and one-off classes that are free/cheap and easily accessible to the public, so non-student citizens can feel engaged in the discourse, and these courses could lead them down further intellectual paths. Through a low-income housing program, I got access to free one-off classes on plumbing and carpentry and they were great. I wish they had that for all subjects, at least more visibly, and some incentives for ‘normal people’ to go. I wish I had the knowledge to point to more resilient societies. I just have a vague perception of certain developed European countries doing better than us in the U.S. and U.K. Maybe someday I’ll have time to research places that are intellectually and democratically healthy in different ways, and why.”

However, not all are in total agreement. With the advent of chartered education, private schools promoting their ideals as opposed to rigorous critical thought, can be a potential pitfall, as Ding Dong the Witch is Dead advances: “All this talk of institutions being accessible is well and good but some schools and universities do more harm than good. Religious fundamentalism has created an anti-intellectualism in the United States which is at odds with science and rational thinking. Would you want Bob Jones University in the centre of your town?” Thankfully, there was no mention of the post-modern and post-Marxist critic Jordan Peterson.

The Matrix Paradox

All possible worlds asks the question on our lips since the reboot of the Matrix was announced: “Let’s say there was a virtual reality simulation where you’d have complete control over your life to the point that all suffering could be eliminated...What price would you be willing to pay to participate in it? And I don’t just mean money – how much of your actual freedom of choice and responsibility would you give up to live there? Hell, would you even choose virtual reality over the genuine, physical world?”

Responding to this was the self-answer of “My opinion on the matter, as you can probably guess, is that I would take part in the simulation under one condition: I hold Absolute Autonomy over myself. As long as I get to choose what I experience when I disconnect myself from a given situation (I’m assuming the existence of a game-like ‘Quit to main menu’ option) or how I just live my life there, everything else is secondary. This stems from my skeptical belief that we can’t even tell if we’re in a simulation right now, so we might as well make a simulation that is more comfortable than whatever avocado toast hellscape THIS is.”

Ober land was in a sense of agreement. Best of “both worlds” does seem a rather agreeable solution: “I agree that a ‘quit to main menu’ option is a must for entering this simulation. One requirement I’d have if I were to enter indefinitely, is if my friends move in too, and I’m able to hang with them in-sim. Like San Junipero from Black Mirror.”

Shanlix offered a more guarded response: “I would consider a virtual haven as a last resort option for one’s preservation, with someone at the end of their lifespan or in some kind of species ending scenario. As long as someone has a ‘use’ in the physical world, no matter how small (excluding theories that we’re already living in a simulation), then I believe that they should make full use of one’s capability in the ‘real’ world before considering a virtual afterlife. I guess it is a similar feeling for immersing yourself in a game. Although you have the choice of NEETing and playing some MMO all day, you still have responsibilities outside of the game.”

The Concept of Evil / Devil

In Liquid Times, we have Liquid Evil. Opposed to solid evil (and solid times), it moves like a stream down water. Difficult to see and difficult to fully grasp due to the privatisation of what was once the public sphere or a solid sphere with defined edges, especially in the (early and middle) manifestation of the state. Or least, so says Bauman. For the issues many have, we are reminded by the personification of liquid evil – Margaret Thatcher – that there is no alternative (TINA), yet we know that to avoid the trappings, that there must be. So let us jump into the debate.

The quality of the writing of Satan is questioned by Concordare: “Outside of Milton, I don’t find Satan a particularly interesting character... As for the Bible, I find it something of a mixed bag. There is some good writing in there; Ecclesiastes, Ruth, and some of the parables of Jesus spring quickly to mind.”

Ober land finds alternative joy and meaning in the concept of Satan: “I just genuinely find Satan inspiring. I see Satan as a being who tempts people to eat the Forbidden Fruit, whatever it may be in a given scenario. Your government bans weed? Weed is the Forbidden Fruit. Your parents won’t let you have a boyfriend/girlfriend? Having a boyfriend/girlfriend is the Forbidden Fruit. Satan’s the one who tempts you to defy these figures and partake in the Forbidden Fruit, and in doing so, these authorities cease to be your god, and you become your own god. That’s why Satan says ‘ye shall be as gods’ to Eve (Genesis 3:5).”

Boscolia questions the writing style and what this may mean for the identification of Satan: What makes you conclude that the serpent in the Garden of Eden is Satan? The text in Genesis doesn’t make that identification. Interestingly, though, “So the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals. You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life’ (Genesis 3:14). This does seem to suggest that before this punishment the serpent didn’t crawl. Did snakes in Eden have legs?”

Ober land defends the idea of Satan. We are getting closer and closer to our open gambit of what Evil is, and how difficult it can be to identify: “I believe the typical association of Satan or Lucifer with the serpent in the Garden comes from Revelation 12:9: ‘So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast out to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.’ Or from Revelation 20:2: ‘He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.’ I, and I believe most modern Theologians, would disagree with that interpretation… the serpent (of Eden) is meant as an allegory for human temptation, not as a personification of Lucifer. That which separates the serpent from the rest of God’s animals is the ability to speak. It is not some deific or demonic being, merely a cunning beast who tempts Eve. I must admit I’m not surprised that one who would idolize Satan would not really understand the scripture. Those who would read the Bible and come out inspired by Satan must not have read the Bible at all.”

This now takes us to more “logical” or dare one say Kantian tradition of the rejection of God and therefore, the Devil, through the use of logical and rational means. I am sure (no, positive), that this is open for debate. Kant himself did believe in God (very likely), but some of his work questions it in a rational sense. This is echoed in the following debate:

Central Kadigan writes: “As I was raised Roman Catholic. As an adult, the more I read about philosophy and science (I am a biochemist), the less convinced I was by “faith”. To me, belief in a supernatural deity is unnecessary, defies logic, and an extraordinary claim would require extraordinary proof, which does not exist.

That being said, I find the academic discussion of religion, particularly comparative religion, to be endlessly fascinating! The same way that scholars, and general readers, and even school kids are interested in Greek, Roman, and Egyptian myths. I think of it as ancient mythology and modern mythology.

There must be some criteria we use to separate what we think is true from what we think is untrue. For me, that test is logic, reason, and proof. If we accept as true that which defies logic and reason and for which there is no proof, then there is no limit to the absurdities that we would hold as true.

As a scientist – and as a thinking person in general – I see no need for a belief in a deity. There are certainly phenomena that we cannot yet explain, but the earnest search for understanding and truth is what makes us human. It is intellectually lazy and disingenuous to end inquiry and just say “the gods did it”. Well put, Kadigan!

This thread of thought is picked up by Telgan Alpha: “The idea of a God is truly abhorrent to me. The most totalitarian concept there has been in the history of modern civilisation. I would much rather put my faith in what I can be part of – networks of people. Imperfect, at times both good and evil (sometimes at once). But my faith here is more productive and realised daily.

There is no need to say where is the proof of God – as mentioned, “science” cannot prove the existence of magical wizards who take the Hogwarts Express either, but we, justifiably, enjoy the books and films and take it at face value it was not a high budget documentary, or based on reality – as no one has seen them so can we be 100 per cent sure? A little (okay a lot) hyperbolic language here, however, why we should place the concept of God in any higher regard to the existence of Santa is just cultural BS. My version of Santa could easily be the incorporeal being of infinite perfection. Indeed the being is to many children. Both are human-made, and at least Santa doesn’t have the insidious nonsense of correcting standards of religious morals (well, on the whole :) …)”.

Sunrise Trail adds to the argument: “Why suppose there is a God if there is no evidence for it? But I’ve seen this question asked: If there is a God who created the entire universe and ALL of its laws of physics, does God follow God’s own laws? Or can God supersede his own laws, such as travelling faster than the speed of light and thus being able to be in two different places at the same time? I have found this conclusion from Life’s Big Questions on BBC Future: Scientists don’t try to prove or disprove God’s existence because they know there isn’t an experiment that can ever detect God. And if you believe in God, it doesn’t matter what scientists discover about the Universe – any cosmos can be thought of as being consistent with God.”

Again using logic – in a fairly humorous way, Telgan Alpha adds: “I enjoyed reading the extract from the BBC regarding God, from Sunrise Trail. I am a little worried however in the final sentence. Just because something is consistent does not necessarily equate to the best fit of the argument as being valid.
The schoolboy / girl fallacy comes to mind:
1. All cats have four legs.
2. My dog has four legs.
3. Therefore, my dog is a cat.
This was wonderfully portrayed by the genius which was also the BBC in the outrageously hilarious Yes, Minister.”

The last word I believe can go to Stroke of Luck for the non-stop debate: “Why should God exist? Isn’t the presumption of a god based on cultural superstition from the past? God was needed to explain everything before we started looking for scientific facts. Instead of looking for God, why not keep looking at our world as objectively as we can and see what we can learn?”

Changing Minds

We turn again to a previous debate about the power of arguments, and the idea of how we evolve our positions in life. I guess what one may call a core reason for philosophy and psychology.

Rosa damascena begins off the debate: “We had a conversation some time ago, where we tried to remember on which occasions and how we had in the past changed our minds about something-or-other. I don’t think even one person recalled that they ever changed their mind about something because of ‘an argument with another person’, which the other person ‘won’.

Rosa damascena believes: “In practical terms, I think the best one can do is to ask one’s questions, explain one’s reasoning, listen, in short, have an open-ended conversation. And then leave it at that. Not expect much immediately or anything really. It’s more realistic to realise that if some other person at some point in their lives will change their mind on the subject in question, one’s own input will at best amount to a small fraction within their life experience and thought. If I dwell too much on the notion ‘I will argue so well that I am going to convince someone!’ the subject fades in favour of the ego.”

Sunrise Trail points towards passion and emotions as a possible cause of life’s big questions: “When I think of big, divisive questions I haven’t changed my mind over the years, e.g. Brexit, Scottish independence, Québec independence.
In the independence questions, I understand and can empathise with both sides of the question, so it’s easy to have calm, reasonable discussions with people who don’t agree with me. However, Brexit still gets me emotional.
I’ve given up trying to convince people of the rightness of my argument. I am no longer young and passionate. If anyone wanted to discuss various independence issues (Catalonia too), fine, but if anybody mentions Brexit approvingly in that trademark English nationalist way I get up and go to the loo where I may stay for some time. There is no point talking. They’re not going to change my mind, nor am I theirs. Yet it matters.”

Telgan Alpha is a little more relativistic: “I'm not sure. I have been won over throughout the years with critical and ongoing reflective thought. I am usually open to new ideas and concepts. And when some convincing evidence comes out or an interesting new way of looking at something, I have found myself being taken on the journey (if, naturally, convinced). Of course, many hardliners point to X variable and Y variable and note different conclusions and have a different method: often in old currency the ideologues or traditionalists. That isn’t to say we all fall foul to this, either. We would be daft to assume we were immune. That is fine too. This often happens professionally as well as politically: both tend to be interconnected for many of us anyway. The idea of action or no action, even in a professional setting, is a political act. Maybe that is because I come from it from a more radical standpoint – something which is an inherent value for me (within my concept of justice), and likely no matter the evidence to my contrary, I can point to X variable and Y variable and use whatever methods are best for the question I have rather than someone from an opposing side has. The concept of Just Gaming comes to mind here by Lyotard (and Thebaud).”

Boscolia echoes Rosa Damascena’s position: “It's true that people rarely if ever change their minds from view A to view B following an A versus B debate, but the exchange and discussion of ideas is anything but futile. As has been said, we change our own minds and our ideas grow and deepen over time. Reading and discussion provide the fertiliser for that growth. For me, it usually isn’t about switching from A to B, but about realising that both A and B are flawed and forming a deeper understanding of the question.
Knowledge is not the same as wisdom. What matters is not a set of true propositions A, B, C etc., otherwise education wouldn’t take years because all you’d need would be a fact sheet. Much modern philosophy has forgotten this because of the analytic experiment with importing the techniques of mathematics and formal logic, making the philosopher’s task one of assigning truth values to propositions. On this view the kind of skepticism that says we can’t know for sure we aren’t living in the Matrix or brains in a vat is a serious challenge. In real life we don’t expect certainty, and the same philosophers still cross the road even though they might get run over. Total certainty only exists in mathematics, and coming full circle this is the only discipline in which people do routinely switch their view from A to B in light of a valid argument.”

Central or Decentralised Power

The debate centres on national or regional independence in a globalised world. Some examples are looked at, and again, we could bring in Kant philosophy of the nation-state and to a world order, but alas, I have changed my mind :). The argument becomes centred on the concept of power, and where power should lie. Let us kick off the debate:

Sunrise Trail notes his multi-national make-up and sees the good in a sense of solid collective good (relatively) small collections of people can bring: “As a product of more than one country I approach the question of independence with caution. I think Québec and the rest of Canada are better off together, but some good friends persist in thinking otherwise. As for Scotland, my beloved partner is SNP to the core. Brexit and the election of the divisive Boris Johnson at Westminster cast aside any doubt, for the moment anyway. [Confession: We live in Spain :)].”

Telgan Alpha takes on a different approach and for two people from Scotland, with the on-going debate of the Scottish nation, things oddly remain grounded :): “Regarding independence of any nation or region – if that is what the settled will is, then I am all for it. I believe that Scotland should be an independent nation-state. Many I know aren’t, and their reasons when I hear it out all seem to be centred on a few missold points (in my opinion). But that is their opinion, and I respect that. A few times in the past I have tried to show evidence to disprove or offer a counter-argument, but the subject is quite emotive and very often logic or evidence doesn’t play much into it when the debate is centred on certain points. It is instead, on both sides, a value or belief issue, at least in part. And both sides play this to their advantage. What is the meaning of the state, the nation, and whatever else as equally as imagined takes the centre stage with the so-called big questions around – namely, currency and borders. As long as people have taken a bit of time and thought to come to their conclusions and don’t overly rely on tribunal nonsense, I am more than happy to hear good opposing approaches. Does this mean I will change my mind? I can honestly say, in all likelihood, no. Roll on the next independence ballot. My vote is a solid YES, for now. But I never say never, forever. This is a values issue as well. And I can say with a degree of certainty if the campaign becomes weird and takes a bizarre shift to a team that I believe will do an injustice to future talks and isn’t inclusive to how they plan to set up a new state, by vote is a solid no. The famous quip by Russell is in the back of mind:

I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong.

I am, to be true, a massive believer in localism. Decisions taken should be made as close to those affected by it as possible, in other words, by the people themselves. If you can move away from centralization – that being a larger nation-state, I do not think that is, inherently, a bad thing. I suppose I would be very much so accepting of a federalist set-up, but one with a weak executive which can pull larger resources to areas in need (economic, disaster relief, etc.). But as a world stage would be my personal dream. Unachievable, my me yes, at the present state of the majority attitudes. Can dream though.

The question has been raised in Quebec – and until there is a change in survey data, I wouldn’t see it fruitful to hold another election. If there is a majority of the democratically elected politicians who have offered this as a clear perspective, then that must create a mandate for the question to be again posed in Quebec.

As for Catalonia, the Spanish constitution will never allow for such a question to be granted officially in the region. There needs to be some type of mechanism where this is allowed. How the Spanish state treated the unofficial referendum a few years back troubles me. That said, the way the whole thing was run was a little bonkers, but the need for a consultative referendum to hold an official referendum should have been taken seriously, and with sincerity. Some minor flashbacks to the referendum on Scottish devolution in 1979.

Simply because the state has power does not give it the right to practice it at any cost. This needs to be constantly kept in check, with appropriate safeguards in place. The voting system in the UK of FPTP doesn’t even come close to offering the necessary safeguards where the governments holding power have been elected with 35 per cent of the vote, yet have evidenced their disdain at a referendum where a similar numbers result was repealed for not meeting an arbitrary turnout percentage.”

Sunrise Trail counters: “Québec is geographically huge but with a population of only 8.5 million. Demographically 80% have French as a mother tongue, and 5.5% have English (mostly in Montreal). The remainder is a large immigrant population (again in Montreal). Canada is a relatively loose federation and the provinces have considerable power.

People in Québec, certainly francophones, tend to think of Québec as their country, and look to Québec City rather than Ottawa as the centre of political life, but Québec has always had a huge influence on how the whole of Canada is run. A French-speaking person is often Canadian prime minister, e.g. Laurier, St-Laurent, Chrétien and two Trudeaus. Québec still accounts for nearly one-quarter of the Canadian population (it used to be one-third).

Scotland has always punched well above its weight in the United Kingdom. But Scotland accounts for only 8% of the U.K. population. England accounts for 84.5%. This enormous mismatch is exacerbated when the government at Westminster governs unapologetically for the good of its own mostly English supporters.

I agree with keeping things local for the most part, but there is something to be said for centralised power. My first example would be the European Union, which others say is the proof of the need for localism, but I see as a great good. Together nations are stronger in achieving common aims. Secondly, if you live in some reactionary hellhole (Texas), and you need protection from the majority, thank goodness for federal power.”

Rosa damascena strikes to the heart of the debate and thinks about power in terms of centralised or decentralised: “It’s so difficult, the question of what should be the responsibility and decision of which level. City, commune, district, nation, supra-national organizations, and levels in between...

In the coronavirus pandemic, for example, wherever I look on the globe, I find myself wishing for more power to whatever government level seems to be acting in the most responsible way. And I’m wishing for more checks and balances to curb the power of whichever level, to my understanding, is acting most irresponsibly. Which is entirely opportunistic and has no theoretical foundation at all. Where’s the sense in that? I guess the contents of political decisions are more important to me than whichever level enacts them. But absence of checks and balances is probably the worst, because stupid decisions on one level can wreak havoc without mitigation.

In the case of parties or movements in various countries that focus a lot on national borders and supra-national organizations (whichever ways), I try to look at what else they have to offer. What are their proposed policies on topics A-W? If their only focus is “national borders should be X”, or “more government power should be on level Y”, or “let’s leave/stay in state/supra-national organization Z”, I suspect them of being one trick ponies who will run out of ideas once the proposed reorganization has been enacted. Many of these movements also have long histories behind them, which makes them impossible to grasp unless one takes the time to read up on centuries past.”

Central Kadigan adds: “In a purely theoretical sense, and as a supporter of the ideals of democracy, I agree with you. However, as you alluded to, out here in the ‘real world’ the wheels of theory tend to fall off.

The main problem with such decentralization is that it can either be incomplete (with the central government retaining several key powers, and therefore not decentralized at all) or it is total (to the extent that the central government ceases to exist).

Looking at the history of the United States, we tried a weak and decentralized federal government like the one you mentioned. That government under the ‘Articles of Confederation’ lasted less than a dozen years, from 1777 until 1789. It was rather quickly realized that – as per the above paragraph – such a weak and decentralized federal government would either have to be a fiction (hindered in its ability to govern by trying to maintain the myth) or it wouldn’t exist at all.

In the end, it was realized that we could either fragment into several different independent nations, or we needed a strong and centralized federal government if we wanted to remain as one nation. On this topic, I highly recommend ‘The Quartet’, Joseph Ellis, 2015. Whether or not Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, John Jay, and James Madison lead us down the right path or not is a matter of debate.”

There is nothing more satisfying and daring in theoretical discussion than an actual empirical real-life example. And that is exactly what Nusakota alerts us to. We thank you for what I believe is one of the best contributions made so far. Take a read:

“My home country used to be very centralized, with the dictator basically controlling everything from the capital city using an army of soldiers on one hand, and an army of bureaucrats on the other. When he got deposed during the Asian Monetary Crises his successor decided to decentralize the nation, but since he feared separatism if he decentralized to the provincial level, he decentralized to the district level instead (that’s a county for you Americans). So now each and every district controlled basically everything apart from foreign policy and national defense and even had their own legislative assemblies to formulate local laws, with provinces only holding ‘coordination’ authority.

A lot of people, especially those living in the capital city, saw this as national suicide: the local government will mean that the nation would proceed to rip itself apart.

But that didn’t happen. Although authority was decentralized, the newly empowered districts always had a skills shortage, which meant they needed policy guidance from the central government. The local government did become more responsive to the local population, but at the same time, each district basically became a mini sultanate or petty kingdom.

Some were wonderful, one district managed to provide universal healthcare and free secondary school despite being a poor region without any big mining or industry interests in it. Another small city went from being among the filthiest in the nation to winning national cleanliness awards five years in a row, with a village running entirely off electricity from (garbage sourced) methane.

On the other hand, you have a city that was paralyzed when 40 of its 45 local legislators were arrested on a single corruption case. Or the multiple cases of dynasty building with one family pretty much turning an entire province into a mafia empire where the family matriarch became provincial governor and her family controlled most of the districts below her as well as the local bureaucracies.

In all though, it’s been a wild ride, since the end effect is that we have about 530 empowered district governments all running around, doing a lot of policy experimentation. Although government today is more wasteful and has more corruption than the dictatorship era, nearly all of the successful central government programs have come from copying district-level programs and scaling them up. So in that way, central government policy has become more efficient and effective. Also, since a lot of the corruption is done by locals instead of the elites at the capital, more of the corrupted money is at least being spent at their local communities anyway, instead of some foreign casino.

Previously during the dictatorship era, the legitimacy and success of local politicians flowed upwards, all local executives (Mayors, governors, district heads) were appointed by presidential decree, and although elections for the local legislature happened, they were shams and they only had power to ‘propose’ candidates.

Now with competitive and fair elections for all levels of government, local candidates at the very least need to bribe the local electorate instead of the national elites. These local electorates, even if there are definitely local power holders and entrenched interests still have interests tying them closer to home.

So instead of say, wining and dining (+ shadier stuff) the Minister of Interior Affairs (who is a close confidante of the president) – local candidates now fund the roof renovation of the local mosque, buy new drums and flutes for the local high-school marching band, and distribute envelopes full of money to local voters during election day (we call it the ‘dawn attack’ since that’s when they tend to do it).

So the candidate works with locals to get elected, owes IOUs to locals, and corrupts government funds with local collaborationists.

For example he/she decides the local uniform budget for civil servants goes to his cousin’s clothing company – a small and inefficient cottage affair that had previously cheaply supplied campaign apparel. The government office renovation contract goes to an old family friend who donates part of the budget to the re-election fund, and so forth and so forth. If anything, it’s easier to money launder through informal networks then deposit money through a bank into a foreign shell company, as there are government agencies specifically tasked to track dubious financial transactions and transfers, especially those made to overseas.”

Halloween Event

As the world faced the impossible odds of a Zombie Apocalypse, the scientists and experts all focused on the cure. The usual research of the cat meow and how beards help protect the face from a punch was stopped (Ig Nobel Prize, 2021). Although the cure did prove to be the cat’s pyjamas and extra protection against zombie bites with facial hair no doubt all proved invaluable to the efforts.

The efforts of course created a zeal for red wine (well, we hope wine) as Gytha Nanny Ogg points out in their observations:

Mr Shoe is undead and a valued member of the Ankh Morpork City Watch. But HE keeps his undeadness to himself. Us curers cure the zombies as are shamblin about zombifying others! Who didn't ask for it.
Curing is thirsty work.
...can I offer everyone a drink of scumble?

During the course of the zombie uprising, there was a broad consensus that something must be done – anything! Some took it upon themselves to conjure up the will of magic:

Granny Weatherwax sniffed the air. There was something rotten in the state of Lancre. A faint shuffling sound.... Another whiff of moving rotting flesh reached her (rather well-shaped) nose. ‘It isn’t right,’ she mumbled to herself. ‘Thems as are dead oughta stay dead, and at peace and done.’ Somebody ought to Do Something about it. With a sigh, she reached for her erratic broomstick. ‘Out we go. This is getting out of hand. Need to assemble the coven.’

The Statistics

Infected: 0.0% (zero zombies, 267 billion survivors)
Z-Rating: -11.0 Safe Haven.
Most survivors, no zombies: ranked 40th in the world.
Most survivors: ranked 51st in the world.

Halloween Poll

Discworld Philosophers v. Zombies. Residents of Philosophers were invited to dress up as their favourite Discworld character. The most votes went to Granny Weatherwax.

Wall of Fame and Shame

Wall of Fame Thinker

Reporter cautions us...

“The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it.” Terry Pratchett, Diggers

...and puts the world into perspective:

“Granny Weatherwax was not lost. She wasn’t the kind of person who ever became lost. It was just that, at the moment, while she knew exactly where SHE was, she didn’t know the position of anywhere else.” Terry Pratchett, Wyrd Sisters

What is this marvel? A writer who can encourage us to think and laugh? A wholehearted endorsement comes from Ding Dong the Witch is Dead: “I love Terry Pratchett and Discworld, his comic fantasies. I’ve read most of the books, and there were a lot of them.” If you haven’t read any of the comic fantasy books by Terry Pratchett, they are wonderful fun.

Wall of Shame Thinker

In a twist of events, Ayn Rand again leads the pack on our wall of shame. If this keeps up, we shall consider renaming this segment after her. An honour most can only dream of!

“Why is our society faced with so much extreme right-wingery these days? Boris Johnson and his hopeless Ayn Rand groupies mess up time after time and are still five points ahead in the polls. Places like Poland, Hungary and Texas (good grief, Texas) compete to see who can be most reactionary in the democratic, western world home of the Enlightenment. …. I try to put myself in the shoes of others and empathise, but there comes a point when all you can do is stay in your flat, shut the door, lock it securely and pray the madness doesn’t slip in through the keyhole.” Ding Dong the Witch is Dead

Book Club

With the might and global reach of Oprah, or in our case, the recasting of Richard and Judy’s talk show (as seen on Watch, not channel 4), we bring to you our almighty sticker of the Philosophers Book Club!

Book recommendation of the Quarter: The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Wengrow.

“Most thinking about [the state and humanity] in the contemporary West is just endless spinning between the views of Hobbes and Rousseau, neither of which has any basis in what we actually know about our distant ancestors and the development of human civilization. The truth is far stranger, more interesting, and has much more exciting implications about the possibility of organizing society.” Andisol

Conclusion

As we almost leave this year behind, we look forward to spending time with loved ones. This year has been a time of constant flux and constant change. We have all come through difficult times, yet what really shines through is the resilience we show each and every day. No matter how small or big. Like new jobs in the Great Resignation era or new homes fit for the Linkoutside world Link(just be careful of Amazon deliveries).

Again, we leave you with some inspiration to brighten up your day, or perhaps darken it, or was it something else? Who knows. We have already forgotten, quite frankly. Ah lockdown and memory problems ( Link – hopefully no more!).

Dear optimist, pessimist and realist
While you guys were arguing about the glass, I drank it.
Sincerely, the opportunist.

Do say: 2022 will be the year of a new job.
Don’t say: There are no houses to move into.

We wish all of our friends a very happy festive season. Until the year 2022.

Read dispatch


communist propaganda

Philosophy 115 was founded 17 years ago today.

Français est la langue supérieure.

Bonvisana

Ueva wrote:Français est la langue supérieure.

Le français est une langue très parlée, mais il est inutile de se vanter. Quoi qu'il en soit, merci pour le message.

Mi ne parolas la francan sed mi admiras la lingvon.

Red Star of the West wrote:Mi ne parolas la francan sed mi admiras la lingvon.

Esperanto ! It hasn’t fulfilled its promise as world language, perhaps, but it’s hanging in there.

Red Star of the West and Bonvisana

Poland-Lithuania has moved to the new region. That’s where the action is, or at least where we want it to be.

Philosophers is one year old today.

If we reject an embassy request, please do not take it personally. Activity has been transferred to Philosophers.

HOT off the presses.

Philosophers 4th News Edition.

Philosophers News.
4th Ed.
Summer 2023
Theme: Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Price: $500 (cost of living uplift).

Introduction:

- It's here! It's here!

- I see the crowds waving and cheering (jeering, actually) on the long-awaited 4th Ed of the Philosophers News. Good things come to those who wait. And we have been waiting for over a year! This is how Christians must have felt upon the publication of the Bible many years after the event.

-What a momentous year it has been. In a real-world setting:
- Covid has been declared a non-emergency.
- The UK came second last in Eurovision after being second first, one year previously (ah, fortunes do change).
- Ukraine continues to fight against the fascist regime of Putin.
- Other events, of course, but the Eurovision News, indeed, comes top.
- And, oh... ChatGPT and AI taking over... apparently. Indeed, we embrace this shorthand tool as we dive into this fabulous 4th News Ed.

- The theme, this edition, according to ChatGPT anyway, is: Artificial Intelligence (AI). How we got this remains a mystery, but we have to be subordinate to our computer AI overlords.

Debate Highlights:

- Brought to you by the beautiful collaboration of ChatGPT. We have searched high and low of the RMB, compiled it in the Deep Blue supercomputer and yet... somehow... still came out with this... take a look below.

Possibility of migrating between parallel realities: The authors contemplates the idea that individuals may be able to shift from one reality to another without being fully aware of it. They reference personal experiences and the concept of the Mandela Effect as evidence for this possibility.

Questioning the nature of reality: The authors examine the reliability of memories and the distinction between dreams and reality. They explore the idea that what is often considered supernatural or metaphysical may simply be scientific phenomena that are not yet understood.

Inconsistencies and anomalies: The authors describe instances where people they know were believed to be deceased but later appeared alive again, causing confusion and speculation. They also mention encounters with unidentified flying objects (UFOs) that defied conventional explanations, leading to a reevaluation of their understanding of the physical world.

Scepticism versus open-mindedness: While acknowledging the importance of scepticism and the principle of Parsimony, the author also expresses a willingness to consider theories of parallel universes and other advanced scientific concepts. They emphasize expanding perception and embracing experiences that challenge conventional beliefs.

Unexplained phenomena and seeking explanations: The authors recount personal experiences, such as sightings of unidentified objects in the sky, that cannot be easily explained. They turn to theoretical science as a possible source of explanations for these phenomena, suggesting that the current understanding of the world may be limited.

Overall, the posts explore the possibility of parallel realities, challenge traditional beliefs, and encourage open-mindedness in the face of unexplained phenomena. It raises questions about the nature of reality, memory, and our understanding of the physical world.

Are we obliged to help others? This question raises fundamental considerations about our moral responsibilities and the nature of societal obligations. To delve into this topic, exploring different perspectives and underlying principles that shape our understanding of justice, ethics, and human interactions is crucial.

When examining the notion of obligation, it is valuable to reflect on the concept of "help." What does it mean to help others? Is it offering a small gesture of kindness, intervening in critical situations, or actively seeking to alleviate suffering? The magnitude and inconvenience of assistance play a significant role in determining the likelihood of people providing help. While many individuals believe they are helpful, their definition of helpfulness often falls within self-serving boundaries, such as online activism or raising awareness, which may require minimal effort or personal sacrifice.

Regardless of personal beliefs, religion has profoundly influenced societal values and moral frameworks. Different faiths offer distinct sets of moral rules and incentives, whether pursuing spiritual rewards, avoiding divine punishments, or ensuring a favourable afterlife. Yet, these manufactured moral structures sometimes fail to translate into genuine acts of assistance, especially when inconvenient or demanding significant sacrifices. People may align themselves with religious principles, but the extent to which they genuinely adhere to them often varies.

To truly explore the question of obligation, we must strip away the notion of reward or penalty and examine it from a perspective devoid of external influences. In this context, the focus shifts to the responsibility of individuals to offer assistance in a world where no rewards or penalties exist. From this standpoint, it becomes evident that individuals have no inherent obligation to help others.

However, if we broaden our perspective to encompass social responsibility and the cultivation of a compassionate society, the notion of obligation takes on a different dimension. While not bound by duty, individuals can recognize the importance of helping others as an integral part of fostering kindness and collective well-being. In this sense, we are responsible for offering assistance if we are committed to building a compassionate society.

Returning to the hypothetical scenario of Gilligan, the castaway on the USS Minnow, the question of obligation becomes more concrete. As the skipper or a passenger, the duty to save Gilligan's life is paramount. Moreover, the severity of the situation necessitates immediate action, with everyone present sharing the responsibility to rescue him. However, this specific scenario involves a clear and urgent danger where the moral imperative to save a life outweighs any personal considerations.

Drawing a parallel to global issues, we encounter challenges like extreme poverty and starvation in different parts of the world. While comparing these scenarios to Gilligan's plight may be tempting, the complexities and scale of global issues render a straightforward solution impossible. The responsibility to help others extends beyond individual actions, requiring systemic changes, collective efforts, and international cooperation. While the need to address such issues is undeniable, it is crucial to consider the practicalities, limitations, and potential unintended consequences of different approaches.

In summary, the obligation to help others demands careful examination of the nature of assistance and the absence of external rewards or penalties. While individuals are not inherently obligated to help, a compassionate society values the well-being of others and acknowledges the importance of collective responsibility. Striving for a community that fosters kindness and supports those in need can lead to a more just and harmonious world. However, the complexities of global challenges require thoughtful consideration and a multifaceted approach to address them effectively.

Sentience in non-human animals: The argument is made that non-human animals, including humans, possess feelings unless severely brain-injured. The author supports this claim by highlighting the similarity in the pain response across different animal species when injured, suggesting a shared capacity for emotions and consciousness.

The role of an agreed definition of sentience: The post acknowledges that the crux of the debate lies in reaching a consensus on the definition of sentience. It questions whether the resistance to accepting non-human animals as sentient beings stem from religious beliefs, specifically the Christian idea of human superiority.

The subject-object dichotomy: The author explores the distinction between subjects and objects in relation to sentience. Mechanical and programmable computers, lacking autonomy and the ability to feel pain, are considered objects and not viewed as having souls or sentience. In contrast, animals and humans possess rationality, the capacity for suffering, and the ability to plan for the future, placing them in the subject category with direct moral status.

Marginal cases and moral status: The argument is presented that denying direct moral status to marginal cases, such as people in comas, would logically justify denying it to computers. However, the author contends that this circular argument needs to be revised, as computers lack direct moral status due to their current lack of sentience.

Potentiality of AI and the significance of the subject: The author discusses the potential for AI, specifically referring to beings like Data from Star Trek, to become sentient. However, they conclude that current AI systems do not possess the potential for sentience, and labelling them as such would diminish the importance of the subject and blur the line between objects and subjects.

Regarding AI models:
The authors introduce their fascination with AI models like ChatGPT, Dall-e, and Bard, acknowledging the philosophical and ethical concerns surrounding their capabilities. AI models' natural language processing abilities raise questions about whether they are merely parroting learned text or making deeper connections. The posts highlight AI's exciting and disturbing implications that can mimic human conversation and prompt readers to consider the positives and negatives associated with this technological advancement.

In summary, the posts explore the concept of sentience in non-human animals, the resistance to accepting their sentience, the subject-object dichotomy, moral status in marginal cases, and the potentiality of AI to be considered sentient. It also raises philosophical and ethical concerns regarding AI models and their impact on society.

The controversy surrounding Roald Dahl is disheartening, particularly when a publishing house attempts to make significant changes to his works based on a particular ideology without the author's input. Editing a piece while the author is alive and can provide feedback is one thing, but altering a deceased author's original work raises concerns.

The quote by Francis Bacon captures the sentiment that no modifications should be made to an artist's original work once they have passed away, regardless of the reasons. Such changes become even more questionable when they veer into absurdity and pettiness. In reference to the article (https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/18/roald-dahl-books-rewritten-to-remove-language-deemed-offensive), one example is found in The Witches, where a paragraph explaining that witches are bald beneath their wigs is replaced with the line: "There are plenty of other reasons why women might wear wigs, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that."

Overall, the incident surrounding Roald Dahl's books highlights the debate on censorship and the importance of preserving an author's original vision, particularly when they are no longer here to defend their work.

The concept of monarchy is indeed intriguing, and it's interesting to see it being discussed despite its perceived decline as an ideology. One can understand the perspective of those who believe that some elected individuals lack self-awareness, consciousness, and understanding of the consequences of their actions, leading to poor decision-making. This raises the question: would a single, unelected person be any different?

A glimpse into history reveals that monarchs often exhibited qualities such as wrath, stubbornness, vengeance, greed, deceit, arrogance, and sadism. They ruthlessly strengthened their positions, often at the expense of innocent lives, because it seemed like the rational thing to do. Their decisions were often driven by their pompous egos and endless narcissism. Life under a monarchy was far from orderly and organized; it was a world where domination ruled supreme. Additionally, destructive wars were frequently waged at the whims of monarchs.

On the other hand, in a democracy, there is at least a chance to bring about change. It provides an opportunity to unseat aggressive, callous egoists and choose leaders who will not perpetuate more suffering. In a monarchy, one is left powerless, watching as friends and family bear the consequences of one person's faults, with no ability to effect change.

However, it is important to acknowledge that democratically elected leaders are not necessarily superior at governing than the kings of old. In fact, some argue that they are worse, as they often seek power to amass wealth and have limited time due to term limits. They resort to manipulation, lies, and suppressing opposition, only to leave when they have accumulated enough wealth, leaving a void for another power-hungry individual or group to step in, perpetuating the cycle.

In a monarchy, leadership and wealth are hereditary, eliminating the need for excessive lying and stealing. It prevents the use of mass media, propaganda, and constant changes in laws to benefit friends and family, followed by subsequent regime changes that lead to societal upheaval, division, and hopelessness. While the elected thieves may be tolerated in the hopes of a new administration in the next election, the reality often disappoints.

In a monarchy, there is at least a chance for stability, progress, and development, as politics and the economy are not destabilized every few years by the advent of a new regime. The monarch has a legalized right to rule and possesses enough wealth to avoid risking the entire country for the sake of short-term gains that can occur within a four-year span.

It appears that some posters may be exaggerating the problems they have personally experienced while downplaying the problems they hadn't. Do you, dear reader, genuinely believe that life under a monarchy was superior to life in a democracy? It's reminiscent of those American "socialists" who claim that life in a communist country is preferable to life in the United States. Have you considered what a traditional monarchy, like the one in North Korea, entails?

Yes, North Korea can be seen as a monarchy in spirit, often referred to as a hermit kingdom. One man, Kim Jong Un, exercises total, absolute, and unquestionable control over the entire population. Everyone must treat him with absolute adoration, or face execution for insulting his ego. That's precisely how things were under a monarchy. Does "leadership and wealth being hereditary, thus eliminating the need to lie and steal with so much effort" hold true? North Korea serves as evidence to the contrary. The ruling regime doesn't care about your identity or wealth. Your property belongs to your feudal owner, and if the ruler decides, it can be taken away from you. Monarchs of the past did the same. The reason they didn't need to put in as much effort to lie and steal was that it was easier back then. Monarchies did employ propaganda, and they did change laws to benefit their families while oppressing the people. You were constantly bombarded with propaganda about the perfection of the king, all while having to provide substantial tribute to sustain the extravagant lifestyles of their relatives, only to wait for the next king to plunge the realm into chaos through a foolish inheritance war.

To put it simply, so many haven't experienced what it's truly like to live in a country solely dedicated to fulfilling the ego of one individual. "Oh no, another president of my nation embezzled funds. Let's overthrow the entire system and establish a monarchy!" If you delve into history, you'll realize that all your claims are ultimately false. Kings did lie and steal, sometimes even more openly than contemporary presidents. Their propaganda compelled people to treat them as living gods. They manipulated laws to suit their families while suppressing the populace. The death of a king often plunged society into chaos, division, and hopelessness if the successor was sufficiently deranged, as was frequently the case. Thieves were tolerated as long as they benefited the king, and the arrival of a new king brought no significant change. People continued to live in a totalitarian state with no hope for improvement. Furthermore, the economy was destabilized whenever the king made ill-advised financial decisions that threw the realm into chaos.

It's worth mentioning that some arguments may unintentionally serve as free propaganda for the alt-right. It tempts me to revisit Aristotle's "Politics." Assessing political systems is no easy task; one must consider the best-case, worst-case, and likely scenarios, along with the ever-changing variables. Moreover, one must define the terms clearly: are we discussing any form of democracy versus any form of monarchy, or are we specifically referring to certain types?

Plato, as a philosopher, advocated for the philosopher king. However, it's worth noting that associating his preference with his philosophical background could be considered an ad hominem argument. Furthermore, characterizing one poster's comment as "free propaganda" borders on name-calling.

To argue against monarchy, we can employ one poster's reasoning ("I don't believe people can represent themselves or deserve elections due to a lack of self-awareness, consciousness, understanding of their actions and consequences, and general destructive behavior"). We can add that those kings and emperors were also individuals. If people are poorly behaved and easily manipulated, imagine the potential consequences of manipulating one person at a time, passing on this manipulation to their children and future generations.

Ultimately, the debate centers around corruption and how to avoid it. Would a fresh start with a more direct democracy that truly represents the will of the people it serves help? This would lead to less corruption, as those administering the government at the local level would be more attuned to the needs of the people and accountable to them. While direct democracy may be an ideal that we cannot fully achieve, we can establish an administrative structure that empowers decision-making at the local level, with more frequent elections and referenda on crucial local issues, such as annual local government budgets.

Present-day examples, such as China and Russia, demonstrate undercurrents of an empire-like structure where the elite and wealthy retain power while the majority of the population suffers and lacks representation. This situation is not dissimilar to the West, where the rich and elites continue to wield power while the majority of the population experiences marginalization. However, the difference lies in the fact that during elections, there is a chance for significant change if public sentiment shifts, and individuals are not imprisoned for holding dissenting opinions, unlike the current situation in China.

Democracy may indeed be the worst form of government, except for all the others

Hall of Fame and Shame:
Shame:
- The votes are in, and we deliver nil pois to Putin. Shame. Shame. Shame. Ah, to strip him naked and throw fruit and other objects at him on the street.
- Paying homage to previous editions, Ayn Rand replaced the Shame segment. However, this added little to the Shame theme here. So instead, we name her the permanent honour holder and perennial runner-up. Low-hanging fruit is easily picked.
Fame:
- As influential as this publication is, I know, I know, TIME magazine has asked us to partner with them for Person of the Year on several occasions, but dammit, we are not a sell-out commercial enterprise despite what our vast team of AI-generated workfare of Oompa Loompas may otherwise suggest. Our TIME Philosopher Person of the Year this Edition goes to John Searle, especially considering his work on AI. Check out the argument Linkhere.

Regional:
- Philosophers has again expanded like the list of charges in Donald Trump's FBI file in 2023. So far, we have seen an almost tripling of the population. And all without entering into the Raider's wet dream of Frontier mode.
- We naturally welcome all, including our raider friends, should they have a philosophical bent.
- We continue to accept all into the region and embassy requests should relationships wish to be forged. We simply don't collect them, though. Contact should be made via the WAD, and an offer for dinner, cake, and an overnight at a 5-star hotel. But I'll leave the finer details to you, fellow respective AI-generated chatbots.

Regional Map:
- Not since the days of the Age Of Discovery has map-making been revamped to such degrees. This makes the Mercator Projection look old, circa 1569 old, alongside the standard Web version... 2005... Thankfully our efforts have enlisted ChatGPT again, and although the map is similar, we have new countries listed, which is, you know, far more accurate. Contact MountAye to claim your place on this most precise world map Projection.
- Check out the regional map.

Conclusions:
- The ending is always the worst. Unless you're the WHO and conducting the end of the unprecedented novel coronavirus pandemic health emergency. But an ending it must be. We hope you enjoyed the read and join us via the RMB in the future.

-The words of wisdom are carefully forged below as our usual sign-off message.

-“The trouble was that he was talking in philosophy but they were listening in gibberish.”
Terry Pratchett, Small Gods.

-Don't say: it's been too long since the 3rd Ed was out, you lazy S&%£.
-Do say: a 5th Ed is due out, eventually... I thought I had become illiterate, as it's the only article I'll read now.

- Until... what is time?

Best,
Philosophers

Read dispatch

Dropping by to plug 2024 Presidential Election, a 4-way, state-by-state competition between Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and Greens. Currently deciding the electoral votes of West Virginia.

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