From: nanowave (nanowave@shaw.ca)
Date: Mon Aug 26 2002 - 13:13:20 MDT
Hi folks,
Since the list has been a little light over the past few days, I thought I'd
pass along a couple of interesting links.
The first, which I found through (google~nietzsche,transhuman) draws some
striking parallels between Nietzche and the Buddha.
http://itw.sewanee.edu/Philosophy/journal/archives/2000/Holmes.html
~excerpt~ "Both thinkers say that there is no human nature and no rule that
legislates what man should be, therefore, man can be whatever he wishes, and
since there are no essences, everything can be a myriad of possibilities.
Both teach that flexible naming leads to unblocked engagement that enables
man to participate in the world without the idea of a fixed self and a rigid
path, thus enabling him to experience the world as magical, devoid of the
mistakes of language. From this perspective, nothing is a "this" or a "that"
and man can then participate in the play of Sankara's netti netti, where
everything can be "either/or." From this position, there can be no
inside/outside dialectic with which man judges everything as good or bad.
Nietzsche's highest man, the transhuman, knows that he is his flexible name,
as well as all the multiple alterities that life brings, and understands his
'self' in relation to the world, that neither has a permanent nature. He
gains independence from the mores of the herd-type through Nietzsche's will
to power by consciously practicing self-overcoming, the leaving behind of
negative habituated affects and the willing of a higher 'self' in each
moment, thus continually re-creating himself."
And this excellent paper on microeconomics, which I found through
(google~aristoi).
http://www.j-bradford-delong.net/OpEd/virtual/technet/spmicro.html
~excerpt~ "Which vision will dominate absent government intervention depends
in part on the human motivation of programmers, authors, and other content
providers. The invisible hand assumed a "rational economic man," a greedy
human. The cybernetic human could be very greedy, for greed can be
automated. But much progress in basic science and technology has always been
based on other motivations besides money. The thrill of the chase, the
excitement of discovery, and the respect of one's peers have played a very
large role as well, perhaps helped along by the occasional Nobel Prize,
Knighthood for services to science, or a distinguished chair; in the future
"Net.Fame" may join the list.
Government will surely be called upon to intervene. Adam Smith said that
eighteenth-century "statesmen" could in most cases do the most good by
sitting on their hands. The twenty-first century "stateswomen" will have to
decide whether this advice still applies once the fit between the
institutions of market exchange and production and distribution technologies
has decayed."
Also try:
http://artists.mp3s.com/artist_song/743/743055.html
-if you happen to have broadband and an MP3 player at your fingertips. I
found it last week and, despite the fact that I can't understand a word, and
the name of the band is "Atman" which translated means (soul)- as an avowed
athiest, I still find the tune nearly irresistable.
I was wondering if other transhumanists with a good comprehension of
memetics likewise find themselves listening more and more to music featuring
lyrics in a language other than that which they can understand - to avoid
inoculation by potentially harmful memes while in a particularly susceptible
state of mind perhaps?
EnJoy,
Russell Evermore
... And death shall have no dominion.
Under the windings of the sea
They lying long shall not die windily;
Twisting on racks when sinews give way,
Strapped to a wheel, yet they shall not break;
Faith in their hands shall snap in two,
And the unicorn evils run them through;
Split all ends up they shan't crack;
And death shall have no dominion...
~ Dylan Thomas ~
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