From: Anders Sandberg (asa@nada.kth.se)
Date: Tue Aug 27 2002 - 06:21:45 MDT
On Mon, Aug 26, 2002 at 12:13:20PM -0700, nanowave wrote:
>
> 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
An interesting reading of Nietzsche, with many ideas well worth
considering. But I think it is a bit procrustean: it does a good job of
showing the many similarities of the systems, but this is achieved by
being rather selective with what Nietzsche to quote.
As for the link to transhumanism, I think it is useful to compare this
reading with later existentialist philosophers. Modern transhumanism
draws much on this idea of the human freedom to create ourselves, but we
also takes a decidedly more optimistic tone than the existentialists (and
many more traditional readings of Nietzsche and Buddha). At the same time
I wonder if we really believe in the idea that man has no nature. I would
rather say we do have a certain nature, but (near) infinite malleability
is part of it.
> 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?
One danger of memetics is to start thinking of people as passive hosts of
memes that cannot defend themselves against any meme they encounter. If
one believes this, then it makes sense only to read papers and books with
one's own views, and flee from any message that contains "wrong" memes.
But that is intellectual suicide. In reality we are quite selective
(sometimes too selective) in what we start to believe. Quite often
instead of just picking up ideas we respond to them, by constructing
counter-ideas or integrating them in new frameworks.
I enjoy arabian religious music, but that doesn't make me a Muslim or
even a theist. And many of my libertarian friends gladly sing socialist
songs, giving them an ironic twist (the Swedish version of "The
International" has a verse about how the people are oppressed by heavy
taxes, which is never sung by Swedish leftists but always sung by the
libertarians :-).
I think the big benefit of listening to foreign music is the broadening
of one's horizons. It is fascinating to listen to Indonesian gamelan,
Thai pop, Polynesian rap, Russian techno and experimental protein
sonifications. Bhangra rocks! Why settle for one culture?
-- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Anders Sandberg Towards Ascension! asa@nada.kth.se http://www.nada.kth.se/~asa/ GCS/M/S/O d++ -p+ c++++ !l u+ e++ m++ s+/+ n--- h+/* f+ g+ w++ t+ r+ !y
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