From: Mark Phillips (clay8@hotmail.com)
Date: Fri Jun 18 1999 - 15:34:16 MDT
Reasonable rhetorical questions, Count. I do think, however, that
discussion(s) of current and near-future technologies as they relate to the
whole aggression/defense thing is rather relevant. As methodological
individualists, it is always interesting to dialect-out the issues/memes
surrounding a given technology vis-a-vis aggression/defense, etc. What's
the social dynamic/dialectic of "X" technology? What legal rules might we
need? What rule(s) is(are), by what ever criteria, "optimal." Etc., etc.
As both methodological and normative individualists, it's always at least
somewhat productive to discuss current technologies, as they relate to
interpersonal relations, and then extrapolate the basic
arguments/memes/protocols into the context of future technology(s). Of
course, admittedly, extrapolation can be (and oftentimes more-or-less
inherently is) off-the-mark (sometimes, way off!). Cf. Deutch's discussion
("story"), in the last chapter of his very (re)commendable book, *Fabric of
Reality,* of the medieval architect who, suddenly finding himself in OUR
culture and, most especially, with OUR tech-know-how, exclaims, "Gee! We
can NOW build a MILE-HIGH cathedral--ain't it great!?!?!!! Of course, *WE*
NOW have no such interest whatsoever. So extrapolation is oftentimes
frought with such problems. Nevertheless, it's (way) better than NOTHING,
and can help dialect-out (meta)memes for the TRANSITION period(s) as we
begin to actualize/instantiate new, world-changing technologies (and this
point is meant to be more-or-less explictly Hayekian/Popperian/Habermasian,
in case anyone gives an (intellectual) hoot!! (and yeah, yeah, yeah, I
realize that's a heck of combination of personages just now, but hey, check
'em out: I think what I articulated is a good synthesis of what those guys
would say on the subject....) Anyway....gotta go.
Best regards to all,
MCP BEYOND EUTOPIA--TOWARD (META)COSMIC HORIZONS!!
_______________________________________________________________
Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Fri Nov 01 2002 - 15:04:24 MST