[p2p-research] [OK] Philosophical Underpinnings of the Importance of Collaboration

[Suresh Fernando]

Hey Folks,

In case you need some bed time reading ;-)

When I say that I believe that we can make this world a better place, and
that we should be sufficiently motivated to do so, I say this because I am
what would be termed a moral
realist.<http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/moral-realism/>This is to
say that I am of the opinion that there are certain actions that
are *objectively *right and hence that we ought to do them. What those are
exactly is another story ;-). This view is to be contrasted with moral
relativism <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/moral-relativism/>.

The sense in which we can come to know that certain actions are *right* is a
position grounded in a transcendentally
idealistic<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcendental_idealism>view
on the structure of knowledge that contrasts with a scientifically
realistic <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-realism/>perspective,
and is outlined in a paper that I wrote entitled The Visibility of Moral
Facts <http://docs.google.com/View?id=dc4gbgsj_208cg9z5qc5>.

I also believe that right action is intrinsically tied to the relationship
between our reflexive (self conscious) nature and our *survival within
communities*. I advance an argument to this effect in a paper entitled The
Structure of Identity. <http://docs.google.com/View?id=dc4gbgsj_900fjd2xmcz>

Hence, for me, there are certain things as rational thinking beings that we
ought to do (even if we don't as a species know what they are) and there is
a connection between what they are and community.

If you can make the connection between community and collaboration, you can
get a better idea for why developing collaborative frameworks and processes
is vitally important for me.


Unfortunately, my musings tell me nothing about what those right actions
actually are...  ;-)

-- 
Suresh Fernando
WEBSITE: http://radical-inclusion.com
WEBSITE: http://wiki.openkollab.com
BLOG: http://sureshfernando.wordpress.com
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/sureshf
FACEBOOK: facebook.com/suresh.fernando
604-889-8167
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