20130209 (J)
Journal: February 9, 2013
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Language                    Morality                        Senses                        Epistemology                        War

We often eschew tradition while demanding conformance to tradition. ISTMRN “morality” of any kind demand conformance to the past, because morality is “timeless.” Morality is “right”, perhaps in part situational. If the situation were to be repeated, the same action would be “required, to do the good or avoid the evil that morality manifests. The “right” thing to do is timeless, I suggest, by definition. Else the “thing done,” e.g. murder, adultery, child pornography, etc. is totally situational like murdering Osama bin Laden. So by definition, appeals to morality are appeals to tradition. Today it seems we have a big dose of morality: gay rights, women’s rights, all down-trodden’s rights (criminal exceptions noted above). We now have more criminals and more crimes than ever, e.g. a man was recently punish by jailing him for not feeding his dogs. Many profess a “new civil morality” of “common human decency”.

Many of the same seem quite indignant about people whose behavior doesn’t conform to new “tolerant” morality. So are prisons are full. We lament prison closing and celebrate prison openings. They provide jobs for “good” people who must take care of “bad” people. It seems many think (believe) we discovered or invented the “true and proper” set of values or rights as in God’s inalienable rights (again our full prisons attest to our many violations of those rights). What its source is (God, humanity, or my favorite selfishness) doesn’t matter; only its “truth” about the “proper” therefore natural values. But still many believe in such “humanity-based morality” that 1000’s of years of moral tradition is but chaff in the wind of the “new morality”.

Perhaps this has always been the case, current morality is “true morality”, beyond the outdated moralities of the past, such as misogynistic, patriarchal, paternalistic, catholics other christians, and Shia muslims, hell, all muslims. And we better throw in daoist, confucian, hindu, and other other morality the gets in the way of what we know is right and wrong because

                                                                    We Are Right

We must kill the evil to protect the good, as WE DO all the time. That is an example of “chronocentrism” that overwhelms “ethnocentrism”, our modern jobs-directed morality. “More wealth for more people”, but “sustainable growth.” To continue mocking, it’s as if ‘they’ say, “Our care, our compassion, our empathy just must be better than the violent, hateful ways of the past.” As if the Catholics, other Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Confucianists, with their authoritarian priests, ministers, mullahs, brahmans, and sages have been not been saying this all along. But I think modern morality shares with traditions the “sin” side of the coin. “Punish the non-believers, or at least those who act contrary to the public good.”

Perhaps we think this way, as previous authoritarian regimes, perhaps fearing “release of the beast that lurks in the heart of man.” Perhaps prisoners per capita is a measure along a Hobbes (more) to Rousseau scale (less). So our new morality of “Live and let live” (exactly like me) within a tightly controlled coliseum of values. We seem to vote eagerly for “Death and banishment to those who don’t play by the rules” of the coliseum.


Perhaps there is no light outside the cave as Plato promised. Perhaps the cave is so deep that the light is unreachable. Perhaps all we have are the flickers from the Promethean gift, which we have greatly sharped the focus. Can we ever focus the light, the fire on a single point? and chase all ambiguity from the shadows? and if so, why? The fun is in the mystery that lives in the fuzzy edges of the shadows.


I sometimes take a pejorative tone, perhaps better characterized as “mocking,” when describing what “they say”, the bad guys, the stupid people, the unenlightened people; like me!! I suspect Epictetus suffered less stress than Jesus or I. He seem to stop at description with a smile rather than a smirk.


Paraphrase of part of Chapter 37, Tao by Lao: You don’t have to do much, you know. Nothing, really, because what needs doing will take care of itself. So you don’t need to do anything except “go with the flow”. It seems everybody else is always doing, doing, doing, and that’s just before breakfast. They think,

“So many, many things remain to be done, my duty for the day is clear: DO SOMETHING for the good of humanity, of course. For example, some are kind and do kind things for other people to help them cope with their misery. There are many, many more kind people to address many, many more miseries that can benefit from my and your kindness."

Yes indeed.

Some people “care” even more and are just as kind as kind people. They say, “justice tempered with kindness”.

They care for you so much they will protect you from others who may or could do you harm. “Reward kindness” must be balanced by the ever so gentle nudge of punishment (such as the death penalty) “to do the good will of the people.” We need police, lawyers, judges, courts, juries, and respectful citizens, and lots and lots of laws to express our values and lots and lots of things left to “DO” to assure us of the “justice” we all deserve. Amen! And some people “care” even more, as if that were possible.

They care about the very soul of each person on earth, the immortal, God given soul, perhaps to humans only. They care very deeply, you see; “As your soul is in jeopardy but for the grace of God, which comes only if you act in the will of God. So to save your very soul, we send our armies of missionaries, soldiers, and merchants to “teach” you, by force if need be, how to save your own soul and be moral like us, you see, I care deeper than anyone. So much good to do and evil to oppose.

Yes, you do. And the master smiles at the marvelous colors on display in the store window, possessing the garments in the window for a moment while passing by for his groceries.


Mini-aphorisms
Rather than look for the perfect apple, with just the right shape, color, taste, and texture, think each apples tasty.
Many people want to homogenize morality while praising diversity of appearances.
Some people love getting a loan so they can buy something they want now rather than later.
I always hated debts because they made me a slave.

Many people it seems are full of love and kindness. They engorge themselves on its offerings to the point of “overflowing love and concern for” ….. well the best word might the Swedish “skoll”: long life, heatlh and good friends. But it seem their hearts or at least the pretense of their hearts are filled with abundance of such love. I hope those who are fat with love are as comfortable with their fatness as I am with my fatness of learning.