Greetings,
ELEPHANT:
"Er, OK. But I'm still puzzling about how Prisig can be wrong (talking
"rubbish") about SOM, if SOM is just his invention."
Precisely the sort of fatuous comment which makes rational dialogue with you
tedious. My argument is evidently not, "that Pirsig ascribes X to THOSE
PEOPLE, while THOSE PEOPLE often maintain NOT X," as you claim. It is that
Pirsig ascribes X to those people, while those people do not actually hold
that position. Once that is grasped the rest of your posting falls away.
Apart from:
ELEPHANT:
"Please explain, because I'm rather puzzled. How can Prisig be
talking 'rubbish' about what SOM involves if nobody beleives SOM? Because
if Prisig has invented SOM, it can legitimately be said to comprise just
exactly what Prisig says it comprises."
Because no argument can be modally stronger than its modally weakest point.
If I invent a grolbeech (an animal with the head of a penguin and the body
of a goat) it doesn't mean that one is running around somewhere, and if I
said it was, you would be quite right to give the retort, 'rubbish'.
(actually that was cleared up in my previous paragraph, but I felt like
inventing a grolbeech).
ELEPHANT:
"Take me on if you think you're big enough."
The last time anyone said that to me (apart from Rich "oh shit now I've read
some philosophy I realise that it doesn't work after all" Pretti) was in
primary school. What do you want me to do? Get my dick out and wave it at
you?
Regarding Murdoch. Your observation that both she and Pirsig embrace
metaphysics and are happy to talk about it is correct. Considering the fact
that they both write about metaphysics, this is hardly surprising. Your
following argument is akin to saying that the USA and Iran disapprove of
Iraq, so the former must both be good friends and it would be a great idea
to make connections between capitalist libertarianism and
semi-fundamentalist theocracy. Perhaps it is, but I have better things to
do.
No, I'm afraid that your ideas still don't interest me and even less am I
concerned that you give me a 'second chance'. Please don't.
Struan
MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
MD Queries - horse@wasted.demon.nl
To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat Aug 17 2002 - 16:00:55 BST