Dear all MOQ Debaters.
I feel for an end-of-the-year "speech". I haven't monitored all
messages or followed every thread so I don't dare to make any
summary of the ideas, this year must be some record postwise
and December a yearly peak. As told I only have some vague
notion what has gone on at all groups of this "cocktail party",
guests have come and gone - and returned and our hostess has
left it seems. Yet, in spite of irrelevancies, disagreements and
political side-tracking the Quality idea has become worked out
another small notch. It's a marvel to see this lively forum and think
about all the years when I thought I was the only person in the
world to have discovered Pirsig ...as a philosopher.
All right the Internet has changed everything - God, has it changed
things, a major thread could be dedicated to that topic - also the
possibility to get in touch with the relatively few that may share
one's taste philosophywise. There are many such discussions on
the Internet - every major philosopher seems to have/had one - and
I am of course biased, but there aren't many such long-lived sites
as this. The only drw-back is that it is still heavily US/European-
centered and when we speak about Zen, Buddhism, Taoism etc.
one may wonder where the people are the people who know these
things intimately? There must be some interested/-ing people at
the eastern front. The 11th of September brought some hefty
political exchange - no wonder - but things seem to have returned
to philosophy.
The Focus "room" seems to be abandoned, who is to blame I don't
know - maybe the split-up was a bad idea from the start. Internet
exchanges have found a form etiquettewise and people have
learned how to behave, I wince when I think of my first experiences,
so I think the "Lila Squad" could be revived; Not to be different from
the present MD in style and management, but the name was good.
Horse will surely keep an eye on the exchange and intervene if it
becomes too heated.
Earlier this year I participated at a new Pirsig Yahoo-club site, but
it's difficult having to start all over - like we did in 1997 - with people
only having some vague notion what the MoQ is about and no
knowledge of the moq.org's homepage or intention of reading its
"scrolls". I don't know how Doug Renselle's "Quantonic" site fares,
this is MoQ based, but with a slant towards Quantum mysticism,
nothing wrong with that and Doug has had a rather extensive
correspondence with Pirsig some of which is published at:
http://www.quantonics.com/index.html
It looks like Dan Glover's (paper) book project has stranded, I
haven't been in touch with him of late, but the digital "Lila Child" is
available, as is some background material about my - um -
SOLAQI interpretation. I may also reveal that Pirsig delivered some
commentary to the first months's (Lila Squad) exchange and that
Dan has this material. It's extremely interesting and is (soon
hopefully) to be found added to the "Child" at:
http://members.tripod.com/~Glove_r/Childintro.htm
If anyone has been annoyed by my tendency to act the "Preserver
of the Pirsig Legacy" I beg your forgiveness, it's just that someone
must assume that role and besides I am starting to grow OLD (67)
and grumpy (is that the word?:-). You are all all right, I have seldom
met so many fine people, even those who I thought were alienated
permanently have proved OK - to say the least. No namedropping
here. Some of you may have another calendar and with that
reservations I wish you all a Happy New Year!
Bo/Bodvar
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