David B,
Your implication - that I said Pirsig and Wilber thought social codes were
to be found on the Moon - is mistaken, or in your own words, "refutes
something nobody said". I didn't use the words "social codes" or any other
similar language suggestive of *social* morality anywhere in my previous
post. I used the word "morals" a lot, but if I'd meant this to mean social
morality, why would I have said "...you can brainwash people into
believing anything, such as 'molecules are morals', but this just dulls
and erodes the normal meaning of morality..."? If I'd meant that Pirsig
thought molecules were social morals to begin with, why would the normal
meaning of morality need to be dulled and eroded to arrive at it?
I don't know about Wilber, but when Pirsig says that scientists don't see
morals under a microscope, he's not just stating the standard view, he's
*bemoaning* it. He *wishes* scientists believed molecules were morals.
That's supposed to make science a moral activity and heal the Enlightenment
'failure'. Pirsig says reality is a moral order and there's no doubt about
it. The molecules behave morally because they *are* morals, according to
him. Granted, Pirsig makes clear that the morality of atoms is a "distant
cousin" of social morality, but some vestiges of social morality have to
be present in atoms for the word choice to be compelling. I'm saying even
then it's not. Inorganically aware? How do we know? It's certainly not a
result of empiricism.
I was going to say that your post below was wrong and quite worthless,
but since it's self-referential I can at least say:
Thanks for something,
Glenn
David Buchanan <DBuchanan@ClassicalRadio.org> wrote:
>Glenn and all:
>
>This is just one more example of what I was complaining about yesterday. It
>refutes statements made by nobody. It refutes nothing, offers nothing and
>only demonstrates a complete failure to grasp the issue. Pirsig and Wilber
>are NOT suggesting we look for morals through a telescope. They don't think
>social codes are to be found in the moon. If you'll forgive the pun, only a
>lunatic would suggest such a thing.
>
>Thanks for nothing,
>DMB
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