RE: MD Absolutes and Generalities

From: Kevin (kevin@xap.com)
Date: Tue Jan 28 2003 - 18:34:09 GMT

  • Next message: Matt the Enraged Endorphin: "Re: MD Absolutes and Generalities"

    Platt quotes Pirsig:

    "But what's not so obvious is that, given a value-centered Metaphysics
    of Quality, it is absolutely, scientifically moral for a doctor to
    prefer the
    patient." (13)

    "We must understand that when a society undermines intellectual
    freedom for its own purposes it is absolutely morally bad, but when it
    represses biological freedom for its own purposes it is absolutely
    morally good. These moral bads and goods are not just "customs."
    They are as real as rocks and trees." (24)

    "A culture that supports the dominance of social values over biological
    values is an absolutely superior culture to one that does not, and a
    culture that supports the dominance of intellectual values over social
    values is absolutely superior to one that does not." (24)

    Kevin:

    I think you can read "absolutely" in these quotes as "completely" or
    "utterly". To me he is emphatically endorsing the proposed solution to
    the question at hand as totally correct rather than suggesting that the
    solution to the question at hand is anything more than a very correct
    solution to the question at hand, i.e. some sort of Ahistorical
    Absolute.

    I think he's using strong language to give weight to his "moral"
    solutions to make them equally forceful as mathmatical or scientific
    solutions.

    I like John's analysis quite a bit. I think his reading is similar to
    mine. I like the suggestion for substituting "Absolutes" for very strong
    "generalizations" even if I happen to agree with Platt that
    "generalizations" has a weak connotation. We can give it our own reading
    (like Pirsig does with the word "quality") for our purposes, but it
    might hamper preaching to anyone not already in the choir, so to speak.
    Is there another word suitable? Axiom, perhaps?

    Thanks, John. I very good insight and something to think about.

    -Kevin

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