Re: MD What makes an idea dangerous?

From: David MOREY (us@divadeus.freeserve.co.uk)
Date: Sat Nov 15 2003 - 19:32:15 GMT

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    Platt

    Once again this is Rorty on truth, not something he thinks
    does not exist, rather something that is a QUALITY of our practices;

    Here is another quote from Rorty that may help:

    "Philosophers, like everybody else, should seek to justify their beliefs.
    'True' is the commendatory adjective we apply to beliefs we think better
    justified than their competitors. So in an obvious sense we could not cease
    to seek for truth as long as we seek to justify our beliefs to one another.
    I do not want to replace the philosophical aim of finding truth with the
    pragmatist aim of acquiring the intellectual habits which best assist us in
    coping. The pragmatist's point is that 'finding truth' just is, and always
    was, the process of acquiring such habits. What is to be replaced is a topic
    of philosophical discussion, not a social practice" (Richard Rorty, Critical
    Dialogues, edited by Festenstein and Thompson, Polity Press, 2001, p201)

    David M

    ----- Original Message -----
    From: "johnny moral" <johnnymoral@hotmail.com>
    To: <moq_discuss@moq.org>
    Sent: Friday, November 14, 2003 5:46 PM
    Subject: Re: MD What makes an idea dangerous?

    > HI Platt,
    >
    > >Hi Johnny,
    > >
    > >You wrote:
    > > > I guess my point is that while direct experience is believed by the
    > > > person experiencing it, it isn't necesarilly accepted by other people
    as
    > > > the truth, and most things that we think of as true we didn't directly
    > > > experience ourselves, like the galileo scene. Of course, everything
    was
    > > > experienced by someone, and the rest of us just experience them
    telling
    > > > their story and believe them or not.
    > >
    > >If I understand you correctly we agree that, unlike the postmodernists,
    > >there is such a thing as "truth." But like "value," different people
    > >experience truth differently depending upon their individual life
    > >experiences and histories.
    > >
    > >"Truth, Beauty, Good" -- all patterns of Quality, all as "real as
    > >rocks" wouldn't you say?
    > >
    > >Platt
    >
    > There's such a thing as belief, and there's such a thing as the concept of
    > truth which is essential to believing our beliefs. But where in my
    > paragraph do you see me saying anything was "true" in some sort of
    > non-postmodern sense? I said that "direct experience is believed by the
    > person experiencing it, but isn't necesarilly accepted by other people as
    > the truth." I also mentioned halucinations. So what I experienced and
    > believe is true isn't necesarrily the "truth", and respect for the concept
    > of truth should demand that consession, it should allow that what you
    > believe is true might not be the truth. Truth is more valuable as a
    concept
    > when it isn't applied absolutely to every experience you have in a
    dogmatic
    > way, but is considered more as a concept that you want your beliefs to
    > aspire to.
    >
    > btw, the "real as rocks" concept I think of as showing that rocks are also
    > patterns of morality, beliefs of what is true and good and moral, not so
    > much that truth and beauty are rocks. It works both ways, you know what i
    > mean?
    >
    > johnny
    >
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