From: David Buchanan (DBuchanan@ClassicalRadio.org)
Date: Mon Mar 15 2004 - 00:18:37 GMT
Platt and all MOQers:
dmb said previously:
> As usual, Platt has presented an "argument" that is without merit both
> factually and logicallly.
Platt replied:
Au contraire. Consider the following:
"Alarmists Exaggerate Pentagon Climate Report - Global Warming
Speculations Misrepresented as Fact
by Competitive Enterprise Institute Staff...
dmb says:
There you go again. I was making a case for the scientific validity of
global warming and Platt answers with a criticism of those who "exaggerate"
the report. Since there was no attempt to defend the exaggerators, only to
criticize the ones who ignored, dismissed or supressed that report. Also, I
disputed Platt's charge that the report was left-wing junk science by
pointing out that the Pentagon produced it and it was reported everywhere.
And, irony of ironies, to counter this defence, Platt offers up the views of
an organizaton that is infamous for being highly partisan and biased. The
CEI is a right-wing junk think tank and is heavily funded by oil giants and
other corporate interests!
Platt said:
As I've said before, unless we can show Pirsig's position on the
environmental debate relative to the MOQ, this is not the place to duke it
out. Hard to resist, though, especially when a thread contribution is so
radically unbalanced.
dmb says:
I don't think we need Pirsig to issue an opinion on every topic. Its easy
enough to put the debate in a MOQ framework. (Provided that you also have
the relevant facts of the situation.) As I understand it, the suppression of
the report on global warming is part of a larger pattern of
anti-intellectual behavior by Bush in particular and by conservatives in
general. I've posted news items about these attitudes several times in the
past. There are so many cases of suppression and willful ignorance that
entire books could be written.
Pirsig wrote:
"Phaedrus had always believed science is a search for truth. A real
scientist is not supposed to sell out that goal to corporations who are
searching for mere profit. Or, it he had to sell out in order to live that
was nothing to be happy about. These frat brothers of his acted like they
never heard of science as truth. Phaedrus had suddenly seen a tentacle of
the Giant reaching out and he was the only one who could see it."
"What distiguishes the Victorian culture from the culture of today is that
the Victorians (and Platt) were the last people to believe that patterns of
intellect are subordinate to to pattern of society. What held the Victorian
pattern together was a social code, not an intellectual one."
"..the MOQ SUPPORTS this dominance of intellect over society. It says
intellect is a higher level of evolution than society; therefore, it is a
more moral level than society."
"The gigantic power of socialism and fascism, which have overwhelmed this
century, is explained by a conflict of levels of evolution. This conflict
explains the driving force behind Hitler not as an insane search for power
but as an all-consuming glorification of social authority and hatred of
intellectualism. His anti-Senitism was fueled by anti-intellectualism. His
hatred of communists was fueled by anti-intellectualism. His exaltation of
the German VOLK was fueled by it. His fanatic persecution of any kind of
intellectual freedom was driven by it."
dmb concludes;
Sadly, all of this is unlikely to persuade a person with anti-intellectual
attitudes. Flat-earthers are unmoved by such things as evidence or reason. I
mean, imagine the sheer force of will required to dismiss evolution as a
scientific theory. The earth is literally blanketed with evidence, but there
are still millions who prefer to believe the earth was created in six days
and is only 6,000 years old. Show them a picture of the earth from space and
they'll say, "SEE? I told you it was flat." What can a guy do? Theses people
live in a different world.
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