Re: MD Rhetoric

From: Matt Kundert (pirsigaffliction@hotmail.com)
Date: Wed Oct 26 2005 - 16:49:22 BST

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    David said:
    I thought common sense and science parted some time ago, you have no
    definition of physicalism that means anything and just seem to be taking up
    practices from Rorty without understanding them.

    Matt:
    I stand accused.

    David said:
    Well me and a number of philosophers of science love science but are against
    physicalism as it does not say anything useful about actual scientific
    practice, eg Bhaskar and Dupre. So you are just not very up to date with
    SOME current theory.

    Matt:
    I stand accused.

    David said:
    Or you can always try boring someone to death, well done its nearly worked!

    Matt:
    I stand accused.

    David said:
    I am more than happy to be condescending, but it is up to you whether you
    feel bad about this, interpretation most of the way down I'd remind you.

    Matt:
    That's funny, yet sad for me. Shrugging off responsibility for the things
    you say so cavalierly is what would get you labeled a degenerate pomo, but
    then---I get labeled a degenerate pomo much of the time. But I take
    responsibility for what I say, so that lumping saddens me.

    David said:
    I do think you are weak on science and should read Dupre and Bhaskar,
    Maxwell, is that not fair comment.

    Matt:
    I stand accused. (Funny how, coincidentally, I'm being accused of being in
    love with science this very moment by the other David.)

    David said:
    Your knowledge of science theory mainly from Rorty and I consider this his
    main weakness too.

    Matt:
    I stand accused.

    David said:
    My finger here is pinting at Rorty's political values and his presentation
    of US political arrangements (his idealised ones) as of high value, where we
    never get on to the sort of questioning of paid-work that say Marcuse offers
    us.

    Matt:
    Huh, interesting. Why didn't you say that before?

    David said:
    Now if I was sensitive I would be hurt now. Luckily I'm not. You could ask
    more questions you know.

    Matt:
    Yeah, but why would I want to do that? If the price of admission is
    condescension and humiliation, and it'd take five or six back-and-forths to
    get enough verbiage to create something coherent, why would someone keep at
    it? If the talk isn't that interesting, why should someone keep trying to
    plumb its tacky depths? Since you've shrugged off all responsibility, its
    up to me to decide these things, and I feel great about my decision. One of
    the easiest of my life, in part because of you, so thank you.

    David said:
    well you didn't get what I was saying, I can say that makes you 'dumb', you
    can say I write 'crap', not sure how to resolve that, but hey, we are all
    dumb and inarticulate much of the time. But hey,the author has no authority
    now, so the reader really has to take the rap! Would you 'agree' '?'

    Matt:
    No, no I wouldn't. If I ever implied such a thing, I was wrong.

    David said:
    I really do enjoy our exchanges, but I suspect the distance between us at
    the moment makes it very hard to communicate well. I wish I had more time to
    explain at more length but alas I do not.

    Matt:
    Well, I'm glad you enjoy them. The funny thing is, I don't think the
    distance between us is very far _at all_, certainly not for getting in the
    way of communication. I think it mainly has to do with how stupid I am and
    how shitty you write.

    Matt

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