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ANNOTATION:
Nobel Theory of Everything lacking in social relevance
Human hubris or intellectual meglomania seems to be a fundamental impetus to this project. I do not criticise this, it is a constant in human behaviour and an extension of mammalian curiosity, but it should be recognised.
Unfortunately, other forms of human meglomania (mostly relating to status seeking and accumulation) are the most problematic aspects of human behaviour. This has produced our pathological, militarist, capitalist society.
This project seems to lack any basic critique of the dominant human culture. Without such a critique, which is ultimately political, the project is likely to fall short of its noble goals. Everything of relevance proceeds
from human culture. If this project is to have relevance to the culture in general it must address what is important to most humans. This is equity. Every human needs to be valued by society. Unfortunately few are, and those that are, are usually those that have sufficient aggression to ignore the good of the rest. In evolutionary terms this is mal-adaptive. In social terms it is destructive.
It is very fine for high status intellectuals and acedemics to pursue the lofty goals of systematic integration and this has been the function of priestly classes throughout history, but such endeavours are doomed to
irrelevancy if the interests of everyone are not addressed. Your nodes relating to evolution and ethics smack of social Darwinism, although I don't think this is your intention. I suggest that you consider the possibility
that Darwinian and neo-evolutionary theory is an artifact of primate or perhaps mammalian culture and not an accurate description of the development of Terran organisms in general.
If you can accomodate the above proposition then consider this further refinement. Evolutionary theory is the product of western, capitalist, militaristic culture. It is truly remarkable how well evolutionary theory supports and sustains the dominant culture. As many have commented, the dominant culture is engaged in a war not only against other human cultures but also against Terran life in general. This war can only benefit a very small number of human individuals and only for a very short time span. It is ultimately mal-adaptive and inimical to the Terran biosphere.
To make this project truly relevant to all humans and perhaps to all Terran life you need to address human social issues in a way that can lead to a way out of our current social malaise. While sociobiology and evolutionary
psychology attempt to do this they are unlikely to do so while they continue to support the status quo. This is the paradox that results from the "survival of the fittest" tautology. I humbly suggest that you re-assess your
project in this light. The addition of a node on Anarchism may help.
I fully support your project and offer these comments in the hope that they may help you to re-focus it. I also note that many other annotations coincide with this line of thought.
Author: KATHERINE MACLEAN (katherinemaclean[ at ]hotmail.com)
Date: Jan 16, 2001REPLY: Explanations of events give power to those who understand.Light is neither moral nor immoral.
Cybernetic evolution applies to all matter, and, like gravity,
it is neither moral nor immoral, and takes no sides in social
debates. Evolution creates, but it does not care what it creates.
It can create matter out of a chaos of charged plasma
and electric-magnetic turbulance and it can evolve giant trees,
or lions, leeches, fleas or eagles, indifferently, even the
intense joy of life shown in the songs of birds and the bright
colors of fish evolved by mate choice is only fractils in the
chaos of life forms battling for a share of energy arriving as
sunlight from our star. Principia Cybernetica does not
deny that natural progression of evolution, time and chaos can
also evolve dictatorships and monopolies and smaller social
tryannies,that a kind of insensate growth of power, feeding on
the feeble can destroy every living thing it preys on, leaving,
no roots for regrowth, like the long dark ages after Rome.
It is proper for the above writer and critic to be concerned about the
force of money power breaking down the democratic electoral
game rules, or the violence of threat breaking into the business
game rules of competition. Yes, fight all harm. But we fight better
with our eyes open. The cybernetics of feedback that makes political
power accumulate into the wrong hands is no more moral or immoral
than gravity causing avalanches. Social problems are not the fault
of cybernetics researchers. No more than tornados are the fault of
of weathermen. A tut tut from the weatherman won't calm the storm.
We can be disgusted by the feedback of success to the lying advertisers,
the most overbearing and frightening political party, we can be angry,
angry when the executives turn out to be power hungry egotists,
paranoids and obsessed happy game players who ride the juggernaughts
without caring what the machine of power destroys under its wheels.
It is our duty as citizens of Earth to oppose harm and damage.
But it makes no sense to tell cyber scientists and students of the
evolution of stars and social institutions and the feedback of
power and the aurora borealis that they must not talk about
evolution to avoid encouraging bigots who want to sterilize the
handicapped.
That is merely silly. Asking thinkers to deny cybernetic
evolution and positive and negative feedback as a cause of
events is telling weather bureaus to stop talking about
tornados, or telling geologists to hold back earthquakes.
Controlling bigots is not their job. Their job is to think
and teach us their conclusions. They are doing their
social duty by researching process for us. We are doing
our social duty by using the new knowledge to duck tornados,
tyrannies, monopolies, earthquakes, solar storms, and evolving
viruses.
KATHERINE MACLEAN
Author: Bryant Baker (hellbirdman[ at ]netscape.com)
Date: Jan 18, 2002REPLY: Too much noise, not enough nothing. Sumtin likies fewer words to be beliveable. Try playing with sounds a llittle more varied in order to maintain intrest among the readers.
WAT!!!!!
Author: rob cain (cain_rob[ at ]hotmail.com)
Date: May 3, 2002REPLY: pills
we should grow vegetables, i suggest. then, maybe a goat. a safe place would be most welcome, as would health and information. not forgetting, other beings, especialy of our own kind and other objects and events for our amusement.
after several million years superposing direct experience of the above with itself, we come up with 'language'. the language, explains to us, that there is this thing called 'serious intellegence' behind the language of other beings. mostly.
unfortunately, my goat has recently died and in order to meet the fees of the local witch-doctor i have had to cancel my internet subscription. i also now have no supply of cheese.
to amuse myself i am trying to solve the following:http://www.claymath.org/prizeproblems/yangmills.htm . failure means my submission to forced labour is almost certain. else become a witch doctor.
i hope this has enuf soshal. didnt understand the 'relevance' bit.
rob cain
the jobs4kelts! + kelts(4/against)jobs foundation
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