You, on the other hand, accept the criticisms joyfully, embracing its horrors. — Hanover

As your eyes met his in deep admiration, he'd have murdered you too. — Hanover

I agree with everything here pretty much except the view that there is a "ruling mafia". I do not believe most of what happens in the political sphere is directed by any upper echelon of society. — I like sushi

Not so. "Survival instinct" is autonomic like (e.g. respiration) and therefore does need to be extrinsically "stimulated". — 180 Proof

This may be true of modern academic philosophy (e.g. Anglo-American analytical philosophy, Viennese logical positivism, Parisian post/structuralism, etc) but not true of contemporary variants on and applications of way of life philosophies (some of which I've already mentioned) such as (e.g.) rational emotive hehavioral therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, existential therapy, logotherapy, clinical philosophy, etc. — 180 Proof

I have had the feeling that we are living through a very significant revolution right now (on the scale of the creation of civilization) but like many a blind sage I am probably completely wrong because the more I come to learn about everything the less certain I am about anything. Undoubtedly every person in every age felt some kind of severe revolutionary movement on the immediate horizon. — I like sushi

In terms of naivety I am fairly sure Popper would frame your position as naive due to a clinging to historicism. — I like sushi

No reading suggestions for me?

Have you read Karl Popper's "The Open Society and its Enemies"? I am in the process of reading this currently and it may serve you well to have a browse of it. — I like sushi

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Open_Society_and_Its_Enemies

Popper argues that Plato's political philosophy has dangerous tendencies towards totalitarianism, contrary to the benign idyll portrayed by most interpreters.

Popper criticizes Marx at length for his historicism, which he believes led him to overstate his case, and rejects his radical and revolutionary outlook.

Popper advocates for direct liberal democracy as the only form of government that allows institutional improvements without violence and bloodshed.

Plato's ideal state was not a progressive Utopian vision of the future, but rather a historical or even pre-historical one that attempted to reconstruct ancient tribal aristocracies to avoid class war. The ruling class in Plato's best state has an unchallengeable superiority and education. Breeding and training of the ruling class was necessary for ensuring stability, and Plato demanded the same principles be applied as in breeding dogs, horses, or birds.

Popper also discusses Plato's theory of degeneration in the state, where degeneration is a natural evolutionary law that causes decay in all generated things. Plato suggests that knowledge of breeding and the Platonic Number can prevent racial degeneration, but lacking a purely rational method, it will eventually occur. The basis of Plato's historicist sociology is racial degeneration, which "explains the origin of disunion in the ruling class, and with it, the origin of all historical development".

He acknowledges, however, that "too much state control in educational matters is a fatal danger to freedom, since it must lead to indoctrination"

Popper suggests that Plato considered only a few individuals, including himself and some of his friends, as true philosophers eligible for the post of philosopher-king.

According to Popper, the paradox of freedom was "used first, and with success, by Plato", but was "never grasped" by Marx, who held the "naïve view that, in a classless society, state power would lose its function and 'wither away'"

Why? They should be mad as hell. Instead of escaping into 'spiritual' whatnot, they should rise up and fix the bastards that put into the bottom of a bad society. — Vera Mont

Bullshit. The pastor, imam or rabbi may offer some psychological support, family relations guidance, community adjustment advice, but they can't do squat about you economic or legal woes. — Vera Mont

I think Stalin, for example, failed because he only pursued happiness. — Hanover

That and he killed 40 million people. — Hanover

Was the failure of communism mainly due to pursuing happiness not as a methodology or process; but, as the final goal of the system itself? — Shawn

Only you can shake yourself free of dogma sadly. If you cannot admit he was wrong about anything then that should tell you something at least. — I like sushi

No, it means you don't need the deep mental anguish in the first place; you're imposing it on yourself for no good reason. — Vera Mont

You must understand, if you find the Pessimist framework I lay out as "Wrong", it doesn't matter, because you are ALREADY in the (de facto) optimist framework of the situatedness of the society your were PROCREATED into and are now following, and moving about in. The Pessimist is just saying that we should question THIS framework- the one we are de facto buying into, and to STOP the perpetuation of this framework

https://asiatimes.com/2023/07/youths-desperate-four-no-attitude-worries-china/

young people in substantial numbers have adopted an attitude that’s termed the “four nos”: no interest in dating, getting married, buying a home or having a child.

Tang ping (Chinese: 躺平; lit. 'lying flat') means choosing to "lie down flat and get over the beatings" via a low-desire, more indifferent attitude towards life.

Forget about lying flat. A new expression is in vogue among young Chinese netizens: “let it rot” 摆烂.

It did not happen. If you cannot admit this simple truth then there is nothing to discuss. — I like sushi

God coulda this, god coulda that... No, he bloody couldn't, because God doesn't exist! — Vera Mont

What do you mean by "philosophy"and "spirituality" – what makes them fundamentally different? — 180 Proof

https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/docs/default-source/members/sigs/spirituality-spsig/what-is-spirituality-maya-spencer-x.pdf

What is spirituality? A personal exploration
Dr Maya Spencer
Royal College of Psychiatrists

Spirituality involves the recognition of a feeling or sense or belief that there is something greater than myself, something more to being human than sensory experience, and that the greater whole of which we are part is cosmic or divine in nature.

Religion formalises certain aspects of spiritual awareness into a coherent belief system that can be taken on trust, even if the person has no direct experience of the Divine.

Usually religion is manifest as a collective through church, mosque, synagogue or temple, and is involved with community as much as with individuals. This provides a real framework through which the ‘greater than me’ can start to be experienced.

What are the implications for mental healthcare? Patients consumed by anxiety or dulled by depression have little scope to cultivate a spiritual path when they are under the sway of distorted thoughts endlessly being repeated over and over in their minds. These thoughts are mistaken for facts.

Philosophically, it is possible. — L'éléphant

We see in societies that don't have a rich history of welfare a relatively sharp decline of the middle class. The UK sees a cost of living crisis. The US has had a shrinking middle-class for over 50 years now. And most EU countries have shrinking middle-classes as well, following years of neoliberal policies. So, to be expected. Obviously, redistributive policies and progressive taxation can manage some of these consequences but they didn't exist during Marx' time, which is why he campaigned for it to address some of the inequality. — Benkei

What he said would happen did not happen. — I like sushi

He said the middle class would get sucked down into poverty. They didn't. That fact is not up for debate. — I like sushi

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absurdism

Various possible responses to deal with absurdism and its impact have been suggested. The three responses discussed in the traditional absurdist literature are suicide, religious belief in a higher purpose, and rebellion against the absurd.

Every few years, someone comes along who thinks they have overturned everything that went before. Its part of the tradition. It never works. — Ludwig V

Me if I abused philosophical literature, searched for the first thing that somewhat agreed with my sophomoric redefinition, didn't read the rest, and decided to quote it even though the person being quoted would disagree with me. — Lionino

Of course, you can't do either of them at all. — Lionino

Accountancy companies and engineering firms might have philosophies concerning how they do business but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have wider application outside their spheres. — Wayfarer

func f(n)
{
           part1(n);
           part2(n);
}

if n=n0 then return f0;

And by the philosophical canon I don’t just mean ancient philosophy, there are many interesting current philosophers. — Wayfarer

The other point I would definitely include is ‘some reference to the canonical texts of the philosophical tradition’. This thread, for instance, contains none. — Wayfarer

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix_philosophy

Unix philosophy

The Unix philosophy, originated by Ken Thompson, is a set of cultural norms and philosophical approaches to minimalist, modular software development. It is based on the experience of leading developers of the Unix operating system.

The second sounds a little bitter. — jgill

To make your point would require some sort of poll of mathematicians asking "Are the Foundations of Mathematics important to you as you pursue your explorations into your specialties?" I'm betting most of my colleagues — jgill

LINUX is obsolete (Jan 29, 1992)

Torvalds: You use this [being a professor] as an excuse for the limitations of minix? ... your job is being a professor and researcher: That's one hell of a good excuse for some of the brain-damages of minix.

Tanenbaum: Writing a new OS only for the 386 in 1991 gets you your second 'F' for this term. But if you do real well on the final exam, you can still pass the course.

How is it compelling based on the facts brought about by academia that religion was the slow evolution of ideas .,. — schopenhauer1

I suppose it is, especially among foundations mathematicians. But I would not say it remains a crisis within the broader scope of the profession. Mostly a curiosity. — jgill

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundations_of_mathematics

This led, near the end of the 19th century, to a series of paradoxical mathematical results that challenged the general confidence in reliability and truth of mathematical results. This has been called the foundational crisis of mathematics.

The resolution of this crisis involved the rise of a new mathematical discipline called mathematical logic that includes set theory, model theory, proof theory, computability and computational complexity theory, and more recently, several parts of computer science.

You seem to have no justification for your last claim. Religion fails as well. I am not saying religion provides THE meaning. The humanist can claim ... — schopenhauer1

Clearly, my answer is to embrace philosophical pessimism as a clear-viewed way of understanding life. Philosophical pessimism is the antidote, not the symptom. — schopenhauer1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absurdism

Absurdism is the philosophical theory that the universe is irrational and meaningless. Absurdism claims that existence as a whole is absurd. On the practical level, the conflict underlying the absurd is characterized by the individual's struggle to find meaning in a meaningless world. Some arguments in favor of absurdism focus on the human insignificance in the universe, on the role of death, or on the implausibility or irrationality of positing an ultimate purpose. It is traditionally identified as the confrontation of rational man with an irrational world or as the attempt to grasp something based on reasons even though it is beyond the limits of rationality. An important aspect of absurdism is that the absurd is not limited to particular situations but encompasses life as a whole.

The three responses discussed in the traditional absurdist literature are suicide, religious belief in a higher purpose, and rebellion against the absurd.

Thanks for the information, but it is a bit out of my limited technological depth. — BC

https://www.fsf.org

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a nonprofit with a worldwide mission to promote computer user freedom.

Free software means that the users have the freedom to run, edit, contribute to, and share the software. Thus, free software is a matter of liberty, not price. We have been defending the rights of all software users for the past 35 years. Help sustain us for many more; become an associate member today.

https://www.eff.org

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization defending civil liberties in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF champions user privacy, free expression, and innovation through impact litigation, policy analysis, grassroots activism, and technology development. EFF's mission is to ensure that technology supports freedom, justice, and innovation for all people of the world.

Any digital book on your device could be withdrawn by the distributor, if need arises (like a copyright dispute). — BC

But I think that "charity levy" is self-contradictory. A levy for charitable purposes is possible, but the justification for it would be justice, not charity. — Ludwig V

In the meanwhile, it is funny moderators will leave such a post with clownish vitriol and no substance up but erase my post recommending a clearly insane person to seek medication. — Lionino

https://github.com/opencog/link-grammar

The CMU Link Grammar natural language parser

The Link Grammar Parser exhibits the linguistic (natural language) structure of English, Thai, Russian, Arabic, Persian and limited subsets of a half-dozen other languages. This structure is a graph of typed links (edges) between the words in a sentence.

you frequently accuse me of being unemployed with zero evidence — Lionino

blaming yourself actually leads to personal growth by accepting responsibility for your actions — Nimish

He uses computability of 'dog' with deep learning as an example. — Lionino

me poking holes in your nonsensical slop — Lionino

even though by your own admission you are jobless in Southeast Asia — Lionino

Changing the definition of common words is not metaphilosophy. — Lionino

And stop crying. — Lionino