[Mind's Eye] Re: beyond the 'unheard tree'

We are myth driven creatures.

On Dec 31 2011, 6:59 pm, archytas <nwte...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I actually didn't know that much about his personal history.  We know
> him only through what may as well be Hollywood biopic.  Great leaders
> seem to need retrospective hagiography.  How does this work on us and
> why doesn't education really challenge any of it?
>
> On Dec 31, 10:08 pm, Allan H <allanh1...@gmail.com> wrote:
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> > my my, he was born 8 months after  they were married,,  wonder what that
> > has to say about good old winston
> > Allan
>
> > On Sat, Dec 31, 2011 at 2:35 PM, rigsy03 <rigs...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > > He was half American- his mother was Jenny Jerome who lived a daring
> > > life- you can probably Google her. His father was Randolph, I believe,
> > > who married for money like other peers of the period. His gift was
> > > "blah"- a spurring rhetoric. His histories are not respected by
> > > history majors as he fudged the facts. Like Napoleon, he has many
> > > admirers who disregard the terrible realities of their dances with
> > > history.
>
> > > Jenny, by the way, had two later husbands younger than her son. Her
> > > death is a warning against high heels- a heel broke- she fell down the
> > > stairs- the mend was botched- her leg was amputated- blood poisoning-
> > > death. Amen.
>
> > > On Dec 30, 6:31 pm, archytas <nwte...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > Two came with the house Allan.  The one at the back blew down - pity
> > > > as it was a nice mountain ash type of rowan.  The one in the front is
> > > > called a street rowan and serves no purpose other than to block out
> > > > what little sun we get at the front.  An odd squirrel or two use it.
> > > > I know it's ours only because the Council wouldn't include it when the
> > > > thinned out some street trees last year.  I have rather more against
> > > > Churchill than the tree, but would like to replace it with something
> > > > more colourful.  Churchill is something of a heroic oak in our popular
> > > > culture, but led the country to bankruptcy in wars that suited the
> > > > American Empire rather too well for me to believe it was accidental.
> > > > He was hand-in-glove with JP Morgan and they now run our Post Office
> > > > bank accounts!
>
> > > > I feel the proof issues in matters like this are more likely to have
> > > > relevance to why we have no democracy free of bankster-finance than
> > > > speculation that god is proved by the fact the tree is in the
> > > > quadrangle when we don't look.
>
> > > > On Dec 30, 8:35 pm, Allan H <allanh1...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > > > > Maybe a better question is why would you need a rowan tree Neil
> > > > > Allan
>
> > > > > On Fri, Dec 30, 2011 at 8:46 PM, archytas <nwte...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > > > Questions like whether the tree is in the quadrangle if no one is
> > > > > > looking are classroom tricks aimed at getting some thinking going.
> > > > > > Frege had some ideas I've not seen discussed in here.  For him, ideas
> > > > > > were not thoughts.  Thoughts existed in a third realm.  I'm shaky on
> > > > > > phenomenology - largely because a lot of it ends up in a complex
> > > > > > lexicon of terms to describe itself.  Heidegger suggested the firm
> > > > > > ground of our lives was a better place to consider thoughts and
> > > > > > thinking.
>
> > > > > > Ordinary objects like trees are problematic in philosophy - they turn
> > > > > > out to be some structure of atoms and so on.  Some have suggested we
> > > > > > should exclude them.  In language I can say that 'unheard trees have
> > > > > > been done to death' and most will get the drift, without thinking I
> > > > > > have been out beating unheard trees with my cricket bat.  Frankly, if
> > > > > > the unheard tree stuff had an import we'd find illegal logging
> > > > > > companies telling us about it when their sawmills were full and our
> > > > > > forests empty.
>
> > > > > > More interesting to me is that I can say (truthfully) that there is a
> > > > > > rowan tree in my front garden.  Confirming this is relatively
> > > > > > straightforward.  What I think we need to be better able to spot as
> > > in
> > > > > > need of argument is stuff like the context of argument that allows
> > > > > > politicians to tell us the same lies over and over again.  This might
> > > > > > help is to a better grip on what democracy is as a theory-in-action.
>
> > > > > > Let me cast this by saying I believe Winston Churchill was an
> > > American
> > > > > > spy and bag man for JP Morgan - against the fact that there is a
> > > rowan
> > > > > > tree in my front garden.  It's easy enough for you to ask for
> > > evidence
> > > > > > to establish beyond doubt that the rowan tree is where I say it is
> > > > > > (however much we might discuss its atoms or whether it's there when
> > > > > > none of us is watching it).  What we should ask is why the Churchill
> > > > > > thing is so much more difficult (I can't prove this to my own
> > > > > > satisfaction as a fact - but what would be the grounds)?
>
> > > > > --
> > > > >  (
> > > > >   )
> > > > > |_D Allan
>
> > > > > Life is for moral, ethical and truthful living.- Hide quoted text -
>
> > > > - Show quoted text -
>
> > --
> >  (
> >   )
> > |_D Allan
>
> > Life is for moral, ethical and truthful living.