Re: Fact or Fiction...Good reading!

Bobby Whalen (organix@hotmail.com)
Thu, 17 Jul 1997 12:46:26 PDT

>Date: Thu, 17 Jul 97 11:41:51 CST
>From: "Rick Knight" <rknight@platinum.com>
>To: extropians@extropy.org
>Subject: Fact or Fiction...Good reading!
>
> Recently there have been some subjects that have popped up of
> questionable, genuine scientific value (Roswell, pole shifting,
and
> maybe psychedelic-driven evolution). It's intriguing to see the
> rather intense reactions from the more academic members who wish
not
> to have the sanctity of their digest polluted with unproven or
highly
> improbable subjects.
>
> What's fascinating is the *effect* these discussions have. One
> reader, upon visiting the pole shift web sites declared "Aw shit!"
(as
> if he was already committed to his cryonics agreement but fat lot
of
> good it was gonna do him now because a world calamity is due by
> century's end), While the mental tug of war about the physics
versus
> the circumstancial evidence plays out, some go into flame mode at
> having to be subjected to drivel, others wax mildly concerned
about
> the possibility of such a thing occurring.
>
> There is pre-millenial fever brewing in us all but isn't the
current
> time frame our own invention? 2000 means something because
somewhere
> way back when, we decided it did. Does 2000 mean anything to the
> Orthodox Jew or the Chinese? Or maybe it's because 2000 is the
mark
> of a dominant world culture that makes it more special.
>
> Sure, it'd be nice for something a little novel to occur. I was
in
> tears watching Contact just because it connected with the
childhood
> pain I felt of not belonging on this pretty fucked-up planet,
> beautiful and pristine as it can be at times.
>
> Hypothetically, if the evidence started pouring in, the pole shift
is
> a definite, I wonder what actions the devoted Extropian might
pursue
> in increasing the assurance that s/he won't be crushed, drowned,
> incinerated etc.. Entertain this notion if you will, suppose you
have
> a little less than 3 years before it's "the end of the world as we
> know it". What's your plan of action?
>
> Hypothetically, all the scientific lack of substantiation aside,
what
> if aliens crashed in New Mexico 50 years ago and the government
knows
> about it. How does that alter your perception?
>
> If psychedelics open up a conduit in your chemical makeup to
receive
> information from another dimension (yes, I'm introducing this
concept
> that has heretofore not been mentioned), what of that?
>
> So much thrashing about on the details, the facts, the proof or
lack
> thereof. You may ask, do I *believe* in Roswell? When I was
younger
> I liked the idea. The details are so pureed though, who could
tell
> and who has TIME to dig that deep when ultimately you have to make
a
> decision on faith (or as one reader said about pole shifting
"belief
> bias").
>
> It's a security-based phenomenon to focus one's attention on
empirical
> proof so one doesn't have to deal with the emotions of what to
make of
> the unknowns. You can keep it all left-brained and quite tidy.
If
> that doesn't work, you can make some intelligible static as you
look
> down your nose at the quaint naive ones who have dashed the other
way
> like Chicken Little running around in hysteria that the sky is
going
> to fall (or the pole is going to shift <G>).
>
> These tabloid-worthy stories are myths but I don't regard them as
such
> to dismiss them. Myths are valuable. Their archetypal impact
brings
> out a wide range of emotion and it's quite interesting to observe
that
> in others and in ourselves.
>
> I'm certainly not advocating that the scientifically-minded spend
> overt amounts of time mollycoddling the more impulsive members of
this
> digest. I am suggesting that when someone brings up something
that
> occurs for you like a matador's cape to a bull, you might want to
> drill down into what's triggering the response of judging,
controlling
> and flaming.
>
> Personally, I like the fact that this digest covers the map from
the
> viability of food replicators to ancient evidence of Atlantis
BEING
> Antarctica (that's where that thread could possibly go..). It's
> entertainment and as memes go, it's a nice distraction, sometimes
a
> thought-provoking one. And of course, it doesn't take much
reading
> between the lines to see that my red flag is control-meisters who
want
> to get the Animaniacs out of the studio lot (sorry, I have to plug
> those guys at least once).
>
> Lightly,
> Rick
>

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