Andrew Furst's Blog, page 71

Militant Progressives? – Dialectic Two Step

Estimated reading time: 9 minute(s)

Question:   At what point did progressives end up deciding that a “free” society means people on the “right” (aka “Christians”) are no longer even allowed to have a platform to speak anymore?



Progressives have decided that debate over “Global Warming” is over, they are not open to debating it, and anyone who denies it is a blooming idiot
Progressives are hostile toward any other theory of human origins being taught at the University level other than Darwin evolution, the debate is over they say

The more I think about it, the more I realized how much progressives remind me of a militant army.

A professor from Boston College recently wrote to me on the subject and said that while it is true that the majority of colleges reject anyone who teaches against value free research, there are in fact a growing number of professors who are joining the ranks of those who reject positivism and value free research.

Response:  There is a significant difference between value free teaching and truth free teaching. The same applies to research.  We should avoid prolonging the natural life span of an idea under the guise of protecting the free exchange of ideas.  Clinging to a creationist theory of human origins and climate denial fit neatly into the realm of logical fallacies.

Argumentum ad ignorantiam – keep arguing because you’ve not been proven false (even though the alternative has been proven true)
Argumentum ad infinitum – keep arguing despite the fact that there is no evidence for your position
Argumentum ex silentio – keep arguing because there is a lack of evidence for your position
Onus probandi – shifting the burden of proving your theory false (non-creationists somehow need to prove creationism is false, climate change deniers offer little or no credible science to disprove climate change, they’ve simply shifted to objecting to fixing it)

There is a strong foundation for the rejection of these positions. If there is prejudice, it is a prejudice towards the facts.

It is the responsible thing for a university that claims to prepare a student for and supply meaningful research to the world, to have a heavy bias towards supportable theories and fields of study. As Rob Corddry proclaimed in 2004 – “The facts have a well-known liberal bias”.

History has shown that often the cure for bad ideas is the passing of those who hold them. I wish it weren’t so, but so it is.The past 200 years have offered many ups and downs, but in the area of retiring bad ideas, science has been highly effective.

Who’s Loosing?

There is a perception that Christianity has lost very heavily in this area. But remember, this is only from the perspective of a literal interpretation of the Bible. This is a particularly American phenomenon and something I would call made up theology.

Many theologians (e.g. Aquinas) moved past those interpretations hundreds of years ago. I encourage those who rely on the Bible for science quality data, consider moving on. That well is dry. Defending literalism by calling so called progressives militant because they reject unsupportable ideas sourced from made up theology seems pretty disingenuous.

Dialectic Two-Step  is an ongoing series of my thoughts on questions that come my way.

Wisdom lies neither in fixity nor in change, but in the dialectic between the two. - Octavio

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Climbing On Air – A Two Minute Meditation

This meditation video was shot at the Lynch Family Skate Park in Cambridge, MA a few days after it opened. 

Perhaps I’m opening up new ground here offering a meditation on shredding. Perhaps not. But I could see that the skaters at the new Cambridge skate-park were achieving some kind of bliss associated with embodiment of awareness and presence in the moment.  Whether or not you’ve ever ridden a board, there is a sense of being alive that you know these people are tapping into.

Enjoy.

Climbing On Air

Fluid and limber sinews

deliver gentle motion

to the board

finding air and ground

fleetingly

These hearts in motion

collect life and bruises

on the edge

where concrete meets naturalness

and cold iron inspires dance

here young astronauts

test out their wings

These Meditation Videos Are Best Viewed In Full Screen

 One  Minute Meditations is an ongoing series of short videos, poems, and commentary intended as a meditation.  Offered as an opportunity to step back from your cyber routine and settle into a more natural rhythm, if only for a minute.

Get Each Week's Minute Meditations In Your Email Box

These videos are produced for those of us who spend an inordinately large amount of time in the cyber-world.  They are not a substitute for unplugging from your devices and taking a stroll near trees, water, or a patch of unkempt grass.  Getting out into the world - touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing nature is the best way to reconnect with our prime purpose.  

What is our prime purpose? We are feeling and sensing machines.  We are the universe looking back on itself. We are witness to the wonders and dangers of living in this corner of the cosmos.  We are the seekers looking for connection a little further beyond yesterday's borders and boundaries.

But sitting and staring at the screen robs us of the sustenance that we rely upon for wonder and sanity.  These videos are an opportunity to bring the sensations of nature to you, while you're in the cyber-world. Its an opportunity to relax your gaze, resettle your posture,  and regain some depth in your breath.  Listen and watch the video and allow your self to open up and recharge.

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Sunday Morning Coming Down – Northern by Coastal

Coastal was one of those bands that I coded to. Late nights in the cave pounding out data transformations  just went better with a few slocore songs in the headphones.  Northern was the go to song.

Sunday Morning Coming Down is an ongoing music  video series.  The songs fit my definition of music for a lazy couch bound Sunday morning.

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Northern by Coastal

Promise me you’ll stay my star,

you know that we have come so far.

I’m afraid that you will leave before

You see

something in me

Show you tonight

Show you tonight

If you’d like to stay a while,

I’m sure that I could make you smile.

I’m afraid that you will leave before

You see

something in me

Show you tonight

Show you tonight

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The World’s Biggest Problem – Say What?

 

Say What?  is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip. 

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Post Card Art Project – Peaceful Waves

Here’s the next installment of the Post Card Art Project. Peaceful Waves.

The artist (and let me know if there are mistakes) are shown below in the same position as their card:

The Post Card Art Series

This is the one of several posts I will be offering titled the Post Card Art Series. Its a collaborative art project done on post cards. 

Using an image divided into four sections, I created four post cards.  I printed 200, pre-stamped them, and mailed them out to patreon supporters, friends, and blog readers who expressed an interest. They applied the art, mailed the cards back.  Now I'm assembling them.

The results are fun and unique.

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Meditations on Gratitude – Leaders

Congressional approval levels are at 16%. President Obama’s is at 43%, the lowest in a year. The poll results below show that  81% of the people don’t trust the government most of the time.

We don’t like or trust our leaders. To be honest, I think that’s a healthy position to take.  Given the propensity for corruption that power has on all of us, we should not let our guard down.  The US Constitution bakes that mistrust into the structure of our government.  There are checks and balances.  Leaders have well defined terms.

But, do our leaders deserve the scorn we have against them and that they have toward each other (e.g Donald.Trump vs. Ted Cruz)? My wife and have are good friends with a couple who operate on the opposite side of the political spectrum from us.  We touch on elections, wisely steering clear of political arguments or at least keeping them brief. I was chatting with him, ahead of the 2012 Presidential election. I expressed the opinion that most politicians are power hungry and not deserving of our trust.  He surprised me with his response.

He is very active in political circles and so is often rubbing elbows with local and national leaders.  His observation is that most people in government are principled and well intentioned people. They work hard and feel strongly about making this country a safe, prosperous, and free place. On reflection, I had to agree.

one should probably be suspicious when government runs smoothly.
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So what is it that leads us to scorn politicians?  I suggest that looking at crime we can find an answer.  If asked why criminals do what they do, most of us might intuitively propose that criminals suffer from a moral deficit. They are sociopathic or psychopathic and tread on others without regard to property, life, or fairness. But actually, this is not entirely true.

Many crimes involve passion or impossible moral conundrums.  In these cases, the perpetrators are acting from a sense of deep moral conviction. They believe that the victims of their crimes are deserving of the “justice” that they are meting out. Stealing from the rich to give to the poor is not considered altogether unjust. The timelessness of the tale of Robin Hood is a testament to that. Taking revenge on a cheating spouse is often viewed through a sympathetic lens.  So it may be with politics.

It is worth considering that the current political gridlock may not find its cause in the evil intentions of politicians. Evil is ultimately practical and self serving.  I would suggest the intractability of politics is rooted in strongly held moral beliefs.  I’d even propose a corollary to this understanding; one should probably be suspicious when government runs smoothly.

I would suggest the intractability of politics is rooted in strongly held moral beliefs.
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So perhaps we should step back from our scornful view of leaders and pause to recognize their upright and positive motivations. There are leaders worth of scorn, but I suspect most are virtuous hard working people who put your interests at the forefront of their work. In gratitude, I thank the leaders in my life.

Meditations on Gratitude - A weekly series of people and situations I’m thankful for and a short meditation.

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The Oxherd Series – Perceiving the Ox – Modern Koans

The Oxherd Series is a collection of 10 images and commentary on the quest for enlightenment.  Its source is the Zen tradition. What you're reading here is a satirical, but not all together purposeless, treatment of these so called stages. Using excerpts from one of my favorite cartoons, Bob's Burgers, I hope to bring this old story into the present.

The Oxherd Series – Number Three – Perceiving the Ox

In the third Oxherd image, the seeker catches a glimpse of the ox. This is when we actually hear the message of the enlightened ones. We’ve had a reckoning with our struggles in life.  There is resolution to do something about it. We’ve tried a few things (the search), maybe had a few false starts (traces) and finally something clicks (perceiving).

It looks different for each person.  I’m not sure if anyone has discovered their true self while watching Bob’s Burgers or catching a glimpse of a cow in a blond wig. But who knows?  In the Vedic wisdom, we can come to terms with suffering in any number of ways.   A good summary of the options is in the various Yoga traditions:

Raja Yoga – a well defined regimen of practices similar to the eight fold path, this includes meditation, hatha yoga, and other practices.
Karma Yoga – doing good works
Bhakti Yoga – devotion to something (a guru, a Buddha, so on)
Jnana Yoga – the wisdom path of the sage or scholar
Tantra Yoga – experiencing the divine in everything we do

Meditation can sometimes be an expedient introduction.  Let’s try it.

Read this brief meditation and then give it a whirl.

InstructionsFind a comfortable seat somewhere.

Settle your hip bones onto the chair and relax into an even balance of your spine.

Over the course of three breaths, inhale a little deeper and with each exhale deepen your relaxation.

Maintain a gentle awareness of how the body feels with each breath.

Close your eyes.

As each breath comes and goes, simply feel it and it’s nuances.

Do this for 10 breaths and then you’re done.

Did you catch a glimpse?

I hear the song of the nightingale.

The sun is warm, the wind is mild,

willows are green along the shore –

Here no Ox can hide!

What artist can draw that massive

head,

those majestic horns?

Next: Catching the Ox

I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Modern Koans is an ongoing series that recognizes that good questions are often more important then their answers.

The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man. ― G.K. Chesterton

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Give Thanks – Tecumsah

Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.

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Revolutions – A One Minute Meditation

This video is a time lapse shot at the base of the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, MA.

Unchanged

Commemorating

twenty four decades

since our revolution

since our revolution

found our hearts beating

found our hearts beating

despite our frailty

So many

revolutions

These Meditation Videos Are Best Viewed In Full Screen

 One  Minute Meditations is an ongoing series of short videos, poems, and commentary intended as a meditation.  Offered as an opportunity to step back from your cyber routine and settle into a more natural rhythm, if only for a minute.

Get Each Week's Minute Meditations In Your Email Box

These videos are produced for those of us who spend an inordinately large amount of time in the cyber-world.  They are not a substitute for unplugging from your devices and taking a stroll near trees, water, or a patch of unkempt grass.  Getting out into the world - touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing nature is the best way to reconnect with our prime purpose.  

What is our prime purpose? We are feeling and sensing machines.  We are the universe looking back on itself. We are witness to the wonders and dangers of living in this corner of the cosmos.  We are the seekers looking for connection a little further beyond yesterday's borders and boundaries.

But sitting and staring at the screen robs us of the sustenance that we rely upon for wonder and sanity.  These videos are an opportunity to bring the sensations of nature to you, while you're in the cyber-world. Its an opportunity to relax your gaze, resettle your posture,  and regain some depth in your breath.  Listen and watch the video and allow your self to open up and recharge.

If you enjoyed this post,  please like and share.

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Busking – Verse Us (Poems by Me)

A little thin in the wallet and the waist

She was a ripe red instrument moving sound.

Putting to minds questions,

Apers set to calculating, which event was it that uncovered her work’s charm

She only shined as a jewel would

Twixt the particles transporting those sonics

Verse Us - Poems I write: haiku, senryu, mesostics, free verse, random word constructions, I might even use rhyme or meter once and a while.

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