Was leafing through a book yesterday and came across a diagram of a quincunx. Twenty minutes later, at the cafe, I open the newspaper-one that I never read-and see a picture of a group of people from Madrid in exactly the same formation. Jeez. If there are going to be co-incidences at least make them meaningful! What else but 62! ?
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Strange that academics should talk so loosely when it comes to politics or fields other than their own. Uusally, they're very reserved about making a statement without qualifying it, looking at the evidence or citing references. Even then there's a degree of tentativeness, openness to other possibilites. But when it comes to politics or religion, no, sweeping generalizations are par for the course: Iran: a "shame culture"; the mid-east: "sharia culture". It's the same type of polemical mindset of a Pilger or a Chomsky and though I can see why that might appeal to certain groups-teenagers, mainly-it does strike me as quite odd. Ah! Certainty at last.
But then again, we live in an ideological age and think in slogans. How I cringe when I hear the word "we"-as if this could only mean identity with my country, my religion. More shoddy thinking. Nationalism: sickness and unreason.
Reasonableness over rationality, I think Russell once said.
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Came across one of my favourite songs
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Strange that academics should talk so loosely when it comes to politics or fields other than their own. Uusally, they're very reserved about making a statement without qualifying it, looking at the evidence or citing references. Even then there's a degree of tentativeness, openness to other possibilites. But when it comes to politics or religion, no, sweeping generalizations are par for the course: Iran: a "shame culture"; the mid-east: "sharia culture". It's the same type of polemical mindset of a Pilger or a Chomsky and though I can see why that might appeal to certain groups-teenagers, mainly-it does strike me as quite odd. Ah! Certainty at last.
But then again, we live in an ideological age and think in slogans. How I cringe when I hear the word "we"-as if this could only mean identity with my country, my religion. More shoddy thinking. Nationalism: sickness and unreason.
Reasonableness over rationality, I think Russell once said.
~~~
Came across one of my favourite songs
~~~
Browne identifies this structure everywhere, in animate and inanimate matter: incertain crystalline forms, in starfish, sea urchins, in the vertebrae of mammals and the backbone of birds and fish..in the crosswise prints left by quadrupeds..in the pyramids of Egypt..Examples might be multiplied without end.
On the one hand the study of Nature today aims to describe a system governed by immutable laws, on the other hand it delights in drawing our attention to creatures noteworthy for their bizarre physical form...
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We seek a song that is all songs; we seek a song that is uniquely ours.
6 comments:
Hi B,
On the topic of 'we and us', it was very sad indeed that at least four of the ten political parties who put forward candidates for last week's London mayoral elections framed their issues in terms of ethnicity or belonging.
A little anecdote - a British Uzbek female friend was running in a beautifully sunny Regents park on Sunday afternoon. A dog belonging to group of three, chased her and bit her on the foot. She said to the two women and one guy, why don't you keep your dog on a lead? Instead of apologising they yelled 'we have had enough of you immigrant scum, go back to where you came from!'.
Had I been there, I'm not sure how I would have tried to disabuse them of this nonsense. But I found it really shocking - three affluent (on appearance) adults relaxing in beautiful surroundings in a country which has put at least some effort into drumming values of equality and respect into its employees and schoolkids and still.....
But then maybe its more connected to the tyoe of childish arrogance displayed in public which I have witnessed on many occasions - not being able to accept responsibility for mistakes and hurling abuse at the unfortunate victim instead of apologising. Has it always been like this?
Beth
it's charming that you filed it under "music" - maybe you should start a cringe-section...(cringe-blogging!)
hmm it's strange, from what i see here, in the Netherlands,it's rather those uptight hardcore enlightenment academics that go on about how fucked up and dichotomuous everythign is with the islam and stuff while the "normal" folks just sort of get on with each other live their lives without big trouble and hence appear to behave much more progressive than those academics. i remember we'd been lounging about in the backyard and doing homework for the immigrationclass, asking the duthc for advice (cheating!) about those stupid questions and the dutch found it just as hilarious as we, but it was just some class, just some kind of formal obligation, not to be taken more serious than necessary. the dutch didnt take it serious, we didn't take it serious. people are able to just live their lives without big trouble when one lets them. not that everything is golden, but still. it could be much more easier far far worse...
Hello, Beth. Good to hear from you after all this time! Is this the same Uzbeki friend I met at Border's? If so, do pass on my salaams to her.
I don't know what I'd do in the face of such behaviour either. Although I'm a great believer in a public culture and its civilizing effects I can't but help think that this is down to 'education'-at the family level..about one's fundamental temperament.
I think the hardest thing to do nowadays is think-really think-about 'we'. And at the personal level it requires a tremendous amount of openness. Perhaps that is asking too much and a public culture of decency is a more realistic way of countering such attitudes. I really don't know.
Hope all is well.
how's the thesis coming along?
take care,
Khalid
Hello, Anton.
Yes, I don't know why I did that. Perhaps it's always better to listen to music than focus on stupidity. It serves very little purpose, anyway, and I'd much rather just distance myself from it all.
I think your point about ordinary people is spot on-mostly. Which, I guess, is related to education, understanding and/or maybe a sort of pragmatic spirit: we have to live with one another.
But the strange thing for me is that academics, who often bend over backwards to not say anything definitive, will make the most sweeping generalizations when it comes to other areas than their own.
I don't know, I see some people here who are wonderfully intelligent -in a formal way-but who have the most obnoxious and bigoted views. I don't know why that constantly surprises me. Perhaps an overestimation of the power of books/reading.
'Orr' means "and?"..as in , what else is happening, what else have you been upto...an attempt to keep the conversation going. How we need that word, 'and'!
Keep well,
b.
i agree, B. Orr then is one of the most important words in the world, almost as important as "hi."
is this the wonderful th browne? i must have overlooked this when i first read this. re the song, there is a beautiful quote by - and this i shamefully have forgotten, Twain? or Melville? - about how we all have song in our heart, but a hard time to get it out. i always thought this very true and human.
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