tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post512650962698021909..comments2023-10-10T10:34:10.843-06:00Comments on The Nexus of Assholery: Global Warming or Virtual Reality?Patrick Rosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04592482865332628189noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-60028861636690943202007-07-31T02:32:00.000-06:002007-07-31T02:32:00.000-06:00Heh heh, I came here to bury Caesar not to praise ...Heh heh, I came here to bury Caesar not to praise him, Patrick, but honesty compels me to say that I found this post thought provoking!<BR/><BR/>Assuming I understood what you were saying - or perhaps what Norman Mailer was saying - it seemed to me the thesis was that certain points of view can become so rooted in our "reality" that, regardless of what is actually in front of us, we interpret it so that it corresponds with our belief system.<BR/><BR/>Thus if global warming is part of our "theology", then even an unheard of snowfall will somehow be jammed into our philosophy.<BR/><BR/>If that was indeed what you were saying, it might behoove all of us to spend some time asking ourselves what other square peg beliefs that we might be trying to fit into the round holes of what we like to call reality. <BR/><BR/>Religion and politics come to mind right away, of course, but even how you see your mother-in-law or easterners...<BR/><BR/>Thanks for this.Penelope Personshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06568490631814894124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-42832413696545378002007-07-15T22:41:00.000-06:002007-07-15T22:41:00.000-06:00Actually, I do read Playboy for the articles. In t...Actually, I do read Playboy for the articles. In the most recent issue, there's a "Building the Perfect President" essay that is fabulously brilliant.<BR/><BR/>I think it really says something about the quality of Playboy when it features nude photos some of the world's most beautiful women, and that isn't even the best part of the magazine.<BR/><BR/>The jokes are always a hit, this is true, but the Playboy Forum is actually the best part of the magazine. (I'm actually not a big reader of the fiction.)<BR/><BR/><BR/>As further discussion of Mailer's Virtual Reality thesis (just to reiterate, not originally mine), I actually find that the Marxist belief in "false consciousness" is itself a virtual reality ideology, in which case the only answer available to the question of why not everyone agreed with marxists, or believed in marxism, was "false consciousness" -- the belief that people simply didn't know better.Patrick Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04592482865332628189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-90392741534082437892007-07-15T20:55:00.000-06:002007-07-15T20:55:00.000-06:00The cold event in SA 25 years ago would have been ...The cold event in SA 25 years ago would have been seen as a sign of global cooling, lot's of people were still in that virtual reality in the mid 1980's. The event this year is a sign of the chaotic effects of global warming, at least in virtual reality. If you take the geological view and turn off the VRI generator, climate changes, it always has and it always will. Our best option as a species is to adapt. Sure we have to clean up our collective act, we can't continue to dump garbage in the air and water, but we have been getting better. The air is cleaner now than 50 years ago. We recycle more and more. <BR/><BR/>Your notion of VR and AGW is thought provoking, thanks for the article.John Nicklinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15466423012662670782noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-5143877036419810332007-07-15T10:46:00.000-06:002007-07-15T10:46:00.000-06:00So you're the guy who buys the Playboy "for the ar...So you're the guy who buys the Playboy "for the articles". <BR/><BR/>:)Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16984468805919067190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-87008590547006384722007-07-15T09:46:00.000-06:002007-07-15T09:46:00.000-06:00If you're interested, Dylan, Mailer better describ...If you're interested, Dylan, Mailer better describes his theory of ideological virtual reality in an essay entitled "Immodest Proposal", which appeared in Playboy Magazine.<BR/><BR/>In the essay, Mailer actually uses virtual reality to explain the many measures that Americans have taken in response to terrorism, particularly that the answer to why the U.S. was getting involved in Iraq was always terrorism, although Iraq had no involvement with Al Qaida, and no involvement with 9/11.<BR/><BR/>I think, to a certain extent, the same argument can be applied to Canadians on the issue of Afghanistan. Many Canadians use 9/11 as the reason why we must be in Afghanistan. In my view, however, the issue is slightly different. In my view, the reason we need to be involved in Afghanistan revolves around a number of reasons: terrorism (more specifically, the threat posed by regimes that harbour terrorists) is one of them. A broader belief in the importance of Canada's ability to help bring peace, order and freedom to other parts of the world is another. The important principles of internationalism is more of an afterthought.<BR/><BR/><BR/>As it pertains to climate change, my views hover between belief in man-made causes and natural variation. The natural variations have been demonstrated, and human impact has also been strongly supported, in my view. As such, we can never <I>stop</I> climate change, but we can slow it by lessening our contribution -- which is only wise, by my estimation.Patrick Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04592482865332628189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149446.post-44320050122970636342007-07-14T14:55:00.000-06:002007-07-14T14:55:00.000-06:00Patrick, this was honestly one of the best posts I...Patrick, this was honestly one of the best posts I've read in a long time. <BR/><BR/>I myself subscribe to the theory of global warming and I have listened to many arguments against global warming, but you've just taken the debate to a whole other level with your Virtual Reality Ideology. <BR/><BR/>I like to think that I'm well versed in philosophy but this is the first time I've heard of VRI and it has perked my interest. Perhaps the same philosophy can be applied to the ideology behind the 'War on Terror'. <BR/><BR/>Fantastic post.Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16984468805919067190noreply@blogger.com