RE: virus: [Fwd: Re: memes at the meme site]

Richard Brodie (RBrodie@brodietech.com)
Sat, 6 Sep 1997 09:50:01 -0700


Nate,

Have you considered that you might be infected with the Objectivism mind virus?

Richard

Richard Brodie RBrodie@brodietech.com http://www.brodietech.com/rbrodie
Author, VIRUS OF THE MIND: The New Science of the Meme
http://www.brodietech.com/rbrodie/votm.htm
Visit Meme Central: http://www.brodietech.com/rbrodie/meme.htm

On Saturday, September 6, 1997 8:48 AM, KMO [SMTP:kmo@amazon.com] wrote:
> Hey Virusites,
>
> A visitor to C-Realm.com wrote the following:
>
> A clever if confusing site. The art work in the comics was quite good.
> However I suspect I'm your intellectual opposite. You see I think the
> big picture is true. I know quite a bit about both physics and
> philosophy and have found both of them quite useful in forming the big
> picture that I have. The "meme" that I live by is A=A. All things are
> what they are and contradictions cannot exist. It all follows from that.
> That is the "Big Picture".
>
> To which I responded:
> >
> > Hi Nathaniel,
> >
> > thanks for taking a look at the page and for sending me your honest
> > response. I think A=A at time T, but that A is usually a label for a
> > catagory of entities, events, or processes that is heavily dependent on
> > cultural (particularly linguistic) context and rarely univocal. I don't
> > think that numbers are priviledged in this respect. Quantification does
> > not equal objective measurement. Still, I respect your position and I
> > wish you the best.
> >
> > Take care. -KMO
> >
>
> Nathaniel responded with:
>
>
> You claim that quantification is not objective measurement. I
> disagree. An example is the speed of light. I've done the experiment
> myself and got the same result as anybody else would get. It does not
> depend on your culture, it does not depend on the time when you measure
> it. It is a universal constant that is just as true and unchanging as
> 2+2=4. Some folks point to the theory of Realitivity and say Ah Ha! Time
> and space are not fixed! What they fail to notice however is a better
> label for the theory would be "The theory of absolute physical law"
> since everything in the theory is based on the speed of light in a
> vacuum is the same ALWAYS.
> If you need more proof of the objective nature of the universe, look
> no further than the screen you are looking at. It's not there by chance.
> It exists because a long line of people figured out the necessary
> objective laws of nature that were out there (and have ALWAYS been out
> there). If it was to break on you, you would'nt go to just anybody to
> fix it. No you'd go to someone who you believed knew the natural laws
> that make it work! The objective test is a simple one too, independent
> of time or place or culture or some linguistic context .The test is: Did
> it get fixed? With all the marvelous technological achievments in the
> world today how can one doubt the validity of the objective view of
> nature?
>
>
> To which I can only say:
>
> Hello again,
>
> This is an old debate. I've argued both sides at one time or another.
> It's a rewarding debate, but a time-consuming one when conducted via
> email. Tempting as it is, I don't have the time to do it justice these
> days. I've forwarded your posts to the Church of the Virus disscussion
> list. I expect that several of the regular participants will be happy
> to defend the position that the scientific model is a useful one but
> that it has its limitations and blind spots. If this is something about
> which you feel strongly, as it certainly seems to be judging from your
> most recent message, I think you would find the CoV discussion list both
> engaging and rewarding. You can access the CoV through C-Realm.
>
> Take care.
>
> -KMO
> << Message: Re: memes at the meme site >>