Centuries before Descartes placed doubt as the centerpiece of the new scientific method, Socrates said that questioning oneself is the only path to true self-knowledge. Wisdom, he said, begins with recognizing one’s own ignorance—knowing that one does not know. Without this self-awareness, he argued, it is far too easy to become a zealot ruled by irrational beliefs and emotions like anger and fear, and thereby to do damage to oneself and others. Self-knowledge is ultimately the most important kind of knowledge there is, even more important than scientific knowledge of the external world; because it is the human mind that creates and operates the machines that can save or destroy us. “We are the great danger,” said C.G. Jung. “Psyche is the great danger. How important is to know something about it, but we know nothing about it.” The less we know, the greater the danger. We are in great danger now.
This was a really great article. I appreciated the thoughtfulness and effort to present a historic and world view. No doubt, the speed and infiltration of social media is, what I believe, has tipped us further and more quickly than in past times. What has caused such a large swath of our population to lose the ability to think critically is deeply concerning, but no doubt also a factor of the manufacturing of disinformation and propaganda coming at in an unprecedented way. We are headed for some very dark times, I expect, barring and unexpected intervention.
I don’t have my dog eared copy of the Best of Myles na Gopaleen to hand but one awful pun I recall is “More in Seurat than in Ingres.” I was most impressed with Dick Cavett when he quoted it.
Great article. I heard you speak many times at the PALS lecture series but this article is the best analysis of the current situation. Keep the articles coming
Yes, please! I listen to many here on Substack, but rarely do I hear the humor so cleverly displayed while addressing these dead serious times. 🇺🇲❤️💙🇺🇲
Ambition and greed are mind altering drugs. Why is that and what can be done?
The enlightenment of the contemporary individual is not going away. The major difference between now and the 1930’s is the availability of instantaneous information around the world. Propaganda is much more difficult than in Hitler’s era.
The US accounts for about 4% of the world’s population, yet trump has roiled international markets and his “leadership” has sparked protests around the world. Keep the Truth alive. Be curious and don’t settle for lies.
This is a brilliant philosophical analysis of where we are right now in mankind’s evolution toward creating a truly enlightened and equitable world. Between waves of hope and despair, and perhaps centuries away from that creation, all we can do now in our short moment on this planet is doubt, resist and oppose as best we can the regressive, anti-humanitarian leadership we’re suffering through.
David: This is a splendid piece. Been working on my own entitled "The Role of the Wilderness in the Age of Epistemic Warfare" but I think you've stolen the march (Infantry term) on me with this articulate, comprehensive and cogent insight. Proud of you, dude! W/r, cdl
After I finished groaning at that brilliant headline, I started thinking about other carts and other horses. As you and others have pointed out, the aspiring autocrats and their privileged enablers alone don't have the votes to overturn democracy by democratic means. So they've worked to harness two mutually compatible (and often interrelated) "horses": Christian nationalism and nationalist racism (the notion that "America" is by definition exclusively for white people). That's MAGA. That's the Republican Party. Whether these horses will at some point realize that they're pulling the cart toward the knacker's yard remains to be seen.
This is an important piece, and I support every word. However, MAGA stalwarts will argue that many of their opponents have long adhered firmly to their own ideological orthodoxy, attacked those with doubts about it, and tried to instill their own form of 'right-thinking.' There is some truth to that argument. Going forward, we should make sure that we don't come to embrace our own immutable orthodoxy and be aware that our opponents can sometimes be right.
Consider the possibility that action -> reaction -> counter-reaction -> counter-counter-reaction is a continuous feedback loop, and that it's very hard to confront something directly without taking on some of its characteristics.
Good one, David! I hadn’t thought about it from this perspective and you are correct, about the distinction between the two types of people: those who would think for themselves, and those who prefer external authority.
Centuries before Descartes placed doubt as the centerpiece of the new scientific method, Socrates said that questioning oneself is the only path to true self-knowledge. Wisdom, he said, begins with recognizing one’s own ignorance—knowing that one does not know. Without this self-awareness, he argued, it is far too easy to become a zealot ruled by irrational beliefs and emotions like anger and fear, and thereby to do damage to oneself and others. Self-knowledge is ultimately the most important kind of knowledge there is, even more important than scientific knowledge of the external world; because it is the human mind that creates and operates the machines that can save or destroy us. “We are the great danger,” said C.G. Jung. “Psyche is the great danger. How important is to know something about it, but we know nothing about it.” The less we know, the greater the danger. We are in great danger now.
We must RESIST! this anti human nonsense that tRump and his lackys are pushing!
My nominee for Substack Title of the Year.
How could anything be so serious and so funny at the same time?
This was a really great article. I appreciated the thoughtfulness and effort to present a historic and world view. No doubt, the speed and infiltration of social media is, what I believe, has tipped us further and more quickly than in past times. What has caused such a large swath of our population to lose the ability to think critically is deeply concerning, but no doubt also a factor of the manufacturing of disinformation and propaganda coming at in an unprecedented way. We are headed for some very dark times, I expect, barring and unexpected intervention.
I love the title. It reminds me of the Keats and Shelley episodes in the demented works of Flann O’Brien.
I got that wrong! It should be Keats and Chapman. Here is another example silence, exile and punning: ‘great mines stink alike’.
I don’t have my dog eared copy of the Best of Myles na Gopaleen to hand but one awful pun I recall is “More in Seurat than in Ingres.” I was most impressed with Dick Cavett when he quoted it.
Great article. I heard you speak many times at the PALS lecture series but this article is the best analysis of the current situation. Keep the articles coming
Sheldon
Yes, please! I listen to many here on Substack, but rarely do I hear the humor so cleverly displayed while addressing these dead serious times. 🇺🇲❤️💙🇺🇲
Thank you.
Ambition and greed are mind altering drugs. Why is that and what can be done?
The enlightenment of the contemporary individual is not going away. The major difference between now and the 1930’s is the availability of instantaneous information around the world. Propaganda is much more difficult than in Hitler’s era.
The US accounts for about 4% of the world’s population, yet trump has roiled international markets and his “leadership” has sparked protests around the world. Keep the Truth alive. Be curious and don’t settle for lies.
Excellent work!
As a retired professional archaeologist and wannabe historian, kudos. I’ve never read a better contextual statement on MAGA.
Thank you.
This is a brilliant philosophical analysis of where we are right now in mankind’s evolution toward creating a truly enlightened and equitable world. Between waves of hope and despair, and perhaps centuries away from that creation, all we can do now in our short moment on this planet is doubt, resist and oppose as best we can the regressive, anti-humanitarian leadership we’re suffering through.
Thank you.
Absolutely on-target analysis containing absolute truth!
Thank you.
Excellent analysis of the need of some to sub
David: This is a splendid piece. Been working on my own entitled "The Role of the Wilderness in the Age of Epistemic Warfare" but I think you've stolen the march (Infantry term) on me with this articulate, comprehensive and cogent insight. Proud of you, dude! W/r, cdl
Thank you.
After I finished groaning at that brilliant headline, I started thinking about other carts and other horses. As you and others have pointed out, the aspiring autocrats and their privileged enablers alone don't have the votes to overturn democracy by democratic means. So they've worked to harness two mutually compatible (and often interrelated) "horses": Christian nationalism and nationalist racism (the notion that "America" is by definition exclusively for white people). That's MAGA. That's the Republican Party. Whether these horses will at some point realize that they're pulling the cart toward the knacker's yard remains to be seen.
This is an important piece, and I support every word. However, MAGA stalwarts will argue that many of their opponents have long adhered firmly to their own ideological orthodoxy, attacked those with doubts about it, and tried to instill their own form of 'right-thinking.' There is some truth to that argument. Going forward, we should make sure that we don't come to embrace our own immutable orthodoxy and be aware that our opponents can sometimes be right.
Consider the possibility that action -> reaction -> counter-reaction -> counter-counter-reaction is a continuous feedback loop, and that it's very hard to confront something directly without taking on some of its characteristics.
Good one, David! I hadn’t thought about it from this perspective and you are correct, about the distinction between the two types of people: those who would think for themselves, and those who prefer external authority.