RE: Toward a new US-World dialogue

From: Jeremy Bradley (jeremyb@nor.com.au)
Date: Tue 10 Dec 2002 - 23:04:06 GMT

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    At 12:28 PM 10/12/02 -0500, you wrote:
    >Jeremy, greetings,
    >
    >I would not characterize the discussion here on this list as anything close
    >to the dialogue that is needed, for several reasons:
    >1. There is no participation from third-world folks

    We do occasionally get people with 'third-world' sounding names, but they don't stay long.
    >
    >2. There is little true listening and questioning. This may be a weakness of
    >email, and it has a lot to do with the interactional dynamics. Sometimes we
    >are better at it than at other times!

    True, we do seem to be a group of academics with 'rusted on' perspectives which we use to bash some 'sense' into the other members. The present evolution discussion is a good case-study on this. I must admit that neither model, Darwinian or Lamarkian, has convinced me, but the strength of for and against arguments was such that I contributed little.
    >
    >3. The subject of this list is memetics; the subject of the proposed
    >dialogue would be the issues that divide the species, and the exploration of
    >a view of the species that allows sub-components to avoid destructive
    >relations with other parts.
    >
    >The levels of pessimism that those who responded to the proposal expressed
    >saddens me. There is so much potential for participation and contribution.
    >I hope that this pessimism is transient. There is a big and wonderful world
    >out there (despite the negatives that so easily capture our concern and
    >energy), full of resources and potential capability, of learning and of
    >joining with others to build better things than we can alone. It is to this
    >world that we should be engaging ourselves.
    >
    >Best regards,
    >Lawry
    >
    >
    Don't get too disheartened Lawry. With this list we would probably digress anyway. And I do think that we engage these subjects in our conversations Jeremy

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