on the universal...
Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2023 4:58 pm
after several days of work, I have a few days off...
philosophy has to start somewhere... and this start begins
with what is called "First principles" on metaphysical questions....
first principle: in philosophy and science, a first principle is a basic
proposition or assumption that cannot be deduced from any other
proposition or assumption. First principles in philosophy
are from first causes attitudes and taught by Aristotelians,
and nuanced versions of first principles are referred to as
postulates by Kantians.
one of the basic first principles is the statement: there is
a god, and the discussion flows from that first assumption...
another first principle is: there is a universal viewpoint or
an absolute standard..... often provided by the assumption
of their being a god.... but let us remove this first principle,
that there is a god, so, what other first principles can
we adopt?
that there are principles that automatically exists...
that there is a standard, that there is a universal,
set standard that will fit all human beings at all times....
and one of those standards is ethics... what is right and wrong,
have existed since the beginning of time and will last till
the end of time...and that right and wrong is universal
and applicable to everyone who is human....
thus all human beings, will consider murder to be wrong...
a first principle is a principle applicable to all humans at
all times...
so, we can have a first principle like, all men are mortal...
and yet in fact, we can't actually use that as a universal,
all embracing principle for all human beings... and why not?
the problem is, as Hume pointed out, is that we can't actually
know that all humans beings that have been born, have actually died...
it is an assumption to think that every human being born has died...
we can't know that.. for we can't know all human beings in
terms of their births or their deaths.... we know that some animals,
for example the ocean Quahog lifespan is thought to be around
225 years but there is a confirmed case of 507 years old...
and there is also an confirmed case of bowhead whales living
to at least 211 years old.. the Greenland Shark has an estimated
lifespan between 300 and 500 years old....and we have no idea
how long an "immortal Jellyfish" will last... and a tortoise has
survived for 190 years....and some tree's are over 2000 years old..
so to say, we are mortal, is to make an assumption....
and if death, the end of existence is in doubt,
then what other viewpoints are in doubt?
on the universal, that which is applicable to all, is in
doubt... for what is universal to all live?
that it was born? as far as we know, all life is born,
but we can't actually know that for a fact.... it is
just another assumption..... basically every single
first principle is just an assumption that cannot
be confirmed...
or to say this another way, there is no first principle, thus
there is no universal or law/principle that can be applied
to everyone... we can apply some principles to some people,
and other principles to other people, but not a standard,
universal principle to every human being ever born...
now some have claimed there is but two sexes,
men and women... but that is biologically wrong...
we have what was called hermaphrodite, or today
is called intersex.... a person, plant or animal,
that has both male and female organs ... it is unusual,
but it does mean that those who claim to the two sex
answer are wrong...
and this idea of a ''point of view"
is confirmed by science and the theory of relativity....
what is the theory of relativity? glad you asked....
the entire point of the theory of relativity is that motion
viewed is viewed from a particular point of view...
that we see motion, two moving objects for example,
and we can only see them from a particular point of view...
that depending on our POV, we can see two objects moving
together or separately or not at all...
the entire theory of relativity is about the POV of
the observer... where the observer stands to observe the
motion, changes what is possible to see or cannot be seen...
the basic idea of science is the question of the observer...
for example, the famous double slit experiment...in which
the very act of observing a particle has a dramatic effect
on its behavior....
the very act of observing something changes its nature...
take a dog.. observing a dog changes the nature of that
dogs behavior... an observed dog behaves differently then
an unobserved dog.... and human beings behave differently
when observed then when not observed....
in other words, our observing something or someone,
changes it actions or behavior...now one might come up
with a door or a table that doesn't change when it is observed...
and yet, the very act of observing that table for example,
does lead us to thinking differently about that table....
a definition of a table: a piece of furniture with a flat top
and one or more legs, providing a level surface on which objects
may be placed, and that can be used for such purposes
as eating, writing, working or playing games....
and yet this definition of a table still misses the mark.. I knew
a couple that used their table for sex... and in fact, you can have
plenty of other definitions of a table...or uses for a table...
a table can be a place to hide in an earthquake, a place to
camp under, a place to build a fort house, use as a home,
the use of a table is only limited by one's imagination...
and one can imagine a alien species not even having such
thing as a table... and do living things such as fish or dogs
have a use for or need a table? the idea of a table is
really about a POV.. a table is what a POV makes it to be....
can I imagine a world without table? yes, easily.... in fact,
look at old paintings and quite often, tables are no where
to be seen....and were there tables during the million or more
years of the hunter-gatherer stage of human existence? I doubt it...
a table only exists as a POV...
in fact, in thinking about it, I can't spot a single viewpoint
that is universal or involves all people, at all times....
so, let us make that our first principle... that there are no
first principles, no objective or universal principle that
can be applied to everyone, ever born... on planet earth...
we can now build our philosophy or beliefs about what it
means to be human....
Kropotkin
philosophy has to start somewhere... and this start begins
with what is called "First principles" on metaphysical questions....
first principle: in philosophy and science, a first principle is a basic
proposition or assumption that cannot be deduced from any other
proposition or assumption. First principles in philosophy
are from first causes attitudes and taught by Aristotelians,
and nuanced versions of first principles are referred to as
postulates by Kantians.
one of the basic first principles is the statement: there is
a god, and the discussion flows from that first assumption...
another first principle is: there is a universal viewpoint or
an absolute standard..... often provided by the assumption
of their being a god.... but let us remove this first principle,
that there is a god, so, what other first principles can
we adopt?
that there are principles that automatically exists...
that there is a standard, that there is a universal,
set standard that will fit all human beings at all times....
and one of those standards is ethics... what is right and wrong,
have existed since the beginning of time and will last till
the end of time...and that right and wrong is universal
and applicable to everyone who is human....
thus all human beings, will consider murder to be wrong...
a first principle is a principle applicable to all humans at
all times...
so, we can have a first principle like, all men are mortal...
and yet in fact, we can't actually use that as a universal,
all embracing principle for all human beings... and why not?
the problem is, as Hume pointed out, is that we can't actually
know that all humans beings that have been born, have actually died...
it is an assumption to think that every human being born has died...
we can't know that.. for we can't know all human beings in
terms of their births or their deaths.... we know that some animals,
for example the ocean Quahog lifespan is thought to be around
225 years but there is a confirmed case of 507 years old...
and there is also an confirmed case of bowhead whales living
to at least 211 years old.. the Greenland Shark has an estimated
lifespan between 300 and 500 years old....and we have no idea
how long an "immortal Jellyfish" will last... and a tortoise has
survived for 190 years....and some tree's are over 2000 years old..
so to say, we are mortal, is to make an assumption....
and if death, the end of existence is in doubt,
then what other viewpoints are in doubt?
on the universal, that which is applicable to all, is in
doubt... for what is universal to all live?
that it was born? as far as we know, all life is born,
but we can't actually know that for a fact.... it is
just another assumption..... basically every single
first principle is just an assumption that cannot
be confirmed...
or to say this another way, there is no first principle, thus
there is no universal or law/principle that can be applied
to everyone... we can apply some principles to some people,
and other principles to other people, but not a standard,
universal principle to every human being ever born...
now some have claimed there is but two sexes,
men and women... but that is biologically wrong...
we have what was called hermaphrodite, or today
is called intersex.... a person, plant or animal,
that has both male and female organs ... it is unusual,
but it does mean that those who claim to the two sex
answer are wrong...
and this idea of a ''point of view"
is confirmed by science and the theory of relativity....
what is the theory of relativity? glad you asked....
the entire point of the theory of relativity is that motion
viewed is viewed from a particular point of view...
that we see motion, two moving objects for example,
and we can only see them from a particular point of view...
that depending on our POV, we can see two objects moving
together or separately or not at all...
the entire theory of relativity is about the POV of
the observer... where the observer stands to observe the
motion, changes what is possible to see or cannot be seen...
the basic idea of science is the question of the observer...
for example, the famous double slit experiment...in which
the very act of observing a particle has a dramatic effect
on its behavior....
the very act of observing something changes its nature...
take a dog.. observing a dog changes the nature of that
dogs behavior... an observed dog behaves differently then
an unobserved dog.... and human beings behave differently
when observed then when not observed....
in other words, our observing something or someone,
changes it actions or behavior...now one might come up
with a door or a table that doesn't change when it is observed...
and yet, the very act of observing that table for example,
does lead us to thinking differently about that table....
a definition of a table: a piece of furniture with a flat top
and one or more legs, providing a level surface on which objects
may be placed, and that can be used for such purposes
as eating, writing, working or playing games....
and yet this definition of a table still misses the mark.. I knew
a couple that used their table for sex... and in fact, you can have
plenty of other definitions of a table...or uses for a table...
a table can be a place to hide in an earthquake, a place to
camp under, a place to build a fort house, use as a home,
the use of a table is only limited by one's imagination...
and one can imagine a alien species not even having such
thing as a table... and do living things such as fish or dogs
have a use for or need a table? the idea of a table is
really about a POV.. a table is what a POV makes it to be....
can I imagine a world without table? yes, easily.... in fact,
look at old paintings and quite often, tables are no where
to be seen....and were there tables during the million or more
years of the hunter-gatherer stage of human existence? I doubt it...
a table only exists as a POV...
in fact, in thinking about it, I can't spot a single viewpoint
that is universal or involves all people, at all times....
so, let us make that our first principle... that there are no
first principles, no objective or universal principle that
can be applied to everyone, ever born... on planet earth...
we can now build our philosophy or beliefs about what it
means to be human....
Kropotkin