Deipnosophist - Really?

Are you familair with that word?  It is based on at least one word you know.  Deipnon is the Greek word for the main meal of the day, what we would consider to be dinner.  Sophist is the term for a persuasive speaker.  Combine them and you have a term for someone who is an entertaining and enjoyable dinner conversationalist. 

I'd like to think that attending Big Questions would develop a deipnosophistic tendency in a person...

Radical Democracy

Plato hated democracy. He hated the way crowds could be influenced by artful and crafty speakers, but speakers that may not actually have a good argument, or may not have the crowd's best interests at heart. He hated the process of democratic discussion, and rule by the many (ignorant) in favor of the few (enlightened). He favored a Philosophe King, a man who ruled with absolute authority but with absolute objective reason and regard for the good of the nation. An enlightened despot, it has been called. A King, but a King you can believe in, and trust.

We have just come through an exercise of Radical Democracy in the form of our national Budget Deficit Crisis, and we have all seen the messy nature of American democracy in practice. It is partisan, political, self-centered, and riddled with what appears to be corrupt practices. We see our legislators and cringes at their antics, their alliances, and their obstinate refusal to abandon some pet project or local issue of importance in favor of compromise for the greater good. We all believe in a sort of Utilitarian Altruism, don't we? We want our national representatives to work for the good of all Americans, don't we?

What is the best form of government? Is the model we share with the world the best one? How might democracy, and representative democracy in particular, be improved?

Next meeting: August 19, 6:30 pm. You know where...

What do you own?

In our society the concept of personal ownership runs deep. We like to think we own physical objects like property, things, stuff... Tangible property ownership seems a fundamental right and is built in to the idea of self and identity.

But there are things that we possess but may not own to the degree we think we do. How about your body parts and organs? Do you own them in the same way you own a car? Can you sell them? Can you trade them? If an artist wanted to create a collage of human hands are you free to sell one of yours to contribute? In the USA it is against the law to sell you kidneys for organ transplants. You can give one away if you receive nothing for it. Can you give them both away it the result means your own life is no longer viable?

How about your life? Do you own that? Is it yours to do with as you see fit? Can you employ someone to aid you in ending your life? Under what conditions can you willingly give up your life?

Libertarians believe in minimalist involvement of government in the affairs of the people. Let free markets run unchecked, let people make deals and arrange deals that suit them. What role does the government have in restricting this free expression of trade?

The consent of the governed seems to extend to the point that the masses intrude into the realm of the idea of personal liberty and personal property. Laws we create limit what you can do with your body, to the extent that you may not own it in the way you think you do. Are you ok with that?

Meeting tonight at 6:30.

The Faces of God

I have a form that I adapted from a source I've long since lost. It is a questionnaire about God. It asks about your personal God, and his/her characteristics. I think I will pass this out at the next meeting and we can use it as a starting point for a discussion. I hope you enjoy it.

A Discussion on China?

I suppose you might understand that I have a background as an educator, and at the root of my being I remain a teacher. Judy warned me to try and keep my introductory comments to 10 minutes or less. even talking fast I couldn't do it! Sorry about that!

I thought the conversation went well, and we did cover quite a lot of territory. Qing Dynasty, Sun Yat Sen, Chairman Mao, Deng Xiaoping, and Hu Jintao were all discussed at some length. The plight of the common Chinese person, the ideology of communism, the urban/rural dichotomy of China, the Opium Wars, the Boxer Rebellion, western Imperialism, Chinese isolationism, and the historic hatred of the Japanese. There is a lot to consider in any Chinese discussion, even a casual one. Still, it went well. Didn't it?

So, what for nest time? Any Big Question suggestions?

Please comment.

China Calls

I feel like I've written this blog before, but my Chinese friend called last night and said he has been called back for more meetings. He will not be available for our meeting on May 13, sadly. I have decided to carry on anyway, and will have the planned meeting without him and carry on the best we can. We should stick with our plan to have Chinese food for our potluck that night in all its many wonderful forms. Judy will cook a pot of rice, so you can concentrate on delicious dishes of your choice.

I've finished reading River Town, which I found to be very good in detailing the ins and outs of small town life in rural China. The portrayals of the lives and the mentality of rural Chinese people was most excellent, and I will try and draw on the author's insights in my comments on the 13th. I would also recommend Country Driving by Peter Hessler which is similar in content. He lives in Beijing, has a country "writing studio" in a small town some distance from Beijing, and takes long drives along the Great Wall to have the adventures a traveler might have by doing such a thing. Both these books showcase the Chinese people through the eyes of a careful observer, and he writes very well. I highly recommend them.

Statistics about China cannot convey the reality of living in China. How things get done is so different than what happens here that I find myself asking questions and wondering about how people would put up with what seems to me to be a sort of crazy system. It works, after a fashion. At least for them.

For my distance participants (and there are several of you) I don't see how I can actually involve you if you don't leave comments or make some sort of noise with your questions, comments, and observations on the various topics we cover. I hope to hear from you!

In Preparation for Our Chinese Discussion

The May, 2008 issue of National Geographic was devoted to the subject China. If you have access to this issue you might like to grab a copy and read the articles. I will have a copy of the map that came in the magazine we can use it for a reference.