Re: [Critical-Realism] Not In My Back Yard

[Marcus Salisbury <battaday@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> The first step is to decolonise our minds (get rid
> of your TV),
> disconnect your old "operating systems" (religion,
> privilege, money,
> race, class, nationalism, ethnicity) because
> whatever you like to think
> these are what govern your mind.
> 
> The second step is to reach out to "the other" and
> start talking and
> acting our intentions as real experience, not as
> something to be hoped
> for, but as something that is lived now.
> 
> The third step is to build the means... the networks
> of peace and
> reciprocity, communication and trade which will
> express the ends we
> seek.

Tim,

some really interesting points here, which bring to
mind a problem that's occured to me while following
this thread...what puzzles me at this stage is the
continued reliance on a basically Idealist version of
Dialectic, in which progress is expected, and
'history' is an inevitable and unfolding progression
toward Something Better. 

Which is a bracing piece of meta-theory, don't get me
wrong here. I'm just not sure it's a practical one.

(The arguments against this are too numerous to list
in one email, but I'm sure we could all put our heads
together and work out to the nth power examples of
History Repeating Itself, or History leaping like a
prize showjumper. History is not always a clash of
theses and antitheses, and it's not always subject to
inevitable laws. Sometimes stuff just happens). 

Coming at it another way, I'm not sure the vast mass
of Western humanity s going to get the point about
switching off the TV, never mind the rest of Tim's
Step 1; and Steps 2 and 3. 

Any ideas as to how we, as Critical Realists go about
the'evangelisation' (for want of a better word, but
there isn't any) of the 'paradigm-shift' Tim's writing
about? 

(I.e. without repeating some of the more egregious
mistakes--philosophical, political and ethical--some
post-Hegel thinkers have made?) 

And what if The Other doesn't want to talk to us?
(Apologies to Mervyn if I'm starting to get all Zizek
here!)

regards all,




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