Re: virus: Moral Relativism

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I am a psychologist by nature, not a sociologist. What I really wanted to say is that a person CAN see the bare bones of a cultural unit. It is not a pretty sight. (The person has to rise to a place of privilege where sub-cultures don't have any influence).

What I saw was not nihilistic (except in a sense I'll mention below). What I saw was that at the root of all sub-cultural power struggles (which NECESSARILY occur AGAINST the dominant culture), are deliberate acts of force. From a psychological view, this *will* is the result of a historical individual's self-promotion (so is not nihilistic in this sense). But, this self-promotion signals character defects (violence, opposition, hate, anger, force, subjugation*, etc.).

About nihilism... If it is true that subjectivity is ultimately without grounding in truth, then it is "nihilistic" since what is self-evident MIGHT be without validity and might not be open to independentl verification (see below). But, self promotion can also be objectively "true" if it doesn't involve these character defects..

• subjugation is related to subjectivity... as such, the individual struggle for power is at odds with the overall culture if it necessarily includes subjective elements (which are thus character defects) and involves acts of subjugation (assuming the reason for such a rise is strictly SELF-promotional-- and what is individually subjective is explained as being both contrary to what is objectively "true" AND to what is natural).

Brett Lane Robertson
Indiana, USA
http://www.window.to/mindrec
MindRecreation Metaphysical Assn.
BIO: http://members.theglobe.com/bretthay ...........
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Hi,

KMO <kmo@c-realm.com>:

If you are interested in "moral relativism" and the "values" culture, I highly recommend Allan Bloom's book _The Closing of The American Mind_, subtitiled "How Higher Education has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today's Students". The beginning of the book is excellent, but it gets very philosophical in the middle and end, with a deep historical analysis of the source of our modern views on "value" culture, and the jargon we use to cover-up the emptiness our lives have become. If I had to describe the thesis, I would say something like "America has embraced nihilism *without* confronting the abyss that lies at it's centre". (see Nietzsche)

ERiC

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• [ Next ] Maybe in reply to: Eric Boyd