From: blanc <blancw@accessone.com>
Date: Sat, 25 May 1996 14:55:46 +0800
To: "'cypherpunks@toad.com>
Subject: RE: Truth is equivalent to law?
Message-ID: <01BB499D.2F829240@blancw.accessone.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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From: 	Jim Choate

So in your mind truth is equivalent to law? In the sense of the above quote
the 'laws' that are refered to are general observed regularities that we
are capable of understanding. Being a pantheist and hence seeing the entire
cosmos as all there is (and hence divine in toto), I can appreciate the
original intent (being a physicist helps a little bit).
.......................................................................

You know how in science they speak of  "laws of the universe"?

The quote I offered had to with our capacity to know the phenomena of the world (in any amount) and consequently our ability to exert control over these universal forces (or "laws") to whatever degree.  It was not in reference to man-made laws, but to those principles of cause & effect, those natural forces, which have been identified as comprising the elements of existence in the known universe (no one can make verifiable remarks about it beyond that).

It isn't necessary to know the world in toto in order to realize the validity of some of its parts;   we are equipped with the mechanisms and abilities to achieve a useful grasp of what's going on, and what we grasp as being "true" can be satisfactorily distinguished from what is "false" (or a "mistaken assumption").

Nevertheless, the original subject of this thread was about the harmfulness in truth, not with how much of it we can grasp at any time or whether Goedel was incorrect.

I guess your argument is that we can't even discuss the properties of truth, harmful or not, because we can't even be sure that there is any truth in existence.

This makes all your robotics projects bogus exercises in futility, hmm?

The general nature of truth has to do with the difference it makes in the calculations of humans, and the consequences of those calculations upon their lives.  (like, if truth is harmful, should any human being be allowed to use it, speak it, express it, think it; put a crypto envelope around it and send it?)

     ..
Blanc
(sigh)