From: Mark Hedges <hedges@rigel.cyberpass.net>
Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 08:58:42 +0800
To: cypherpunks@rigel.cyberpass.net
Subject: Heidegger on Cypherpunks -- give me a break
Message-ID: <199712050043.QAA11517@rigel.cyberpass.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



In previous thread "FCPUNX:Tim plans to kill a federal judge",
Neva Remailer wrote:
>
>James Donald wrote:
>>At 06:10 PM 11/14/97 -0700, Tim May wrote:
>>> By the way, the same can be said about the work of Heidegger, a thinker who
>>> has had some influence on me. Whenever I cite anything Heidegger ever said,
>>> I can count on some numbskull to parrot the "Heidegger was a Nazi" shtick.
>>
>>Probably because Heidegger *was* a Nazi, who pranced around in full drag 
>>Nazi uniform and sent certain of his colleagues to the concentration camps.
>>
>>To very crudely oversimplify the relationship between Heideggers 
>>philosophy and Nazism, it goes like this.
>>
>>No objective, only the intersubjective, therefore the community
>>defines reality, therefore truth is merely relative to the community.


Introduction to Metaphysics and Sein und Zeit do concern the relationship
between what is real (what exists) and subjective, perceptual reality,
but Heidegger makes clear that although what we know is only perception,
perception is not the essent of what is real and exists. Actions must 
rely on perception of reality, but he lends not absolute validity to the
perceptions.

Heidegger was on the right track, though quantum and cosmological physics
and cognitive sciences reach beyond his philosophical circles of contra-
diction and paradox inside a flawed and entirely limited language into an
expanding and increasingly accurate scientific and mathematical system of
discourse. His basic mistake was to admit that verbal and written language
contains contradictions and then to draw what he supposed were valid
conclusions -- from false premesis and a false universe of discourse.

>(Although, if one were interested in Heideggar, his biography would
>probably be interesting, too.)

Yup.

Mark Hedges
Anonymizer, Inc.