tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post7072176166716200862..comments2024-02-13T12:50:30.457-05:00Comments on Rants Within the Undead God: Gnostic Themes in American PoliticsBenjamin Cainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-40539803140219064592016-03-22T19:39:50.960-04:002016-03-22T19:39:50.960-04:00You talk a lot about esoteric interpretations of r...You talk a lot about esoteric interpretations of religion. Are you familiar with the Tetragrammaton? <br /><br />https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetragrammaton<br /><br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-79575182179189130782016-03-22T19:35:01.978-04:002016-03-22T19:35:01.978-04:00I suspect Sanders is too old to be on top of his c...I suspect Sanders is too old to be on top of his campaign. If he received that money, he wouldn't have known about it. If he did know about it, I don't see how he'd avoid the charge of hypocrisy--and that's even if he returned the money after he was caught. Another question would be why Shkreli (whose last name is exquisitely villainous) would donate money to Sanders in the first place. It would look like a setup. Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-54570355597223255722016-03-22T19:31:09.856-04:002016-03-22T19:31:09.856-04:00I haven't written about anti-Semitism or about...I haven't written about anti-Semitism or about racism, for that matter. I believe "anti-Semitism" is a misnomer, because Semites include non-Jews. I'm interested in evaluating cultures but not in discrimination based on physical characteristics--unless those happen to genuinely indicate some questionable culture. <br /><br />The typical response to racism, that the negative judgments overgeneralize, is pretty lame since every single concept overgeneralizes, as David Hume pointed out. The concept of swans is of certain white aquatic birds, but some swans are black. All our concepts are stereotypes, because we don't have enough brainpower to process all the particularities under the sun. So the political correctness here is a kind of laziness. This is part of the reason for Trump's traction.<br /><br />I think being Jewish helped me view the world as an outsider, from an early age. Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-48384817552694831832016-03-22T18:41:31.359-04:002016-03-22T18:41:31.359-04:00My closest friend of 20+ years was raised with Con...My closest friend of 20+ years was raised with Conservative Judaism. He resented religion being pushed on him from a young age, and for the most part no longer identifies as such. I was raised Christian, and am now Atheist. I find that even though my friend is no longer religious, he still has a fairly romantic, magical, optimistic view of life. My view is much closer to yours, and even a bit more pessimistic. He has a very difficult time understanding how I look at the world. He is quite sentimental about a lot of things, and I'm not at all. Have you done any posts about anti-semitism? Someone with your historical/philosophical knowledge, probably has an interesting take on it. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-24868888264042318582016-03-22T16:06:58.629-04:002016-03-22T16:06:58.629-04:00Sanders did receive money from Martin Shkreli. Per...Sanders did receive money from Martin Shkreli. Per Wiki. <br /><br />"In October 2015, presidential candidate Bernie Sanders acknowledged having received a $2,700 donation from Shkreli whom he had previously called a "poster child of greed"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-83910274668508442972016-03-22T10:28:34.784-04:002016-03-22T10:28:34.784-04:00This is nonsense. Anti-natural views (samsara, mok...This is nonsense. Anti-natural views (samsara, moksha, maya, etc) arose independently out of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Zoroastrianism, which are at least as old as the formative period for Judaism, if not much, much older. If I were you, I wouldn't turn to Nietzsche for historical details. Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-74307230839963701182016-03-22T10:11:48.507-04:002016-03-22T10:11:48.507-04:00I was raised as a "reformed" or seculari...I was raised as a "reformed" or secularized Jew. I went to Hebrew School and to the Synagogue on High Holidays, and I celebrated those holidays with my extended family. I've never once genuinely believed that a personal creator deity exists. I got interested in philosophy of religion in high school. Two formative books were Kaufmann's Critique of Religion and Philosophy, and the debate book Does God Exist?, by Moreland, Nielson, Craig, Flew, and others. I recall Nielson's argument that god-talk is literally meaningless. <br /><br />I learned much from Nietzsche's books, but his take on Christianity is largely outdated. Specifically, he couldn't have known much about Gnosticism. When Nietzsche says Christianity arose in a "Jewish landscape," he's not taking into account the syncretism at the time. It was a Jewish-Roman landscape. But I do agree that Judaism was a glum religion for desert wanderers. <br /><br />My next article will talk about how Christianity went astray.Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-46460315686626019562016-03-20T20:41:21.350-04:002016-03-20T20:41:21.350-04:00"The Jews — a people "born for slavery&q..."The Jews — a people "born for slavery" as Tacitus and the whole ancient world says, "the chosen people" as they themselves say and believe — the Jews achieved that miracle of inversion of values thanks to which life on earth has for a couple of millennia acquired a new and dangerous fascination — their prophets fused "rich", "godless", "evil", "violent", "sensual" into one and were the first to coin the word "world" as a term of infamy. It is in this inversion of values ... that the significance of the Jewish people resides: with them there begins the slave revolt in morals."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-14991029932965171672016-03-20T20:33:49.938-04:002016-03-20T20:33:49.938-04:00"The majority of American so-called Christian..."The majority of American so-called Christians are followers of the character Jesus only in name, not in deed." Isn't this a good thing? I mean other than the obvious cognitive dissonance, that they are oblivious to. Personally, I tend to align with Neitzsche on Christ. <br /><br />"A Jesus Christ was possible only in a Jewish landscape--I mean one over which the gloomy and sublime thunder cloud of the wrathful Yahweh was brooding continually. Only here was the rare and sudden piercing of the gruesome and perpetual general day-night by a single ray of the sun experienced as if it were a miracle of "love" and the ray of unmerited "grace." Only here could Jesus dream of his rainbow and his ladder to heaven on which God descended to man. Everywhere else good weather and sunshine were considered the rule and everyday occurrences."<br /><br />Nietzsche's The Gay Science<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-40820648726827424962016-03-20T19:43:35.771-04:002016-03-20T19:43:35.771-04:00Ben, were you raised with any religion/religious b...Ben, were you raised with any religion/religious beliefs? When did you realize that you were an Atheist? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-51021236194351003362016-03-20T16:06:16.468-04:002016-03-20T16:06:16.468-04:00I tied Sanders to altruism via his socialism, not ...I tied Sanders to altruism via his socialism, not his Judaism.Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-89658073032661270902016-03-20T16:04:49.403-04:002016-03-20T16:04:49.403-04:00Yes, there are Jewish politicians in the US, but n...Yes, there are Jewish politicians in the US, but not presidents. The majority of American so-called Christians are followers of the character Jesus only in name, not in deed. Over 20% of Americans are explicitly not religious, but there won't be a nonreligious president in the foreseeable future. The president doesn't actually represent all Americans equally, but only has to be seen as doing so. The relevant appearances are determined by the nation's reigning myths. <br /><br />Israel was founded as a Jewish nation in response to the Holocaust. The US was founded as a secular nation after the religious wars and persecutions in Europe.<br /><br />As for whether most presidents in the last several decades were actually rather than just nominally Christian, they were about as genuinely Christian as most Americans. To be a Christian nowadays, you don't have to do much of anything, because the myths that inspired the religion are dead and meaningless in today's world. You can excuse any horrid behaviour by picking and choosing nonsense from the Bible. Mass Christianity is a game of rationalizations, not a serious form of spirituality. Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-20826491606485832162016-03-17T17:35:15.369-04:002016-03-17T17:35:15.369-04:00"Your attempt to tie him to Wall Street via h..."Your attempt to tie him to Wall Street via his religion, then, is pretty weak." Your attempt to tie him to altruism via his religion is also weak. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-80334224103187310152016-03-17T08:54:52.920-04:002016-03-17T08:54:52.920-04:00"I suppose it's true that Jews aren't..."I suppose it's true that Jews aren't outsiders to banking, but they are outsiders to American politics in general" Ever hear of David Axelrod? Debbie Wasserman Shultz, how about Victoria Nuland? Chuck Shumer? Dianne Feinstein? Irving Kristol, while not a politician himself is known as the "godfather of neoconservatism," The neocons made up a good deal of the Bush Administration. Some of these included Paul Wolfowitz, Elliot Abrams, Elliot Cohen. I think they are quite well represented in American politics, on both sides. Certainly for the size of their population. There are also currently two Supreme Court Justices. As far as the President is concerned, I don't think it's unreasonable for most people to want a President, who is of the same belief as the majority. I doubt Isreal will be electing a Christian or Muslim Prime Minister anytime soon. Personally I would love to see an Atheist as president, since I am one. I won't hold my breath. Although some say that Richard Nixon was, but kept quiet about it. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-86752437512453384292016-03-16T20:40:43.768-04:002016-03-16T20:40:43.768-04:00I suppose it's true that Jews aren't outsi...I suppose it's true that Jews aren't outsiders to banking, but they are outsiders to American politics in general, especially to the presidency, since the president has to represent all Americans. According to the American spectacle, that is, the image of political correctness corresponding to the Overton Window of centrism, American culture is currently beholden to Christian values and so the president must be Christian.<br /><br />Anyway, Sanders' Judaism competes with his democratic socialism, so whereas a pure Jew might be expected to defer to the financial sector, Sanders obviously does no such thing. He descries the decadence of Wall Street and doesn't take its money in his campaign. Your attempt to tie him to Wall Street via his religion, then, is pretty weak. Still, I don't worship him as a saviour or anything. I suspect that his peaceful, commonsense kind of radicalism will fade out like the Occupy Wall Street movement. Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-32392877833870903772016-03-13T11:07:50.106-04:002016-03-13T11:07:50.106-04:00"Bernie Sanders is still manifestly the outsi..."Bernie Sanders is still manifestly the outsider, the old, Jewish socialist who takes no money from Wall Street" Interesting you mention Bernie's ethno-religious background, in reference to him not accepting Wall Street Money. Yet fail to mention the ethno-religious background of some of the biggest Wall Street players. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-63353412623913623132016-03-09T21:28:50.031-05:002016-03-09T21:28:50.031-05:00Anon, well, I was thinking of a cultural downturn....Anon, well, I was thinking of a cultural downturn. Economically, I think the US as a whole will do fine, because manufacturers in China need consumers, and Americans are bred to consume. That's the partnership that will keep the American system afloat. <br /><br />The plummeting of American cultural expectations and ideals to subhuman depths, though, bodes ill for the standard of living of the average American. Americans will have enough credit to consume (even as that will create more bubble markets), but they'll live more and more like peasants. They beg for schlock, because they're less able to tell the difference between what's valuable and what's not. The apocalypse in question was presaged by the movie Idiocracy, and we see it coming to pass, beginning with George W Bush's presidency, as Matt Taibbi recently wrote, and coming to a head now with Donald Trump's rise. <br /><br />Of course, I'm not talking about all Americans. One of my brothers is married to an American and they live in South Carolina. But yeah, the American spectacle is looking pretty ugly these days.Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-42887330425022394382016-03-09T21:15:29.515-05:002016-03-09T21:15:29.515-05:00ABM, that sounds a little too reductive to me, but...ABM, that sounds a little too reductive to me, but I suppose there could be a genetic component to those political differences. One problem with the hypothesis is that people in the Middle East have a strong tradition of helping strangers, because you never know when you too may find yourself in need in the desert. Altruism has a genetic basis too, in an extension of kin selection.<br /><br />Anyway, I can think of several interesting historical reasons why Europeans would favour social democracy, having to do with postmodernism, feminism, and so forth.Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-75872052986828654852016-03-08T16:05:35.595-05:002016-03-08T16:05:35.595-05:00Ben, what do you mean when you say, "the US s...Ben, what do you mean when you say, "the US seems on the precipice of an apocalyptic downturn.?" Do you think the US economy is in trouble? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-334794192640450532016-03-06T16:32:54.968-05:002016-03-06T16:32:54.968-05:00I don't think it's possible for any cultur...I don't think it's possible for any cultural or racial group to adopt any political system. One of the unspoken reasons why social democracy is successful in certain European countries is because the population is homogeneous and highly interbred. The citizens of those countries have a lot to gain from "spreading the wealth" and professing equality, because it's ultimately their own genes that get promoted. Social democracy is good for inclusive fitness. In contrast, social democracy is highly unlikely to be successful in a region like the Middle East, because the population is highly inbred due to a centuries-long practice of cousin marriage, and what you have are distinct lineages or tribes that are in competition with one another, and would have little to gain from welfare policies that help their competitors. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09413786373220779942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-59652224533997493712016-03-04T10:34:50.837-05:002016-03-04T10:34:50.837-05:00Remember, I'm Canadian, so I'm speaking ab...Remember, I'm Canadian, so I'm speaking about American politics as an interested outsider. I'm not really a Bernie Sanders supporter, though. I said in my Feb 27 reply to Matthew Steinbergs elsewhere on this blog (link below): "What would a humanist revival look like? Bernie Sanders seems to be starting one, but it doesn't look good for him. He's way too old and slow and POLITE to be leading that revolution when the US seems on the precipice of an apocalyptic downturn. Symbolically, Sanders is bad for humanistic business, because he makes social democracies look obsolete."<br /><br />The more interesting question is whether we should be supporters of progressive politics, not whether we should support Bernie Sanders. Sanders may be just a flawed spokesperson for a movement. Like I said, he's too old and polite, he's not broadminded enough, and he's been in politics for too long. But I do think it's healthy to inject genuine political alternatives into the American duopoly. Would it hurt for the US nationally to be more like a European social democracy? I don't think that will happen, because the national government has to be in the technocratic center to govern what are actually two entirely different societies, cultures, and economic classes. The liberal states already operate like those Scandinavian democracies; it's just that they don't receive the core benefits like free healthcare and education.<br /><br />I also think it's wise to regulate the American banking industry, such as by breaking up the too-big-to-fail banks. That won't happen without a progressive revolution, as Sanders says and contrary to Hillary's happy-talk, and I don't think that sort of revolution will happen again in the US without a civil war. Unlike Sanders and Hillary, though, I don't trust in government. It's wise to take away some monopoly power from private firms, so they can't hold the country hostage like the banks did during the 2008 crisis, but empowering government only shifts the center of corruption. The root problem is sociobiological, not political. <br /><br />However, the Scandinavian democracies appear to have cut down on their government's ability to do damage with its accumulated power, because their culture is deeply egalitarian. The people there honestly care about helping each other. They're not as Darwinian or "individualistic" (i.e. selfish/egoistic) as Americans. They don't believe that greed is a good thing or that the market should dictate values. Read the Salon article below for an interesting take on the non-American aspect of progressive politics. Here's a key quotation:<br /><br />"In the Nordic countries, on the other hand, democratically elected governments give their populations freedom FROM the market by using capitalism as a tool to benefit everyone. That liberates their people from the tyranny of the mighty profit motive that warps so many American lives, leaving them freer to follow their own dreams — to become poets or philosophers, bartenders or business owners, as they please."<br /><br />That instrumental attitude towards capitalism looks deeply un-American, so that if you need that for progressive politics, progressivism will seem downright transhumanistic in the US, which is to say that progressivism there will seem strange and utopian. That's why the corporate media had a blackout on covering Sanders' campaign for so long. Progressive ideas and egalitarian values are currently taboo in the US.<br /><br />http://rantswithintheundeadgod.blogspot.ca/2016/02/cosmic-horror-for-clever-animals-is.html<br /><br />http://www.salon.com/2016/02/04/american_capitalism_has_failed_us_were_overworked_underemployed_and_more_powerless_than_ever_before_partner/Benjamin Cainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00661999592897690031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-33240090805489384942016-03-03T18:14:52.513-05:002016-03-03T18:14:52.513-05:00Well, that's one way to show your support for ...Well, that's one way to show your support for Bernie Sanders.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09413786373220779942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320802302155582419.post-35477683531508652812016-02-23T17:21:50.844-05:002016-02-23T17:21:50.844-05:00My favorite quote from Bernie. "Greed, fraud,...My favorite quote from Bernie. "Greed, fraud, dishonesty, arrogance,” These are just some of the adjectives we use to describe Wall Street.” Someone should tell Bernie what an adjective is. <br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com