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 11 Sep 2014 @ 14:27
The number of failing and failed states is increasing all the time. According to theorists the state is the central core of civilization. I believe that the failing of so many states in this present post-modernist era is a sign that traditional civilization is undergoing a transition.
Hopefully this transition will lead to super-civilization and universal enlightenment. There is a danger however that it will lead to a universal fascism and chaotic world. There are other signs not connected to failing states, which also indicate that a transition is under way, such as same-sex marriage and the development of soft power.
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4 Sep 2014 @ 16:28
When two unite in order to become one, then the principle of complementarity is involved. Thus X + Y = Z. This can also be seen as one splitting into two, which is fission.
With X^2 + Y^2 = Z^2 the principle is still that of complementary parts, but the form is more complex, involving squares. It is well-known that the solution of this equation involves complementarity. This is present in the angles and sides in any right-angled triangle. This complementarity has not received the recognition it deserves as the key to this solution. Since it only occurs in this one example, it has been overlooked how crucial it is.
The right-angled triangle with its complementary angles is unique. The reason why there are no solutions to higher powers of the Fermat equation is, I believe, because there are no analogous complementary structures in any other area of mathematics. You can't divide a cube into two complementary cubes because there is no underpinning equivalent to the right-angled triangle. And so on with higher powers of the equation X^N + Y^N = Z^N More >
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21 Aug 2014 @ 17:47
The state achieves its purposes, whatever they may be, by making and applying rules. These rules are usually termed Laws. Constitutions vary around the world but most countries have a law-making body or legislature, and a government which administers these laws, rules and regulations.
Bureaucracies are as much part of the state as armies and police-forces. It is possible to analyze the typical state into its dialectical opposites ( Yin and Yang), which gives us a better understanding of its nature.
The Ruler makes rules. These are also known as laws and regulations. The Yin aspect is Law itself, while the Yang aspect is Bureaucracy, otherwise known as the Executive or Administration. The Yin aspect (Law) divides into the Judiciary (which is also Yin) and the Police, which is Yang. This Yang is further differentiated without splitting,into Prisons.
Going back to Bureaucracy, this divides into Civil (Yin) and Military (Yang). Both of these aspects sub-divide into Yin aspects Officials and Yang aspects, what I term "Hands On" or civil personnel and military personnel.
All this comprises the State, and involves millions of people.
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16 Aug 2014 @ 15:43
Influence and soft power generally are Yin, whereas Hard power and all coercive strategies are Yang and Over-Yang.
The movement from Yang to Yin, restoring the balance between them in the State, is an indication that civilization is in the process of transforming itself in to a higher level of society.
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9 Jul 2014 @ 17:31
The next stage in the evolution of world history calls for the development of a world-philosophy.
My contribution to this is the fusion of three twin-philosophies: Taoism/Buddhism; Hegel/Marx; Edward Carpenter/Gandhi.
There remains more to be done and I welcome other contributions to this goal.
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10 May 2014 @ 14:57
My world-view is the fusion of three twin-philosophies:
Taoism/Buddhism
Hegel/Marx
Edward Carpenter/Gandhi
It comprises dialectic,civilization and alienation, womens and gay rights, all human rights, universal enlightenment (cosmic consciousness).
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1 May 2014 @ 18:02
History,since the beginning of civilization,has seen humanity slowly working through the alienations produced by civilization.
These alienations are related to exploitation,sexism, homophobia, racism, estrangement from nature,and God, as well as other things.
As people, societies, nations and civilizations tackle these problems in a sort of personal and social therapy, we are all progressing towards a universal elightenment. Reaching this is by no means a foregone conclusion, however, as there are powerful forces, which can only be described as fascistic, opposing us.
There are indications, such as climate change and geopolitical events, which suggest that these matters are coming to a head.
It is up to each one of us to play our part.
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21 Aug 2013 @ 13:04
Brenda and I went to live in Thamesmead in South East London in March 1982 and our involvement in the alternative world began to decline.I also had a demanding job which took up a lot of my time.
The alternative movement about the same time passed its peak. Margaret Thatcher was in power and one of the destructive things she did was to abolish the GLC (Greater London Council) which lead to alternative organisations like The Whole Thing losing funding. It closed in 1986. Newham Community Housing was also in decline although it survived until 2000.
Incidents from The Whole Thing
1)A community newspaper was produced at The Whole Thing in its Hey Day called the "Gnat".Learning the necessary skills was both exciting and challenging.
2)One day I was in the cafe and saw a woman there called Caroline who I knew from my student days. I hadn't seen her for seven years since we graduated and she was now working for the Social Services Dept of Newham Council.I learnt that she was married to a prominent Trades Unionist. I ran into her from time to time over the next few years.
3)I was reading the Guardian newspaper in the cafe one day and came across an advert for the first micro-computer priced less than a hundred pounds, produced by Sinclair. My brother and I got one and soon developed a great interest in technology and programming.
4) Andrew Martin, the International Chess Master, worked at the same firm in Stratford as me, and he gave a simultaneous display in the Whole Thing which was very popular and got a mention and photo in the Newham Recorder.
5)Entertainment evenings took place at The Whole Thing and it was there that I first saw Benjamin Zephaniah, the Rap Poet,perform. He was in Derek Smith's writing group and went on to become known nationally. Others who also appeared there were John Hegley and Patrik Fitzgerald, the Punk musician,both of whom had worked in Soapbox Theatre.
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21 Aug 2013 @ 12:36
In the Autumn of 1979 Derek Smith and Gill Hay opened a vegetarian cafe and bookshop at 54 West Ham Lane called the Whole Thing. It soon became the focus and hub of the alternative movement. Derek Smith was a writer and had done plays for Soapbox. Gill had been on the staff of East. I remember her asking me to give her a lesson in double-entry book-keeping which was a subject I had been studying for my job.
On my way to one of Matt and Jenny's parties on New Year's Eve 1978 I slipped and broke my leg on the ice. I was out of action for a long while and spent my time studying philosophy. When I recovered I started going to to the newly-opened Whole Thing and started a Philosophy Discussion Group, held there on a Friday evening. One of the people who joined the group was Brenda, from Essex, and she and I soon got together and were to be a couple for the next 5 years.
The discussion group was led by me a bit dogmatically from a Marxist perspective, but we were all learning together and there were other strands and voices. Before becoming The Whole Thing the shop had been run by a Sufi organisation and some of their people joined the group and influenced our debates.
About this time I became the treasurer of a housing Co-op, Autonomous, and moved in to a short life house. Brenda and I lived there for a while and took part in the communal life of the co-op.
By now I had a job selling motor-cycle insurance in Stratford which I eventually left in order to write a book called Civilization and Alienation which I published at the beginning of 1981. More >
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21 Aug 2013 @ 12:16
I first encountered the alternative side of Newham in east London when I returned there after finishing at college in the summer of 1972. I joined an evening class in order to make more contacts as I was working for an insurance company. This was held at a local secondary school as was in improvisation and assorted drama skills. It was run by a drama teacher and his wife, in their early 30s, called Matt Matthews and Jennifer Gould. They were young, vibrant and alternative. At that time they were in the process of moving from Reading, where they were working, and were commuting to Newham. I enjoyed the lessons and got on well with the other young people, and they valued the fact that I had just graduated with a degree in Politics.
Matt became something of a father figure to me over the the next few years, he was a charismatic man who attracted people to him, larger-than-life.Jenny,equally talented and better educated, was a natural foil to him. They had an alternative life-style and lived in a commune/community in East Ham in a sort of open house where they had frequent parties. After a few years they expanded their activities and started East Community Action which helped local people with bureaucratic, housing and money issues.
Soapbox theatre was a professional theatre group which went into schools and gave performances to students. They employed writers to produce plays and work was also put on at a venue called "Stage One" which was the Council's flagship for Arts events. Over a period of some years I attended many of these performances and found it vibrant and exciting.
At this time I was working for the London Co-op in their Manor Park dairy. I was also a Marxist and somewhat to the left of my friends in the alternative movement.
Newham Community Housing was formed in the mid 70s to use short life housing owned by Newham Council which were otherwise empty. It housed hundreds of people over the years and many of them became part of the alternative movement. More >
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