I am a Reader Fool

I am a Reader Fool. What is a Reader Fool? A reader fool is a person who has read a lot of books but not applied what he (or she or other...) has read to life. He does foolish things even though he "knows" better.

Example: I've studied a lot of architecture. But when I had occasion to advise on a real design project, I missed the obvious, although, "in all fairness" so too did an AIA licensed architect.

Plato's Cave Story

The standard interpretation of Plato's fiction of the sensory world as shadows in a cave needs to be contrasted with an alernate interpretation, namely, that the shadows as are real as that of which they are shadows. Isn't that obvious?

If we cannot turn around to see the projecion mechanism, we can still see the acions of the figures of which the shadows are their shadows.

Suppose each of us is one shadow. If I see another shadow about to hit my shadow on the head, I can either move my shadow away or do nothing. If I do nothing I get hit on the head (for real!).

Now suppose that figure tries to hit my shadow on the head again? Even if I doubted the reality of the shadows the first time, shouldn't I move my shadow away this time to avoid getting hit on the head again? The actions are real in the strong sense that the consequences are real.

Of course we can do better if we can see the objects of which the shadows are their shadows, but the fact remains that all parts of the whole shadow show are equally real. The standard interpretation of the story emphasizes empirical structural differences between the various items in the "show" but, in another way, everything, shadow-owner, projection mechanism and the shadows themselves are all [the same kind of] empirical real things.

Awaiting Lisa's trip to London, +2024.10.28

Mimi oversleeps for work this morning (or maybe it's OK?) and I get more anxious than I was already. SOmebody calls on my cell phone and I can't understand what they are saying -- more anxiety.

"Your Comment on...." (+2024.10.29)

I post a lot of Reader Comments on The New York Times newspaper. They probably accomplish litttle more than my vote in a Presidential election.

I check them, why? Two reasons: (1) ego gratification if I see others have "Recommend"ed them. (2a) To see if the Times did not print (I hypohesize: censor) them. And (2b) to see the cases where they initially print my comment but later remove (I hypohesize, again: censor) it. This last case generally occurs when my comment is critical of United States support of the Ukraine war.