[Oe List ...] Jaime for ST September 24

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Truth and Lying




 
My brother once referred to one of my columns on our motheras a "pack of lies".  We werenot at the time in the best of terms so I dismissed his comments as expressinghidden hostilities until another brother essentially said the same thing. Conversantwith the wisdom of the Brad Blanton's RadicalHonesty that sees all humans trained to lie, or, the popular spiritedatheist Sam Harris' write-up on Lying,that came as a wake-up call on the level of knowledge I thought I was verycareful about in my writings.
 
I tried to understand the import of words I used.  "Lies" in my vocab results fromattempts to deceive but there I do use metaphors.  Perhaps, I just use too much of it!  Not a conscious liar nor deceiver, I am, however,clear that my brothers have seen something that I don't.  (Would be helpful if they go into details!)
 
An additional possible view is that my brothers do not see "truth"from what might be fuzzy facts of metaphors, analogies and similes.  In the spectrum of knowledge, I classify fourtypes of knowing (like all typology, this serves the mind more than clarity onknowledge): the indicative (fact), subjunctive (sentiment), cognitive(discursive), and imperative (deed).  Theadage "Truth is in the pudding" reflects the understanding that it isthe deed that is the done deal.
 
The worldwide network of the Institute of Cultural uses theO.R.I.D. formula in imaginal education. In their technology of participation, the letters stand for:O=objective, R=reflective, I=interpretive, and D=decisional.  
 
There is nothing esoteric about this scheme, followingstimuli that the brainstem receives as sense experience is registered, withemotional expressions processed in the middle brain, cognitive functions on theouter brain, and the whole cranium along with the heart, bile, kidney, stomach,liver and gut colloquially determining the course of action.
 
Science introduced quantifiable terms at the objectivelevel, measureable within a spectrum.  Collegesare organized according to disciplines to determine specific fields ofknowledge.  The widely used metaphor isthat of sight: tell me what you see, draw me a picture.  The sense experiences of touch (skin), sound(ear), smell (nose), and taste (mouth) are the other proper subjects ofscience.  Dominant biology and ecology aresensual, cuisine is a universally popular folk art, scents are on the firstfloor of department stores.
 
Internal responses are of two kinds: the emotional andintellectual.  They are not verifiablebut can be shared.  For sure, one can usesuch terms as real or authentic, but those are judgments of the onlooker.  "I know how you feel" is empathy,not accurate sense knowledge.  Psychologyis our science on interpersonal and human relations, with the other side of thecoin sociology, the development, structure, and functioning of society.
 
Symbol, picture, image, and emblem used in simile, allegory,idiom and parable express emotions. Intensity of passion measures the quality of response.  Looking at how others respond, identifyingsimilarities and contrasts, likeness and dissonance, parallels andcontradictions and discussing the same with others in words, numbers andgestures, constitute the activity of comparing and arriving at social significanceand meaning. 
 
When EU used "sanctions as strategy" to pressureRussia, a means at a negotiating advantage, Russia came back to suggest that itwill take first strike a Russian option, including the nuclear one. I amhopeful the rhetoric stays at the level of verbal threat without proceeding tothe scary level of behavior. 
 
George II Bush sent troops to Iraq on the notion that preemptivemilitary offense is the best defense of national security post-911.  Obama sets his cross sights on the renegadeIslamic State and, not surprisingly, receives the same criticism he levelsagainst Russia of violating sovereign integrity sans consent of the sitting executive when he leers at Syria!
 
Ethics point to behavior where consensus is possible.  Two service providers for the autism communityhave one saying, "vaccines saved a lot of lives" and the other,"vaccines can cause inflammation of the brain."  I see them both as being defensiblytruthful.  Consensus is not in facts,psychological affirmations, and sociological verities, though sharing can leadto it.  It is in conduct that consensusis possible.  
 
The question is not whether we sense, feel, or think similarly;the issue is whether we are headed in the same direction, behave in tandem.  If a question asks for a "yes", or"no" answer, it is a question of what to do and how to act, ratherthan an agreement on feelings and meanings. My brothers and I might differ, and may not see similar truths from thesame metaphors but it does not mean anyone is lying!
 
I often want to scream at friends who empathetically say,"I understand", when they possibly couldn't, but folks do expressdifferent perspectives and views, and for that, I am grateful.   
 



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