Arquivo para a ‘Information ethics’ Categoria
Eminent danger of war and hope for peace
08
Apr
A drone attack on the Zaporizhzhia plant last
week triggered an alert from Russia that promptly denounced the danger and consequences of a nuclear disaster would be dire.
It was not clear exactly what weapon was used against the nuclear plant (photo), only that they were drones and that one had been detonated on site. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has experts on site, said only that the information was “consistent” with the entity’s observations, that is, a drone had exploded near the Plant.
International analysts still see the conflict as unlikely due to the catastrophic risk due to the possibility of using nuclear weapons, in addition to conventional combat, the use of cyber and hybrid attacks would be put into motion, initially in Eastern Europe, but with the risk of expanding to Europe and other continents.
Even though NATO holds a significant advantage in both geopolitics, Finland and Sweden joined NATO and Hungary, which sought a position of neutrality, is now strengthened with a military technology agreement made with Sweden, which facilitated its entry into NATO.
Russia, however, has military capabilities combined with economic resources and the modernization of its military apparatus, in addition to a support agreement with China and North Korea, so maintaining peace and preventing conflicts must be done through constant dialogue, but Russian diplomacy continues to play hard and says that dialogue with NATO is “zero”.
Both Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kremlin spokesman Dimitry Peskov make statements that imply that the conflict with NATO is already underway, diplomatic strategy or pure rhetoric, the fact that tension levels are rising .
NATO responds with military exercises and troop movements on the borders, in January an exercise involved 90 thousand soldiers, new training was announced by NATO commanding general, Christopher Cavoli, the operation called Defensor Firme 24 (Steadfast Defender 24) had already been carried out in other years, but now it takes place amid an intensification of bombings against Kiev.
The hope is that the balance is fragile and both sides know this, and the risk of war would be catastrophic, even though analysts avoid saying that there would be limits on actions.
Pain and the Palliative Society
29
Mar
By reading several authors, but mainly by
understanding precisely the “pains” of modernity, Byung Chul Han wrote the Paleative Society: pain Today (Han, 2021) in which he decrees: “Pain is now a meaningless evil, which must be combated with painkillers. As a mere bodily affliction, it falls entirely outside the symbolic order.” (HAN, 2021, p. 41).
Among several authors, it is from Paul Valéry in his book and character Monsieur Teste, who embodies the modern and sensitive man who as meaningless and pure “bodily affliction”, “monsieur Teste remains silent in the face of pain. The pain steals his speech” (HAN, 2021, p. 43).
He will place the Christian mystic Teresa D’Ávila in contrast to this character, as a kind of counterfigure, “in her the pain is extremely eloquent. With pain begins the narrative. The Christian narrative verbalizes pain and also transforms the body of the mystic into a stage… it deepens the relationship with God… it produces an intimacy, an intensity.” (p. 44).
Freud also claims, “pain is a symptom that indicates a blockage in a person’s history. The patient, because of his block, is not in a position to move forward in the story” (p. 45).
Being a mere “bodily affliction”, pain became a thing, lost an ontological and in a certain way “eschatological” meaning (because it has a history with a beginning and an end), “meaningless pain is possible only in a bare life emptied of meaning , which no longer narrates.” (p. 46).
Modern man’s denial of the cross is not just contempt for the Other, it is the misunderstanding of its eschatological aspect, pain has entered our lives and will last until we can understand its meaning of “liberation”, of “purging” our evils. that are in our history, that are our sins, war is the misunderstanding of pain, the Other is eliminated as being to blame for our pain, of which each one of us is to blame.
Injustices have their own regulatory means, but marginality, crime, which arise in the midst of poverty, social difficulties are difficulties that deal with pain, there is always a way to remake a story, to start a life over, to eliminate it it’s the opposite.
Injustices have their own regulatory means, but marginality, crime, which arise in the midst of poverty, social difficulties are difficulties that deal with pain, there is always a way to remake a story, to start a life over, to eliminate it it’s the opposite.
The cross is the deepest meaning of what ails man, and from which he can free himself, hide or run away from the problem, which generally leads to greater pain: alcoholism, drugs, prostitution and what is already an evil of modern man: corruption at various levels.
The cross, the pride of Christians and the scandal of Gentiles, is also biblical: “he who wants to follow me, take up his cross and follow me (Mc 8, 34), a metaphor for victory and not defeat.
Han, Byung-Chul. (2021) The palliative Society: Pain Today. Transl. Daniel Steuer. USA: Polity Press.
The light and the truth
27
Mar
There is a single and true light, although we
know that light can unfold into various colors that we see from red to violent, and that we do not see as infrared and ultraviolet.
We are increasingly getting closer to the idea that the beginning of the universe had something like light, today according to Standard Physics Theory, the photon was already theorized by Einstein as particles or small “packages” that transport the energy contained in electromagnetic radiation, photons at rest they have zero mass.
Thus, the light that emanates from the origin of the Universe, although not confused with its intention (to radiate light), is at the origin of all electromagnetic radiation from the Big Bang.
The Neoplatonists, like Plotinus (205 – 270), believed in monism and in this radiation of light, there is a one or a god (it was not the Christian God) from which emanates a divine source that radiates throughout all creation, in this one light that Augustine of Hippo will rely on denying the Manichaean dualism that he had previously believed in and from there his turn towards Christianity will take place.
Plotinus’ texts were compiled by his disciple Porphyry and written in the work the Six Enneads (actually nine parts, as ennea in Greek is 9), in which the question of the union of the soul and the intellect stands out, it is based on this idea that the Truth dwells in man.
Thus the soul of the world proceeds from a creative power (not from power, as it does not define it), contemplating the Nous and multiplying itself in all the particular beings of the sensible world, without dividing itself (this is the interpretation of Fritz- Peter Hager in his 1962 book).
The truth thus dwells in the soul and interior of each man, it is this interiority that some critics define as the idealism or intimacy of the Neoplatonists, but today there are several works on the issue of the Contemplative Vitta, Hannah Arendt and Byung Chul Han remember it, but other authors have already started to mention Barthes’ Rumor of the Language mentioned in the previous post.
For Christians, this manifestation of truth occurs ontologically in the Incarnation, Passion and death of Jesus, death because it is part of human life and should be lived as an “Easter” passage that opens eternal life to men, without this passage life fullness is not realized and we perish as matter, this aspect is also problematized by Plotinus.
In the photo, Peter Paul Rubens’ work on Saint Augustine’s Anti-Milleranism, which did not accept the literal reading of Revelation 20:1-10.
Plotinus, Enéadas, (2021) transl. by José Seabra Filho and Juvino Alves Maia Junior, Brazil: Editora Nova Acropole (volume 6 was published this year, completing the work).
Augustine, Saint. (1999). A cidade de Deus (The city of God), trans. Oscar Paes Leme. Brazil, Petrópolis, Editora Vozes.
Silence and the resistance of the spirit
26
Mar
War is noisy not only in weapons and
bombs, but mainly in the chatter it generates in which it is impossible to have serenity, think and dialogue; the noisy aspect is a fundamental part of the insanity it represents.
The resistance of the spirit, we are following Edgar Morin’s line, is the possible “weapon” at this moment and perhaps in even worse futures, it means, in many moments, remaining silent, making a silence so profound that it questions the Other who does not give up on argue your reasons for war.
In the Plotinus philosophy, which deeply influenced Saint Augustine, although they are different thinkers, one Christian and the other just Stoic, silence is a stage of deep knowledge of reality, of the one, unity that encompasses everything without leaving itself.
For him when an aspirant to truth (which is truth in fact, not rational logic), he has to have the experience of unity, this experience is total and silent.
The Brazilian philosopher Giacóia Junior seeks in Espinoza’s quote to reflect on this perspective of the relationship between noise and silence when he states that “certainly the fate of humanity would be happier if it were equally within man’s power to both speak and remain silent. But experience teaches sufficiently and superabundantly that nothing is less in the power of men than their language (…) (cf. GIACOIA JUNIOR, 2014, P. 79).
To be faced with silence is to be faced with truth, and if language is the home of being, it is worth remembering that the Word became flesh (John 1:1) if it is not accepted in the biblical sense, it can be thought of as an ontogenic or Phylogenic, as Barthes states in his book The Rumor of Language, states that: “it is language that teaches the definition of man” and that it cannot be considered “a simple instrument, utilitarian or decorative, of thought. Man does not pre-exist language, neither phylogenetically nor ontogenetically” (BARTHES, 1988, p.185).
Thus truth is a Being, language is the dwelling of Being and silence is its apex.
BARTHES, R. 1998. O Rumor da língua (The Rumor of Language). Brazil, São Paulo: Brasiliense.
GIACOIA JUNIOR, O. (2014) Por mais horas silenciosas (For quieter hours”)in: NOVAES, Mutações. Brazil, São Paulo: Ed. SESC SP.
Truth and good works
22
Mar
There is no ontological truth where the unveiling
of being does not occur, and this depends on its deeper realization in contact with its essence and must bear fruit for life, for personal and social well-being and for those who believe for an eternity.
Sophists in ancient times created truths that could even be logical, but the objective was to gain power and benefit from those who had wealth and influence, and this has not been eliminated from everyday life until today, a large part of politics is the negotiation of public goods, fraud and for this they use non-truth, and this is not the monopoly of one group.
There is no way to maintain this logic without authoritarianism, the restriction of freedom and silencing the voices of those who suffer from greed for power and wealth, a large part of the current crisis comes from these values, even if they blame the media, they are also under control of these powers.
The media follow the ontic logic in the ontological difference, we briefly develop this issue of the way Heidegger and other followers of the different ontological currents see it, in the scope of interpretation and dialogue the logic cannot be ontic, it must follow the ontological truth that follows from fusion of horizons in the hermeneutic circle (see previous post).
Dualism and polarization follow the ontic truth, blaming the media that do nothing that they do not have under control in some way, which could even be algorithms, man himself, thus the dual ontic logic used is instrumental and in a certain way sophistical because it aims the power.
On Sunday, Holy Week begins for Christians, the ontological truth that was manifested as being in the person of Jesus had to be destroyed by the discourse of power, even the religious power of the time that could not believe that truth is the logic of Being and man, when he manifested his good works, almost always confronted power.
It is necessary to go against the current to reverse the logic of ease, of easy money through corruption, of power for power’s sake and of disservice to society.
The ontological truth
19
Mar
There is a difference between the logic that is based on purely human reason, and the ontological one based on the reality of Being and its existence, thus it is not a final truth, but an eschatological one, that is, it has a beginning and an end where existence is explained. .
In a purely philosophical way, ontic and ontological truth always refer differently, to the being in its being and to the being of the being, and the relationship between them is called ontological difference, little explored in philosophy and embedded in any theory that deals with of Being.
The relationship of latency between being and being and between presence and being makes it evident that the foundation of ontological difference is presence, according to Heidegger (pg. 102):
Unveiling of being is, however, always true of the being of the being, whether it is actually real or not. And vice versa, in the unveiling of beings there always lies an unveiling of their being. Ontic truth and ontological truth always refer, in different ways, to the being in its being and to the being of the being. They are essentially part of each other due to their relationship with the difference between being and being (ontological difference).
It is about unveiling because to reveal is to remove a layer of the veil, but finding another that equally covers the truth, human reason and science itself goes like this, based on Karl Popper’s falsifiability principle, he claims that the fact of a That an assertion can be shown to be false is one of the principles for establishing sound science.
There is a circular relationship between ontic truth and ontological truth resulting from this circular facticity of presence [which is one of Heidegger’s translations of Dasein] and this relates to beings understanding being, and relates to being understanding beings.
“With the differentiation, which is in itself clear, between ontic and ontological – ontic truth and ontological truth, we effectively have the different elements of a difference, but not the difference itself” (pg. .412), explicitly saying the relationship of things with beings, is different from the relationship between beings among themselves, there is an ontological truth that must be revealed for the relationship.
So, how do ontological and ontic truth, as well as ontological difference, contribute to showing the relational character of the self? Conflicts and relationships involve this Being that is relational, but its understanding seen as instrumental, reified or of interest is nothing.
Heidegger, M. (1984) Sobre a essência do fundamento. In: Heidegger: conferências e escritos filosóficos. Transl. de Ernildo Stein. Brazil. São Paulo: Abril Cultural (collection: Os Pensadores).
Infinity, peace and transformation
15
Mar
Ours of infinity, of even the paradox that represents the profound change that
occurs in astronomical phenomena such as black holes, where even quantum physics is questioned, leads us to a new worldview of matter and spirituality.
Edgar Morin speaks of “resistance of the spirit” due to the dramatic moment we are experiencing of civilizational crisis and the threat of escalating wars. Without a truly concrete call for peace, the risk of current conflicts escalating and new ones emerging is immense.
This resistance requires both personal and collective positioning, truly defending and living peace, practicing it in our daily relationships, alongside those who pass through our lives.
Peace depends on people who plant peace, says the biblical reading John 12:24: “truly, truly I say to you, unless the grain of wheat that falls into the earth dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but, if it dies, then it produces much fruit”, so it is necessary that those who truly desire it sow peace, but not in speech, but in everyday attitudes.
It does not mean that we do not desire changes, and that they are not necessary, also in this aspect the grain of wheat must fall into the earth and “die”, but this death seen precisely with what we desire: transformation, not disappearance or terminal death.
Looking at the infinite, the divine and the eternal is going beyond our materiality, our daily and human impulses, setting aside time for reading, contemplation, meditation and recharging our energies, a peaceful attitude depends on this human/divine balance.
Without a true and humanly reciprocated ascesis, we remain in what Peter Sloterdijk calls a “life of exercise”, we do the exercises to do so, but we do not have a human ascension (a true ascesis).
Increasing our inner life, transmitting it in relationships, this is true asceticism.
End of history or return of powers
11
Mar
When Francis Fukuyama wrote about 
“The End of History” he was under the impact of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, three decades after Jim Sciutto said on CNN that when the war in Ukraine began, we were living in a “1939 moment”, in fact, there is a link between the first and second wars, the end of the second and the possibility of a third.
Jim Sciutto’s book “The Return of Great Powers” talks about this, “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is part of that, but in reality, this power struggle impacts every corner of our world – from Helsinki to Beijing, from Australia to the North Pole. This is a battle with many fronts: in the Arctic, in the oceans and skies, in artificial islands and redesigned maps, and in technology and cyberspace.”
Firstly, we detected this secondary factor, but fundamental to see technology not from the perspective of the domination of minds, capital or socialism, but its negative use due to wars and the struggle for power.
The Return of the Great Powers analyzes this new historical condition, analyzes this new reality after the Cold War and after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Russian and Chinese governments increasingly aligned and the critical point of a new global nuclear arms race, and in poses a question: considering uncertain, even terrifying results, will it be possible for the West, Russia and China to avoid a new World War?
The analysis made by Jim Sciutto is not as important as the facts and realities that bring to light new questions and concerns about the external results of this new world reality, a moment of strong turbulence in which the possibilities for peace are running out as the year passes. time and the increasing involvement of different nations.
Last week’s picture points to this, Russia not ruling out a confrontation with the West and the United States preparing for a scenario of nuclear confrontation, the return to common sense and the disarming of exalted spirits involves losses and damage to some nations , it is not about surrender, but acceptance of the current framework of “new balance” for peace.
As Edgar Morin states, a spirit of resistance is needed at this time to return to the path of universal fraternity and peace.
Serenity and light
08
Mar
There is only light when there is serenity, although
Heidegger’s text is not directly linked to his concept of “clearing”, it is indirectly linked, as it calls for reflection, pure thought, one that “meditates” and does not just act.
Heidegger clarifies that: “the rootedness (die Bodentändigkeit) of modern Man is threatened in his most intimate essence. Furthermore: the loss of rooting is not caused only by external circumstances and fatalities of fate, nor is it the effect of negligence and the superficial way of Men. The loss of rootedness comes from the spirit of the time in which we were all born” (p. 17), thus is the absence of this clearing.
The domination by ideal and “calculating” models leads to a greater commitment to the gears of reason, than the gears of being and human dignity, going beyond ethics which is deeply linked to the “ethos” of the way of being and the character.
This is not a pure Manichaeism, because this also led and still leads to social and political dualism, but one that excludes the other, the different and forgets their human dignity, we remember Eduardo Galeano’s speech about war and the evil it entails. closes (post).
The pure reasoning of the calculating gear leads to precise business calculations, company management and even certain educational logic, but they forget the foundations of human ethics: respect for life, sociability among everyone and care for the planet.
Evil is thus seen as the absence of light, the impossibility of a clearing that dignifies and shows the truth to men, and this is independent of any rational logic because it is in the diffuse human logic that unites the unequal and equalizes the different.
For Christians, it is fundamental to remember the principle of light that erases all darkness, like a small candle lit in the pitch black, the Christian clearing, thus moving away from error and discord (Jn 3:21): “But whoever acts according to the truth, approaches the light, so that it becomes clear that your actions are carried out in God” and there is nothing more divine than truth.
If Heidegger’s rootedness refers to his loss in the “spirit of the age”, the deeper rootedness is that which comes from human origin, be it anthropological or ontological.
Non-thought today
07
Mar
Heidegger’s text on Serenity, written in 1949 at
a ceremony commemorating the centenary of Conradin Kreutzer’s death, in his hometown Meßkirch, which, as it was also Martin Heidegger’s hometown, was called to speak at the event, book This is part of your speech.
The text of serenity reveals how much we are induced to a calculated thought that runs from opportunity to opportunity, it is fundamental to understand that what is attributed to the digital world, was already happening long before this, and is not restricted to the digital universe: “ this thought continues to be a calculation, even if it does not operate with numbers, nor does it use a calculating machine, nor devices for large calculations” (pg. 13), even long before the digital universe, he talks about it and says that it is not the one you’re talking about.
The dynamic that many attribute to the digital universe was already very present in modern man: “thought that calculates (rechnend Denken) never stops, never comes to meditate. The thought that calculates is not a thought that meditates (ein besinnliches Denken), it is not a thought that reflects (nachdenkt), it is not the meaning that reigns in everything that exists” (idem, pg. 13), that is, of the late 1940s and before modern computers.
It is worth translating the German words: ein besinnliches Denken (a contemplative thought) and nachdenkt (to think about) and das rechnend Denken (calculative thought).
Thus, for the philosopher there are two forms of thought: that which calculates and that which meditates, and it can be thought that the second does not perceive reality, “contributes nothing to carrying out praxis” (pg. 14), can lead to pure reflection, persistent meditation being “too “high” for common understanding” (idem).
The author says that the only correct thing is that the truth of a thought that meditates appears as little spontaneously as the thought that calculates, both require efforts.
The fact that contemporary man is linked to a way of thinking is because this is the current way in which thought was elaborated and trained, linked to rational and ideal logos.
However, he considers that each person can follow the paths of reflection within their limits and in their own way: “We do not, therefore, in any way need to elevate ourselves to the “higher regions” when we reflect. We just need to linger (verweilen) close to what is close and meditate on what is closest: what concerns each one of us, here and now; here, in this piece of homeland; now, in the present universal hour” (pg. 14).
Of course, Heidegger reflected on the celebration in his hometown, but this applies to all the events we experience in our lives.
Heidegger, M. (no date) Serenidade (Serenity). Transl. de Maria Madalena Andrade e Olga Santos. Lisboa: Instituto Piaget, s/d.
