Update

I hope everyone is doing well in Ancient Philosophy. I miss you very much. My dear 'ol dad, who was 91 passed away this past Tuesday morning. We are having a memorial service at Park Lake Baptist Church in Waco this Sunday at 2:30PM. My brother and I will be leading the service; would love to have you come and see how a great man lived.

Homosexuality in the Military

I want to make it clear that the opinions expressed are my own. They do not reflect the opinion, implied or otherwise, of any other entity, including that of Baylor University, its students or faculty.
Recently one of the topics of discussion in our Ancient Philosophy class included homosexuality among the ancient Greeks. The subject of homosexuality can be quite sensitive to many in our current society. In discussions I’ve had over the years with other active military members on this subject, I’ve seen some very emotional rhetoric - to the extent that it frankly surprises me. If you would like a better understanding of the anti-homosexuals-in-the-military argument (it’s actually an argument against lifting the ban, but what’s the difference?), I have provided the following link:

http://flagandgeneralofficersforthemilitary.com/FGOM%20Issue%20Overview%20033109.pdf

Point by point, I think all of the hypotheses presented seem highly arguable. When I joined the Air Force in 1973, many positions were not offered to women for much the same mindset as I see in the argument presented in the link. I can still hear the lamentations of military academy graduates upon the announcement of women going to the academies! We now see women doing just fine in many positions from which they were previously excluded, including pilots of fighter aircraft and squadron and higher level commanders. My opinion is that the only effective argument left for those against homosexuals in the military must be based on some kind of morality, but once one goes there, one opens up Pandora’s Box. Bottom line, seems to me that there are significant mislaid fears underlying the argument (against lifting the ban), but perhaps I’m in the minority. I’m wondering about opinions from those outside of the military, as our military should be a reflection of its society, not a reflection of itself. What do you think? Do you think their argument is sound? If not, what is unsound?

Zeno's Para-what?!

Paradox. I guess two docs are better than one, eh? (Heh-heh.)

I just finished the article by Nick Hugget at http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/paradox-zeno/. Sometimes I wonder whether my brain is half the size of someone like Hugget or if I'm just not utilizing what is there. Either way, the result is the same! I simply confess that, though I understand Zeno's paradox, I just don't understand Hugget's explanation in standard OR non-standard mathematics. I applaud those who do! What does seem clear to me, however, is that the current space/time continuum is what it is, and I find it interesting that we are ever in search of how it operates (e.g., has anyone read something of the Haldron Collider located on the border of Switzerland/France lately?) Anyway, the most sensible thing I read in the Hugget article was the following:

“Our belief that the mathematical theory of infinity describes space and time is justified to the extent that the laws of physics assume that it does, and to the extent that those laws are themselves confirmed by experience. While it is true that almost all physical theories assume that space and time do indeed have the structure of the continuum, it is also the case that quantum theories of gravity likely imply that they do not. While no one really knows where this research will ultimately lead, it is quite possible that space and time will turn out, at the most fundamental level, to be quite unlike the mathematical continuum that we have assumed here.”

Two thoughts: (1) science tells us that the universe is currently expanding, so my question is what is outside of the current universe? If we could reach there, would it have the same properties as our space/time continuum? (2) Could it be that what is outside of our space/time continuum is what we define as the present; i.e., outside the constraints of time & space? If so, are we somehow connected to it?

Letter from a Birmingham Jail

It would be impossible to overestimate how much we owe Dr. King. He clearly understood the risks associated with what he terms the Socratic method of “creating tension in the mind”. However, he also understood the greater efficacy of such a tactic vs using violence as a means. In his letter, he states “if this philosophy (of nonviolence) had not emerged, by now many streets of the South would, I am convinced, be flowing with blood”. No doubt about it!
Can we draw any implications from the potential, and largely averted, “force of bitterness and hatred” Dr. King spoke of? Are there any lessons we can take forward on a global scale to begin mitigating terrorist violence? It would appear that we treat terrorism that same way we treat cancer in the body. We only know how to cut it out and/or kill it. Cancer is big business; I often wonder if we are pouring more efforts into it’s treatment than we are into our efforts to prevent it. I wonder if there isn’t some parallel to that in terms of terrorism. Are we really trying to understand it, or are we simply focusing our efforts on ways and means to “kill it”, just as we would treat a symptom and not a cause, thereby making it even worse?
With regard to racial equality, we can no doubt point out ways we have made progress. In general, I suspect that our military may be ahead of the general population, if for no other reason to do otherwise is counter to essential order and discipline. Note I did not say we have eliminated it; as long as there is fear we will probably never eliminate it. Perhaps the motivation isn’t always correct; nevertheless, we need to keep working on it. Further, this business of discrimination for otherwise capable people need not end on the basis of pigmentation in the skin, either.

Homer and Melville

It just struck me as I was thinking about "The Iliad" in particular, that there are some significant common threads between it and Melville's "Moby Dick". Both can be thought of in terms of an internal struggle. Both works describe an adventure in which the central character is searching for something (or some things) which represents his own "internal demon(s)". For Captain Ahab, the whale represented some ultimate monster that he was maniacal in overcoming. The same might be said for Ulysses as he faced all kinds of maladies. In the case of Ulysses, there he and his men are on a wonderful island where they have need of nothing. Yet, he goes to the land of the Cyclopes, risking himself and his men. To quote Nietzsche in "Schopenhaur as Educator" (p 191 "Unmodern Observations"), "Why does the hero so passionately desire the opposite, namely to feel life, which is the same thing as suffering from life?"

The path to philosophy is interesting at the very least; however, for the sake of brevity, I will state that the primary reason I am in Waco is to help my mother care for my father. Dad turned 91 in November and is under the care of Hospice. Realizing that I had not consumed all of my GI benefits (with a rapidly approaching deadline to use them) and not unlike many “baby boomers”, I decided to go back to school. The advantage for me this time around is that I have not factored in a need for follow-on employment. I am simply focused on the desire to learn something about which I have an intense interest.

My experience with this venture has, so far, been interesting and challenging. The courses Dr. Beaty and I chose should, upon completion, allow me to apply for graduate studies in philosophy. I have been made to feel welcome by virtually everyone I’ve been in contact with at Baylor, and for that I am more than grateful. For my fellow students, I hope that my life experience will add to their (your, as the case may be) classroom experience. My opinion is that thinking is probably the most important thing one can do. Until you take that last breath, never stop learning, and never stop thinking! Dr. Baird puts it quite well: “thinking about matters that matter”.