DEBATE - Conservatism is the New Punk conferencereport 2017-11-27 | Debate between Chrisiousity and Philip Moriarty on the proposition 'Conservatism is the New Punk'. Moriarty to take the Affirmative, Chrisiousity the Negative.Playlist for this debate - youtube.com/watch?v=X7UhPUB8dZw&list=PLwF8G9d3NLbnw79A9DEmRSDcrYVwjMTahDebate post on the Kapaio blog - kapaio.wordpress.com/2017/11/06/conservatism-is-the-new-punkBlog post on 'and Then there's Physics' blog about the recent 'Jordan Peterson speaks the Truth' debate' - andthentheresphysics.wordpress.com/2017/11/04/jordan-peterson-speaks-the-truth------------------------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Jordan Peterson etc - Debate Hangout: 10pm Saturday (UK time) conferencereport 2017-10-13 | Google Hangout with Philip Moriarty and Fred McVittie where they discuss their recent Youtube debate on the topic 'Jordan Peterson speaks the Truth' - youtube.com/watch?v=QSMcZzLmuIUThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Jordan Peterson speaks the Truth - Closing Statements conferencereport 2017-10-08 | Fred McVittie: Closing Statement - youtube.com/watch?v=9fOWPYG9ugcPhilip Moriarty - Closing Statement - youtube.com/watch?v=9QrcR2YetpwEntire debate on Ka Paio - kapaio.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/jordan-peterson-tells-the-truth
Jordan Peterson Speaks the Truth debate - First Rebuttals conferencereport 2017-09-25 | Affirmative: Opening Statement - youtube.com/watch?v=0h0fmseXCJg&t=2sNegative: Opening Statement - youtube.com/watch?v=uHaXEGPnzmI&t=323sAffirmative: First Rebuttal - youtube.com/watch?v=HP2v6piq_aoNegative: First Rebuttal - youtube.com/watch?v=GEDPszL8mCYDebate page on the Ka Paio blog - kapaio.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/jordan-peterson-tells-the-truth
Debate! conferencereport 2017-09-20 | Debate between myself and Prof. Philip Moriarty will be hosted on a channel I have created for the purpose. Proposition is 'Jordan Peterson speaks the Truth'. I will be arguing for the Affirmative, Philip will be taking the Negative position. Enjoy!youtube.com/channel/UCO6V2p9xOdFaYTh2DXtRjSwAlso blog: http://kapaio.wordpress.com
What is Truth? - Sam Harris and Jordan Peterson conferencereport 2017-09-09 | An introduction to a short series of videos I want to make unpacking the conversation between Sam Harris and Jordan Peterson on the nature of 'truth'. The confusions seemed to emerge from the fact that each was working with a very different epistemology, and held that the epistemology held by the other was inadequate or just plain wrong.Sources:Waking Up With Sam Harris #62 - What is True? (with Jordan B. Peterson) - youtube.com/watch?v=1gdpyzwOOYY“Conservatism is the new Punk Rock”. Discuss. – A Guest Post by Philip Moriarty - telescoper.wordpress.com/2017/08/24/conservatism-is-the-new-punk-rock-discuss/#comment-231964An Open Letter to Sam Harris (Jordan Peterson response to the conversation) - youtube.com/watch?v=ZmZK9W4V1RcSam Harris Reflects on his Conversation with Jordan Peterson - youtube.com/watch?v=_vBBJrEfNG8
Contrapoints Flagged conferencereport 2017-06-03 | Mirror of Contrapoint's video on Richard Coughlan's channel - youtube.com/watch?v=nYUCD5mO1gIMark Carrigan - Notes of Platform Capitalism. markcarrigan.net/2017/01/14/notes-on-platform-capitalismThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Identity and Ageing conferencereport 2017-05-12 | Marinashutup video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z12Hl...I think the discussion by Marina, and others of her generation, about identity is really great. However, it may be that the focus on sexual attraction and sexual behaviour as indicators of that identity is a little over-stated, probably because of the age of those who tend to talk about these things.As a 60 year old man I know that my identity is defined less by the particuliities of who I might be sexually attracted to, or by what kind of gender performance I might want to engage in, but by the state of my body. A body which is undergoing the inevitable processes of ageing and failure.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Milk Meat Men conferencereport 2017-05-02 | More rambling about classification and labelling.Mic the Vegan video on product labelling - youtube.com/watch?v=iUyJpHVNXAYEtymology of the word 'meat' - http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=meatNPR piece on milk labelling - http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/12/21/506319408/soy-almond-coconut-if-its-not-from-a-cow-can-you-legally-call-it-milk"That's not Schnitzel!". Example of disputes over food labelling from Germany - rt.com/news/372107-vegetarian-meat-foods-germany-labelingThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Cake, Biscuit, Man, Woman conferencereport 2017-04-21 | It's not 'just semantics'.'Cake or Biscuit' - Episode of 'The Philosopher's Arms' on BBC Radio 4 - http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08ff180'Cake or Biscuit: VAT's the difference' - crunch.co.uk/blog/small-business-advice/2016/03/01/cake-or-biscuit-vats-the-differenceFuzzy Sets - http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S001999586590241XConceptual Metaphor - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conceptual_metaphor'Analogy as the Core of Cognition'. Lecture by Douglas Hofstadter - youtube.com/watch?v=n8m7lFQ3njk'Health Insurance Companies Are Even More Horrible If You're Trans' - http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/09/transgender-healthcare-discrimination-obama-administration'Heated Debate w/ Genderqueer Feminist' - youtube.com/watch?v=-SeCD8tJUhU------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Listening to and Listening for conferencereport 2017-04-09 | Become HearingPauline Oliveros - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_OliverosPauline Oliveros' obituary - theguardian.com/music/2016/nov/28/pauline-oliveros-deep-listening-dead-obituaryRumi quote - goo.gl/FlBNt7----------------------------------------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Wander (Poetics of Walking) conferencereport 2017-04-02 | Dion - 'The Wanderer' youtube.com/watch?v=0FFtht9k87kItalo Calvino - 'Exactitude' from 'Six Memos for the Next Millennium' goo.gl/8v7v1pEugene Gendlin on Wikipedia - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Gendlin(Gendlin's comments on vague hand-waving in poetic creation is in his 'Experience and the Creation of Meaning: a Philosophical and Psychological Approach to the Subjective' (1962).Interesting Antiuniversity Now event on Transitioning - http://www.antiuniversity.org/How-to-Transition-and-Alienate-PeopleWilliam James - 'The Stream of Thought' from 'The Principles of Psychology' genius.com/William-james-chapter-ix-1-the-stream-of-thought-annotated(Contains reference to his 'flights and perchings' metaphor).Realised I'd made a video some time ago about James 'flights and perchings' stuff - youtube.com/watch?v=ZJyZTtUpJkoThis video is part of my 'Poetics of Walking' playlist. youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVOB4CzO25DoGbYOfpQgz3XKAs_uWa_UW------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Leaky Networks and Integrated Information conferencereport 2017-02-04 | Is there an optimal level of 'leakiness' in social media networks?Integrated Information Theory - http://integratedinformationtheory.orgMeasuring Information Integration in Social Networks - file:///Users/admin/Documents/Research/Measuring_information_integration_in_Social_Networ.pdf(Note: the network discussed in this paper is fixed therefore, whilst it exhibits integration it does not allow for adaptations which will increase complexity and make for more integration, what I refer to as 'intelligence')This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Is Punching Someone a Last Resort? conferencereport 2017-01-31 | Maybe it's all about context.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
The Cost of Greatness conferencereport 2017-01-20 | It's not big and it's not clever.Leni Reifenstal - Triumph of the Will youtube.com/watch?v=GHs2coAzLJ8'Fascinating Fascism' (Documentary about Tomi Ungerer) - vimeo.com/109655657Ursula K. Le Guin -The Ones who Walk Away from Ohmelas - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ones_Who_Walk_Away_from_Omelas-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Trigger Warnings vs. Flagging Up conferencereport 2017-01-15 | Giving students advanced notice of 'troublesome' educational content isn't about protecting the delicate sensibilities of those too weak to confront that material. It's done in the interests of good pedagogy.------------------------------------------------------------------------------Filmed in Super Crap-o-vision. Sound is a bit rubbish during the second half.Camera and mic info: goo.gl/WUCjhL--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Daily Mail article - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4089302/Bible-students-warned-crucifixion-upsetting-Critics-say-trigger-warnings-distressing-content-creating-generation-snowflake-students.htmlMetamute article on Darko Maver - http://www.metamute.org/editorial/articles/death-and-death-darko-maverReference to Daniel Dennett's research on the contribution of a theological education to loss of belief - http://www.christianhumanist.net/ministers-the-new-unbelievers.htmlMeyer and Land article on 'Troublesome Knowledge' - https://kennslumidstod.hi.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/meyerandland.pdf-------------------------------------------------------------------------This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
John Berger is Dead Alas Alas conferencereport 2017-01-03 | Did you ever go clear?John Berger's 'Ways of Seeing' on Ubuweb - http://www.ubu.com/film/berger_seeing.html'The Art of Looking' (documentary on John Berger) - youtube.com/watch?v=_IeBcecwcQwLeonard Cohen 'Famous Blue Raincoat' - youtube.com/watch?v=DHqqlm9yf7MThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Theory Theory conferencereport 2016-12-22 | Preamble about walk n talk videos followed by some initial thoughts on the notion of 'theory'. The term has application outside of the 'hard' sciences, as well as misapplication in version circles, particularly in relation to providing an 'explanatory framework'.(Apologies for wind noise during some sections).Conversation between Gary Edwards and Phil Moriarty - youtube.com/watch?v=-tKqD0GEAo0Ponzo illusion - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzo_illusionLiterary theory - http://www.iep.utm.edu/literary/Cultural theory - goo.gl/xAcsOXPerformance theory - history.ac.uk/1807commemorated/media/methods/performance.html
Ice Bucket Challenge (with added abjection) conferencereport 2014-08-24 | In a perfect world the ears would be on fire, but unfortunately I burnt my head trying that.I was tagged by http://www.youtube.com/user/extremelyboringMy donation (because I'm in the UK) will go to the MNDA http://www.mndassociation.org Do please consider supporting them, or the ALS charity in the US http://www.alsa.org/fight-als/ice-bucket-challenge.htmlI nominate the following users. Ideally they'll do a better job than me.Robin - youtube.com/user/lampshadeytBen - youtube.com/user/ChaplaintappmanAndy - youtube.com/channel/UCYzmanp7vNYq4_0BMRcMutwThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5http://www.alsa.org/fight-als/ice-bucket-challenge.htmlThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
Dick Riot This is Not a Protest conferencereport 2014-05-02 | Where inchoate rage meets brand management.Soundtrack:"Middle East Crisis" - Crackshot http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vv7DMhXmRM"Sick of It" - The Primitives youtube.com/watch?v=QmOPwMVmVck"Prince Charming" - Adam and the Ants youtube.com/watch?v=9p__WmyAE3g"Don't Laugh at Me" - Norman Wisdom youtube.com/watch?v=pbwS9qcpi0k"Fuck the Royal Wedding Very Very Very Slowly" -conferencereport youtube.com/watch?v=eruzZ74xFNwNatural sounds version - youtube.com/watch?v=u8tWXQ18fc0#pussyriotThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Generic(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5
YouTube Community update conferencereport 2014-04-21 | YouTube the City plus.google.com/u/0/b/100776567817569854935/communities/110632326349638728088This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Vigil conferencereport 2014-04-19 | My Mum died at 3 pm on Wednesday. Thanks to all of you for your prayers and thoughts.Her passing was probably as good as you can get with those things; she was in no pain and didn't seem to be experiencing any fear. She's been losing her cognitive faculties slowly for years but this process escalated in the last 6 months, she hasn't recognised anyone since around Christmas and she last spoke on Mother's Day, when she said 'Lovely flowers'. Thankfully she seemed to lose her faculties in an order which kind of made sense (if that doesn't sound like a callous thing to say). Her attachment to the material circumstances of her life went quite early, she didn't seem to know or care where she was. Her memory pretty much all went some time ago but not in a way that troubled her; the fact that she couldn't remember who these people were who visited her didn't seem to matter, she just seemed pleased that they/we were there. The last couple of weeks before she died she was barely responsive at all but her eyes were still lively, wide open and taking in the world, and she was smiling all that time. I might be kidding myself but I'm imagining her entering some kind of beatific state like you read about in Buddhist philosophy.My sister and I sat with her for the last 48 hours. Her eyes were still open but misted over, and whilst she made some movements, putting her hand to her face, pulling at the bedsheet, I'm pretty sure these were undirected. At the end Susie and I held her while her breathing became shallower and shallower and then stopped altogether.It's funny but we stayed like that for quite a while, and even after the nurse had been we carried on talking to her for about an hour afterwards. Not about anything important, just trivia really.Bye Mum. Love you.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Digital Citizenship for Trolls conferencereport 2014-04-12 | Bad people need good cities.Digital Citizenship - http://www.digitalcitizenship.netgratex - http://youtube.com/user/gratexinmendham - htp://youtube.com/user/inmendhamI was aiming for irony in this video (lauding the virtues of citizenship whilst simultaneously making damaging accusations of other citizens). Unfortunately I missed the mark by about a light year. Sorry guys, I didn't mean no offence. (Hugs)This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
The Power of Prayer conferencereport 2014-04-11 | Thanks everyone. You performed a miracle. You can stop now.Mum died a couple of days after this video was made. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers - youtube.com/watch?v=JlU416uNpcMThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Prayer conferencereport 2014-04-10 | Or not, obviously.I'll let you know when we're done.Thanks.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Things Happen Here conferencereport 2014-04-09 | I remember when it was all trees round here.The Dunbar Number - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunbar's_numberCorbusier's 'The Radiant City' - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ville_RadieuseTrailer for the film 'Radiant City' about suburban sprawl (recommended) - youtube.com/watch?v=pFNdQDBy2rYMarch Auge on 'Non-Places - http://www.dkolb.org/sprawlingplaces/generalo/placesto/augonnon.htmlAbout Geocities - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GeoCitiesOocities, a Geocities Archive site - http://www.oocities.org This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Free Speech is the Enemy of Community conferencereport 2014-04-08 | Information wants to be free. Who could argue with that? I don't want to romanticise the past but am I wrong in thinking that it's easier to find out about people now than it used to be? Wasn't there a time when, if I wanted to know your taste in music, your relationship status, your employment history, I would have to wait until you told me? And if I couldn't wait and I needed that information right now, without the inconvenience of getting into some kind of relationship with you, then I'd have to hire a private detective, and that would be weird, right? Finding out about you, and letting you find out about me, used to be part of the establishing of a friendship. Or if not a friendship then maybe a business relationship. Or at least a foundation for tolerant coexistence. Remember that? These details I told you about myself, and those things you said to me, were the contributions we brought to the potlatch and we both benefitted from this reciprocal sharing. This is called 'disclosure', and I'm not talking about the Michael Douglas/ Demi Moore film. Getting to know someone and building a relationship of trust with that person depends on reciprocal disclosure (and there was little trust between Michael and Demi). We open ourselves up secure in the knowledge that this person will never take these disclosures and turn them into ammunition. Better together because we haven't walled each other apart.We trust one another a bit more, not just because we have let one another into our lives but also because we may have revealed things about ourselves which could potentially be used to harm us, if they fell into the wrong hands. Not that your hands are wrong of course. Your hands are perfect. Gimme your hands.Well we're not in Kansas anymore Dorothy and I don't have to wait until you think the time is right to get to know you better. Your intimate details are just a Google search away. Of course, I'd have to have somewhere to start that search; you'd have to give me a name, maybe a location or the name of the school you attended or your place of work. Or you'd have to show me what you look like, maybe in an avatar or on your profile page. You might have to give me a link to your blog, your twitter feed, your Facebook profile, something like that. I wouldn't need much but if you give me something, anything, I can find out everything about you, and vice versa.Does that make me a stalker? Am I spending my evenings prying into your private life trying to dig up the dirt? Am I tracking all known associates and modelling behaviour patterns? Hell no, I'm just not turning away from the information that's already out there on you, and on all of us. How's the family? Did your father get over that thing with his heart? How about your brother, is he still out of work? Your daughter is growing up fast.So how do you and I establish trust in this network, where your details and mine can longer function as the tokens we trade to mark our commitment? I have nothing special to share with you about myself that you can't get easier and cheaper elsewhere. When information about one another is free the value of disclosure goes through the floor. I can't offer you anything special. I can't open myself up and be vulnerable just for you. All the ammunition anyone needs is just lying there.People say that 'information wants to be free', and maybe they're right. They say that 'free speech' is indivisible and an open society is a good society. These things might be true as well. It seems to me though that openness and freedom only become valuable when they are accompanied by respect for boundaries and acceptance of difference. Trust networks cannot develop amongst people who are only too happy to pick up that ammunition, or even amongst those for whom it is a last resort (because we all know that last resorts are always resorted too). They require a collective discipline, an ethic, that recognises that my freedom to throw your information around begins and ends at the point of your willingness to say it's ok for me to do so. I know everything about you but I will never ever mention it, not even to you.Support the #MoreDick event.If you'd like to come along you can find out more and book a ticket (FREE) here - http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/more-dick-youtube-on-the-edge-tickets-11072932439If you'd like to donate to the cost of the event - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Huge Cock Up in Cornwall conferencereport 2014-04-07 | Be there or He Here.If you'd like to come along you can find out more and book a ticket (FREE) here - http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/more-dick-youtube-on-the-edge-tickets-11072932439If you can contribute toward the cost of the event (let's do it right here) - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dickRichard Coughlan - youtube.com/watch?v=dELYTFwq1sAThe Abominable History Man - youtube.com/user/mrgodbehereGary Edwards - youtube.com/channel/UCrnYMlsoyNeXuYNNh6xkv3Q#moredickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Thunderf00t and Me conferencereport 2014-04-07 | Birds of a feather. Peas in a pod. Farts in a spacesuit.Response to the rather wonderful Melsbasketcase - youtube.com/watch?v=evgKYyrb3AgThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Debate and War conferencereport 2014-04-03 | The only things we got today.When discussions or debates are held on YouTube, either asynchronously via call and response or 'live' through Skype or Google Hangout, this interaction can proceed according to one of a number of different structuring principles. One of the most common of these follows the logic of a metaphor in which debate is understood as a kind of 'warfare'. Participants in debates of this nature will talk of 'destroying' the opposition, of 'attacking' their position, of identifying and exploiting their 'weaknesses', and of 'putting up a defence'. The ultimate aim of each side in debates of this kind is for one's own ideas and opinions to emerge victorious and those of the opponent reduced to rubble.When all participants in an interaction understand the rules of engagement, and more importantly all frame the interaction in the same way, using the 'warfare' metaphor, then the results can be entertaining and instructive. What wins the day is usually sheer force of rhetoric; the blunt objection, the sharp riposte, and after they have done their work and the inconvenient opposition has been swept away the ideas left standing can often be seen at their most clear. The disadvantages of the warfare metaphor as an organising framework for engaging in discussion are multiple. Firstly it negates any possibility of synthesis. There is no sense that listening carefully to the opposition and trying to accommodate their ideas might be a good thing to do. Any possible benefit that might be gained from these competing forces coming together to pool their knowledge is lost. Any effort by either side to suggest they join forces and attempt to build an order of understanding that transcends petty differences is seen as surrender, appeasement and treachery . The warfare metaphor forces participants to resist showing weakness; all the points one makes must be claimed as strongly supported and there must be no admission of gaps in the defence of those points. No one says "I don't know". Bluster and false displays of confidence are common. Furthermore, participants might also be tempted to adopt the philosophy that "all's fair in love and war", which can lead them, can lead us, to think it fair to use any ammunition we can lay hands on against our opponent. When winning is what matters we fight with whatever is available. There is no Geneva Convention here. A simple Google search reveals that our enemy in this war of words has a vulnerability that might be exploited; they once suffered from a mental illness, as a youth they used to hot-wire cars and go joy-riding, they once lied about their age. Loading our arguments with these weapons of reputation destruction is one way of making sure the odds are ever in our favour.Some who engage in discussion refuse the warfare metaphor however, or simply frame the encounter using different means. Watch a number of such dialogues and it is clear that some participants have come together to converse with others not to assert the superiority of their own position over that held by the person they are speaking with but to advance a set of ideas through collaboration and mutual critique. Rather than being structured around the logic of the battlefield they are more likely to resemble the raising of a barn, or the stepping together of a dance, or the running of a relay. To say "I don't know" in such encounters is not a sign of weakness but the drawing of attention to a space in the conversation that the participants might enter together, to gain better understanding through mutual occupation of that unknown. Taking on the viewpoint of the other is expected, not an entrenchment in one's own position to the exclusion of all others. The purpose of the conversation is the joint construction of an edifice of knowledge which can contain more than either participant is capable of on their own. Ammunition is unnecessary. What's needed are tools.Such encounters have less drama, less cheering from the side-lines for one or other participant, less comfortably unequivocal results. No-one will type 'pwned' in the comment section and there will be no cheerleaders waiting to congratulate both sides for confirming whatever biases they already hold and which they feel have been confirmed. They do however have the distinct advantage of being more likely to proceed an argument toward a more sophisticated resolution. Or as Kyle might put it, 'I learned something today'.The video I refer to is at youtube.com/watch?v=d12CrUVa9Fg The section with Jason Peterson starts at 26:00This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
YouTube and Community conferencereport 2014-04-02 | When a vlogger flags a video of another vlogger is that a sign of community dysfunction? Let's talk about that.Support the More Dick project at Kickstarter - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dick#moredickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Postmodernism and Worldviews conferencereport 2014-04-01 | Meat and two veg. vs. Yo SushiAlan Macfarlane "A World without a Worldview: The Condition of Postmodernism" - youtube.com/watch?v=f8rmldHAUHoThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Worldviews and the Myth of One. conferencereport 2014-03-28 | Matt 6:22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.I know this isn't any kind of legitimate interpretation, but what the heck, I like it.
Richard Coughlan is a Massive Failure conferencereport 2014-03-26 | *The 5 Cardinal Rule of YouTube Success*(with extra added dog fight)1. Don't talk to people with fewer subscribers than yourself2. Always refer to your subscribers as 'fans'3. Turn yourself into a precious commodity by restricting access4. Don't show any signs of weakness5. Control the conversationSomeone tell Richard he's doing it wrong.The Kickstarter page for the More Dick event - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dick#MoreDickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
The End of Anonymity conferencereport 2014-03-25 | With great transparency comes great responsitivity.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Camp and Knives conferencereport 2014-03-24 | In which it is revealed that men are really a bunch of wooftahs.Subscribe to these guys. Behind the hardware, they're a couple of softies.http://youtube.com/user/Tetsubo57youtube.com/user/SkallagrimNilssonAlso, help me put a bit more Dick in the world - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
The Matrix get Better Every Year conferencereport 2014-03-23 | I also bought a Mother's Day card and sat in the back of my van with Phoebe, listening to Radio 4, by the sea in Porthtowan. Good day.#MoreDickThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
More Dick LIVE!!! conferencereport 2014-03-22 | We all know that Richard (The Dick) Coughlan is on the edge mentally. Let's send him to the literal edge and see what he has to say for himself.The "More Dick" Kickstarter campaign page - kickstarter.com/projects/conferencereport/more-dickRichard Coughlan's - http://youtube.com/user/DickDynasty666The Abominable History Man - youtube.com/user/mrgodbehereGary Edwards - youtube.com/channel/UCrnYMlsoyNeXuYNNh6xkv3QEvent is scheduled for May 2nd 2014. More details to follow.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Flagging is Never an Option conferencereport 2014-03-10 | Because reasons.Social Capital Primer at BowlingAlone (Robert Putnam's site) - http://bowlingalone.com/?page_id=13More about Social Capital at Harvard (good reading list) - http://www.hks.harvard.edu/programs/saguaro/about-social-capitalThe Social Capital Project at the ONS - http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/social-capital-guide/the-social-capital-project/guide-to-social-capital.html"Social Capital" on Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_capitalTranscript on G+This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Is Religion Better than True? conferencereport 2014-03-01 | Why do some religious folk insist on their beliefs being true when there's a much bigger prize up for grabs?This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
I Want You To Stare At My Bush conferencereport 2014-02-24 | But please don't beat around it.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Transhumanism and Perception conferencereport 2014-02-22 | 2045: A New Era for Humanity - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01hbkh4hXEkThe Global Futures 2045 website - http://gf2045.comThe Extension of Human Visual Perception event - http://www.falmouth.ac.uk/content/open-studio-friday-extension-human-visual-perceptionTerry Pope's website - http://www.terry-pope.comTerry Pope's Phantascope and Hyperscope in SciAm - http://www.phantascope.co.uk/pages/further_theHypAndPseud.htmlBBC programme about inversion glasses - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kohUpQwZt8Experiments in Bunnyvision - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpXlEYoWKu4Experiments in Bunnyvision #3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNG9khjWNfUFirst experiment in Bunnyvision - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcLWNLkZENwThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Gear Talk: bicycle multitools conferencereport 2014-02-11 | In which tools are considered as the physicalised expression of a relationship.This style of this video is a tribute to youtuber tetsubo54 http://www.youtube.com/user/tetsubo57This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Noetics R Us conferencereport 2014-02-09 | In which the part of the Oligopeptide is played by stuff.Institute of Noetic Science website - http://noetic.orgQuorum sensing on Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quorum_sensingSomething I should have mentioned, but didn't, is the proposed relationship between neuronal pathways and the electromagnetic field that is generated around them (the so-called 'cemi' field). For info on this see - http://www.surrey.ac.uk/qe/pdfs/cemi_theory_paper.pdfThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Global Consciousness conferencereport 2014-02-08 | My arse.Global Consciousness Project - http://noosphere.princeton.edu/Rupert Sheldrake speaking at the Schumacher College - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJckSxlX3_cSheldrake's "Morphic Resonance" on the Skeptik's Dictionary - http://www.skepdic.com/morphicres.htmlDean Radin (mentioned in passing) on RationalWiki - http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Dean_RadinThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Contemporophobia conferencereport 2014-02-07 | Time is TightSynchrophobia? This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Spirituality: the other side of certainty conferencereport 2014-02-04 | *Power in the darkness*Article about Bronowski on being certain - http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/02/02/the-dangers-of-certainty/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&hp&rref=opinion&_r=1&Crowley's "The Soldier and the Hunchback" - http://hermetic.com/crowley/libers/liber148.pdf"Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism" by Chogyam Trungpa (full text pdf) - http://luizfernando.info/pbd/Cutting%20Through%20Spiritual%20Materialism%20-%20Chogyam%20Trungpa.pdfAbout Chogyam Trungpa's "Spiritual Materialism" on Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritual_materialismSri Aurobindo's "The Intermediate Zone" - http://intyoga.online.fr/intzone.htmThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
Spirituality: the universal solvent? conferencereport 2014-02-03 | It's the Universal SolventAnd it really is to blameIt's orders come from far away no more.etc etc.This video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
If I was a Prostitute conferencereport 2014-02-02 | You couldn't afford me, probably.(I will be going back to 'spirtuality', but I needed to cleanse my palate by talking dirty for a while).TED Talk by Jonathan Haidt, including reference to the 'purity' metaphor powering moral intuitions - http://www.ted.com/talks/jonathan_haidt_on_the_moral_mind.htmlCritique of Jonathan Haidt by P.Z. Myers on Pharyngula - http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2012/05/17/the-unbearable-squishiness-of-jonathan-haidt'Emotional Labour' on Wikipedia - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_laborThis video is shared under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported(Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-Alike)http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
