Aliman

Dear Anti-JP'ers, JP's politics leave him open to criticism as many of you have pointed out here. I'm not a JP fan in terms of his politics, but I am a fan in terms of his critical ontology and critical metaphysics. I.e., there's more to him than the politics. His Harvard lectures from the early nineties on Maps of Meaning, all of which are on YT, are excellent in terms of their critical ontology and critical metaphysics. ("Critical" here means being against orthodox ontological and metaphysical ideas.) He hadn't read Whitehead nor Heidegger when he started teaching at Harvard and developed his Maps of Meaning course, but he develops some of the same ideas as these thinkers. Note that Whitehead and Heidegger are two of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century. On this forum I've heard plenty of anti-JP arguments about his politics (and for the most part I agree), but it would be interesting if anyone thinks that they could argue against his critical ontology or critical metaphysics. If you think you can, then go for it. I'd love to engage in that kind of dialogue. Realize that this is not simply an abstract discussion. Heidegger and Whitehead's ideas on epistemology and metaphysics apply directly to self-actualization and enlightenment. Aloha, Aliman

@xthebentnecklady, the best thing that we can do for ourselves is to continually let go of the problems that come up in our consciousness. You have a problem with Leo saying that everything is imagination. That's fine. You're not alone. Many people think he's an idiot for saying this. But at some point, in order to progress, we must let it go. In addition to letting go, we can continually ask two questions: 1) From where in my psyche are these thoughts coming from? This is especially true about thoughts relating to killing Leo. This is passive-aggression toward Leo and as well as being unacceptable, you should be quite concerned to trace the root of these feelings down. The second question we should ask is: 2) To whom do these thoughts arise--who is this "I" that these thoughts are designed to speak to? What really is it? If we continually ask these two questions of ourselves--day in and day out--we come to see that the other idiots around us blathering their nonsense--like Leo--aren't really the problem. The problem is actually with ourselves. In my case, all problems and all issues lead back to Aliman. In your case, all problems and issues lead back to xthebentnecklady. This awareness and acknowledgement leads to emotional and spiritual balance and freedom. Aloha, Aliman

Aloha Elisabeth, Those people on this forum who are leaning toward recommending that you push through and get your PhD, could have a good point. Consider that the result of you getting the PhD in physics could have nothing to do with physics per se, yet it could propel you forward in your life. In the 1980s I absolutely hated my voluntary three-year US Army enlistment, and the content of what I studied and qualified for and did, had nothing to do with my future career (in social services). But having that Army experience of learning to kill in combat and extreme physical gusto, and an extremely "republican" political view, strangely enough, opened the door for me to get into social services. Here I am helping the poor in society and being very "liberal" in my politics and generally being the opposite of what I was in the Army. My Army experience set me up for this. I was able to start a successful nonprofit in 2007. Consider pushing through, getting the PhD, then being open to the Universe and feeling the power of the Universe and look for your next opportunity. A few years from now, you may find that the PhD in physics is exactly what you needed and was the key to propelling you into the life that you really want and really need. That could be in physics or in something totally different. Aloha, Aliman