Yesterday was UNESCO World Philosophy Day. Julian Baggini, on the Guardian website, is not sure whether to celebrate. I had no such troubles, mainly because -- I confess -- I didn't know anything about it. From my perspective at least, yesterday was not particularly philosophical. No more than most other days, in any case. But at least I'm not too late for the 2007 World Philosophy Day activities in Instanbul, on November 21-23. There's a programme here.
This is what the DG of UNESCO thinks it is all about:
This is what the DG of UNESCO thinks it is all about:
To give greater depth to political, philosophical and intercultural dialogue and to mutual understanding of shared memories and values, ambitions and joint projects admittedly requires an updated chart of lines of convergence and divergence, of the differences, silences, misunderstandings and deadlocks that are always possible. The purpose of this Day is therefore to set out the conditions for such a universal dialogue by opening up to the diversity of interlocutors, and of philosophical currents and traditions, in an endeavour to take stock, to provide a perspective on the world and to engage in a critical rereading of our concepts and way of thinking.Admirable aims, I suppose, albeit with a whiff of hand-waving generality...
1 comment:
Perhaps the thing about hand-waving generalities is that (like common sense platitudes) they tend to proliferate within a particular institution or society containing an institutionalized variety of institutions (also giving rise to things like a parliament with a "loyal" opposition, say). So one person's generality might be another's deadly heresy. One person's axiom, another's trite cop-out.
Today's frisson is the negation of good old negative freedom a la John Stuart Mill by our erstwhile Western democratic liberal governments. So obviously some new authoritarian consensus is required. Hegel without the Dialectic? Stalinism without public ownership of production? Pure instrumentalism? 1984 without the irony? Brave New World without the "pleasure" - joyless hedonism, or Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt? Or a hierarchy so rarified that only 3 people at the top are free to respond to non-mediated reality-based challenges and determine a non-delegated orientation towards them. You (as We define you) are ordained to Enjoy (as We define it) Life (as We define it) to the Full (as We define it)...
Still, "Take Stock", "Provide a Perspective on the World", and "Engage in a Critical Rereading of our Concepts and Way of Thinking" are laudable aims. Even verging towards the tangentially utilitarian ;-)
Philosophers of the World - Open Up to Diversity!
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