About

10698433_10154659576400463_372860262312363703_nWelcome to unabsolute.com, my attempt both to create and to contribute to a forum for something more than 140 characters (think twitter). My recent experience in politics has shown me how much the simple, unsupported remark has replaced meaningful and thoughtful discussion. Public discourse is dominated by “positions” and taglines – things that fit nicely into the evening news clip, a tweet, or a Facebook post. I do not believe that the public interest is well-served by this; in fact, I contend it is destructive. I am only one voice but I hope there are others out there who would like to address the complexities inherent in things that, these days, are too frequently reduced to either/or options. I apologize for making up the word “unabsolute”. While it may be my own invention, it captures, to my mind, both the essence of what I hope this blog can promote as well as the spirit of the times.

I’m not above wandering into other areas of interest so don’t be surprised if I write occasional posts on travel, education, or anything else that occurs to me. Also, if you would like to ask a question in hopes that I would answer, please ask. Socrates would be proud. So, if you are reading this, welcome. I hope you find your time here worthwhile.

 

Carl

15 thoughts on “About”

  5. Can’t wait to read, if it’s anything like some of our conversations, your blog will be fabulous! You’re a great man with great insight. Merry Christmas!

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  6. Good Morning Carl,

    As I wrote last night in one of the comments to your blog, I am hooked! Regarding the terms “absolute” and “unabsolute”, again the whole thing is a matter of perception. The ancient rishis (sages) of the ancient Vedic civilization had discovered that even absolute silence was rather complex. How could silence be complex?

    Maharishi said that transcendental consciousness, the most settled state of human awareness, is the home of all the laws of nature, the domain from where the impulses of creative intelligence administer silently the whole universe with awesome efficiency and order.

    The laws of nature are innumerable. In the last few hundreds of years, modern science has discovered only a few of those laws of nature. One may wonder how could “the home of all the laws of nature” be silent. The answer is rather simple. It is because all these impulses of creative intelligence are perfectly attuned with one another. Their activity is so well coordinated that there is no friction between them. No friction, therefore no noise.

    When we hear a beautiful music there is some kind of noise but it is harmonious, it is pleasant, uplifting, and life supporting. Let us not forget that between the notes of any music, there is silence and the length of the intervals of silence varies a lot. The jazz musicians discovered that they could create something very new and interesting just by modifying the length of the intervals of silence. A good musician knows as much of the value of silence as he/she knows of the value of the different notes and chords.

    In 1982, I was in Germany with many long-term teachers of the TM organization. We were 400 of us at one point. Maharishi would meet with us every day for an hour or two. He would always start his talks with the same sentence: “Knowledge is in the gap.” Being French-Canadian and not knowing the real meaning of the word “gap”, at first I was puzzled. Gradually I discovered that “gap” means “interval.”

    There are intervals between sounds, between words, between sentences, and between paragraphs. Depending on the position of the letters, of the words, of the sentences, the value of the intervals change and therefore knowledge varies. Punctuation has a purpose and the poets who are writing without it may want to tickle and enliven our awareness regarding the very purpose of punctuation. Who knows?

    The whole purpose of grammar is making us realize that the position of the letters, of the words, and of the sentences is very important because the intervals where knowledge resides yield different results depending on the position of the elements.

    The ignorant “scientists” who are playing with the genetic code of plants and other organisms have not yet realized that they are creating a lot of confusion in the human bodies that eat the genetically modified organisms. The whole body gets more and more confused because its genetic code is not used to that “new grammar” developed to make plants resistant to the poisons developed to kill weeds and insects. That mishmash called GMO is itself a poison that kills surely but surely. While the GMO eaters’ health is deteriorating, the pharmaceutical companies are making bigger and bigger profits. Who is paying for it? All of us and it is leading us to bankruptcy.

    The “scientists” working for Monsanto and other biotech companies continue to think in terms of competition. They think that plants are in competition with one another. Because they know so little about the innumerable laws of nature, they are trying to manipulate the process for the purpose of patenting the fruits of their ignorance and gain profit from it.

    A little knowledge is a dangerous thing and here we have a perfect example of it. Most human beings still have to learn about the value of symbiosis. Silence, the source of life is a perfect example of symbiosis. At that level, everything is perfectly complementary. One could not find a better example of solidarity. Complementary and solidarity…that is what real life is all about.

    We have not realized how ruinous our conflicts and wars are. We are sending our sons and daughters to fight wars created and supported by the international bankers who take advantage of our ignorance. When the grass is dry just a simple spark is sufficient to trigger a conflagration. Dryness and ignorance are bedfellows.

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  8. “I apologize for making up the word “unabsolute”. While it may be my own invention, it captures, to my mind, both the essence of what I hope this blog can promote as well as the spirit of the times.”

    Sorry to inform you, I’ve been using this name since Gmail was in Beta.

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  9. “I apologize for making up the word “unabsolute”. While it may be my own invention, it captures, to my mind, both the essence of what I hope this blog can promote as well as the spirit of the times.”

    Sorry to inform you, I’ve been using this name since Gmail was in Beta. “Un” is the root of both Una which is a singular form of “1” in Roman and “Un” which is a prefix meaning “not”. Transpose those terms into 1 & 0 and you have binary. Ad them to Absolute and everything and nothing is Absolute. Have fun thinking about that!

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