Higher Self Cafe, v3: Chesterton vs Philosophers
Posted: November 16, 2024 Filed under: AI-Powered Essays | Tags: debate, philosophy, religion, transformation, truth 1 CommentAs the laughter settles, the café door creaks open, letting in a gust of wind. In strides G.K. Chesterton, his broad figure wrapped in a heavy coat and scarf, a walking stick in hand. He scans the room, spots the group, and approaches their table with curiosity. Standing over Maslow’s napkin, now covered in scribbles and redrawn layers, he stares at the pyramid with a slight frown.
Chesterton:
Booming voice, laced with mischief
Ah, the famous pyramid! But I must say, gentlemen, it looks terribly… unfinished. You’ve all been climbing this structure like rational mountaineers, but what happens when you reach the peak and realize it’s upside down?
Maslow, Bowen & Hegel Walk Into Cafe: Tasting the Higher Self (v1)
Posted: November 14, 2024 Filed under: AI-Powered Essays | Tags: debate, hegel, identity, maslow, philosophy, self, systems, therapy, truth 1 CommentCreate a humorous dialogue where Bowen, Maslow, and Hegel sort through the nuances of the relationship between Self-Transcendence and Self-Differentiation.
ChatGPT Prompt
Start with Maslow eating a scone and sketching his pyramid on a napkin. Have Bowen enter and get enmeshed in an argument, which wakes Hegel at the next table who irritably intervenes
Scene: A cozy, dimly lit café on a stormy night. Maslow sits at a small table by the window, nibbling thoughtfully on a scone as he sketches his iconic pyramid on a napkin. Thunder rumbles as the door opens, and Bowen steps in, brushing off rain. He spots Maslow and, intrigued by the half-finished pyramid, walks over.
Maslow:
glancing up, grinning through a mouthful of scone
Bowen! Just the man I needed. I’m refining my hierarchy here, and you should see what I’m adding at the top. gesturing to the faint sketch of “Self-Transcendence” atop the pyramid It’s the summit, the true peak of human motivation.
Bowen:
scoffing
The summit? Maslow, you’re always so eager to climb past the fundamentals. What about boundaries, self-definition? If people go chasing transcendence without first knowing who they are, they’re bound to get lost. gestures to the lower layers of the pyramid These are survival needs, but survival isn’t enough. It’s about self-differentiation.
Read the rest of this entry »October 32nd, Part 2: Political Alienation
Posted: November 2, 2021 Filed under: Governance Reform | Tags: debate, dialogue, politics, reform, values 2 CommentsContinued from Part 1
An hour later I am sitting In a coffee shop with the girl, Carrie. I don’t remember ever seeing her before, but that is hardly unusual in a university of 50,000+ students. Also. she isn’t exactly my type, I note with a wistful recollection of last night’s redhead.
But, she might be the only human being in this reality who won’t question my sanity. Plus, as an early riser, she seems way more on top of things than I am. Maybe she has some idea why we both woke up in a world where it was October 32nd, and an alien was President of the United States.
Read the rest of this entry »Online Reconciliation Circles
Posted: July 3, 2020 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: debate, dialogue, education, politics, race Leave a commentOnline Reconciliation Circles are a novel format for modeling constructive dialogue on difficult topics. The goal is to provide a safe place to explore better approaches to polarizing issues, starting with systemic racism.
Read the rest of this entry »Truth Bowl: Saving Humanity from Technology (Beta 3 2019-08-015)
Posted: August 9, 2019 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: competition, debate, education, reform, truth Leave a commentPlease join us for Truth Bowl Beta 3 next Thursday, August 15th at 3PM Pacific.
- Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/2960092796
- One tap mobile: +16699006833,,2960092796# US (San Jose)
- Dial by your location: +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) Meeting ID: 296 009 2796
Framing Context
Technological progress has never been so rapid, pervasive, or impactful. Yet we are just starting to grapple with the negative consequences of our relationships to smartphones, social media, machine learning algorithms, and big tech companies.
In this hypothetical Scenario, the Activist (Bill) has been invited by the organizers of a tech conference to Pitch his concerns. The press and senior executives will be there. Activist asks the Confidant (David) to preview his talk. Confidant is expected to raise helpful Concerns and Recommendations to improve the Pitch.
Truth Bowl 2019-08-02 How to Fix Education (Beta 2)
Posted: July 29, 2019 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: competition, debate, education, reform, truth Leave a commentFor our second “Truth Bowl Beta” we are pivoting away from a panel discussion towards more of a back-and-forth debate — but with a twist! Rather than judging the two Panelists (“Pitcher” and “Catcher”), the audience (“Fielders”) primarily focus on capturing and rating the most useful Insights that arise during the Bowl using www.slido.com
with the code #T361. As before, the Gospodar acts as moderator and timekeeper.
The Challenge Question will be something like “What single change would ensure education better promotes societal flourishing?” There are three phases: Pitch, Counter, and Reflect.
TB 2019-07-12-1500: The Purpose of Mass Education
Posted: July 2, 2019 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: competition, debate, education, politics, truth 1 CommentAround the world, we invest enormous quantities of Financial, Human, and Social Capital in education. Why? What do we hope to get from it? How can we measure that? Whom can we trust to give us honest answers, rather than merely promote a particular agenda?
In particular, is the purpose of higher education to:
1. Learn the hard technical skills necessary to land a job
2. Develop the soft “human” skills necessary for a meaningful career
3. Cultivate the habits of mind necessary for a fulfilling life
And if there is more than one purpose, how do we balance or integrate them in terms of curriculum and funding?
Truth Bowl: Beyond Polarized Debate
Posted: July 2, 2019 Filed under: Governance Reform | Tags: competition, debate, politics, truth 5 CommentsTruth Bowl is a structured dialogue, halfway between competitive debate and a panel discussion, designed to model and train people in “productive disagreement.” TRUTH is sometimes interpreted as the acronym “Teaching Respectful Understanding Through Hospitality.”
Two Panelists compete in front of a Jury to address a Challenge, composed of a Question and an Objective. Members of the Jury award panelists Points for clarity and thoughtfully addressing disagreements. At the end of each Round, the Jury rewards the panelist who most helped them comprehend the Challenge with the title “Domaĝanto” (Esperanto for “Question Tamer”).
Truth Bowl CQ 2019-03-20 Free Speech with Consequences
Posted: March 11, 2019 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: debate, education, philosophy, politics, protest 1 CommentChallenge Question for V2 of Truth Bowl (the ad hoc version)
You are a professor of philosophy at a large university. You’ve just received a panicky phone call from your former schoolmate Pat, the chair of humanities at a struggling liberal arts college out East. You vaguely remember hearing the school brought in an investment banker alum as president to pull off a turnaround. Pat informs you that said banker has invited a controversial book author to campus as a publicity stunt, and in one hour Pat is expected to face that author in some sort of debate.
Pat (and you) have never read the book or heard the author speak. However, many of your peers consider him a right-wing reactionary with the ear of Trump, who wants to abolish modern education and replace universities with some sort of theocratic communes. Previous invitations for him to speak at major universities have been rescinded due to outraged protests by students and faculties. That’s probably why this college president jumped at the chance to gain notoriety as the first school to host the author — and didn’t tell anyone until the last minute.
Several colleagues have urged Pat to quit and boycott the event, since it feels like a setup; better to be a martyr than risk legitimizing someone who seems both willing and able to destroy everything they stand for.
There isn’t much time. The only background material you have to go on is one relatively balanced book review.
Challenge Question: What advice would you give Pat, and why?
Options include (but are not limited to):
– Directly engaging with / critiquing (the ideas of) the author
– Proposing a debate format that would ensure Pat’s views get a fair hearing, despite the lack of preparation (Pat has enough authority to dictate the format, but not enough to escape the debate )
– Providing a clear rationale why it is Pat’s moral duty to boycott the event
Radical Centrism 