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It is this time of Dezember…and I am in an Internet Cafe from Thessaloniki, nice music, nice mouse pad. I see them as I could have imagined some other time. Is it a fake? This histeria, this obsession. It is a fake…the tradition is a fake. Because they don’t care about anything. And I am like them, I hate tradition. I just want to follow Foucault in the struggle of the care of the self. They understand literature as something contingent, something that today is, tomorrow probably not. I see it as a part of human being, I respect it. Don’t ask me how. They laugh when I say something serious, I laugh about their stupidity…prolonged stupidity. Fuck the snobbery? What is the difference between it and authenticity? Today, nobody knows! Only the inner side of the ball.

Winter Festivals

from wikipedia-so, you don’t have to look, it’s a resume

Why Christmas celebrations?-the early Church introduced them in order to entice the Roman pagans to convert to Christianity-Ishtar, Mithras and Sol Invictus had birthdays that were celebrated on 25th of December.

Roman Syncretised Celebrations: Saturnalia (time of general relaxation, feasting and merry-making, cessation of formal rules+ offering small gifts: (Saturnalia et Sigillaricia) small dolls for children and candles for adults). Catullus: Saturnalia was the best of the days(drinking, gambling, public nudity, slaves were feasting and the business postponed) Saturnalia honored the god Saturn and began on December 17. In the Republican period, it lenghtened 7 days (17-24 December), after that -in imperial times- it was shortened to five days.

Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (the birthday of the unconquered sun): Elah-Gabal (Syrian sun god); Sol (the god of emperor Aurelian); Mithras-soldier of Persian origin-The emperor Elagabalus (218-222) introduced the festival, and reached the height of its popularity under Aurelian, who promoted it as an empire-wide holiday.

Romans called the winter solstice bruma .

Pagan Scandinavia: Yule (late December, early January)-Yule logs were lit to honor the god Thor (god of thunder)-each spark from the fire represented a new pig or calf that would be born during the coming year-pagan Germania: mid-winter night (12 “wild nights” filled with eating, drinking and partying.

Power of Words?

it is about their emotional content…their emotional essence is shaped by their form…the meaning of the word in a distinctive context gives it power to generate a mood…not an emotion, because the emotion has an object…

for instance, powerful words within the area of management:

A
Abated Abbreviated Abolished Abridged Absolved Absorbed Accelerated Acclimated
Accompanied Accomplished Achieved Acquired Acted Activated Actuated Adapted
Added Addressed Adhered Adjusted Administered Admitted Adopted Advanced
Advertised Advised Advocated Affected Aided Aired Allocated Altered Amended
Amplified Analyzed Answered Anticipated Applied Appointed Appraised Approached
Approved Arbitrated Arranged Articulated Ascertained Asked Assembled Assessed
Assigned Assisted Assumed Attained Attracted Audited Augmented Authored Authorized
Automated Awarded

Balanced Bargained Began Benchmarked Benefited Bid Billed Blocked Bolstered Boosted
Borrowed Bought Branded Bridged Broadened Brought BudgetedBuilt

C
Calculated Canvassed Captured Cast Cataloged Catalogued Categorized Centralized
Chaired Challenged Changed Channeled Charted Checked Circulated Clarified Classified
Cleared Coached Co-authored Collaborated Collected Combined Commissioned
Committed Communicated Compiled Completed Complied Composed Computed
Conceived Conceptualized Condensed Conducted Conserved Consolidated
Constructed Consulted Contributed Controlled Converted Conveyed Convinced
Coordinated Corrected Counseled Created Critiqued Cultivated Customized Cut

D
Dealt Debated Debugged Decentralized Decreased Deferred Defined Delivered Demonstrated Depreciated Described Designated Designed Detected Determined
Developed Devised Diagnosed Directed Discovered Dispatched Dissembled Distinguished
Distributed Diversified Divested Doubled

E
Earned Eased Educated Effected Elicited Eliminated Emphasized Enabled Encouraged
Endorsed Enforced Engaged Engineered Enhanced Enlarged Enlisted Enriched Ensured
Established Examined Exceeded Exchanged Executed Exempted Expanded Expedited
Explored Exposed Extended Extracted

F
Fabricated Facilitated Fashioned Fielded Financed Focused Forecasted Formalized Formed Formulated Fortified Founded Fulfilled Furnished Furthered

G

Gained Gathered Gauged Generated Governed Graded Granted Greeted GroupedGuided

H
Handled Helped Hired Hosted

I
Identified Illuminated Illustrated Implemented Improved Improvised Inaugurated
Incorporated Increased Incurred Individualized Indoctrinated Induced Influenced
Initiated Innovated Inquired Inspected Inspired Installed Instigated Instilled
Instituted Instructed Insured Integrated Interacted Interpreted Intervened
Interviewed Introduced Invented Inventoried Invested Investigated Invited Involved
Isolated Issued

J
Joined Judged Justified

K
Kept

L
Launched Lectured Led Lightened Liquidated Litigated Lobbied Localized Located
Logged

M

Maintained Managed Mapped Marketed Maximized Measured Mediated Merchandised
Merged Minimized Modeled Moderated Modernized Modified Monitored Motivated
Moved Multiplied

N
Named Narrated Navigated Negotiated Netted Noticed Nurtured

O
Observed Obtained Offered Opened Operated Orchestrated Ordered Organized
Oriented Originated Overhauled Oversaw

P
Participated Patterned Performed Persuaded Phased Photographed Pinpointed
Pioneered Placed Planned Polled Prepared Presented Preserved Presided
Prevented Processed Procured Profiled Programmed Projected Promoted Prompted
Proposed Proved Provided Publicized Published Purchased Pursued

Q
Qualified Quantified Quoted

R
Raised Ranked Rated Received Recommended Reconciled Recorded Recovered Recruited
Rectified Redesigned Reduced Refined Regained Registered Regulated Rehabilitated Reinforced Reinstated Rejected Remedied Remodeled Renegotiated Reorganized Repaired Replaced Reported Represented Researched Resolved Responded Restored
Restructured Resulted Retained Retrieved Revamped Revealed Reversed Reviewed
Revised Revitalized Rewarded

S
Safeguarded Salvaged Saved Screened Secured Segmented Selected Separated Served
Serviced Settled Shaped Shortened Shrank Signed Simplified Simulated Sold Solicited
Solved Spearheaded Specialized Specified Speculated Spoke Spread Stabilized Staffed
Staged Standardized Steered Stimulated Strategized Streamlined Strengthened Stressed
Structured Studied Submitted Substantiated Substituted Suggested Superseded
Supervised Supplied Supported Surpassed Surveyed Synchronized Systematized

T
Tabulated Tailored Targeted Taught Tightened Took Traced Traded Trained Transacted
Transferred Transformed Translated Transmitted Transported Treated Tripled
Troubleshot Tutored

U
Uncovered Underlined Underscord Undertook Underwrote Unearthed Unified United
Updated Upgraded Urged Used Utilized

V
Validated Valued Verbalized Verified Viewed Visited Visualized Voiced Volunteered

W
Weathered Weighed Welcomed Widened Withstood Witnessed Won Worked Wrote

X
-

Y
Yielded

Z
-

What do these words have in common? It is easy: the relation between the number of the occurences of vowals and the number of the occurences of consonants is given by a ratio of 1, 2, 3, 4 (the difference between the two variables is of 1, 2, 3, or 4 letters).

Change the Key to Yourself

disdainfully I ‘ ve tried to step on corpses, my eyes are in trouble and horses

step on my knees, I jump through bombastic airplanes in which I feel the

beating of the blood within your second co-pilot heart that is the heart of the end

which never comes you still expect the lawyers of mind they don’t appear they’re like

shadows they want to spread and hopefully we’ll meet each other at the other

end where’s no seed in the earth, where’s no accomplished feeling in the pages of the

yellow books there where you are

sweeped so strange and where the birds don’t look too fancy

the birds eat the wolves

and we’re a family of random born children

The Possibility to Die

To kalokairi…I don’t have Greek fonts. To kalokairi I think about my death. It is not unusual. All the big writers wrote about death, why would I be an exception? I read only Emil Cioran, and his ecriture lacks ideas…he is only style. The style doesn’t make the ideas, the ideas make the style, but the style may lack ideas, it may be only play upon words. Ideas must be expressed with the help of some style, but the style may be only a typical structure.

Loipon…I don’t have Greek fonts. I say that existential problems are good only in one way: to realize that you’re very stupid. You know nothing about life! The existential thoughts that come to your mind are the most stupidest formulas of your existence. The truth is that they help you to constitute a “philosophical consciousness” (in Blaga’s terms, a forgotten Romanian philosopher). When you don’t have existential problems, your thinking is applied to usual “stuff”: your job, your studies, your …I don’t know. When you have existential problems, you are forced to think about the cause of them and if they are real. Maybe they are just disguised sentiments, a way in which these affects express.

The problem of Death is an old one and it is an immortal one. Why? Because we will NEVER know why we live (the question itself is absurd, it is the product of thinking, and thinking is SUBJECTIVE, so the problem is subjective, but even “problem” is the result of thinking, and even these words are the product of thinking). They offered various solutions: Kierkegaard, Cioran, Heidegger. There are solutions, but there are only speculations. There’s no empirical fact which can approve their statements. Thus, we have to be satisfied with these answers. Or not? Since there is no final true answer, why would we be? Because any question must have an answer, otherwise our life would be a nightmare.

I think we have different attitudes towards the problem of death because there’s no such thing as “after I die I do this and that”. After you die…you are not, that’s the unique empirical verified statement. And everything is finished. We are afraid or we ignor what we don’t know. And we don’t know afterdeath events. So, either we are ignorants, either we are afraid, or (like Socrates) we want to die faster, to explore what we don’t know. Maybe we are afraid of the possible, maybe we are used to everyday life and we don’t want different experiences. But the experience of death is the most powerful…and it is mandatory!!!

A Poem

Savage wounds have raped me and she was

singing as usual “La Marseillese” my friends hidden in the stripped hole of an old tree

spit.

Such a boundless head floating between lamps and all the lambs floating in wool that’s my

sleep she said and excuse me she said I must do some “Arbeit” but now it’s too late and

I’m sorry that your “Angst” is covered with boring thoughts and I’m

there.

I look at you, animal, see

and so difficult for me to separate the fingers of the tree

I had a surrealistic imagination but it was interrupted by this stupid flight when

nobody should talk to me like that, I’m nobody

you know that, you know that your “tapis” is stretched and sticks are stubbed in it

and all the tails were whirling inside the structure, the manifold nostrils of the hand

when I was touching you were breathing and it is true and you have to forgive me I’m a mistake you know please give me a ”cocarda” and let me leave in a peace who doesn’t contradict the war let me be ironic for once in a liiiiiifetime I’m supervenient on your rouge lips

forgive me and pray to insects…they should know our secret, my small Confidence. 

To Believe

I read something today: in order to have intentions, you must possess desires and beliefs. But if you don’t believe in anything? Well, that’s a problem. But that’s not true! You always believe in something: when you go from your school to your house, you believe that your house is located somewhere in the city. If you don’t believe this, you cannot go there. Thus, you believe in something. But when people say that they don’t believe in anything, they refer to supernatural creatures. They refer to God or to, let’s say, unconsciousness (objective chance), they refer to them by saying that “I believe in this or that”. Why? They need a superior being to have power over their lifes, and in this way they are not afraid of their stupidity, of their inability to find answers to existential questions. Anyway, it is the comfort of the people who need to feel safety. I believe in God as objective chance! When I see coincidence, I say, like them: it is God’s hands. But is it? You grow up, your intelligence can be more powerful, and you are tempted not to believe in God. But to believe in God is to be able to find more sense than others in all the circumstances. That doesn’t mean that you say “it is God’s hand” for everything. God it’s a name for something that happens in your favour (the coincidences that fit your desires). I don’t believe in a simple name, I believe in the name as a power to signify something real!!!!

The Development of Analytic Philosophy

1. Positivism: there are no specifically philosophical truths, the object of philosophy is the logical clarification of thoughts (contrast with foundationalism, deriving from Aristotle-it holds that philosophy is a special sort of science, the highest one, that investigates the fundamentals of reasons and principles of everything-the inquiries are continous or subordinate to those of the natural sciences)

2. The logical clarification of thoughts can only be achieved by analysis of the logical form of the philosophical propositions-logical form of a proposition: way of representing it to display the similarity with all other propositions of the same type

3. Rejecting philosophical systems, paying attention to the details-defence of common sense and ordinary language against the pretensions of metaphysics

Russell and G.E. Moore-rejecting Hegelianism; Post-war analytic philosophers: rejection of formal analysis in favour of a close examination of natural language, inquiry in the underpinning of the language, interest in the ethical implications of the analytic method.

Formalism: understand logic by making use of formal logic(formalize the way in which philosophical propositions are made-symbolic logic-role of sense and reference in the construction of meaning-logical terms are universal and separate from contingent factors). Natural language: how do we understand philosophical ideas, given this language? Emphasis on the importance of common sense in dealing with difficult concepts.

Origin: Gottlob Frege’s development of predicate logic. Wittgenstein: the world consists of certain states of affairs and these states of affairs can be expressed in the language of first-order predicate logic-a picture of the world can be built up by expressing atomic facts in atomic propositions, and linking them using logical operators. (5.6 The limits of the language mean the limits of my world. -Ludwig Wittgenstein, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus)=quietism (if the language is used clearly, philosophical problems are found to dissolve)

Continental Philosophy

Characteristic of continental philosophy:

1. reject of the scientism (the view that natural sciences are the best way to understand the phenomena-science depends upon the “pre-theoretical substrate of experience”-conditions of experience in a kantian sense)

2. the mentioned conditions are variable, being determined by : context, space and time, culture, history (tends to historicism)

3. conscious human beings can change the conditions of possible experience-the unity of theory and practice(the philosophers have interpreted the world in manifold ways, to change it)

4. emphasis on metaphilosophy -redefine the methods and the nature of philosophy

5. the nature of knowledge and experience is bound by conditions that are not directly accesible to empirical inquiry

John Stuart Mill-contrasts the Kantian-influenced thought of “Continental-philosophy” and “Continental philosophers” with the English empiricism of Bentham and the 18th century

Continental philosophers:  Brentano, Husserl, Reinach (phenomenologists of the 19th century) ; Jean-Paul Sartre (existentialism); Derrida, Foucault, Lyotard (structuralism)

aphrodisia

The “aphrodisia” were the “oeuvres” of Aphrodite. The concept of “aphrodisia” was to design the acts that produce, in one way or another, a form of pleasure (in the age of Plato and Socrates). Foucault says that questioning the sexuality means questioning those who are the protagonists of sexual acts (and you do not judge the form of the sexual act, but the intensity of it-the consequence of this is given by “temperance”-from sexual problematics to a way of life: moral). Analysing the sexual experiences, starting a historical approach of these experiences, Foucault tries to discover the moral aspects covered by these.

In the platonic age, temperance (sophrosyne) involved self-control (because excess meant the presence of something beyond the requisite amount). Freedom comes from the government of the self. Not like the Christian doctrine, it doesn’t deal with interdictions (just “une mise en garde contre certains actes” -see http://www.paris-philo.com/article-4168029.html). More, “La réflexion morale des Grecs sur le comportement sexuel n’a pas cherché à justifier des interdits mais à styliser une liberté.”

The most important thing is the life style. Loving boys is caused by the fact that the moral reflection involved avoiding everything that could stand for passivity or excess (women, children, slaves)- to refuse the carnal relation. The care of the self is determined by the art of couple-life.

The major principle: individual autonomy.