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much to-do about a calendar accident
Post #344 • August 12, 2004, 7:29 AM • 4 Comments
Today's the big day. 3 plus 6 is 9, a square, so I'm expecting major things this year. So is the New York Post:
You will get your way this year, of that there is no doubt at all. With the sun, your ruler, aspecting Pluto, planet of power, on your birthday, you will exude an air of authority and others will be wary of opposing you in word or in deed. Creatively and romantically, this will also be an important year. You will taste success on every level.
The Washington Post was more guarded but still positive:
You could find your self singled out as someone special, as these next weeks unfold. Family and romance seem to be capturing your attention. If you are trying to change your luck, seek new relationships now; but if you are with the right person, expect something special to celebrate your birthday and fervent demonstrations of love.
Astrocenter followed up the reports with this:
There is no person you could try to emulate who would be any more powerful and attractive than you are today, Franklin. You radiate success, and seem unstoppable in all areas of your life. You handle any sticky situations with ease, and your love life is especially fiery. Now is the time to focus your formidable powers on what you truly want in life. You may find yourself in places or situations you never dared dream of.
(Wow. I had no idea things were going that well.)
I believe we live in a universe that rewards nominal acts of free will, but that free will doesn't exist - all is the product of causation and conditioning. That's not cause for dispair - that means that life and everything in it is a gift, and this is as good of a place as any to say thank you.
2.
August 12, 2004, 6:58 PM
What, no free will? Don't you know god gave us just enough of it to make us think we are free? Didn't you get your itsy bitsy teeny weeny share? I mean, if there are two doors out of a room, don't you choose one over the other, all the while rejecting the windows?
3.
August 12, 2004, 7:22 PM
Thanks for the testimonial, Catherine. Franklin says he gets about 1200 hits a day, so there must be someone out there reading all this yak we generate. It's nice to hear about it. Franklin the Leo will be pleased with the praise, of course.
I have always had the feeling that free will vs. determinism is an artificial issue, but then I have my doubts about causality in general. These are things, like the much sought-after Unified Field Theory in Physics, that give you such a headache to think about that you begin to think that there is something wrong with the question.
4.
August 12, 2004, 9:16 PM
Franklin:
Happy Birthday, ZenDog. When Catherine and I saw an old favorite of ours -- Tala Matrix by Tabla Beat Science -- on your wish list, we said, "That's the one," so it's in the mail.
As for free will, let me shove my glasses right up against my nose and reccommend two of Daniel Dennett's books. The first has the very cool title Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting, from 1984. And, more recently, Freedom Evolves. Here's a blurb from the latter:
"Many think that in a deterministic world, there are no real options, only apparent options. This is false, according to Dennett. He investigates the way human culture has made possible the evolution of cooperation and ethical norms, and shows how our problems of self-control create self-deception and lead us into bargaining with our future selves, creating in the process the mature self that can take responsibility for its actions."
Didn't mean to get so heavy. I suppose I could have done otherwise . . .
Shalom,
Jerome
1.
Catherine King
August 12, 2004, 6:02 PM
Franklin,
Have a wonderful birthday and a great year. Thank you for your sensitive contributions to the Understanding of Art. This blog and Artsfeed are invaluable for someone who's trying to wrap their mind around the Art World.
Sincerely,
Catherine King