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Frank Boettcher
 
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Default The main problem with is group - an essay*.

On Fri, 4 Nov 2005 10:51:58 -0500, Capt. NealŪ
wrote:

Dear Group,

As I see it, the main problem with alt.sailing.asa is
subscribers are not capable of rational thinking
with the exception of a couple of people. Of course,
I am the ultimate rational thinker and then there's
Bob Crantz who is a close second.

Allow me to explain to you so-called sailors why
rational thinking is important to sailors and to
everyone else, for that matter but unattainable
to most of you.

First, in order to understand rational thinking, one
must understand what thinking is. Thinking is a
matter of memory. One uses stored memories when
one thinks. The more accurately one recalls stored
memories the more accurate will be one's thinking.

In order to recall memories accurately one must
experience the makings of memory accurately. This
is where the majority of you fail. It's obvious
that most of you are not capable of objectively
experiencing and understanding what you read and
this leads to inaccurate memories which then leads
to inaccurate thinking.

What do we mean by memory? There are two types
of memory - factual and psychological. Factual
memory consists of recalling various facts and
technical knowledge while psychological memory
involves positive or negative experiences that
affect the way the "me" experiences the world.

These two types of memory are always intertwined.
As a general rule one tends to retain pleasant
memories and one tends to forget the unpleasant.
This applies to the technical as well as the
psychological. If one "hates" math, for example, then
math is forgotten because math is unpleasant. But
please carefully consider how, no matter the content,
memory is old.

Mind is memory and thus mind is founded upon the
past. Mind exists in the present only via past memories.
Mind can do no more than that because without
memories there is no thought process at all (no mind).

So, it follows that we meet life and new challenges
with memory. The challenge is always new and the
response always old. Thus memory is a hindrance
to experiencing what actually is as memory taints
the "what is" with the "what has been".

So, try as we might, most of us cannot see the present
as the present really is. (Other than myself and the
aforementioned Bob Crantz, that is.)

This failure to see the present as it really is causes
this group to remain dysfunctional because that
which is discussed is the "pretend present" and not
the actual present. The pretend present is a function
of the "me" and the "mine" and the "me" and the "mine"
is defined by memory. Consequently, anything discussed
here is a rehash of the past so there is nothing new to
be learned. Calling this gathering place a "news" group
is labeling it incorrectly. It's an "olds" group.

The question then becomes, "Why bother reading and
posting here?" The answer is simple. Reading and posting
here is repetition of memories and comfortable but
anybody who actually expects to learn something new
here is guilty of faulty thinking and is experiencing
stagnation.

Now, I realize I've lost most of my readers many
paragraphs ago because those readers, because of
faulty memories, cannot follow a logical and factual
sequence. But it doesn't matter because this essay is
written for the one or two whose minds might be
capable of breaking free from the restraints of
memory thinking and emerging into "what is" thinking
which is present thought without hindrance of
memory. It can be done. I am living proof.

I hope this helps.

CN

*Inspired by the teachings of J. Krishnamurti



Why thank you Capt Neal. While certainly off topic, a splendid
respite from RB's incessant puppet show.

Frank