Replying to At's message LO25968:
AM de Lange writes:
> Here he {Polanyi} says that "we appear, unlike all other animals, to need
> a purpose that bears on eternity", ... "We must somehow learn to
> understand and so tolerate - not destroy - the free society" in which we
> can pursue "all those things that bear upon eternity." This is how this
> extraordinary book ends!
> How much are our societies free? Does "we must somehow learn to understand
> and so tolerate" not articulate sheer wisdom? Is it not a tenet like "to
> learn is to create" which are requisite to every Learning Organisation?
> Can a Learning Organisation persist or sustain itself if it has no bearing
> upon eternity? Does love-agape not encompass all which bear upon eternity?
This seems a good place to interject a variation of an old adage that
recently occurred to me: "The price of freedom is eternal learning."
(And I hope Thomas Jefferson would look kindly on the transformation.)
Also, it's probably a good place to re-quote GBS' thought on purpose in
life:
. This is the true joy of life.
. The being used for a purpose
. Recognized by yourself as a mighty one.
. The being a force of nature
. Instead of a feverish, selfish
. Little clod of ailments and grievances
. Complaining that the world will not
. Devote itself to making you happy.
. I am of the opinion that my life
. Belongs to the whole community
. And as long as I live,
. It is my privilege to do for it
. Whatever I can.
. I want to be thoroughly
. Used up when I die,
. For the harder I work the more I live.
. I rejoice in life for its own sake.
. Life is no brief candle to me.
. It is a sort of splendid torch
. Which I've got hold of
. For the moment
. And I want to make it burn
. As brightly as possible before
. Handing it on to future generations.
Best regards to fellow learners about knowledge,
Dwig
--Don Dwiggins <d.l.dwiggins@computer.org>
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