Mark, thank you for your reply (!)

The observations and challenges outlined by the research agendas on the
your Digital Life Center are the same challenges I have experienced in
attempting clinical psychological conceptualization of college student
mental health distress.  Without a shared understanding of history, and
without a clear, orienting direction we are moving towards, it is a greater
challenge to offer treatment with intellectual integrity.  What is
"causing" an individual's distress is deceptively complex given wide
variances in the multiplying, interacting, levels of analysis.

However, Gregg's Unified Theory allows us to take an ethological
perspective (which is vastly preferable to a purely laboratory perspective)
to make determinations about how human beings operate in general
(architecture of the human mind), and what they need to experience
well-being (e.g., nourishment, security, love and support, relational
value).  Thus there is a great amount of detail at the psychological level
in the Unified Theory that has felt necessary in divorcing "need versus
want" at the cultural level when offering interventions to clients.  Said
another way, the Unified Theory/Unified Approach is an operating system
that allows a clinician to quickly assess well-being considering a
phylogenetically understood hierarchy of needs, and then prioritization of
intervention based upon awareness of an individual's unique presentation in
socio-cultural, idiographic space-time.

It is one method by which the "humanness" can be authentically bridged
between two people from differing positions in the socio-cultural matrix.
This alliance is an essential part of effective therapeutic work.  If a
client is lost in a personal reality and trying to find their way back to
balance, it is invaluable that the trusted clinician can "be there" with
the client as accurately as possible in surveying the terrain to be
traveled to an ideal state (the ideal state is principle-based, with the
details filled in by the client's own history).

I have experienced significant, objective success using the Unified
Approach in my graduate training and internship with clients from many
different political perspectives and countries.  I am not a "global man" by
any stretch, and so I was indeed relying much on the Unified Theory.

*So what is the problem? *

Primarily, it has been the bi-directional shaping between culture and
technology.  My private search for help with this led me to McLuhan during
the 2016 year.  His lectures validated the importance I placed on these
questions, and yet it opened my eyes to a situation that was alarming in
its scope and its invisibility to many around me.  I myself felt exposed,
as if the ride I was on had stopped moving forward (and I suddenly realized
I was on a ride in the first place   (!))

So I could indeed help people repair at immediate and personal relational
levels of chaos, but anxiety caused by the uncertainty of existing in a
society moving in all different, non-linear direction was becoming, to me,
the salient issue we were all experiencing but could not talk about
effectively.  While the internet and social media have now offered us vast
narratives from which we try to determine "what's going down," the quaking
tectonics of this paradigm shift are primary in my awareness.

One of the hopes here, I believe, is that if we could begin to discuss
these issues coherently at the process level, we could orient others
towards an adaptive, pro-social frame of reality.  We are perhaps hoping to
advocate a perspective which we can override as many brown-eyes/blue-eyes
triggers as possible so that we can get our feet under us to clearly face
global issues that we seem to be behind on, and which we cannot focus on if
we are ever suspicious of our own neighbors and family.  Or, simply as a
means of understanding what paradigm we are currently living in so we can
adjust as quickly as possible.

Therefore, I am hopeful about the continued compatibility between the
Unified Theory and Marshal McLuhan, because there seems to be an
opportunity to model the human-environment interaction in a way that may
help protect our Western identities as we proceed forward with our internal
and global conflicts...

-Chance












On Wed, Aug 29, 2018 at 1:34 PM Mark Stahlman <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> Chance:
>
> Yes -- this is not the world we were told (by *television*) that we
> would be inheriting . . . !!
>
> I am in complete agreement with Gregg that what is happening today
> amounts to a "Fifth Joint Point" in our "evolution" -- *caused* by
> digital technology.  However, that transition is *not* the one that
> most have thought would take place -- which is why a fresh look at all
> this, as ToK provides, is very important.  Even mind-blowing.
>
> As a McLuhan scholar, it is my view that new *paradigms*, such as the
> one we are already occupying, mean new "mentalities."  Btw, this is
> also the view of Merlin Donald, whose work Gregg has carefully
> studied.  But this is not simply a sequence or progression.  Instead,
> there is an enormous amount of "retrieval" of our past that is also
> involved.  That is where McLuhan's Tetrad comes in (about which I run
> the Facebook group), as described in his "Laws of Media" (1988,
> posthumous.)
>
> The most recent -- but now obsolete -- ELECTRIC paradigm (say from c.
> 1850-2000) *retrieved* a period in human evolution that we would call
> "archaic" or, more specifically, "pre-literate."  Today it is common
> to call this "post-literate" by those who can only think in terms of
> "progress" but, as we should be able to observe, losing our capacity
> for literate thinking is not really "progress."  Among other things,
> it makes us more easily manipulated.  Thus "fake news."  And totally
> undermines "intellectual integrity."  Thus Trump.
>
> The new paradigm -- based on DIGITAL technology -- is different.  In
> particular, it "biases" us towards Memory (not Fantasy) and, as a
> result, my Center has the motto "Digital retrieves the Medieval."  We
> are convinced that means a "come-back" for Aristotle (who as also
> retrieved in the 13th-century), so we have been researching all this
> for a while -- leading to Jeff Martineau's LADS seminar this summer in
> which he taught 30+ people Aristotle's "On the Soul" (or, as it is
> more commonly called from the Latin, "De Anima.")
>
> If you go to Amazon and enter "neo-Aristotelian" in the search, you
> will find 20+ titles with that phrase.  Many more will come.  We think
> that this is a sign-of-the-times . . . <g>
>
> Mark
>
> Quoting Chance McDermott <[log in to unmask]>:
>
> > Chilling assessment, Mark.  It is painful to imagine a world that
> > re-commits to brown-eye/blue-eye, us/them cynicism.  Of course we are
> stuck
> > with that othering mechanism as human beings (for example, there are
> people
> > who understand that mechanism, and people who don't), and yet if we
> abandon
> > "family of man" as the stated goal, then we find ourselves in a
> significant
> > identity crisis.
> >
> > Do I understand correctly that this is part of the urgency in advocating
> a
> > Western identity based upon on Aristotle?
> >
> > -Chance
> >
> > On Wed, Aug 29, 2018 at 8:12 AM Mark Stahlman <[log in to unmask]>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> Tokers:
> >>
> >> While I can't vouch for all the details in this item, I can state from
> >> direct experience that two years ago the Chinese were rounding up
> Uighurs
> >> in Shanghai and "deporting" them to Xinjaing.  I actually saw it in
> action
> >> on the streets there.
> >>
> >> "Xinjiang is now a totalitarian police state of historic proportions —
> it
> >> is widely cited as one of the most heavily policed places in the world
> >> today. Public security budgets have skyrocketed and futuristic
> surveillance
> >> systems have been pioneered in the region. As a result, over 20 percent
> of
> >> all criminal arrests in China happens in Xinjiang, despite the fact that
> >> the region contains only 1.5 percent of the country’s population."
> >>
> >> "In the camps, officials seek to brainwash prisoners to disavow Islam
> and
> >> pledge loyalty to the Communist Party, and torture those who refuse."
> >>
> >> "Arbitrary detentions without charge or trial are the norm for prisoners
> >> in these camps, and ethnically Kazakh Muslims have been “disappeared” in
> >> large numbers along with Uyghurs. Common “crimes” are “viewing foreign
> >> websites, taking phone calls from relatives abroad, praying regularly or
> >> growing a beard.” The widespread use of arbitrary detention is also
> being
> >> used as a tool to force Uyghurs abroad into silence."
> >>
> >> <
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__supchina.com_2018_08_22_xinjiang-2Dexplainer-2Dchinas-2Dreeducation-2Dcamps-2Dfor-2Da-2Dmillion-2Dmuslims_&d=DwMBaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=X-RdbOknBVQKywj0rdYxyCTA_j7LUmVegoA_I0_HMlw&s=AhHCO_atxpDBQFarQtajUJpMF2fpK3eLp4xh0NrR3Ig&e=
> >
> >> About this website
> >> supchina.com
> >> China’s re-education camps for a million Muslims: What everyone needs to
> >> know
> >> <
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__supchina.com_2018_08_22_xinjiang-2Dexplainer-2Dchinas-2Dreeducation-2Dcamps-2Dfor-2Da-2Dmillion-2Dmuslims_&d=DwMBaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=X-RdbOknBVQKywj0rdYxyCTA_j7LUmVegoA_I0_HMlw&s=AhHCO_atxpDBQFarQtajUJpMF2fpK3eLp4xh0NrR3Ig&e=
> >
> >>
> >> Islam is *alphabetic* and, therefore, West, whereas the Chinese are
> >> *ideo/pictogrpahic* and, therefore, East.  These are two fundamentally
> >> different Cultures (capital "C") with fundamentally different language
> >> technologies at the root of their 2000+ year formation. As a result,
> Islam
> >> cannot survive in China.  Indeed, nothing "alphabetic" will survive.
> >>
> >> As some might have noticed, Marxism is *also* Western.  Accordingly,
> from
> >> 2004-2011 the Central Party School in Beijing -- where all CPC senior
> cadre
> >> are trained (modelled on the French ecole hierarchy) -- completely
> scrubbed
> >> Marxism of its Western traces and "Sinicized" it.  This past May, I was
> in
> >> Beijing at the 2nd World Congress on Marxism to personally observe the
> >> results.  The Western Marxists invited to attend were completely
> baffled at
> >> what had been done -- but happy for the free plane tickets.
> >>
> >> Now the CPS is teaching Confucius and Laotze to these cadres -- while
> also
> >> proclaiming publicly that it will win the "War of the Robots" . . . !!
> >>
> >>
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.amazon.com_AI-2DSuperpowers-2DChina-2DSilicon-2DValley_dp_132854639X&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=I7DEa5YxOdkJ7gJgGBvCaLsedEJVAF-yRsXg46rgKqc&s=rxD7nr7K3Ypx3eJyBfBXT4oWZsf5a-214o4fKNqAJDY&e=
> >>
> >> I was supposed to be back there a week ago but the CPC stopped my
> approval
> >> to discuss the "robot problem" with one of their researchers.  It isn't
> >> clear if I will be allowed to return.  Stories are circulating that "CIA
> >> collaborators" are being arrested and killed and I'm in their "system"
> as a
> >> "US spy."  Now it is being reported that it was the Chinese (not the
> >> Russians) who actually hacked the election (or at least Hilary's closet
> >> servers.)
> >>
> >> When Mao took over, many attempted to "simplify" the difficult Chinese
> >> writing system -- which is still foundational, as reflected in the
> general
> >> use of Chinese subtitles in Chinese movies, since the "accents" of many
> >> actors cannot be understood everywhere in China.  That simplification
> then
> >> led to the teaching of the alphabet to Chinese children, so that they
> could
> >> use it for the Pinyin representation of the language.  This is now the
> >> basis of Chinese use of Western technology, since smart-phones don't
> have
> >> "Chinese" keyboards.  Perhaps that will be the next target?
> >>
> >> There is no chance that China will allow itself to become a part of the
> >> "Global System" -- other than, as has now become headlines, to take
> >> advantage of it.  As anyone involved in science/technology at the
> >> graduate-level knows, many (if not most) of the accomplished students in
> >> these fields are Chinese.  In effect, our education system has become
> >> theirs.  No, that does not mean that China is becoming like us.  It
> means
> >> that they are "stealing" our ideas.
> >>
> >> This presents many problems, particularly in the field of national
> >> security.  This past Sunday's "60 Minutes" had a segment on two
> >> Chinese-Americans whose lives were upended on suspicions of them being
> >> Chinese spys.  The most recent National Security Strategy (NSS 2018)
> >> introduced the topic of "National Security Information Base" for the
> first
> >> time.  Everyone involved knows that China was the target.  Whatever else
> >> you might think about Trump, he inherited a front-row seat for a world
> in
> >> massive conflict (largely ignored by the press which is, instead,
> obsessed
> >> with eliminating him.)
> >>
> >>
> >>
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.whitehouse.gov_wp-2Dcontent_uploads_2017_12_NSS-2DFinal-2D12-2D18-2D2017-2D0905-2D2.pdf&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=I7DEa5YxOdkJ7gJgGBvCaLsedEJVAF-yRsXg46rgKqc&s=wdfc4pHJ60zKw0Yp-8mIL-km9YarrNrdDfyvAUd93uk&e=
> >>
> >> At the Center, we have concluded that their are *three* over-lapping
> >> "global operating systems": East, West and Digital.  The TELEVISION-era
> >> notion of "One World" is totally defunct.  Nobody takes the United
> Nations
> >> (or IMF/World Bank &c) seriously anymore.  We have added DIGITAL because
> >> that's now the driver for *all* Cultures (capital "C" and plural) --
> >> including the *new* one that wants to eliminate humanity (by
> "upgrading" it
> >> and "colonizing Mars.")
> >>
> >> Yes, as the Chinese saying goes, "May you live in interesting times" .
> . .
> >> <g>
> >>
> >> Mark
> >>
> >> P.S. In the late-70s (when I was in my late 20s), I invented what was
> then
> >> the world's most accurate (in terms of representing the language) Arabic
> >> wordprocessor.  It was called "The Diplomat."  I became an expert in
> Arabic
> >> calligraphy but never learned to speak or read the language.  NEC in
> Japan
> >> hired me to design wheels for their Spinwriter.  The Saudi government
> >> invited me to help them standarize Arabic for computers (i.e. the
> >> equivalent of ASCII).  I once spent $10,000 on a hotel bill in Riyadh,
> >> while drinking $100 Swiss grapejuice.  One Thanksgiving, I was almost
> >> killed on the highway to Dhahran (leading me to propose over the phone
> to
> >> the mother of my children.)
> >>
> >> As a result, I know a little about Islam.  What is happening now in
> China
> >> is, from their standpoint, the only thing they can do and they will be
> >> ruthless in carrying it out.  Any notion of there being a "family of
> man"
> >> should be re-examined.  It's only going to get worse, as Sam Huntington
> >> correctly predicted 30 years ago but, alas, since ELECTRICITY *formed*
> our
> >> elites, he was ignored.  "Globalism" is dead -- which is why Trump was
> >> elected.  The "World Order" has already been remade.  And, as they say,
> >> "Something's strange in the neighborhood! Who are you going to call?"
> >>
> >>
> >>
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.amazon.com_Clash-2DCivilizations-2DRemaking-2DWorld-2DOrder_dp_1451628978&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=I7DEa5YxOdkJ7gJgGBvCaLsedEJVAF-yRsXg46rgKqc&s=xbm8imdcJ9BaurooL0uoSVfKoa0Lsij1mZkh4qrBMho&e=
> >>
> >>
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