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Pathways: An open-source study and exploration. (Paths and Shrapnel)

Started by AFK, July 03, 2007, 02:39:40 PM

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AFK

Pathways and Shrapnel: An open-source study and exploration.



Birth and Death are 100% Grade A Certainties (oh yeah taxes too, or so the saying goes). The only questions seem to be around matters of when and how. We know we emerge from our Mother, in some fashion, and then return to the Earth at some undetermined place and time. But we know it WILL happen.

We burst into the world at Point A, birth. Or sometimes we have to be pulled out depending on our level of infantile stubbornness. Immediately we set foot at the beginning of a Path. It is one of many Paths that eventually lead to Point B. At Point B we may exit in a brilliant flash of flame and sound. One of our vital life-sustaining mechanisms may crap out. Or perhaps someone will bring a bloody war to our land and we die in a house to house cleansing. Of course, it also might be something as unceremonious as having a heart-attack in the middle of a massive bowel movement. But hey, shit happens right?

In any event, we have before us a series of roads to take to get to Point B. Of course, as young infants we really don't have a clear concept of Point B, so it initially doesn't really inform our Path. Well, there are natural fight or flight responses like "Feed Me." But it's really focused more around infantile narcissm than it is any actual fear of starving to death. Indeed, as kiddos we see that damn Coyote fall off the cliff a zillion times and he keeps on breathing. So the worst that might happen to us is we turn into an accordion for a few seconds. As we grow, however, we establish more control and more responsibility for our own orienteering. At every step of the way (or maybe it's every other step, I'm not entirely sure. It would be quite a feat if anyone figured it out), it seems, there is a new turn that can be taken; left, right, left-right. Which do we choose? Why do we choose? Are we even aware of it?

Along the paths there is another phenomenon that is occuring. As we are walking our Paths, and deciding where to go (whether through instince, deliberate thought process, because someone told us so), we are subjected to, and subjecting others to, Shrapnel.



Shrapnel are the bits of experience, events, ideas, and so on that are flying around as we walk the Paths. It's as though there are roadside bombs that are in a continuous state of detination. For example, we walk along the path as a young child, and at a certain point, we are subjected to Religious Shrapnel. Whether or not to follow our parents' deities? Whether or not to NOT follow deities? Whether or not to follow a deity different from our family's? Whether or not I'll burn in hell if I don't eat the cracker? As we are approaching the age of 18, we experience Shrapnel from education and career. Guidance counselors are asking you if you want to attend the college fairs. Your Dad is asking you if you are going to that ivy-league college he did. Or perhaps your Mom runs a flower shop and is expecting you to take over. After all, it is called Me and My Daughter's Blooms. But do you really want to peddle flowers the rest of your life?

There are, of course many, many other examples of Shrapnel. Also. it is important to understand that we aren't passive bystanders in all of this. We too are part of the Shrapnel creating process. When we become parents we subject our children to expectations, wishes, and wants for their lives. (If all parents' wishes for their children actually came true, we'd be living in a world comprised solely of Doctors and Lawyers. You'd never be able to get onto a golf course.) As neighbors, we may be part of a collective attitude about how people's houses and yards should look. (Oh look, Sanderson is putting out another fucking Pink Flamingo. And gosh, it looks like it is fellating the Garden Gnome! Gasp!) As members of Political Party X, we put signs in our yard saying, vote for Rudy Obama. We are throwing out just as much as others are throwing at us.

Do not be disillusioned about Shrapnel. It isn't all bad. There is the Shrapnel of Art and Creativity. Walking by a park and seeing some folks drumming and creating music. (Drum Circles aren't just for hippies anymore.) The infective beat that is travelling across the air, that mandates that you move and groove. The lady down the road who is a brilliant artist, displaying her work at the local Sidewalk Art Exhibit. There is the Shrapnel of Happy Childlike Anarchy. Your little girl acting like a goon, and you can't help but to want to play along. Experiencing the joy in improvisational imagination and going with the flow. This is the sort of Shrapnel you WANT embedded in your flesh. For it too will inform your path. And besides, when you ARE strolling on your path, wouldn't it be more enjoyable if you were doing a little jig along the way, while whistling a fun little tune? Whistle while you walk. It seemed to do the trick for the Dwarvish 7.

So what to take away from this? Well, first off, make sure you read the other observations of Shrapnel. And then, take a few minutes and think about your path. Think about where you've been, who've you encountered, what you put in your mouth (ewww, you did that?), and how've you navigated life thus far. As you think of the different experiences you've had, think of what might have happened if you hadn't had those experiences. Caution: the point isn't to think about how you could re-write your life. That part's done, no good to dwell on it. But, how can you use this perspective going forward? What kind of mental armor can you obtain to shield you from that which may blow you off course? What kind of mechanisms can you construct to welcome in those things in this world which may benefit you? Or better yet, how can you have more bearing on your bearings?

Because seriously, you know Point B is coming soon. Why not make it one hell of a ride?


The preceding is one man's take.  Please to be expanding and contracting on this idea.  Relating to the subject matter, while we are all in this one place together, we've all come from different places.  This can work to our advantage as we work this stuff out.  
Cynicism is a blank check for failure.

Payne

An excerpt from uncollated notes. It may ramble a bit, and I've yet to really figure out exactly where I'm going with this. (As I may have mentioned in another thread)
These are taken from a notepad full of Notes entitled 'The building blocks of bullshit'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We are products of time. Time is (fortunately) One-Way only, in this universe, at least for us. It stops everything happening at once, and it preserves SOME sense of mystery in the future.

Some of us can 'see' things happening before they happen, but this is generally a function of  experience- knowing that based on previous encounters with situations, we can predict, given enough parameters, that a similar situation may arise, solely on what we observe as a new event develops.

Given this,the capacity to predict outcomes, allied to the element of surprise, can allow us to deal with meeting new people, contemplating new ideas or crossing an unusually busy street, without it becoming everyday and mundane or frighteningly overwhelming.

The people we know have connections to us, of many types and combinations. It is often impossible to seperate a parents love from a their desire to raise an obedient, socially accepted child.

We all have a good childhood. We all have a bad childhood.

There is a comforting, yet limiting, factor in existing relationships with people and things. We usually know a true friend from a hostile enemy, yet we can often be hurt most by those we love, or we can receive the greatest charity from those we fear.

Time develops these relationships, and because they can (and do) limit us, they guide our lives from A to B. In a universe of seemingly random events, the smallest decision can have the greatest consequences.

Right Place/ Wrong Place at the Wrong Time/ Right Time, or any other combination. And often due to unforseen circumstances arising from the smallest decisions.

To begin to forge your OWN path from A to B, you must begin to take control of the connections in your relationships. There are many choices here, and none have guaranteed outcomes. You may decide to take a direct approach, bulldoze your way through limiting factors, and still end up on the scenic route, miles from 'civilisation'.

Ultimately, any effect you may undertake upon your journey will be limited by TIME, by developing relationships, by random elements. But still if you can identify these limitations, you have the advantage of knowing what you're looking at. And knowledge is power. Or knowledge is an appreciation of art....

I forget.

Cramulus

clarify:

so basically the 'shrapnel' model posits that we're under constant bombardment by shrapnel - bits of meaning and symbols exploded from other nearby points (such as religion, the media, all those things on your diagram). Exposure to these bits causes our path to change - sometimes towards it, sometimes away from it. We too are in a constant state of explosion, projecting shrapnel into others paths


is that what you're going for, Rev?

Forteetu

Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on July 03, 2007, 02:39:40 PM
Point A and Point B are 100% certified Grade, er, A Certainties.  The only questions seem to be a matter of when and how. 

Interesting discourse, kind of an updated "War in Iraq" colored version of the discussion on Dharma and Karma.

I like the shrapnel (karma) concept, although I think I'd prefer to be a guided missle than a roadside IED. Having a rocket powered ass is way sexier than a couple of rusty old mortar shells stuffed up the back end of a VW van.

On the journey from point A to B ... what concept of those being the same place?
WOMP'd


Episkopos of the Discordian Society

http://42.dia.net.au - Forteetu

Darth Cupcake

RWHN and Payne -- I really, really dig both of these posts.

The shrapnel thing as expounded by RWHN in the opener is kind of what I was getting at with my ripples thing a while back. What we do is not limited to our own bubble. We project things outward. Like the whole "a butterfly flapping its wings can start a monsoon in India" sort of concept, except a little less stretched. More of the thought that the actions you take are going to have equal and opposite reactions as kinetic energy is transferred through a system. We don't live in closed systems, so when I "shove," something is going to either "shove back" or "get shoved." Insert whatever you want to replace shove.

I think I like a mixture of shrapnel and ripples--because some things we do are more like ripples. For example, how I treat the people around me is less shrapnel but more of a constant outward ripple. Whereas when I hand off my novella to someone, as I'm going to do this afternoon, that's shrapnel. Or the post-it notes I leave with little messages in strange places, that's shrapnel. Someone who overhears me screaming obscenities/bizarre statements when I'm marauding through the streets is receiving shrapnel. Whereas my friend who is marauding alongside me is receiving more ripples, in that it's constant.

Does that make sense?

I think I'm diverging a little from where this started/was going. Sorry about that.

Payne, I really dig your response, and I want to say things directly to it, but I'm having a retardedly busy day at work (only a half day, yet I have tons of crap to do; wtf? :x ) so I will get to that later, I hope.
Be the trouble you want to see in the world.

AFK

Quote from: Professor Cramulus on July 03, 2007, 04:07:10 PM
clarify:

so basically the 'shrapnel' model posits that we're under constant bombardment by shrapnel - bits of meaning and symbols exploded from other nearby points (such as religion, the media, all those things on your diagram). Exposure to these bits causes our path to change - sometimes towards it, sometimes away from it. We too are in a constant state of explosion, projecting shrapnel into others paths


is that what you're going for, Rev?

Partly yes.  Though for clarification I should point out to all that my diagram was never meant to be "it".  In other words, I fully recognize and expect there are things I've missed. 

Yes, I think we are constantly being subjected to micro and macro events that can alter where we go on our paths.  In some cases it may me one monumental event, say 9/11 for anyone who survived or was personally affected by that event.  It may have caused someone to start drinking.  It may have caused someone to stop drinking.  It may have helped someone find their religion, (which they may later foist upon someone else or not), it may have caused someone to lose their religion. 

The flip of that is all of the tiny "little things."  Perhaps consistent exposure to second-hand smoke leads to some sort of ailment.  Perhaps consistent exposure to Prescripton Drug ads desensetizes a teenager to the dangers of the drugs and so when he sees some pills at a party, he doesn't think twice before popping one. 

Again, I want to point out that I don't see Shrapnel, the continuous detinatoins being a negative, by definition.  I use Shrapnel because it conjures the images of little bits of "stuff" flying in various directions.  It iconifies how their can be different kinds of bits. 

So to make a long answer short, yes partly.  I'm still exploring this myself. 
Cynicism is a blank check for failure.

tyrannosaurus vex

Sometimes you open a can of worms.  And sometimes, you open a factory that produces cans of worms.

My question is, how do you distinguish between "shrapnel" and your own will?  Even the idea that this shrapnel has to potential to decide your journey, is shrapnel itself.  Payne's point about taking control of your connections is an important one; I think it's important to realize that at the end of the day, we're all on different paths that lead to the same destination, that the destination is already a given and so should be taken out of the equation as a consideration for which path to choose.

How you get there and when you get there is a function of a lot of things; according to Murphy's Law, it will be at the most inopportune moment, regardless of the choices you've made.  Perhaps it is for that reason that those who are prepared to die tend to live longer, on average.

This concept of constant bombardment by shrapnel is, I think, something most people have some awareness of.  Many people are afraid of going into uncharted intellectual territory so they don the full-body-armor of ignorance and piety; other people are so unaware of themselves that they actively seek lanmines because being pushed along by the inertia of others is their only form of locomotion.

This is also similar to an idea I've been tinkering with for a while which I hope to be able to write about soon.  It'll be interesting to see how this develops, anyway.
Evil and Unfeeling Arse-Flenser From The City of the Damned.

AFK

Quote from: Darth Cupcake on July 03, 2007, 04:31:28 PM
RWHN and Payne -- I really, really dig both of these posts.

The shrapnel thing as expounded by RWHN in the opener is kind of what I was getting at with my ripples thing a while back. What we do is not limited to our own bubble. We project things outward. Like the whole "a butterfly flapping its wings can start a monsoon in India" sort of concept, except a little less stretched. More of the thought that the actions you take are going to have equal and opposite reactions as kinetic energy is transferred through a system. We don't live in closed systems, so when I "shove," something is going to either "shove back" or "get shoved." Insert whatever you want to replace shove.

I think I like a mixture of shrapnel and ripples--because some things we do are more like ripples. For example, how I treat the people around me is less shrapnel but more of a constant outward ripple. Whereas when I hand off my novella to someone, as I'm going to do this afternoon, that's shrapnel. Or the post-it notes I leave with little messages in strange places, that's shrapnel. Someone who overhears me screaming obscenities/bizarre statements when I'm marauding through the streets is receiving shrapnel. Whereas my friend who is marauding alongside me is receiving more ripples, in that it's constant.

Does that make sense?

I think I'm diverging a little from where this started/was going. Sorry about that.

Payne, I really dig your response, and I want to say things directly to it, but I'm having a retardedly busy day at work (only a half day, yet I have tons of crap to do; wtf? :x ) so I will get to that later, I hope.

No, it's cool.  That's why I called it an open-source study.  I fully expected, and hoped, people would dive in and tag their takes onto it.  I'm just one dope looking at all of this and it's good to get more hands in the muck.  

The ripple thing makes sense too.  More fluid, signifying a more undulating consistent exposure to something.  And then perhaps an event is a bigger wave that knocks you off course.  Or perhaps knocks you on to a better course.  Anyway, I have more thoughts brewing about this stuff as I hinted at, but I'll knock it out in a separate post, though probably not today.  Anyway thanks for adding your take onto this and by all means have at it.  If it gets the juices flowing again I'm all for it.  
Cynicism is a blank check for failure.

Payne

Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on July 03, 2007, 05:46:07 PM

Partly yes.  Though for clarification I should point out to all that my diagram was never meant to be "it".  In other words, I fully recognize and expect there are things I've missed. 

Yes, I think we are constantly being subjected to micro and macro events that can alter where we go on our paths.  In some cases it may me one monumental event, say 9/11 for anyone who survived or was personally affected by that event.  It may have caused someone to start drinking.  It may have caused someone to stop drinking.  It may have helped someone find their religion, (which they may later foist upon someone else or not), it may have caused someone to lose their religion. 

The flip of that is all of the tiny "little things."  Perhaps consistent exposure to second-hand smoke leads to some sort of ailment.  Perhaps consistent exposure to Prescripton Drug ads desensetizes a teenager to the dangers of the drugs and so when he sees some pills at a party, he doesn't think twice before popping one. 

Again, I want to point out that I don't see Shrapnel, the continuous detinatoins being a negative, by definition.  I use Shrapnel because it conjures the images of little bits of "stuff" flying in various directions.  It iconifies how their can be different kinds of bits. 

So to make a long answer short, yes partly.  I'm still exploring this myself. 

I found that there are few alternatives at this time, besides shrapnel. As I said, I've made copious jottings of my own thoughts on the subject.

For a while, I was thinking of drawing paralells to the sun, which is basically a continuous explosion, which throws out various particles and waves. These are dangerous, but also necessary. Can't turn it into a snappy metaphor though...

Mangrove

seems that one person's shrapnel is another person's ripple.

RWHN - it's good that you're trying to open up a new front of discussion. the BIP metaphor seems to have reached a certain maturity as far as we can tell right now.

although i did wonder if 'shrapnel' is something that we throw between the bars from one cell to another. that is, interpersonally - though maybe it could happen internally also.

i need to mull this over some more, but i'm really pleased that we've got some new material to play around with.  :D
What makes it so? Making it so is what makes it so.

Mangrove

Quote from: Payne on July 03, 2007, 05:53:45 PM
Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on July 03, 2007, 05:46:07 PM

Partly yes.  Though for clarification I should point out to all that my diagram was never meant to be "it".  In other words, I fully recognize and expect there are things I've missed. 

Yes, I think we are constantly being subjected to micro and macro events that can alter where we go on our paths.  In some cases it may me one monumental event, say 9/11 for anyone who survived or was personally affected by that event.  It may have caused someone to start drinking.  It may have caused someone to stop drinking.  It may have helped someone find their religion, (which they may later foist upon someone else or not), it may have caused someone to lose their religion. 

The flip of that is all of the tiny "little things."  Perhaps consistent exposure to second-hand smoke leads to some sort of ailment.  Perhaps consistent exposure to Prescripton Drug ads desensetizes a teenager to the dangers of the drugs and so when he sees some pills at a party, he doesn't think twice before popping one. 

Again, I want to point out that I don't see Shrapnel, the continuous detinatoins being a negative, by definition.  I use Shrapnel because it conjures the images of little bits of "stuff" flying in various directions.  It iconifies how their can be different kinds of bits. 

So to make a long answer short, yes partly.  I'm still exploring this myself. 

I found that there are few alternatives at this time, besides shrapnel. As I said, I've made copious jottings of my own thoughts on the subject.

For a while, I was thinking of drawing paralells to the sun, which is basically a continuous explosion, which throws out various particles and waves. These are dangerous, but also necessary. Can't turn it into a snappy metaphor though...


i'm intrigued.
What makes it so? Making it so is what makes it so.

AFK

Quote from: vexati0n on July 03, 2007, 05:49:20 PM
Sometimes you open a can of worms.  And sometimes, you open a factory that produces cans of worms.

My question is, how do you distinguish between "shrapnel" and your own will?  Even the idea that this shrapnel has to potential to decide your journey, is shrapnel itself.  Payne's point about taking control of your connections is an important one; I think it's important to realize that at the end of the day, we're all on different paths that lead to the same destination, that the destination is already a given and so should be taken out of the equation as a consideration for which path to choose.

Good points.  I was visualizing shrapnel as the thing that you are being subjected to.  But you are right, how one reacts to the stimuli could be considered "shrapnel" too.  Or perhaps, the personal and/or biochemical response is "shrapnel."?  And I absolutely agree with the last part, except, it seems there are so many who are so afraid of Point B that it does affect their paths.  Especially when it comes to religion, politics, things like that.  

QuoteThis concept of constant bombardment by shrapnel is, I think, something most people have some awareness of.  Many people are afraid of going into uncharted intellectual territory so they don the full-body-armor of ignorance and piety; other people are so unaware of themselves that they actively seek lanmines because being pushed along by the inertia of others is their only form of locomotion.

I agree.  I think most people are aware of different forces in nature, society, etc. that they are being subjected to.  But I wonder how many really understand how different decisions alters where they go in life?  Taken separately, things can seem insignificant.  But when you start lining choices and decisions up...but I suppose hindisight and watching from afar has unfair advantages.  

Cynicism is a blank check for failure.

Cramulus

just trying to wrap my head around the idea--

I'm not sure how this model is useful. Are you basically just saying "shit happens"? or more accurately, "shit happens at you"?

To draw a parallel between Shrapnel and the BIP - the important thing would be realizing that all this shrapnel is influencing you and choosing which shrapnel to be influenced by.

For concreteness of metaphor, I'm not sure why every meme is a little exploding bit. In visualizing your above example, I picture a child running towards old age and death and explosions are going off all around him. These explosions are throwing out little churches and commercials and memories and bits of metal, causing him to duck and dodge and weave. He gets hit by a lot of them, and it changes how he runs.


It sounds like my relationship with my father (for example) is an important piece of shrapnel which then projects more shrapnel. --but it's not a singular event which could be likened to an explosion, it's more of an undercurrent which influences lots of things.

So then all of society is a series of explosions and constant chaos. And as we do anything we're sending more shrapnel out everywhere.


am I reading it right?

AFK

Quote from: Mangrove on July 03, 2007, 05:57:41 PM
seems that one person's shrapnel is another person's ripple.

RWHN - it's good that you're trying to open up a new front of discussion. the BIP metaphor seems to have reached a certain maturity as far as we can tell right now.

although i did wonder if 'shrapnel' is something that we throw between the bars from one cell to another. that is, interpersonally - though maybe it could happen internally also.

i need to mull this over some more, but i'm really pleased that we've got some new material to play around with.  :D

Yeah, I'm just trying to throw some shit on the wall and see what sticks and what stinks.  And you're right, we're all going to see this in a different way.  I'm sure we'll come up with something better and more appropriate than Shrapnel.  Maybe I watched too much A-team as a kid and that's why I'm visualizing it the way I am.  

One pitfall of the Shrapnel concept, from a visual perspective, that I'll own up to right away is that it implies that there is some sort of centralized locus from which things are exploding.  I realize that is troublesome for this metaphorical idea and I'm trying to think that one through.  
Cynicism is a blank check for failure.

AFK

Quote from: Professor Cramulus on July 03, 2007, 06:03:51 PM
just trying to wrap my head around the idea--

I'm not sure how this model is useful. Are you basically just saying "shit happens"? or more accurately, "shit happens at you"?

To draw a parallel between Shrapnel and the BIP - the important thing would be realizing that all this shrapnel is influencing you and choosing which shrapnel to be influenced by.

For concreteness of metaphor, I'm not sure why every meme is a little exploding bit. In visualizing your above example, I picture a child running towards old age and death and explosions are going off all around him. These explosions are throwing out little churches and commercials and memories and bits of metal, causing him to duck and dodge and weave. He gets hit by a lot of them, and it changes how he runs.


It sounds like my relationship with my father (for example) is an important piece of shrapnel which then projects more shrapnel. --but it's not a singular event which could be likened to an explosion, it's more of an undercurrent which influences lots of things.

So then all of society is a series of explosions and constant chaos. And as we do anything we're sending more shrapnel out everywhere.


am I reading it right?

Eh, you're partly pointing out one of the problems with the model which I just revealed.  The explosion part.  Shrapnel suggests a central locus of explosion.  I recognize that this murks it up.  I need to work this through more. 

Another pitfall I can see with this is when does stuff stop being Shrapnel.  Isn't everything shrapnel? 

I guess I was thinking of the dynamic answer to the BIP.  The BIP is made up of bars and cells, surroundings.  It's a good metaphor and one I still like, but it seems like there is stuff that happens that affects those bars and how they are made up. 

That's whay I'm trying to explore.  It may well be that this Shrapnel idea is bunk.  At least, the way I am conceptualizing it.  I think Darth's idea of ripples is very pertinent. 

Another thing I'm trying to address with this exploration is the go-with-the-flow types, which I theorize to be a large portion of the populous.  People not realizing why they are on the paths that they are.  And never stopping to question or to check out the scenery or to check their orientation.  It's this kind of thing I'm delving into.  It may be that Shrapnel was not the best starting point. 
Cynicism is a blank check for failure.