Zompist Bboard Again

hwhatting wrote: ↑Mon Oct 18, 2021 7:46 am

kodé wrote: ↑Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:43 pm While I did think Sal was in the wrong on that occasion, I’m still really bummed that he’s gone. I always like him.

Same here. Even when he was wrong, he added depth to discussions, and I liked his dispatches on British politics.

fusijui wrote: ↑Tue Oct 19, 2021 4:18 pm I'll always remember Sal from when I was invited to join the then-forming Language Creation's Society officers/board of directors (on the strength of being a nonprofit foundation manager rather than conlanging chops I assume). In the BOD's very first meeting, the very first programmatic topic was a proposal by Sal to use the LCS to defraud another company.

zompist wrote: ↑Tue Oct 19, 2021 4:25 pm
Er... are you sure that was Sal? He's not listed on the LCS's board of directors (including emeriti). His real initials are RS. Are you thinking of Sai?

Nortaneous wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 8:27 pm It's possible for Xunzi to have been right about the need and effectiveness for moral instruction and for moral instruction in school and church to produce no discernible effect - one way to harmonize the two positions is to say that it just can't be industrialized - there's no reliable, standardizable procedure for the production or vetting of moral instructors the way there is for math teachers. If you want to be Weberian about it, it can't make the transition from charismatic to bureaucratic authority.

This seems like the correct position to me.

malloc wrote: ↑Wed Sep 12, 2018 8:18 pm "Alright," said the priest, "I talked it over with the Man Upstairs and worked out a deal. You keep your mouth shut about what you saw in that grotto and He will reduce your eternal damnation to ten million in Purgatory."

"Ten million!" snapped Tannhäuser, "That's outrageous."

"I don't think you appreciate the gravity of this situation," the priest explained, "What you have seen utterly refutes the singular and transcendent Godhead that forms the central premise of Christian theology. If this becomes public knowledge, the gates of Christendom will be torn asunder. The scourge of heathenry will flood our towns and villages, devouring the souls of the righteous."

"If this refutes Christian doctrine," asked Tannhäuser, "Why should I even worry about eternal damnation?"

"If hellfire seems too fabulous," said the priest, "Then consider burning at the stake. Our organization has no problem executing you and anyone you've spoken with for heresy if that's what it takes to keep this buried."

"So you want me to defend doctrines that you know are fraudulent?" asked Tannhäuser, "Surely such pervasive dishonestly is itself a sin."

"This goes beyond sin and salvation," explained the priest, "The very bedrock of civilization depends on maintaining shared beliefs and rituals to enforce moral order and bind communities together. The truth behind those beliefs and rituals matters less than their ability to restrain our baser appetites and enforce social harmony. Plato called it the noble lie."

doctor shark wrote: ↑Fri Oct 22, 2021 2:19 pm Attended my first Dutch Ph.D. defense in person today. Quite a different experience compared to other defenses I've been to in other countries (well, two), with lots of ceremony and formality.

Remember that you aren’t arguing points when you defend your work. Instead, a proper thesis defense gives you and your faculty advisers the chance to discuss your topic and research in greater detail.

Man in Space wrote: ↑Mon Oct 18, 2021 9:15 am I particularly miss Whimemsz. He was knowledgable on North American languages and diachronics. Then he blanked a bunch of his posts and left. Unfortunate.

MacAnDàil wrote: ↑Sun Oct 24, 2021 9:58 amI was surprised by Sal's ban to be honest.