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New Years resolution |
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New Years resolution |
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Greetings all:
I’d like to post The Savant Society’s New Years resolution for all to read and appreciate.
I have had an increased workload, and as a result, I have been unable to participate in the forum as much as I used to. I pop in and out at least one a day, but this is not enough time to read all the posts and look for intellectual content.
I have noticed that certain parties are still exchanging insults. I’d like to reiterate what the Savant Society is all about, and hope we can all get along.
The basic premise of the Savant Society is Knowledge for the Sake of Knowledge. The idea behind this statement is all knowledge is worth knowing, even if it does not have an immediate, practical use. If a practical use somehow works its way into the mix, then that is an added bonus (The Society is not limited to Utilitarian thought).
Humans are good at pigeonholing things, and knowledge is no exception. In my mind, knowledge can be broken down into two major categories: (1) idle chitchat of everyday events, a very common theme in today’s Americana, and (2) a deeper form of Knowledge – the expression of complex ideas using science, art, and philosophy as a vehicle.
The Savant Society is designed to address the later – the deeper form of Knowledge. This forum is meant to be a place to exchange these ideas, and to explore various regions of open thought.
When new members come aboard, I think they may expect intellectual discussions of a high caliber. I would like to provide them with this opportunity. Chitchat is ok, but not to the magnitude that it’s occurring lately in the Savant Society Forum. In the humor section, anything goes – I don’t mind "silliness" there, but in the rest of the forum, I’d like to see members stick to the topic at hand, and keep things interesting and somewhat serious. Humor is valuable, however, if used properly in an intellectual discussion.
It’s my goal to maintain the intellectual integrity of the Society and I hope all members respect these goals. I did not want to instill any "rules" in the Society, but sometimes I feel it’s necessary to reevaluate the primary moving force of the forum.
I’d like to see more intellectual vigor and less idleness – i.e., addressing of issues that have little to do with the topic at hand. Unfortunately, this may upset some people, but I’d like to see more involvement of new members, other than them visiting for a couple days and disappearing. I think if we work together on this, we can introduce some new blood and get some life back into the forum. In order to do this, I need your help – keep the focus in mind - Knowledge for the Sake of Knowledge.
One valuable item that I hoped TSS would address is the solving of the world’s problems. We post material here that is dear to our hearts, like the environment, and social issues. I had a vision once where we could form a utopia on-line and tap into a variety of the world’s citizens, with varied backgrounds, education, family situations, and moralities – and discuss some of the more pressing issues in today’s society. I was hoping that with this hodge-podge of personas, we could make a difference, and be open-minded enough to work together on a common theme: The survivability of the Human species and most importantly, the preservation of Mother Earth.
However, as I read through the various posts, I see hatred, discontent, and vile comments addressed to each other. I felt that those that visit this forum would be beyond that, and step forward to take an intellection position on an issue. Instead, my heart is broken – we are just part of the problem, not a solution. My high hopes have been disillusioned, but I still think we can make a difference – there are those that visit this forum that are very serious about their points of view – but in the midst of all the bickering and name-slinging, I can see where they’d want to move on to something else – and leave The Savant Society behind. That’s their right, and I wish them Godspeed.
Let’s make this year a better year - a year to clean up our act and move forward – acting like ladies and gentlemen. Is chivalry dead? I hope not – let’s show each other the respect we expect from each other. The Golden Rule has never been more meaningful in this day and age.