Savant's Wisdom

I guess that I'm somewhat eclectic even in my practice of philosophy; but I lean more in some directions than others. You seem to have a quite cosmopolitan family. You a Creole from New Orleans, and your beloved Sora--part Senegalese/part Greek from Martinique. Le pays de Aime Cesaire and Frantz Fanon. A few of my favorite writers are Senegalese or Martiniquais. I have been to New Orleans numerous times, but not since Hurricane Katrina. It is/was a beautiful and picturesque town with much history. As for one's background, you don't get to choose that, although your life chances largely depends on it. I think that every human being ought to be afforded the means and opportunity to live a complete life. As for myself, you could say that I'm fairly well off now. I'm part of the Philosophy faculty in a university nearby. I'm a published author and a homeowner (or at least paying mortgage). I guess I'd be described as a professional middle class or intellectual person. But I'm not rich. In fact, I was born poor in the inner city of East Baltimore. But I was more fortunate than most of the people I grew up with insofar as I obtained a university education. Partly thanks to my mother and certain caring teachers I was introduced to the world of learning; and I took an interest in philosophy, history and literature before I graduated (or even entered) high school. And reading gave access to a world far larger than the ghetto. It probably saved my life. I got a little exposure to classical music from some of my teachers. But I got more into Literature& Philosophy. It opened up a new world of possibility, a world that should be the birthright of every man, woman and child on earth. 

-Savant

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Two (maybe 3) points. 1. All whites do not feel intimidated by educated Blacks, but many do. 2. Most whites DID NOT vote for Obama, but %39 of them did. (And this is despite the fact that a majority even of ordinary Republicans agree with Obama that that rich should pay more taxes). 3. There's still a question as to whether those whites who are anti-Obama are so because they resent not only his "blackness " and alleged "liberalism, " but also his education and intelligence. SOME of the animosity is in reaction both to his race and his cultivated intellect.

-Savant

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Dr. King never denied that INDIVIDUALS had the right to self-defense, even with violence. But the MOVEMENT, he thought, should remain nonviolent. Andhe speculated that nonviolenct revolutionary resistance might be possible even in some totalitarian societies. Could the popular movements in Eastern Europe in the 1980s be proof that he was right? Maybe the mainly nonviolent Arab Spring could be a clue. I'm not sure that in all totalitarian countries nonviolent resistance can be effective. 1980s Czechoslvakia is a bit different from 1930s Russia under Stalin, or 1930s Germany under Hitler. Of course, I'm not absolutely certain that nonviolent resistance couldn't work even in those countries....but it seems much less likely. Correct me if I'm wrong. But I think Gandhi (or someone else?) is supposed to have said that disciplined nonviolent resistance might be possible even under Hitler thought the sacrifices would be immensely greater. I suspect that for such to be possible, if it could be possilbe, under the Third Reich, the opposition would probably have to be well organized BEFORE the Fuhrer took power. It would probably be too late to try to organize such resistance afterwards. It is is already in existence, then perhaps a nonviolent underground might make about as much sense as a violent one. Is nonviolent sabotage possible? I recall a lecture by Hward Zinn at Johns Hopkins U many years ago in which he argued that damage to property was acceptable from the ethical standpoint of nonviolence. But not damage to people. Could nonviolent, noncooperation render even a totalitarian country ungovernable, leading to the downfall of the tyranny?

-Savant

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By the way, Martin Luther King,Jr. actually owned a gun early on, but then got rid of it. However, he did hold that others need not follow him that far. As for the MOVEMENT, however, King was unwavering. "this is a NONVIOLENT demonstration " King said in televised speech. "If you can't be nonviolent, then don't get in it." Fair enough. If you got guns, keep them home. Don't bring them to the demo

-Savant

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