Now if ever there was a commercial blunder it has to be down to God!
The most powerful (omnipotent) and well known (omnipresent) brand in the universe. Anybody who who has been on a Marketing 101 course will tell you that protecting your intellectual property (omniscience)is critical.
Well the guys at Vevivi have taken full advantage of God's oversight and produced a range of clothing that any self respecting Atheist would look 'so last millennium' without.
If it wasn't for blogging's Eye of Providence,Mary Ann I would never have got to hear about this. Thanks Mary Ann! Readers should pop over to her blog now for another observation about life the universe and everything.
If you 'get' the T shirt, does that mean you 'get' the philosophy too? Sure we are taught religion and science, and rarely are we taught what the real debate is about. That's probably because its clouded (apols to any angels reading) by philosophical jargon.
Fundamentally (apologies to any religious zealots reading) the discussion hinges on what we believe is 'real' (Our Ontology) and how we decide what is true(Our Epistemology) 9 times out of 10 people will have an argument about stuff without first sorting out where people stand on these matters. Which in turn means arguments just go round in circles (not 'real' circles of course, just imaginary ones)This is the whole gig about Metaphysics i.e. do non physical things exist?
Basically there is one major fault line, between Realists and Idealists. Whether you consider things to physically exist or whether they are made up in your head. So, although I have never seen with my own eyes, touched, or smelled any of Vevivi's T shirts I do believe they physically exist. This means I have a Realist Ontology and an Idealist Epistemology. (I regard the photos as proof of their existence, which means I am relying on Testimony). This, you will probably realise is spookily like another famous story you may have heard involving a guy with long hair and a beard! By deciding your 'O'& 'E' you can work out where you stand regarding any of the four permutations. Which in turn explains why you agree or disagree with someone on matters like 'does God exist'.
If you have a idealist ontology and an idealist epistemology everything is made up in your head. Natural scientists don't go along with this and that's why many of them are atheists because you can't physically prove God exists.
Now just because he can't be seen, touched, or smelled doesn't mean that the 'idea' of God doesn't have psychological value for human beings. Although philosophers like Ken Wilber try and integrate all approaches. There is a physical world and a spiritual world and we can exist in both.
What is your 'O&E'?
Read More:
How Your Brain Creates God
The group of religious zealots that are uncompromising, are allowed unlimited evangelising, and condider all 'non-believers' to be ignorant and living in the dark ages are atheists and agnostics!
ReplyDeleteExcellent synopsis. It's a minor miracle you were able to keep it so brief. The Wiki windows really help. I sometimes get tripped up on some of these philosophical terms that relate to knowledge.
ReplyDelete