"I believe that a leaf of grass is no less than the journeywork of the stars" - Walt Whitman - Leaves of Grass
Between March 1994 and September 1996 I was involved in an extraordinary conversation in cyberspace. This web archive consists of excerpts from that conversation. If you're just browsing and just want to get a flavor for these posts I recommend reading the one titled Apollo XIII.
At this time, for a variety of reasons, I am refraining from publishing anything written by other people, with the exception of << quoted excerpts>> which are normal in bulletin board discussions. As a result this presentation will seem a little selfishly one sided. Some of this material has been edited... Additionally, this material is going to seem quite disjointed because presented in this manner it sounds more like a bunch of random rants than a conversation, though many would probably tell you that my posts always sounded like random rants :) The conversation mostly flowed from AOL to eWorld and then back to AOL.
I suppose I should do a little commentary.
For those who need to pigeon hole my beliefs into some kind of theological category, you can say my beliefs are a "gnostic process theology based on the interpretation of the emotional content of linked symbols". That doesn't even come close to explaining all the things that were going on in this online conversation, but it does provide a general after the fact framework of my belief system.
In looking at these posts years later I am struck by several things that really didn't occur to me at the time.
The first is the extent to which I found myself tapping into Christian symbolism and mythology. While my posts tended to be really harsh about literal interpretations of the Bible, particularly all that garbage that is used to oppress Gay people, I kept finding myself embracing and expanding upon the central symbols of Christianity. This was somewhat surprising considering just how incredibly angry I was at the religious roots of a child abuse experience I once endured.
Another thing I was struck by was the enormous amount of "ascent" imagery that kept appearing in my posts. A subtle example follows at the end of this commentary.
Caveat emptor, I was once diagnosed as schizophrenic. Prior to engaging in this discussion I spent several very difficult years dealing with emotional states that were way beyond anything that could have come out of my own personal history. I'm real sure I didn't write that particular script. Just who did is unknown to me. Obviously my "condition" gave me a unique view of the metaphysical data. I have a whole handful of metaphors regarding "where I was" but like this one the best. Have you ever seen one of those very tall human pyramids that they make in Europe with the little kid way up at the top? I wouldn't make any more of it than that. From the context of my own belief system I would just say this: We're all in this together, we always have been.
In his novel Anna Karenina, Tolstoy stated that "Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." I believe he was wrong on both counts.
I am deeply grateful for the warmth, humor, support, insights, candor, and good will of those with whom I engaged in this conversation.
I leave this field for others. Now at last, my life is my own.
America Online/Astronomy Forum
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 1
2001 A Space Odyssey (picture)
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 2
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 3
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 4
Hubble Space Telescope (picture)
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 5
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 6 - The number "432" mentioned in this post is a "progression to unity". Alpha, Beta, and Proxima Centauri are the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd closest starts to Earth. The Sun is of course the closest star.
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 7
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 8 -Who would have ever guessed that infinity could be offered up as a transitional symbol :)
The Metaphysics of Astronomy 9
Shoemaker-Levy/Jupiter Prelude (picture) - This is a composite picture of Hubble images giving a overview of the event. For a sense of scale, the dark spot superimposed on Jupiter is the size of the Earth.
Shoemaker-Levy/Jupiter - Mankind's first ever observation of two solar system bodies colliding. It not only consisted of 23 separate major impacts, but coincided almost to the hour of the 25th anniversary of the first time man stepped foot on another world.
Shoemaker-Levy/Jupiter Impacts (picture) - The big 'G' fragment hits Jupiter.
Shoemaker-Levy/Jupiter Impacts (picture) - Fragment 'G' aftermath
Shoemaker-Levy/Jupiter - Pending questions
sn1987a (picture) - The first nearby supernova observed since 1604. Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Detected in 1987. Picture as of 1994.
Eagle Nebula (picture)
I will not discuss politics in the Astronomy Forum :)
America Online/Gay and Lesbian Community Forum
On the Edge of Nature's Dreams #1 (Arts & Media/Poetry)
On the Edge of Nature's Dreams #2 (Arts & Media/Poetry)
On the Edge of Nature's Dreams #3 (Arts & Media/Poetry)
What is Evil? #1 (Theory & Debate)
What is Evil? #2 (Theory & Debate)
What is Evil? #3 (Theory & Debate) The current human death rate is about 100 million per year (World population divided by average age at death gives a ball park figure). Three human beings die every second. Can you imagine what it would be like to be blamed for that?
What is Evil? #4 (Theory & Debate)
What is Evil? #5 (Theory & Debate)
A Trip to the Mall - Background
Pegasus (picture)
America Online/Focus on the Family Forum
eWorld/The Great Congregation/Debate Forum
OneNet/Religion
Apollo XIII - Waited 3 years before posting this one in 1999. By the way, there is another whole layer of powerful symbolism right below the surface that amplifies what I've described in this post. For now I'll leave it to the reader to uncover this symbolism. Hint, what kind of wound is about loss and emptiness.
Footprint (picture)
Earthrise (picture)
Market Signals - The computer industry press was for a long time obsessed with applying death spiral imagery in stories about Apple Computer. This was written shortly after a stock market crash that occurred during a visit by the Chinese leader during the first couple days of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Apple was the only major stock to post a gain that day. A power company was the only major stock to break even. The Philadelphia gold and silver index sank more than any other index. Also, Singapore was also somewhat inundated with smoke during the same time frame. Obviously there are questions of cause and effect even if you accept the premise that there was any relationship at all, but the question that comes to my mind is, what could possibly be so important that someone wouldn't hesitate to spend several hundred billion dollars just to illuminate symbols :)
The Hero with a Thousand Faces - Joseph Campbell
Over the Carnage - Walt Whitman
The Large Heart of Heroes - Walt Whitman
Frodo Lives! - JRR Tolkein
The Spark - Wrote this in 1982 as a young man first coming out of the closet.
Mt Shasta (picture)
Shuttle (picture)
http://homepage.mac.com/joeuhrig/
http://www.crazyapplerumors.com
http://www.whitmanarchive.org/
America Online
eWorld
OneNet
Usenet