[FRIAM] anonymity/deniability/ambiguity

[thompnickson2 at gmail.com]

"You choose your own decoder."

Right there, is the distinction between Jamesian and Peircean Pragmatism.  

N

Nicholas Thompson
Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology
Clark University
ThompNickSon2 at gmail.com
https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/
 


-----Original Message-----
From: Friam <friam-bounces at redfish.com> On Behalf Of u?l? ?
Sent: Thursday, May 21, 2020 11:08 AM
To: FriAM <friam at redfish.com>
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] anonymity/deniability/ambiguity

Marcus' post hides my own response to your question. There is no good decoder. There is only a good choice of decoders, fit to purpose. Going back to Lovecraft, I used to live next door to someone who believed in the Illuminati, the bad formulation, and the "12 men who rule the world". I'm confident he actually believed it because we had many many conversations over badly made margaritas watching the rafters go by on the river. His goal was to make just enough money to go off grid before they recognized him as a threat.

When I'd talk to him, I decoded Lovecraft as a Freemason for the purpose of a) confirming his ideas just enough to get him to listen to me (e.g. there *is* something very much like the Illuminati) and b) show him that *some* of those guys aren't as Machiavellian or as Evil as he may think they are.

But when I talk to my fantasy/sci-fi friends, Lovecraft is just a super-dork in the EA Poe, D&D, gamer, category.

You choose your decoder.

On 5/21/20 9:51 AM, thompnickson2 at gmail.com wrote:
> Are there circumstances in which Frank might have a better decoder of Glen's behavior than Glen have?   Come to think of it, what is it to have a 'good' decoder?  


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☣ uǝlƃ

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