Thank you Treebeard, you solved my contradiction/problem:
We currently seem to accept only one mode of knowing, that of the "rational mind" whose only mode of operations is fragmentation. It is not capable of any other activity. This activity by itself necessarily creates contradictions when applied in isolation. When the division between the "object" preceived and preceptor is eliminated actions become unique and "inovative" necessarily by their nature. We shift into the elusive creative mode of the "artist". As intensely as we claw at this problem with the wrong mind, the problem remains unsolvalbe. The systems approach will just create more divisions, confusion and fragmentation.
As a jazz musician, I can relate to this statement. Improvisation is experiential and in the moment, and I'm all too aware when I perform that I slip into a transcendent state when I'm "in the zone." Trying to wrap my mind around the problem was the problem, it creates the contradiction. I am in a state of complete fulfillment when I'm in the zone. It's probably the reason I left finance so long ago to pursue the arts. The rational mind too often denies or completely rejects the power of the symbolic.
The rational mind engenders fear through division and fragmentation and tries to create ownership and job security to allay the fear it creates. The creative mind thinks big picture, transcends fears, and makes knowledge universally available. The ability of any individual to access information and change their lives is the revolution that is transforming the world beneath all the doom and gloom that we hear.
Beautifully stated! Both fulfill a role, and as Arthur likes to point out we need make the collective shift back to right brain.
I would like to recommend again Jaron Lanier's book "You Are Not A Gadget," which gives a critique of open-source/web 2.0. He thinks we shouldn't become too enamored with it. When he was involved in creating it, his wish was for the internet to become more individualistic in its appearance and expression, and just the opposite has happened. Most websites look alike or fall into predictable templates, and those who are making the most of internet commerce are those organizations that control the infrastructure. He believes the Google/Wiki paradigm is something that leaves a lot to be desired…good for some things, awful for others.
Wendy, thank you for your post! You always have such valuable things to add. I would disagree a little with what you say though. You wrote about musicians bypassing the record company and making money off youtube and tours, but the reality is that the number of musicians who can actually make a living off these revenue streams is extremely small. Open source, at least in the short run, has devastated the music industry (I'm not shedding tears for the larger labels) and most musicians' livelihood (I am sympathetic). In the long run it may be what is needed to shake off the exploitive nature of the big labels, so I remain open minded that this may be the beginning of something more fruitful for the arts in general. One of the contradictions I see is that the arts are the ultimate expression of culture, but much of our cultural expression throughout the world is being homogonized through the open source medium, leaving a monoculture. In addition to music, writers, visual artists, film-makers, are all facing the same dilemma. Mashups are becoming the norm which leaves authorship nebulous. Have you experienced any of this in your own business, and how do you navigate around it?
We could start by bringing the arts back into our educational "systems".
Amen, I've spent the past 20 years fighting this fight. A more holistic approach is needed in education. Students of all ages are starved for "meaning." I believe this is born out of their experience with adults starving for the same thing. The push for more math and science above all else puts this into context. The push for these subjects ultimately comes out of fear. Fear we won't be able to compete, fear we'll be left behind. My question is always... left behind what? Facts and truths are very different things, but too often they are looked upon as the same. Students are too often looking at their grades as a reflection of who they are. GREs, LSATs, SATs, factual cognitive recall is all that matters. The arts, humanities, religion, culture, all these are put in the "leisure section" of our lives, something to ponder on Sunday...like I'm doing right now.