MacB said:
Greg you fall back on realism and human nature, but the current status of these two factors are not immutable. Like many beyond a certain age you also dismiss some views as being 'University Common Room' with the underlying implication of immaturity or naivety.
I see little evidence to suggest that the flaws in human nature are changing over time. ymmv.
The common room. Not what I was saying at all. I characterise uni common room attitudes, in this context, as being the attitudes of highly intelligent, well educated, mature individuals who are splendid and highly valuable
theoreticians (Gorz at least used to make practical suggestions at the ends of his books, well the ones I've read anyway). But I'm a pragmatist. If it cannot be made to work in life for whatever reasons, without some form of compulsion, then it isn't a practical proposition. We can't uninvent the car, or the road network, or the transport industry, no matter how much some dead Catholic Priest thought we should. Catholic Priests would have us all do many things differently.
MacB said:
I read a very interesting article that looked at these very attitudes in relation to age and circumstances. I can't remember all of it but some bits stuck in my mind. It actually categorised your style of argument here, when used by one time 'lefties', as being a form of self justification. Rather than admit to having failed to make a difference they seek to rationalise why it was foolish to consider the attempt in the first place. It was also pointed out that these rationalisations were generally made from an income point well above the average.
I can't identify myself in that description. I'm not a one time 'lefty'. I've not failed to make a difference. What does someone's income have to do with it?
MacB said:
This leads back to the OP, agree or not with CM methods I still applaud that the effort is being made. I also recognise that some of the current CM crop will be 'enjoying' luxury car travel in future years. The one common denominator we all have is that we are pedestrians, it's after that things start to diverge.
Violence has many forms. I've seen what I regard as violence directed at other people on CM's. Rationalised and self justified by the perpetrators. That's why I stopped participating. I find myself unable to applaud the effort of those who methods I find reprehensible. I've seen what I regard as violence on CM's as recently as last Autumn. The end does not justify the means; no good tree grows from a bad or tainted seed.
The only violence I'm interested in is the violence of love.