First Questions First

15 June 2008 - 1:48 Chania, Greece

Hello everyone! This post marks the end of my first academic day in IIPES. It consisted of formal orientation, and 3 lectures lasting a total of nearly 4 and a half hours. All but the last were very interesting and I had no problems maintaining focus. The last, however, given by an Italian foreign policy expert, rough. I explain in a second.

The professors for this first section are Dr. Collins and Dr. Ambrosio. Both are long-time professors at Georgetown University, meaning that are both very articulate, intelligent and passionate about what they teach - Dr. Collins, Philosophy, Dr. Ambrosio, Shakespeare. Today's lectures, which are tag team taught by the two, covered ancient Greek philosophy. We discussed the basis of philosophy, which literally means to love wisdom. To love wisdom, one must seek truth and justice by asking questions, seeking the reality of the circumstances that we are found in. Every question, every situation can be simplified many times over. For example, we can look at the question, should abortion be legalized? Before this can be answered, we must ask what is abortion? What stage of conception? Are there exceptions for extreme situations? Each of those questions can be simplified further? Is the definition of abortion related to religion or secularism? When, in the development of a fetus, does fetus become human? (Continuing on this question, what is human?) If abortion is related to religion, which one? If not, what set of laws? This can go on and on, but the idea from Plato, a student of Socrates, is that the act of questioning is more wise than the action of those in power, who have not yet found answers. We must continue to ask the first questions first, in hope that we will possibly live our lives into the answers. This is why Plato and Socrates never became involved in politics, resisting the urgings of the Athenian population.

For every situation, there is an ideal, a theory that explains what will happen in the most perfect of situations. Then there is the practice, what will happen when humans live these situations, and essentially mess up the ideal theory. Reality is somewhere in between the two. Reality is the decisions that those in government must make without fully answering the first questions first. Marvelous and murderous. Ideal is marvelous, but practice is often murderous.

One of our readings was simply beautiful, in describing the constant conflict between the marvelous and the murderous. I will paraphrase as best as I can. There is, as you most likely know, conflict between the Catholics and Protestants in Ireland. So the story goes, a bus of workers was stopped by an armed group. There was only one Catholic worker among those being bussed home. When the group was taken off the bus and lined up, the armed fighters asked if there were any Catholics. The one made a motion forward, but felt the touch of a hand, "as if to say 'Stay in line. We will not betray you.'" This touch of the hand, the connection between two ethnicities so at odds, is the marvelous. And yet it is so closely connected to the rifles in the arms of the soldiers, the murderous. The story continues, the Catholic made his step forward, and was pulled away. Immediately the row of Protestants remaining were shot dead by the Catholit militants. Marvelous and murderous, seperated by seconds in time.

I get chills reading that last paragraph over, mostly because of the essense of its message, but also a little because it comes from my mind. So rarely does information come into our lives that is so gripping, so intense that a wooden chair with very little space in a room that is at times too cold and at times to hot very like home. But this is what I experienced today, and hopefully is what I will continue to experience for the next 2 and a half weeks.

The conversation is wonderful, the people are unique, the beaches are breathtaking and the future visits are already being planned :-)

Καλινίχτα φιλεναδά (Good night friends)

Alec