Anyways, Morris next turns to "the truth about truth," describing the philosophy of relativism (which is the Eastern spiritual world's perspective). According to relativism, truth is subjective; what is true for me may or may not be true for you: there is no absolute truth. The author points out the logical flaw here:
But notice a problem with the mere statement of relativism. There really is no such thing as absolute truth. Is relativism suggesting that this is the ultimate, absolute truth about? In that case it actually asserts what it denies, and so it's self-defeating, simply logically incoherent as a philisophical position. (p. 46)
Ah ha! I could have stuck that to Sakamaki, my former shrink (he has since retired) when he- a buddhist- belittled my claim to being Messiah by barbing me with relativity crap. :-* (Emoticon meaning "bitter ,moi?") Actually, I think Dr. Sakamaki was being like Morris' rhetorical philosophy professor, who
raises the specter of relativism...just to jolt his students into a deeper grasp of what is at stake
in making truth claims. It is meant to be a rhetorical challenge to natural childhood feelings
they've long had that what we believe is typically the absolute truth. (p. 46)
"In philosophy," he continues, "everything can be challenged. But some views can meet the challenge and stand firm."
An "utterly general relativism" is wrong, first of all, because it can be a "very persuasive intellectual excuse for very bad behavior." (If there is no absolute truth, anything goes.) :-[ (Emoticon meaning I am down and unhappy.) Morris continues,
There is a second path to adult relativism that is certainly more respectable however
wrong it nonetheless also is. Many academics have wanted to promote the virtue of
tolerance in our pluralistic world, and have wrongly thought that relativism is the royal
road to cultivating a firm and resilient openness to other people's beliefs. But the sort of
tolerance that is indeed a virtue is best grounded in respect, and it's not showing respect
for any point of view to say that no points of view can possibly capture reality the way
that it is. (p. 47)
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