[UA] Risking it - Sunbjectivity or objectivity?

[Patrick O'Duffy]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Nick Wedig" <mrteapot at disinfo.net>
To: <ua at lists.uchicago.edu>

> Thwe problem is that the example in the book does not deal with chance.
Chance and luck are concepts that are basically subjective.  For anything on
the normal level of human action (not quantum physics and the like)
everything is determined by some physical principles and previous actions.
When I speak of the chances of getting the bullet in Russian roullette,
whether I get it or not is determined by how hard I spin the chamber,
friction and other factors that the bodybag can't consciously calculate.
There's not really any undetermined (ie, random) factors there, only unknown
ones.  The same is true of the sealed gun.  It may or may not be loaded, but
that's determined by unknown and uncontrolled factors.

--
Two points:

1 - 'Luck' aside, chance is not an inherently subjective thing. Probability
is a concrete, measurable (through statistics), manipulatible,
understandable thing. Sure, in any given event, we can't encapsulate _all_
the variables - the coin couls land on its edge, or Brownian motion could
shake it to pieces mid-flip - but such occurances fall well below even the
most miniscule margin for error. Chance is objective.

2 - I think it's debatable whether entropomancy is based on _chance_ or
_risk_ - that is, 'taking a chance'. You might not always be able to measure
probabilities or control chances - but if the magick is based on consciously
taking risks and deliberately putting yourself in a chaotic (and dangerous)
situation, that's not a 'subjective' thing. That's a deliberate action that
the adept infuses with meaning in the hope of gaining power.

Fundamentally, I can't see any reason why entropomancers get to be the big
exception to the rules and the UA paradigm.

--
Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia

What are you fucking looking at? What? You think I'm one of the nutless
freaks you peddle your watered-down gnat's piss to? One of your mental
barflies gone bad? I'm a fucking journalist! I am working!

 - Spider Jerusalem, TRANSMETROPOLITAN #34


_______________________________________________
UA mailing list
UA at lists.uchicago.edu
http://lists.uchicago.edu/mailman/listinfo/ua