Affirmationism Again

ALAIN BADIOU: It seems to me that the problem with philosophical commitment is that it is often thought to be primarily critical. Very often, one equates philosophy and critique. So that philosophical commitment would ultimately amount to saying what is evil, what is suffering, of saying what’s not acceptable, or what is false. The task of philosophy would be primarily negative: to entertain doubt, the critical spirit, and so on and so forth. I think this theme must be absolutely overturned.The essence of philosophical interventionis really affirmation. Why is it affirmation? Because if you intervene with respect to a paradoxical situation,or if you intervene with regard to a relationthat is not a relation, you will have to propose a new framework of thought, and you will have to affirm that it is possible to think this paradoxical situation, on condition, of course, that a certain number of parameters be abandoned, and a certain number of novelties introduced. And when all is said and done, the only proof for this is that you will propose a new way of thinking the paradox. Consequently, the determinant element of philosophical intervention is affirmative – a point on which I agree with Deleuze. When Deleuze says that philosophy is in its essence the construction of concepts, he is right to put forward this creative and affirmative dimension, and to mistrust any critical or negative reduction of philosophy. When you just said that we should understand ‘inhuman’ as something other than a negation, I am obviously entirely in agreement with you. Once again I regret to say that we continue to be indefinitely in agreement, which besides proves that we engage in affirmation and not negation. ‘Inhuman’ must be understood as the affirmative conceptual element from within which one thinks the displacement of the human. And this displacement of the human always presupposes that one has accepted that the initial correlationis the link between the human and the inhuman, and not the perpetuation of the human as such.

Thanks to the Institute

Turn the thinker into a sort of surfer

Well not quite the Deleuze and Guattari injunction (to have a thinker who slides with new substances of being), but rather my bodyboarding at the West Witterings yesterday. Thankfully there are no pictures. I ache today.

A Coven of Bed-Wetters

Or the BM symposium. Considering the levels of invective in BM and the general attitude to academics I should think this is a mild start in the insult stakes. For a disturbing sample of such invective cf. the master - Sale Famine.

Everything must go...

My second book, The Culture of Death, is on sale for the princely sum of £5, less than a packet of cigarettes. As most people know I have mixed feelings about it, but it's a bargain.

Stirner = Black Metal

Do I write out of love to men? No, I write because I want to procure for my thoughts an existence in the world; and, even if I foresaw that these thoughts would deprive you of your rest and your peace, even if I saw the bloodiest wars and the fall of many generations springing up from this seed of thought — I would nevertheless scatter it. Do with it what you will and can, that is your affair and does not trouble me. You will perhaps have only trouble, combat, and death from it, very few will draw joy from it.

If your weal lay at my heart, I should act as the church did in withholding the Bible from the laity, or Christian governments, which make it a sacred duty for themselves to ‘protect the common people from bad books’. But not only not for your sake, not even for truth’s sake either do I speak out what I think. No —

I sing as the bird sings

That on the bough alights;

The song that from me springs

Is pay that well requites

I sing because — I am a singer. But I use you for it because I — need ears
Max Stirner, The Ego and Its Own

Damage Your Soul (Further)

The Black Metal event in NY now has a blog site at which papers/MP3s et al will be appearing, and a facebook page for the event.

Should you think you are not dysphoric enough...

At Evan's recommendation I've been listening to this, which is excellent; who says epic is an impossible social form? (only Marx and Lukacs...)

All Reflections Drained

With thanks to Mark, for the 'Militant Dysphoria Event':

Militant Dysphoria
Wednesday September 30th
Room RHB 256, Goldmsiths, University of London 2-6 PM

Featuring:
Dominic Fox
Nathan Brown
Mark Fisher
Nick Srnicek
James Trafford
Alex Williams