Towards the Formalization of Cosmos as a Cooperative

Commons
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and perhaps ala Graham Harmon the table you present to is a third table. Recently, read the short essay, and riffed upon the possibilities. I would say the third table and the third eye and the third ear are in need of coordination. And this is happening.

Last night I dreamed that I was in a beautiful house and that my beloved Beatrice was appearing. She passed away years ago and so I was triggered by her elegant presence. I felt a strong desire to once again take care of her but I had so many tasks to perform, responsibilities, appointments to keep in different kinds of time. How can I take care of her and keep track of all of these other commitments? I can’t!

I was also re-enchanted by her, her beauty and charm and radiance. I was drawn to her as the great teacher she was for me when we are together on earth. I had been present when she died, I had been alone with her, as she took her last breath, the deepest intimacy I have ever shared with another. Without a doubt she was my best teacher. The real Beatrice doesn’t need my help.

As all of this shared knowledge was re-activated I saw her make an amazing leap from down a stair case and that she landed on her feet. I realized that she had come to me, as an image, and that she was in many ways, not the real Beatrice.

I felt the bind and proceeded with caution. I touched her gently, and said," Go back." She began to shrink. She was the same shape but had become the size of child, I said again," Go back." Her image melted, into the floor. I put my foot upon the place in the floor where her image dissolved and said, for the third time, " Go back." And that image of her, which was not the real Beatrice, was gone, and I was free to keep my cosmic appointments. I left the beautiful house and hopped on a bike and moved at a great speed through hills and rills in a gorgeous landscape, eager to fulfill my Big Time aspirations.

1 + 1
1x1
extensive/intensive
Goethe comes to mind and his new way of seeing.

And then there are the imaginary numbers represented by i. Only the third table is real. And this arrangement is not to be messed with.

Conjugate
the different forms of (a verb in an inflected language) as they vary according to voice, mood, tense, number, and person.

coupled, connected, or related

a substance formed by the reversible combination of two or more others.

a mathematical value or entity having a reciprocal relation with another

Conjugation is the mathematical operation of multiplying a complex number by its reflection. The result of a conjugation is a real number.

Reality is what Reality does. We do not create our own Reality and we do create our own Realiity. This is an awesome responsibility.

Lucid Dreamers of the world must learn to conjugate. Can we allow the dream to unfold? Or will we be distracted by the Master/Slave dynamic?

We must become merciful. We must also become swifter than eagles. We do not need to calculate. We need a dream calculus. Not more numbers to crunch but ways to twist and twirl and whirl. I’m working on it.

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I believe it is worth highlighting that cooperatives themselves are a tradition, with their own principles, histories, and values—and that I specifically named Cosmos as a co-op—rather, than, say, a non-profit, a corporation, a church, or a personal brand—because I wanted to align with this tradition, which is in multiple concrete ways intends to be a counterforce and evolutionary alternative to extractive, imperial capitalism.

I also chose Cosmos Co-op as an aesthetic statement, because I want to prove that poetry, art, and philosophy—Supermind—can play in the big leagues, on the world stage, and offer a different, more compelling vision of the future than capitalism, even of the so-called conscious kind. Art does not have to be co-opted by corporate profiteers, rich patrons, or outsized egos. What if the artists themselves own the means of production? Cosmos being and doing itself is a revolutionary act—a new economic, cultural, technological and spiritual (integral) whole. And there is, I believe, unique beauty in this movement.

But it is also an expression, and meant to contribute to the evolution, of multiple traditions, not only the literatures and cosmologies of East and West, North and South, wholes within holes, but the economic and social traditions of cooperative praxis which are the historical result of laborers self-organizing and empowering their own networks through action, which has already been effectively codified on a planetary level, as well as in countless local enterprises.

As much as I might often to go into abstraction and pure imagination, if Cosmos is going to be a real co-op (with the right to designate itself by that label), then I think we should keep the whole movement in mind, which goes back to the mid 19th Century, but arguably is (in essence) as old as humankind itself. As we draft our own vision, mission, and value statements—keeping these as simple, or making them as complex (yet still elegant) as they must be—how can we keep a living tradition of cooperation in mind? It is likely we cannot truly innovate without doing so.

In the years before David Foster Wallace committed suicide, he was working on a novel called The Pale King, which he never finished, but which one might sum up as being about the paranormal lives of IRS tax accountants. In correspondence and interviews, Wallace tried to explain that he was attempting to come to terms with extraordinary boredom. He wanted to find the beauty, the Zen, the Infinite in the utterly mundane. What could be more boring than tax accounting?—he thought. How exciting is it to be dead?—I wonder.

But Wallace also suggested that because we (in general, as entitled beneficiaries of vast, intricate, corporate-governmental technical systems) are unwilling to do the drudge work, we are taken advantage of by those who can work with the underlying codes: the lawyers, engineers, business suits, and so on. I think it may be unfortunate that he chose the terminal boredom of tax accounting to write about (though the fragments of the novel are very good), when there were other, more meaningful forms of boredom to get interested in.

I am finding a lot to admire in the work done by the cooperative tradition and movement—as stuffy as some of the language or imagery may appear on the surface, actually read what they’re saying and I think there is a lot to love. To be a co-operator in this special sense involves a commitment to certain principles in our work together. Luckily, we don’t have to do the work of figuring them out. They are spelled out here:

I would like to explore how Cosmos—as a co-op in the above sense—can become a unique expression of cooperation in the domains of education and creative work in general, including through literature, the arts, and new media forms. How can we innovate through a tradition which is still very young, but very well could become (as I believe it is becoming) a model for future human forms of association?

I don’t mind not reinventing the wheel—as long as we can go somewhere other than techno-capitalist dystopia! I believe creative cooperation points a way out of the deep, painful rut of late-capitalist, nihilistic, narcissistic, postmodern despair.

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As Above,so Below-So within, so without

Rumi 2
Rumi 2960×960 92 KB

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Been a passionate fan of cooperative forms, worker and member co-ops of various kinds since at least the 70s. Food Co-op founding member in 1972 and was part of a cooperative schooling movement when my kids were growing up, I bank with a cooperative credit union, am supporting the development of low-income housing co-ops here in my town, and of course I am a happy member of Cosmos Co-op! I think the cooperative form is at once traditional and futuristic, which is exactly, it seems to me, what’s needed now on our planet!

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I was a member of the Park Slope Food Co-op back when I lived in Brooklyn in my mid-20s, and used to shop/hang out at now the defunct Boulder Food Co-op, when I first moved to Colorado. Since then, however, I have mostly had experiences in non-profits and small businesses. It was my dissatisfaction with the models of private entrepreneurship (literally: grabbing the middle) and disempowered do-gooding that led me back to co-ops

I believe that the co-op structure, in principle, offers a sweet spot between individual and collective, local and global needs and aspirations. It is both traditional and futuristic (I like how you put that!) in how it seeks to harmonize power, equality, and development. I also appreciate that co-ops can be idealistic and pragmatic at the same time.

That is great that we have your cooperative experience on board! Collective ownership to me means walking our talk. I am glad we get to walk and talk together for a while


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World-Planet

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I also have a fair amount of experience with coops. Member of two different food coops at different times, members of several banking coops, peripherally involved in a housing coop, and a founding member of a sailing coop. I must admit I kind of implicitly assumed we would follow standard coop values and approaches.

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Hi everybody, I am eager to move forward with this process of cooperative formation, and have been thinking about how we might bring an appropriate level of focus to the task at hand.

Let me offer that I could be available on Tuesdays at 11 am Mountain (the old Cosmos Café slot, which has since moved to Thursdays) to begin systematically working through the questions we will have to resolve to document how exactly Cosmos will function as an organization, while providing opportunities for members (or proto-members) to become involved in the process.

We’ve done a few series of meetings like this, with Caroline and others, which in retrospect I think were preparatory—rehearsals, as it were, or first drafts. This time I would like for us to document our thoughts in a form not only that others can critique, but that, when ready, can be handed to our legal team to make official.

Of course, Fatimeh and Sarah may also give us feedback that causes us to rethink a few things. But I believe we should do our best to think through the issues they’ve presented to us, systematically, along with any bigger questions that are implied, before we re-engage them in drafting formal documents. Fortunately, they’ve given us a good framework to work through. We got a good start a few months ago, then paused toward the end of the summer.

Gj’s last post toward a vision statement read as follows:

Incipient transformations are calling for collective voices of inclusion, for individual creative genius and for subversive expressions of difference. Within this process of poetic engagement, we are working towards the emergence of a world with new and powerful modes of becoming.

There is a lot to unpack in those words: I wonder if we can play in the space they open up, inviting a language that is intuitive and concrete. I admit, I have been unhappy with my own formulations so far. When I think of the ultimate potential of Cosmos, I sense it might be to create something like a general human intelligence—as distinct from (though likely incorporating) the ‘general artificial intelligence’ which is the goal of companies like Google.

It seems to me that university systems and other large cultural institutions could have once been said to share the purpose of cultivating a general intelligence, which of course still ends up happening in convoluted ways, but that they have largely also been captured by the machinery of capitalism and the state. What if Cosmos were simply dedicated to the prospect of collective human intelligence, which has only partially (and not primarily) to do with technical achievements in the realms of data processing, prediction, and control—starkly driven by the profit motive—but more so with inherent values such as joy (ananda), creative expression, depth perception, quality of discourse, and integrity of relationships, all tied together ecologically by the ethos and practice of cooperation. What would that general human intelligence (which might be capable of birthing a non-insane world) look and feel like?

There would certainly be “collective voices of inclusion,” “individual creative genius,” “subversive expressions of difference,” and a “process of poetic engagement” with “new and powerful modes of becoming”—though I sense that we should be able to boil these down into a more singular, synthetic visionary statement. However, this has not yet crystallized for me, and maybe it doesn’t need to yet but will ooze forth as we continue coordinating what needs to happen for the the practical aspects of Cosmos, such as book publishing, to take shape.

Would anyone be willing to join me to continue the conversation on Tuesday (in your time zone) 2021-10-05T17:00:00Z? I could also show up any of the following Tuesdays if next week is too soon for your calendars. I might also like to add a note about these meetings to the Metapsychosis newsletter which is scheduled to go out next week.

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This time can work for me. At least the proposed first meeting October 5th. This time Tuesdays is also dedicated to a work meetup once or twice monthly and may conflict with future Cosmos Convos (which I consider primary, though work requirements are primary for others.)

I feel the same and think that whatever oozes into some crystaline form will (for me) always be backed up with the idea that it is not to be set in stone. Perhaps legally it will be, but it is subject to change. As Fatimeh notes it is wise to come up with something (the practical) while also considering it a work of oozing progress.

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Hey, @Douggins. Let’s postpone this meeting, if you don’t mind. I still have a few technical and editorial tasks that I should focus on to really get caught up enough that I could follow through with anything else. How about we do this after the Metapsychosis newsletter is out, so either next week or the week after, when conditions are more ripe?

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Unable to meet today. Next week is open for me around this timeframe.

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Hi Doug, Shall we try next week—2021-10-26T17:00:00Z?

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This time will work for me, as far as vision can perceive. I am liking Faggin’s “interactive education system” as a term for the Earth’s cooperative ecosystem; it aligns with @Geoffreyjen_Edwards’ vision statement workings and perhaps we can work with this.

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That is something we didn’t bring up in our conversation today, but an idea I also liked. “Life as a school” is a metaphor I’ve been working with, creatively and critically. In what sense is this true, and in what sense do we make it true? Is it a poetic, metaphysical, or even a physical truth (as we might interpret evolution)? A nice story we tell ourselves? A thought in the mind of God?

Maybe it’s all and none of the above—but that is not totally helpful, as an action-logic.

Well, anyway, food for thought. So shall we make it a date for Tuesday? I will add it to the calendar, and hope @Geoffreyjen_Edwards and others can make it too.

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Hi, @Doug. I’m not sure we set a Zoom line for this. Shall we use the Cafe line for now?

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Thanks for posting this, Doug. I’m glad we kept talking, though listening to our talk just now I have become newly aware of how I ramble on and seem to be circling around points without actually providing useful information. Like a postmodern whirling dervish, I have become a master of circumlocution, I fear. Let’s get this show on the road—another part of me, my Divine Double, implores!

I appreciate your soft focus and ability to follow my turns of thought, and reflect back and introduce novel notions with a gentle mood, as you row row row and help steer our ship of death away from the whirlpools and rocky crags of our mental minds.

As we float towards formalization of Cosmos as a cooperative, I also know we should move toward anchoring some concrete deliverables—not only the manuscripts for the books we will sell, which are well on their way to being delivered for design and production, but our overall documentation and integral systems, which need to become more transparent and functional.

We can meet again next week, as discussed toward the end our chat, to get practical about what we want to have happen in that regard, and what needs to happen for that (all that legal structure stuff, as well as operations). Hopefully @Geoffreyjen_Edwards, and any others who would like to roll up their sleeves and work on getting this co-op up and running in a real sense, can also join us.

That would be: 2021-11-02T18:00:00Z.
I’ll provide a updated video conference link soon.

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Well said (and transpose our names, as I felt the same about my speech tributaries, taking you as listener down a snaking stream toward cliffs of no return). I appreciate the feedback (“soft focus” and “novel notions”). Two meandering minds may not be enough to take the show on the road , yet . . .

When I listened to the Thrive kombucha podcast (a local business) I was content with their episode setup. They are casually speaking, mostly off the cuff, within a general framework. Much like we do in the Cafe. They spend a couple minutes checking in and updating the listener on their experiments/restaurant offerings/recent changes then begin talking about recent experiences with kombucha (tasting other booch makers), and finally they go into the topic at hand. I envision these dedicated talks (that you envisioned) with a core-focused topic. If we intend the conversation to be directed to the audience (based on the topic) then we could plan for that. If it is only the two of us or GJ (those working on background stuff) we could discuss pressing needs and task out tangible tasks. If inviting a guest, we can wax philosophical rather than logistical. I also listed “interviews” with core cosmic players which could be quite fruitful for practical feedback.

Running Topic List (wiki)

Lets Get Logistical (Logical)

  • cosmos cloud file organization
  • newsletter logistics
  • cosmos cafe “improvements”
  • best practices for uploading to Metapsychosis media folders
  • site optimization
  • vision statement
  • planning around Untimely book needs
  • organizing Discourse
  • Marco assigns WP/IC/CC tasks to Doug and Doug complies

Introducing Cosmos

  • past, present and future offerings (from Cafes to Untimely books)
  • sparking conversations on the site
  • A general introduction to Cosmos
  • What is a coop? Why a coop?
  • what is our process for an event?
  • Stewarding your seeds to fruition

Interviews at Interstices

  • interviews with cosmonauts
    • what is working
    • what isnt working
    • what could we use more of/less of
    • what do you what to have happen?
    • (thinking a direct interview or questionnaire with John, Mike, Ed, GJ, Lisa, Heather, Maia, Brigid, along with any others who may be out there with great ideas)
  • interviews with other coops

All of this is to say . . . just a few ideas.

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Yes, yes, yes, yes, and yes. I can honestly be nothing but a Yes Man to your nifty notions and para-novel notations here. They are all resonant with issues I’ve had in mind and my open questions too. I am looking forward to getting down to brass tasks. I toot your horn section!

Let’s plan to flesh out and start working with these helpful lists at our meeting next week.

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OK, here is something that crystallized for me today.

My vision for COSMOS:
generation of the Cosmic Human—

Imagine a 5-pointed star over a neo-Davincian
Vitruvian male/female figure, re-humanized

Our right foot is Science—
a grounding in analytical knowledge

Our left foot is Technology—
ability & know-how with the Real

Our right arm is Philosophy—
a loving synthesis of wisdom

Our left arm is Art—
creative disclosure & being-in-truth

And at the tippy-top of the head
(floating above, enveloping and

Pervading the star as a whole) is the Spirit—
That IS—consciousness, being, and bliss—the dreaming of life

And death, with the breath of Integrality
rising and falling with the chest

Do you see?
Do you see my 5-pointed star—

In sweet sun spot-on superposition
with the Cosmic Human?

I do not need to literally draw it for you—
for I know you can see it in your mind’s eye

Now I would love to hear more
precisely what you see


Let’s continue the conversation!

In your time zone: 2021-11-09T19:00:00Z
Video link: Launch Meeting - Zoom

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