[DETH-1] Death, Technology, and Western Decline: Ellul, Virilio, and ?

Notes
CONTENTS [A] GENERAL [B] VIRILIO ON DEATH AND TECH

[A] GENERAL Boehme and the dialetic of oppo ition! "Apa#t f#om all manife tation$ God in him elf i an ete#nal tillne %itho&t 'ein( o# e ence) No lon(e# called Unkund$ fo# he ha no #efe#ence to an*thin( o&t ide him elf$ he i a' ol&te f#eedom %itho&t di tinction o# dete#mination) He i the p&#e %ill to manife t him elf) +,- .i# t$ the#e i an int#in ic d#i/e in the indete#minate to diffe#entiate it elf$ a &ni/e# al tendenc* fo# all #ealit* to di clo e it elf in conc#ete fo#m ) Second$ elf,#e/elation of the indete#minate &nfold in cont#a#iet*$ o that it #eali0ed diffe#entiation a#e the p#od&ct of pola#itie of oppo ed fo#ce ) The#efo#e the p&#e %ill to manife t it elf can do o onl* th#o&(h an o'1ect in %hich oppo in( fo#ce a#e the /ehicle fo# it elf,manife tation" +B#o%n$ The Later Philosophy of Schelling$ 23-) ".o# the /a t infinite pace de i#eth na##o%ne and inclo &#e)))%he#ein it ma* manife t it elf$ fo# el e in the %ide tillne the#e %o&ld 'e no manife tation4 the#efo#e the#e m& t 'e an attraction and inclo in($ o&t of %hich the manifestation appea#eth4 and the#efo#e al o the#e m& t 'e a cont#a#* %ill4 fo# a t#an pa#ent and 5&ite %ill i a nothin($ and (ene#ateth nothin(! '&t if a %il m& t (ene#ate$ then it m& t 'e in somewhat %he#ein it ma* fo#m and ma* (ene#ate in that thin(4 fo# Nothin( i nothin( '&t a stillness %itho&t an* ti##in($ %he#e the#e i neithe# da#6ne no# li(ht$ neithe# life no# death" +Boehme$ Threefold Life$ 7)89,8:4 cit) in B#o%n$ The Later Philosophy of Schelling$ 23-) "The#efo#e$ no%$ the de i#in( i anothe# thin( than the %illin($ fo# the %illin( i %itho&t 'ein( [o# &' tance]$ and the de i#in( ma6eth 'ein(4 and o o&t of the ete#nal nothin( i come %hat oe/e# i )))" +Boehme$ Threefold Life$ 7;)<=4 cit) in B#o%n$ The Later Philosophy of Schelling$ 23,2=-) "H&man tho&(ht e>t#act the t#&ct&#e f#om the 'ein( of the %o#ld$ and lan(&a(e in t&#n e>p#e e them) It i th#o&(h h&man con cio& ne and lan(&a(e that God? elf,

#e/elation in the %o#ld #ecei/e it deci i/e atte tation +[ Threefold Life] :)7,:-" +B#o%n$ The Later Philosophy of Schelling$ 9;-) @icnolep *! "To hold people e>pectant i the a#t of the con &ltant4 to #el* &pon thei# than6f&lne i the a#t of the pea ant! fo# the fi# t #emem'e# and the econd fo#(et " +G#acian$ The Art of Worldly Wisdom$ 9 [p) <]-) ")))fo# nothin( 'elon( to & e>cept time$ %he#ein e/en the homele 32]-) d%ell" +i'id)$ <2A [p)

"Emplo* h&man mean a tho&(h the#e %e#e no di/ine$ and di/ine mean a tho&(h the#e %e#e no h&man" +i'id)$ <97 [p) 39]-)

[B] VIRILIO ON DEATH AND TECH

A dialectic of attac6 and defen e in Vi#ilio +compa#e to the "dialectic of oppo ition " in .a##ell-! "Bltimatel*$ the milita#* cla ? am'ition a#e 5&ite independent of all that$ and in Vom Kriege$ Ca#l /on Cla& e%it0 let & (limp e thi fact) At the end of an in/ento#* of techni5&e $ '* impl* pointin( o&t that #eal %a# i p#eadin($ that it i a phenomenon moving toward the reali ation of its a!solute essence$ he ho% that Hi to#* indeed contain the cohe#ence of a dialectical ad/ance +initiall* e ta'li hed 'et%een attac6 and defen e- ac#o a &cce ion of milita#* en(a(ement and thei# p#epa#ation '* the (#eat %a##in( State $ in p&# &it of the a' ol&te e ence of %a#" +Vi#ilio$ Popular "efense$ 78-)

The original act of war and the move to "conduct of war": "Originally, the 'Act of War' came from spontaneous hand-to-hand combat, in which the combatants had to demonstrate refle es, physical force, agility and cunning in the open field !!! There was no conduct of war to spea" of, in other words, no scenario, no theater prepared in advance! The act of violence really was part of the as-yet-badly circumscribed totality of social e changes! #t did not distinguish itself from the latter any more than men, living alone or in small ethnic groups, showed or indicated their presence in the environment" $ibid!, %&'! "These men employed no obstacles or articifial fortifications( they "new perfectly well how to use their surroundings to hide, move or escape--but not to defend themselves" $ibid!, %)'! "#f the ancients seem first and foremost to be builders of ramparts and fortifications, it is because the ambition of conducting a war begins with the planning of its theater, or the creation of artificial environmental conditions which will form the infrastructure, the stage on which the scenario should be played out scenario prepared in ad- * vance by whichever adversary claims to dominate the other! The rudimentary hilloc", the elevated observatory, already give the pastoral assembly +uic"er information on the surroundings, and thus the time to choose between the various military attitudes at their disposal! They avoid the uncalculated spontaneity of primitive struggle $a situation which would immediately be imposed them upon them by the aggressor', and thus find themselves confronted with a new freedom since they can choose the solution they deem the most advantageous, depending on the si,e of the enemy group: i!e!, either flee with all their goods and floc"s, ta"ing advantage of their head start( or face the enemy! When the possibility of pastoral flight disappears with the advent of agricultural settlements and a change in the nature of wealth $non-transportable goods', it is no longer enough to be +uic"ly educated about one's surroundings( one must also educate the surroundings! #n other words, one must try to preserve, on that very spot, one's head start over the enemy! Whence the construction, around the hilloc", of protected enclaves, enclosures and fences intended to slow the aggressor down! Attac" and defense then split on * this terrain to form two elements of a single dialectic: the former becomes synonymous with speed, circulation, progression and change( and the latter with opposition to movement, tautological preservation, etc! -or both sides of the strategy, chance remains the pro.ect's drawbac", since it implies for the adversary an opportunity for growth $and thus survival', and for oneself a serious danger of ruin, servitude or death! /ecause every military commander spends his time trying to eliminate such

contingencies, the progress of strategy will aim toward an increasingly geometric preparation of the theater of war and its infrastructures, on which the operations' speed and scope depend" $ibid!, %)-%0'!
lft l) 3

B B! "#$%&H'
Da6o' Boehme) The #igh and "eep Searching $ut of the Threefold Life of %an&&&& T#an lated '* Dohn Spa##o%) London! E)S) fo# H) Bl&nden$ 7:9;) Ro'e#t .) B#o%n) The Later Philosophy of Schelling' The (nfluence of )oehme on the Works of *+,-.*+*/) Le%i '&#(! B&c6nell Bni/e# it* @#e 4 London! A ociated Bni/e# it* @#e e $ 7=AA [B <3== )G: BA:] Balta a# G#acian) The Art of Worldly Wisdom) T#an lated '* Ea#tin .i che#) Ne% Fo#6! Ba#ne and No'le$ <;;3 [7:2A]) @a&l Vi#ilio) Popular "efense and 0cological Stuggles) T#an lated '* Ea#6 @oli00otti) Ne% Fo#6! Semiote>t+e-$ 7==;)