Thursday, October 29, 2009

Scandal on the High Seas: Part i, Preface

Even in the course of writing on this blog, or, as has too often been the case, not writing on the blog, a question has haunted my mind. It is a question that is inspired by the servant examples of my dear friends over at "Trying to Live in the Here and Now" and "Not all who Wander are Lost": why conserve? I am a neophyte in this field, and despite having given it some thought, it is not a question I relish attempting to answer, especially publically, at this time. However, the the next few articles I intend to publish deal with a subject which I will call "Nautical Conservation", to which adressing this question is critical.

Nautical Conservation, as I have titled it, concerns the preservation of entire watercraft; a specialized, time consuming, and exprensive process, so expensive, in fact, that it rivals, and sometimes surpasses, the expense of architectural conservation. It is these features that are so problematic: the world is a troubled place, and many who live have real physical needs. It would seem, therefore, that such effort, even if incapable of relieving the world's troubles, should be put forth to lighten them, and allowing that is not crucial be allowed to pass away, even if to be forgotten.

However, perhaps that such trivial things exist enrichen life, and underscore and promote concern for the troubled; to grotesquely misuse Plato's analogy of the Cave, seeing something beautiful in this world inspires the desire to rush back into the cave, and say to those still in the dark, "Come, look, and see that which I have seen." Allowing something to be lost will forever change that which is seen, and although the joy of sight may find an alternative object, that which was can never be fully reclaimed.

This argument is likely full of problems, nor has it even scratched the surface of the case for conservation. However, I hope it will serve to encourage further thought and debate on the subject. The cases I intend to review over the next few entries will furthermore include specific reasons of their particular importance, and given individual attention. As allways, comments and criticisim are welcome.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Hiatus

My dear readers,

Please forgive the lack of updates over the past two months. I have not forgotten about this site, nor lost desire to post on it, but so posting does consume a considerable amount of time, and in the grand scheme of things, I consider it to be a reasonably low priority. Hopefully, I will be back with something substantial in the next month (and probably sooner), when time allows.

My thanks,
Flavius