Everyone talks about the end of the world, but no one thinks about it. It is amazing how much talking we can do without thinking, and this applies to me as well, but slightly less so, I would suggest.

There must be a thought barrier, somewhere. I know where it is because I have been there for about ten years. There was that necessary hiatus between the end of my schooled thinking and the beginning of my own thinking, from about 1966 to 1975. It takes about that long to regroup even under the best of circumstances, and mine were about optimal.

An increasing number of intellectuals are finding themselves in the no thought zone. They go through the motions of the old thinking, while inside they are struggling to find some light at the end of their tunnel. It is my job to be that light, to toss them a life preserver. That is Dan's Place.

Yes, it is ironic that the Eschaton should turn out be our life preserver. One might have preferred at least a seat cushion. But that is just the way the world is. We are very wary of going through the eschaton door, and so we are like the lab rat on the electrified stoop, waiting as long as we can before taking that leap. Where is the payoff, we might wonder? The payoff is difficult to explain in conventional terms. It does involve faith, unfortunately for the scientists. But compared to the trust that they have placed in the lawfulness of nature, the faith we speak of is almost nothing.

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rev. 4/23/97