An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interviewer: Scott Douglas Jacobsen

1. Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Let’s talk about history, your interest in it. Why this particular focused interest in history?

Tor Arne Jørgensen: My interest in history comes from an early stage around 10 years of age, and forward. Why? Well as it goes, it all started with movies of the old west, cowboys and Indians an such. This particular time period was very exciting to me, and by that fact started to dive myself into books about old western themes. As time went on, this fascination led me further into the time period as a whole from the early 19th century and up to the late 20th century. Then my interest shifted from the old west, to be more about history divided into sections within numerical fields. By that, I saw history as a big jigsaw puzzle to be solved.

Thus gaining a better understanding of terms and their reasons for why, within; politics, commercial interest, migration patterns, trade routes, and the transition into the industrial revolution, as both national and global interests alike. Specific to Norwegian democratic processes in the year of 1814, and thus paving the new way forward into today’s democracy, first influenced by the American Revolution, then followed by the French Revolution, is for me the chief field of interest as to the historical aspect in question.

2. Jacobsen: As with many gifted individuals, there persists a desire for fresh information. You mentioned Mark Mazower. What about his text provided a context for understanding global governance within a historical contextualization of the issue?

Jørgensen: Angle of reply is to look back at the time of The League of Nations, built on Woodrow Wilson’s initiative, and as I would like to point out, idealism in its most fragile state regarding utopianism. A failed project with horrible after-effects on a global scale within numerous fields, like economics, trade, state governance just to name a few. Hereby instigated by greedy state leader, built on the notion of world peace. We all know today how well that went, with reference to the tragic outcome of WWII. Forward into the days of the beginning of the United Nations. The UN then was more effective than today, the leaders of yesterday more robust than the leaders of today.

This organization, is built on the same idealism as regards utopianism, but in a more liberal way now the before. How well is it working, hereby agrees on a long debate on its own merits, but still. The outlines are evident within a structural notion as to the fundamental principles of Effective Altruism regards to global governance. The structural draft from the implementations of wars throughout the ages, the dividing of nations for a better and more understanding world of tomorrow, mirrored in the belief of global imprisonment of idealism within an altered state of mind, as to be debated on a later time.

3. Jacobsen: Peter Singer remains a controversial and important figure within the atheist and secular community, and within the professional ethicist class in Academia. How does Practical Ethics, and Effective Altruism, provide a basis for the advancement of a utilitarian ethic into the area of broader ideas of rights? A current era in which divinity of individual human rights and special privileges afforded to most royals, as in the Divine Right of Kings, collapsed and gave way to the democratization of rights as seen in documents including December 10, 1948, United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We can see this instantiated, even bolstered, by modern scientific findings with the discovery of the evolved nature of human beings in a tree of life and one species amongst a litany of others. Some philosophies, including Humanism, incorporate international human rights and modern science within a set of guiding principles of understanding the nature of the world and for orienting human life. 

Jørgensen: Peter Singer and his view on ethics as to the field of Academia, was and is of great importance for all students and scholars alike. His opinions of an ethical nature towards the utilitarianism of theocracy, as an aspect of divinity both on religious ground and an of the notion of constitutional royalism. The aspect of human rights for both humans and all life in general, hereby the equality of human/animal rights. The settlements of an endemic by the termination of these rights, to cross the religious implementations of preserving all life at all cost, but at what personal gain.

The fall of the superior rule of feudalism, to nothing else, then to be replaced by the democratic realism fueled by capitalism. To what aim is this to be understood as nothing else than a replacement of divine powers, driven by the notion of Darwinism. To bring about the understanding of and by the fact, that divinity is to the beholder, in terms of the notion of lust to rule as by personal intent. This thus understood as the implementation of ethics on both sides of the religious spectrum at the cost of democracy.

4. Jacobsen: What philosophies and ethics make the most sense to you?

Jørgensen: The moral and ethical aspect within a philosophical thought line, now when outline seeks to be debated as to the developing stages regarding its historical continuity. The conceptual fault-lines as a paradigm in its own right with regards to inequality across the political sphere. The social diversity of trade politics within the EU trade organization as to belittling the terms of agreement of the nation’s importance, is what I seek to speculate over as ethics of importance.

5. Jacobsen: When considering history and ethics, and the modern scientific world tied to technology, why is governance more important than ever?

Jørgensen: The importance of governance within the global society of today is indeed a nice angle of question. The technological imprint that is ever more evident, and by that as I see it, spinning more and more out of control. This is maybe one of the most important factors to be addressed in both present time and forward into the future. If one is to look at the present pandemic outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, governance for how to deal with this pandemic is needed now more then ever, as we will most surely be seeing a lot more of these types of outbreaks in the future. So hopefully in the next event, we will then be more prepared, as to how to contain or at least control its effect on a global scale more effectively.

As to both natural disasters and man-made disasters, the effect that the human race will further expose upon our planet as to an upscaling of global warming, marine pollution, overfishing, overpopulation, and more… What history has shown us if anything, is that the ethical aspect is seen as nothing more than a hindering obstacle to be tumbled over.

But even so, the most worrying factor of the ethical aspect is within economic politics, as the world is ever more seen as an interconnected unity to be profited upon as the cash cow for the greedy government powerhouses to fulfill their most vivid imaginations.

6. Jacobsen: How does fundamentalist religion work against modernist versions of ethics and governance?

Jørgensen: As an example, I would refer to the ancient religious rules of “hamarabi” in Judaism or “qisas” in Islam, or commonly what we refer to as “an eye for an eye,” these ancient religious rules fuel a tit-for-tat approach to justice, which then leads to escalation and further damage. Indeed, you could contend that much of the troubles in the Middle East are generated out of this single religious tenet of revenge. It directly conflicts with much of our more relatively recent International flora and fauna of conflict resolution from the United Nations and approaches to justice, etc.

7. Jacobsen: What kinds of governance make most sense for a highly advanced technological society now?

Jørgensen: Where do you start with a technological society? A “technological society” has been around since the industrial revolution – what we are moving to is a predominantly digital society, take for example a drone – a drone (a physical device but also driving digitization) can be used by the police to trace and catch criminals, they can carry food and essential items into inhospitable places, they are also arguably low emission means of carrying goods to peoples homes – yet is it right we see Amazon patenting the use of a ‘drone-zeppelin warehouse’ where drones literally pick up products from a zeppelin and bring them down to that areas houses based on the known demand for that area?

Drones are also now implements of war, controlled by a pilot sitting in a Nevada cave thousands of miles from where the drone is deployed – how do they fit in with the Geneva Convention? So, I would suggest refinement in the question posed. I would suggest the need for checks and balances to manage the issue between state control and individual freedom, and between international standards and national priorities. It is right that governments assess and govern those standards as mandated by that nation’s own standards of its people collectively, and as to what ‘de minimis’ standards and standards of international communications (but what about implements of war, e.g., drones?) – but also that governments themselves are held in check and do not ‘over-reach’ in tracking the populace for erstwhile means.

8. Jacobsen: How can the world of re-interpretations of ancient mythologies, i.e., religion, and newer ethics, i.e., Effective Altruism, come to bring about better understandings of the place of human beings in relation to one another and the institutions built by them?

Jørgensen: What could we learned from looking to the past, as to ground alone to further seeking answers to bring about a broader understanding of this principle. If one is to look at the religious content of understanding for a speculative better world, regards to redemption for the politics that your religious leaders fault themselves by. For reasons alone to seek guidance, is by that fact to rid themselves of their disciples wants and grievances. The effect that religion has had as to uphold this principle, is indeed lacking as to the content of ethical aspects for personal gain. Effective Altruism as a concept alone with the religion sided out, with that done, we can move forward in redefining ethics or maybe re-interpretation of a better way of an ethical route forward. Understanding how to implement a positive outlook in moulding a stronger and better world of tomorrow. What directions can we take, well in the use of the collaboration of stately institution, governments, support of donations to organizations that gives the biggest effect as to health, medicine support, and more…hereby as a possible suitable paradigm for explorations as an outlook for honourable intentions.

9. Jacobsen: As we see now, the world of the digital comes to coincide with the world of the material. Digital information as algorithms and biological systems as entities working in unison for a modern form of political systems and ethics bringing about unfathomably complex, previously, forms of human society tied to digital computation with a modicum of intelligence with well-structured and narrow domains. What does this portend now?

Jørgensen: What it portends now is to what aim it seeks to be understood as, and by what intent it appears to the general public, this within a widespread of governing resolutions. What does this mean, well that the purpose of unison politics is now to be understood as a means to endemic widespread propaganda within the governing resolutions of policy. As formatted by its complexity regarding the ethical aspect of combination toward the regulatory system, thus for the sole purpose of bettering, and ultimately preface of consolidation of this structural integrity by alterations of intent, directed by progress within the shift of political alignment. Then the system is modified, as by the underlying legal understandings by the term «ethics of justice». Does the complexity in question as a medium of intelligence serves its general purpose, yes within the framework of contemporary consent, and to the degree of forward-looking intent by structural implementations of governing policy.

10. Jacobsen: Following from the previous question, what does this portend for the future of human societies into the rest of the 21st century as the promises and risks increase more and more for human societies and the realization of the best and worst aspects of human nature and proclivities bolstered and built upon the incredible power of modern mastery and power of silicon, metal, concrete, and the informational?

Jørgensen: If one is to look beyond our selves as an output of the previous line of question, I would like to point out the following. First on the positive side, that we will further our selves in a way of implementing the fundamentals with regards to structural alterations of the policymaker at the governance level.

The educational fundaments for development into tomorrow with regards to what has been pointed out will ensure and secure positive output throw positive input by these indicators as a countermeasure against ethical fading. Next, human nature is and always will be to seek more complex forms of knowledge, for a reason to evolve oneself to confront the unknown factors within his or her own state of mind. The negative side will start a downward spiral, as within the endemic of revelatory proclamations. For the reasoning of pathetic self-deplorations of content. We can secure the world of tomorrow through the implementations of personal interest through the terms of Effective Altruism, but also we can just as easily cause our own demise on these same terms.

[1] Child and Youth Worker.

[2] Individual Publication Date: May 22, 2020: http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two; Full Issue Publication Date: September 1, 2020: https://in-sightjournal.com/insight-issues/.

*High range testing (HRT) should be taken with honest skepticism grounded in the limited empirical development of the field at present, even in spite of honest and sincere efforts. If a higher general intelligence score, then the greater the variability in, and margin of error in, the general intelligence scores because of the greater rarity in the population.

Appendix II: Citation Style Listing

American Medical Association (AMA): Jacobsen S. An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two) [Online].May 2020; 23(A). Available from: http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

American Psychological Association (APA, 6^th Edition, 2010): Jacobsen, S.D. (2020, May 22). An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two). Retrieved from http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

Brazilian National Standards (ABNT): JACOBSEN, S. An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two). In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal. 23.A, May. 2020. <http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two>.

Chicago/Turabian, Author-Date (16^th Edition): Jacobsen, Scott. 2020. “An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two).” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal. 23.A. http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

Chicago/Turabian, Humanities (16^th Edition): Jacobsen, Scott “An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two).” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal. 23.A (May 2020). http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

Harvard: Jacobsen, S. 2020, ‘An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two)‘, In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, vol. 23.A. Available from: <http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two>.

Harvard, Australian: Jacobsen, S. 2020, ‘An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two)‘, In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, vol. 23.A., http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

Modern Language Association (MLA, 7^th Edition, 2009): Scott D. Jacobsen. “An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two).” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal 23.A (2020):May. 2020. Web. <http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two>.

Vancouver/ICMJE: Jacobsen S. An Interview with Tor Arne Jørgensen on History, Internationalism, and Ethical Systems (Part Two) [Internet]. (2020, May 23(A). Available from: http://www.in-sightjournal.com/jørgensen-two.

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