I know many of you are aware of my annoying use of the word “expert.” It is though I am making light of the presumed “educated” instead of glorifying them to their great satisfaction as occurs on many Oprah type shows.
But there are people that are far worse than me and in fact as soon as anyone praises them they will be proven wrong. I can just imagine what would happen if one of these went on Oprah. She would call him an idiot and he would agree and perhaps piss on the floor.
Anyhow, just so you know such people exist, I’ll introduce the Malamatiyya: the Way of blame.
The Internet is a convenience. Before I would have had to write this and now I can just copy an article as an introduction.
It is a way of fighting egotism in oneself and assuring that their attraction to the seeker is not based on primarily ego needs. The seeker must sense something behind it.
Of course it is exactly the opposite of the "expert"of today who relishes in the adoration and the bucks from the glorification of the image of his presumed expertise.
Expert is just a guy who has mastered some branch of knowledge. We should not forget, however, that the process of learning anything is always open. And, as everyone knows something it is clear that we’re talking about not only continuum but plethora of continua. Impossible to talk about antithesis then. Unless expert is needed - or he himself needs - to be seen as the one who knows, gives the answer, and “thinks for others” (and no man of knowledge undertakes such a role), because then, he is his own antithesis.
I agree Rewuki that an expert SHOULD only be someone who has mastered a branch of knowledge to a certain degree. Unfortunately, what normally happens, and the Malamatiyya are obviously aware of, is that the assumption is there that they UNDERSTAND it. It is easy for the one claiming to KNOW to become egotistical about it further separating the expert from understanding and also easy for people to place faith in these “experts” thinking they UNDERSTAND what they “KNOW.”.
If one UNDERSTANDS what they KNOW, they will proceed in accordance with this understanding in the face of temptation. If they cannot, then they “know” but do not understand. Consider this following example:
Did the commander of the DUI squad “know” about drunk driving? Sure, he’s given enough speeches. Temptation caused him to drink proving he didn’t understand what he knew.
Religious "experts"are even worse since nothing is provable so it seems the Malamatiyya have devised an ingenious way to take the potential egotistical rewards out of “knowledge”
Thanks Drift. Its the embarassing detail rarely admitted to.
Bob
I had this vision that Oprah was interviewing one of these types and she would seek to bolster him up by saying how important he was which she is compelled to do and he would shock her as these people do. The value is in the shock.
