Re: [jboske] They shoot unicorns, don't they?

[John Cowan <cowan@ccil.org>]

Invent Yourself scripsit:

> What do we mean by
> existence: empirically provable, or just assumed to exist for the sake and
> context of the discussion?
> 
> I propose that "existential import" in Lojban mean the latter; that claims
> by default refer to whatever hypothetical universe the discourse is taking
> place in -- full of Unicorns and Sherlocks as easily as they might be
> forbidden.

Absolutely.

> And that we reserve da'i and da'inai to import the results of
> the discussion to the empirical universe, or inhibit the same.

Fair enough.

> Specifically, I propose that {da} mean {da da'icu'i}, not {da da'inai} as
> we seem to have been torturing ourselves over.

*I* certainly haven't been torturing myself over it. Using da implies that
*there is* (I avoid the word "existence") something of the type mentioned.

In short, on this point we are in violent agreement. The importing nature
of "ro" follows from this: there is no point in talking about "all the shmoos"
when there are no shmoos. If it's really meaningful to say "all the shmoos",
then we are *implicitly* taking a point of view in which shmoos exist.

-- 
Knowledge studies others / Wisdom is self-known; John Cowan
Muscle masters brothers / Self-mastery is bone; jcowan@reutershealth.com
Content need never borrow / Ambition wanders blind; www.ccil.org/~cowan
Vitality cleaves to the marrow / Leaving death behind. --Tao 33 (Bynner)