eSOM
The Road to D, or the Story of Singularity High School (SHS) and Cowa
2025.05.17
eSOM: The Path to D (19) Karatani and Mujica – In Memory of Former Uruguayan President José Mujica
1 On page 203 of the SIS home economics textbook “Basic Home Economics,” Uruguayan President José Mujica (2010-2015) is featured with a photo, described as “the world’s poorest president.” Former President Mujica passed away on the 13th. The internet is flooded with many of Mujica’s famous quotes, including his “legendary speech” at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) held in Brazil in 2012: x.com/hst_tvasahi/st x.com/MUKIDEZA2/stat These words can be considered synonymous with “D” (≒a world where SDGs are realized ≒a world of well-being ≒rhizome ≒digital democracy ≒Eastern Mediterranean cultural sphere), which SIS/Cowa is trying to build. At least, Mujica himself probably thought so. This is because Mujica deeply respected Karatani, the honorary director of SIS and the originator of “D,” and even personally asked Karatani to write a blurb (recommendation/introduction) for his recent book: x.com/MUKIDEZA2/stat I once saw a photo of Mujica sent to Karatani at Karatani’s home. In it, Mujica was smiling happily, holding the Spanish version of Karatani’s “The Structure of World History.” As if to say, “This is a good book! Well done!” 2 The co-educational goal of SIS, which forms a pair with the above ultimate goal, is “to nurture individuals who contribute to the construction of ‘D’ by making full use of AI.” Therefore, the SIS curriculum is meticulously calculated and programmed in every detail to be optimal for achieving that goal. However, students, let alone facilitators, do not need to immediately read Karatani’s works directly related to “D,” such as “The Structure of World History.” Of course, those who want to read should read as much as they like, and I strongly recommend struggling with it. Just as I struggled with Akira Asada’s “Structure and Power” when I was a high school student (see “eSOM” (11)). I learned from experience that it is through such struggles that one can reach new horizons that cannot be reached otherwise. But that also depends on flow (in this case, the feeling of “wanting to read”). Reading with a sense of obligation, “I have to read it,” when you can’t get into flow is counterproductive. Until such flow sprouts within you, it is more than enough to just touch Mujica’s words, which can be found in abundance on the internet. Because the essence of “D ≒…≒ digital democracy” is scattered throughout Mujica’s words, which are strongly connected with Karatani through respect and trust. Among the words that emerged on the internet with Mujica’s obituary, the following two words particularly resonated with me. Both are important words to me, and at the same time, words I want to deliver to everyone reading this, so please take a look: x.com/konnakareshi/s x.com/alftomo/status As I wrote in the first installment of “eSOM: The Road to D,” which changed its name from “The Road to X,” SIS will head “beyond the dream” with both of those who are alive and those who are dead: x.com/shinkoukouwa/s We have gained another companion. (To be continued)
