Dear David,
Landmark Education, the current incarnation of Werner Erhard and
Associates, and his previous companies, openly acknowledge Heidegger and
even read quotes from his writings in several of their courses. I don't
know when you did the Forum, but I took one the last est trainings in 1984,
and one of the first Forums in '85. Around that time a Chilean linguistic
philospher named Fernando Flores teamed with Werner and another phiospher
named Arnold Seigel to revamp Erhard's courses.
The Forum, from the outside, is described as being ontologically based, and
grounded in being. Quite fascinating is the work the Flores brought to
table which deals with listening, and how we are thrown (a Heideggarian
term) into body or background of listeners, with an all-ready-always way of
being (or way interpreting the world. I believe Heidegger refers to the
"they". Thrown from the past. The work of the Forum is to train people to
be present. To be authentic, and to generate their existence in the
present, by living as their word, rather than live from the past.
Once I discovered this stuff I got so turned on I've sought out all I can learn.
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