Yes. Greed requires comparison. Desire does not.
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Replying to @mistermircea
I disagree. To desire something is to compare favorably a possible world where you have it against the actual world where you don't.
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Replying to @wzeller42
Your definition of desire then would not include those you do not choose to have, as your definition is predicated upon comparison and comparison implies choice. Yet you still have them, so you must call them something.
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Replying to @mistermircea
Comparison does not imply choice. I can see the difference between A and B without choosing either.
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Replying to @wzeller42
Seeing the difference is not the same as comparison. Seeing the difference between A and B is not a choice, it's a given. Comparison is choosing to value the attributes of A against the attributes of B.
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Replying to @mistermircea
Comparison itself is just perception of difference. Choosing is preferring one over another after having compared.
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Replying to @wzeller42 @mistermircea
Sorry -- perception of differences and similarities.
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Replying to @wzeller42
Comparison arises due to the perception of difference but it is not synonymous. Comparison requires a unit of measurement, a definition of attributes that denotes similarities/dissimilarities. Perception of difference exists prior to language, in other words.
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Replying to @mistermircea
I think preferences or desires imply comparison but do not imply choice. There is no such thing as "better than" without comparing what could be with what is. Yet the values underlying what is "better" can be as instinctual and unintelligible as any other drive.
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Replying to @wzeller42
The fact that we are able to perceive our own desires is what allows for any sort of comparison to exist in the first place. Without it there is no difference between "I" and "desire" and no means to compare between "better than" or "worse than" for "me".
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Ipso facto, perception of difference precedes comparison and is not synonymous. It is more like consciousness itself, although I'm treading dangerous waters using this term.
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Replying to @mistermircea
Distinguishing between desire and the one who desires would make a good koan.
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Replying to @wzeller42
Indeed. This is why we can go on circling this issue for all eternity ..
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End of conversation
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