Welcome to 'apogee culture' friends. Initially I'd like to briefly introduce 'apogee culture' and the aims and objectives of this blog.
The dictionary definition of the word 'apogee,' as some of you may already know is simply; 'the highest or most distant point; climax.' Originally a Greek word it has been assimilated into many languages and is used in scientific circles to denote 'the point in an orbit that is most distant from the body being orbited.'
If we are then to take 'culture' which has an endless list of definitions, as generally being 'the accumulation of all values and qualities of Civilisations in the areas of all arts and sciences etc. and their cultivation,' then it is evident that what we mean by 'apogee culture,' at least on an etymologic level is the 'highest, most distant climax of the arts and sciences.'
Now what does this mean for us? What constitutes the highest point of an art say such as literature or film, or the most distant point of a science such as sociology or psychology? Do these vary from person to person or between countries, cultures and social classes and is it possible to reach a consensus regarding 'apogee culture?'
We should start off by saying that we are staunch supporters of plurality and believe unwaveringly on the right to doubt. Furthermore we are true supporters of freedom and do not reject any discourse, theory or line of thought providing it is not racist, sexist, fascist or in any other way degrading to human or for that matter any other existence.
Of course this means that we are open to many 'millions' of ideas, theories, movements, occurrences and works of art. But this does not mean that we do not have an agenda and/or political engagement.
Firstly, because we are Kurdish and because of the predicament the Kurds find themselves in today, (they are the largest nation without a state), we are supporters of the Kurdish struggle for freedom and hope to support this (in the English language) in any way we can, i.e. culturally, politically and ideologically.
Secondly, we would like to be a bridge between the western and eastern worlds and believe that this bridge can be Kurdistan. A synthesis of east and west, we believe, can bring about a new era of democracy, organisation, freedom and equality to the eastern world and also provide a new vision for the west to climb out of the current crisis it finds itself in. This may seem like an audacious claim but every small struggle can help complete the general struggle for a better world. Thus we know we are only a drop in the ocean.
Thirdly, we are, on a political level, supporters of a democratic socialist society that is ecological and also gender emancipatory. The organisation of this society is from the bottom up and foresees the organisation of society according to all its different 'colours,' whether that be gender-based, religion or class based, or ethnicity-based, society, we believe has the right to organise according to its needs and the needs of nature, not the needs of the state structure.
This introduction may have asked more questions than it has answered, but it will become clearer as we put this blog into action and multiply as we share. And that is the key to this blog; the aim is to multiply and grow by sharing with the Kurdish existence and also the non-Kurdish existence all around the world to create a dialogue and raise awareness in both camps as to what is happening in all areas of arts, politics, science, history and philosophy, or in other words CULTURE.
Welcome to apogee culture.
