FOM: In defense of Conway

[Walter Felscher]

I want to join in the defense of Mr. Conway. From personal
acquaintance, I can assure you that he is not prejudiced against
foundational issues; it just happens that he is not interested in
pursuing them with the logician's machinery. Also, should you
ever take the time to write down the details already of the early
proofs in Numbers And Games, you will - I hope to your pleasure -
notice that the techniques required remind you of those used when
carrying out the construction of ordinal notations in proof
theory.

As I stopped attenting categorist's gatherings already in 1972, I
do not know who really coined the word of a "Mathematicians'
Liberation Movement", quoted to occur in Johnstone's book  - it's
as catchy as were other phrases that used to come from a
particular of their leaders' mouth. In those times, the attitude
of a revolutionary was the fashion of the day, and it is a well
known practice of of certain regimes to show off innocuously
visiting foreigners as supporting their totalitarian cause. Or to
claim that a Rugova supports a Miloscevic.

W.F.