I suppose my question is, what do you mean by 'in the last instance' ? Presumably suffering is a highly over-determined phenomenon and, of course, there is more than one 'kind' of suffering.

Great question. Would you mind bringing it to the blog? That way it can be part of the discussion. Also, Chaim just texted me that he rarely checks Twitter. Finally, I will get back to you tomorrow about your article idea.

I'm enjoying this and still thinking it over. I am struck by this: "... the proximate cause of human suffering, by which I mean its determination in the last instance, is some thing called “the mind,” then you are an idealist, and we cannot engage in a productive dialogue."