[Poster's note: for a very brief summary of this post, you may want to skip ahead and read my next post first]
As interesting as it is to speculate otherwise, I, too, believe in one fundamental reality.
I also believe the following:
a] Our ability to perceive this reality is limited, probably much more limited than we know. We have five senses, and with technology we have learned to extend these senses and "see" things we otherwise wouldn't be able to "see". Yet how much of the universe is currently beyond our ability to perceive it? Some physicists and mathematicians are positing that we live in a universe of multiple spatial dimensions [much more than the three I am familiar with]. I'm no physicist or mathematician, but to me this means my ability to perceive the universe may be somewhat similar to a flatlander's ability to observe his/her universe.
b] Despite everyday common experience to the contrary, correctly perceiving the "true" reality is a difficult task. Research has shown our memories are surprisingly prone to error, that our perception of objects can be shaped by the statements of others about the objects, that we put more faith in anecdote and testimonials than "hard facts", and so on. My point being here that besides our physical limitations in being able to perceive the universe, we have a number of psychological factors that shape our perceptions as well.
c] The predominant beliefs and underlying assumptions of our culture [or sub-cultures within it] play an extremely large role in shaping our perceptions of reality.
Taking all this together, I am wary of anyone claiming to know the "truth" or "reality". If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.
However, inability to fully perceive the fundamental reality with 100% certainty does not necessarily lead to a relativistic world where all perceptions of reality are equally valid. Just because we don't know everything doesn't mean we don't know anything. And just because we don't know everything doesn't mean that we can't begin to determine if some perceptions of reality are closer to what we know of reality than others. We just need to be cautious and avoid the trap of believing that we know reality.
The values that cultures promote add another level of complexity when considering reality. For a culture, learning the "objective truth" may be only one of many values, and it may be overridden by those values. Of course, in some cultures, it may not be a value at all. Not all cultures are equal, either, and in general the culture that does a better job at perceiving reality will do a better job at surviving through time, though not always, and there are other factors to consider when assessing a culture, too.
Finally, I should state here that subjective perceptions of reality do not equal reality. I may loosely speak of Esefeb living in her own reality, but it is merely short-hand for Esefeb's perceptions of reality being markedly different from other's perceptions of reality, although extremely compelling to Esefeb.
There are as many perceptions of reality as their are sentient beings. If perceptions are similar enough they may form a common culture [and are often likely similar as a result of intimate contact with that culture, though certainly not always]. But all these perceptions come from different perspectives of one fundamental reality.
To bring all this back to my previous post, I believe that culture plays a prominent role in our development as humans and our perception of the world and reality, and without a culture to guide Esefeb and her people through their recovery, I fear some horrible results could ensue from Mia's actions. With a culture to return to, I believe strongly that curing Esefeb and others is the right thing to do. Mia could provide that culture, one presumably very similar to the one of the original colonists, but we have no indication that she plans to do so.
