This place seems(ed) interesting... soooooo... a challenge for you good people :
Tell us something we do not (currently) know.
Spark a conversation.
(Do NOT talk about the weather)
Andiamo ...
I used to be an Ayn Rand fanboy. I got over it when I started taking my own writing seriously and realized that I couldn't write a libertarian utopia that seemed believable to *me*. I eventually figurd out that right-wing libertarianism and the minarchism Rand favored did nothing but privatize tyranny.
Also, I've seen people on literotica.com do a better job of writing rough sex stories.
Couldn't get past the first chapter, and I have made myself finish books I hate 99% of the time. It really is terrible writing.
I used to have a theory that people who are bad people, politically, are also just bad at writing, and vice versa. Or that they write fiction in a way that subtly doesn't agree with me. That I can tell.
My theory was working out great until J.K. Rowling went off the rails.
Ah yes I came across her name 5 years ago on twitter, people's posts about her would creep into my feed, I was never one to follow the crowd so after a few of these posts I began to wonder WTF is this all about, a little more research and like you I came to the conclusion she was some quack and yes this I read that passed for quotes from her were unbelievable stupid and made no sense.
Once I figured out that Ayn Rand was just trying to justify egoism by wrapping it up in a half-assed neo-Aristotlean virtue ethic, it was pretty much over. Reading Max Stirner was the coup de grace for any regard I might have had for Rand's bullshit.
What is not supposed to be my concern! First and foremost, the good cause, then God’s cause, the cause of mankind, of truth, of freedom, of humanity, of justice; further, the cause of my people, my prince, my fatherland; finally, even the cause of Mind, and a thousand other causes. Only my cause is never to be my concern. "Shame on the egoist who thinks only of himself!"Max Stirner: "The Ego and Its Own" (1844)
There's no need to justify egoism. One need only be smart about it, and realize that in the long run it's best to repay kindness with kindness, and give strangers who have done you no harm the benefit of the doubt.
Though I'll admit I still have a bit of trouble with the latter...
>>There's no need to justify egoism. One need only be smart about it, and realize that in the long run it's best to repay kindness with kindness, and give strangers who have done you no harm the benefit of the doubt.
I do that and more sometimes, I am treated with my respect and given more appreciation by strangers than people I know but yes I get what you're saying, the world is filled with way too much egoism and not enough humanity. Give me humanity any day of the week.
Well, I was once an Anarchist, in the classical sense not what passes these day for "anachists". It all ended when I became a police officer back in 1990.
I think that is enough to spark an atomic bomb of conversation(s). Carry On.
I'm a little curious as to how one goes from being an anarchist to serving as one of the state's enforcers, but only a little. It's your story; you can tell it in your own time.
well, my mode of thinking matured I guess as time went by and I let go of that ideology all together. Just like you, I realized that anarchism is improbable and disastrous for the masses in the long run. You are devoid of personal responsibility, of the many things that make people unique is devoid in an anarchistic "nation". I out grew this notion because I realized also whether we like it or not government HAD its purpose, now government is the public tyrant but regardless, we need government to a limiting reach.
I then went to college and all that but all I wanted to do was become a cop and I did and I loved it. I am 52 now, a few years ago I went to school and learned to code and became a web developer. Throughout the years politics have left me disillusioned and disgusted so now I just live day to day, building sites for any client who wants me for their designer and the rest of life goes on, I am happy now more so than I was back when.
Just like you, I realized that anarchism is improbable and disastrous for the masses in the long run.
Maybe not just like me. I've little patience for the "social justice" types, but I still think of myself as an anarchist of sorts. I recognize that I am ultimately responsible for my own actions, and that I am the only one who can govern myself. All society and the state can do is punish me after the fact. Fortunately, my moral compass is mostly compatible with the law because for the most part I just want to be left alone to do my own thing in peace.
However, I'm generally not evangelical about my anarchism. I don't try to persuade people that they have no real obligation to obey the dictates of society or the laws enacted by the state, because most people seem to need that kind of structure to give meaning to their lives.
I'm content to let people make whatever rules and laws they like. If I find them onerous, I'll ignore them. If I can't ignore them, then I'll defy them. If there's a price to be paid, I'll pay it, but it's ultimately *my* choice and *my* responsibility.
>>I'm content to let people make whatever rules and laws they like. If I find them onerous, I'll ignore them. If I can't ignore them, then I'll defy them. If there's a price to be paid, I'll pay it, but it's ultimately *my* choice and *my* responsibility.
Oh my gods, that is exactly my mode of thinking, I guess I've held that little bit of anarchism after all.
Just remembered that the book we know as the dictionary is not the full dictionary (obviously, in retrospect). The full list of words they've collected, even historically, is like 12 books long. The short version is not just the most common words either. It's a selection of words that someone thought are most important for schoolchildren to learn. [source: encyclopedia brittanica online]
Yoga was apparently not as much about physical exercise until it came to the West. It was a way of helping the body endure longer meditation sittings.
An oversimplification I'm sure since there are many traditions, but it's at least true of some.
If I understand correctly, it used to be considered a path to enlightenment / nirvana / liberation etc by itself, not just as a mere supplement. Way different from today's new age / feel good / get fit commercial yoga.
Yes, that's right. I was referring to the Western "Yoga" which is just stretches and breathing exercises.
Actual Yoga had several "limbs" or modalities you can follow and involve immersion. Your life becomes it. It's not like the gym where you forget about it between sessions but rather you aim to change (develop) your being.
I've always found it interesting how most past societies offered established ways to retreat from society. Our current society seems to be the first in which such a thing is barely possible in an "honorable" way: most possibilities are looked down upon, or illegal, or/and greatly increase your chances of a premature death. Yes, some still have done it, but it's no longer a "supported feature" of society, so to speak.
The word "bed" looks like a bed. A small one though. A more comfy one would be beeeeed!
Now if we add a blanket: beẽẽẽd.
And if we add a pillow: bêẽẽẽd.
Who wants to go next?
Wow, very interesting.
It's strange how while reading that word you are forced to 'read' it in a physical glyphs; if that makes sense. Strange switching from an automatic reading mode to focusing on the strokes of the letters.
Venus fly traps trap insects because the swampy soil they grow in is usually too nutrient deficient to support themselves, so they have to rely on eating bugs. This means that venus fly traps that are often sprung with one's finger will die because they keep having to open and close and don't get a bug to eat as a reward.