Short Philosophies.

[Joe Wordsworth]

Things I believe:

(1) People get what they deserve.
(2) Hard work is the backbone of a good future.
(3) Money isn't everything.
(4) People are, by nature, good.
(5) Personal responsibility is what makes a man a man.
(6) Freedom is more important than comfort.

 

[impressive]

I'm with ya on (3) and (6).

 

[Guest]

I'm with ya on (3) and (6).

I'm with you on (6) and (9).

 

[impressive]

I'm with you on (6) and (9).

. .

 

[Guest]

. .

Ahem.

 

[rgraham666]

There's enough pain in the universe without me contributing to the sum total.

 

[JamesSD]

Things I believe:

(1) People get what they deserve.
(2) Hard work is the backbone of a good future.
(3) Money isn't everything.
(4) People are, by nature, good.
(5) Personal responsibility is what makes a man a man.
(6) Freedom is more important than comfort.

People sometimes get what they deserve, but the universe is chaotic, unpredictable and doesn't care about "fairness".

People are, by nature, selfish. This isn't to say that all human actions are selfish, but self-interest heavily motivates most decisions.

 

[Liar]

People sometimes get what they deserve, but the universe is chaotic, unpredictable and doesn't care about "fairness".

People are, by nature, selfish. This isn't to say that all human actions are selfish, but self-interest heavily motivates most decisions.

But, self-interest isn't nessecarily a non-good.

 

[DeeZire]

Add it all up and you get 21. What is the signifigance of 21? Does that mean it's time to consume an alcoholic beverage?

I think it might be more interesting to print out the list, cut it up so that each word is on a seperate piece of paper, rearrange the words, (blindfolded - after consuming an alcoholic beverage) and then see what you come up with. In that case, I'd probably choose - no wait! You've got all the numbers in one sentence!

 

[Pure]

a) it's meaningless to talk of what people 'deserve,' for in fact no one 'deserves' to live another day

b) people are generally and centrally self interested, as James says,

but c) are capable of sacrifices... not all of which are wise.

d) the arts and literature are key things that make us human.

e) freedom, quite commonly is NOT wanted by the average man; or even the non average one.

f) a life "freely" lived is an utter rarity that is a noble goal for a few. Sade, Gauguin, Sand, Baudelaire, Kerouac, Picasso. it generally brings exile and persecution, or sometimes just being ignored.

g) openness and succesfull communication between human friends, lovers, etc. is great good, but devilishly hard to keep, especially over the long term.

 

[TE999]

Here's a 7 for you:

'No good deed goes unpunished.'

 

[shereads]

Some people get what they deserve.

Other people get raped, or get murdered, or get a painful terminal illness, or lose their homes to natural disasters, or are born with debilitating deformities, or are victims of genocide, or see their children die horribly. Anyone who assumes that the people to whom those things happen, deserved them, probably hasn't faced anything quite so challenging. Good luck with that.

 

[john-the-author]

• There is enough joy for all of us.
• There is always a way to shake the money tree.
• Energy is abundant.
• Everything is connected.
• The possibilities are limitless.

 

[only_more_so]

Things I believe:

(1) People get what they deserve.
(2) Hard work is the backbone of a good future.
(3) Money isn't everything.
(4) People are, by nature, good.
(5) Personal responsibility is what makes a man a man.
(6) Freedom is more important than comfort.

Sydney Harris once said, "Any philosophy that can be put in a nutshell, belongs there."

My take:
1) Karma's a bitch, but not necessarily in this lifetime
2) hard work is tiring, plan!
3) Money can't buy happiness, but it can rent it for a while.
4) People are selfish, which often means they act good
5) A real man is his own ruler
6) Freedom and comfort are not highly correlated

 

[shereads]

Sydney Harris once said, "Any philosophy that can be put in a nutshell, belongs there."

What he said.

 

[English Lady]

I'll pinch a few others and blend with a few EL originals *grins*

People are essentially good.
Money isn't everything
There is enough joy for everyone
Good, ultimately, conquers evil
All we need is love
Trying something new is life's spicing
food isn't just energy
the hard way is the best way

 

[Liar]

If you haven't had a change of mind in the last 3 days, check your pulse.

The wise embrace their ignorance.

 

[Recidiva]

Things I believe:

(1) People get what they deserve.
(2) Hard work is the backbone of a good future.
(3) Money isn't everything.
(4) People are, by nature, good.
(5) Personal responsibility is what makes a man a man.
(6) Freedom is more important than comfort.

Rebuttal:

1. Life is chaotic. Bad things happen to good people. Good things happen to bad people. You can do what you can to tilt the odds in your favor by being good at the game, but cards are cards.
2. Hard work occasionally makes people snap when they realize they've been used their lifetimes to "work hard" for someone else's goals.
3. Money isn't everything. But it can buy a lot of those things.
4. People just are. I have no idea if they're good or bad, because some of them are a lot better than I am and some of them are scary as hell.
5. I'm a woman. But I dig personal responsibility.
6. Freedom and comfort, in balance.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

Things I believe:

(1) People get what they deserve.
(2) Hard work is the backbone of a good future.
(3) Money isn't everything.
(4) People are, by nature, good.
(5) Personal responsibility is what makes a man a man.
(6) Freedom is more important than comfort.

Sadly, No. 1 is demonstrably false. I'll falsify it with one word: Auschwitz.

I thought about qualifying that by noting that in oridinary life rather than desperate times it may be true, but even then there are too many counter-examples known personally to me.

No. 4 is the core of a profound philosophical disagreement. Interestingly, I engaged it in Pure's "Intellectual's" thread:

"The real problem is the utopian tendencies of the left, and their flawed view of human nature. They follow the path blazed by Rousseau, the true father of modern leftism. Noble savages and all that. (A phrase he never used, but which accurately characterizes his viewpoint.)

In contrast, the thinkers of the “Scottish Enlightenment” – Smith and Hume in particular - viewed man as a mixed bag of folly and vice on one side, and virtue on the other. The Christian concept “Man is created in the image of God but is fallen” approximates the point of view. Rousseau and those on the left ever since believe that man is basically pure but has been corrupted by civil society. “Man was born free; and everywhere is in chains.” Naturally they resent what they perceive to be the corrupting influence, which is society. Indeed, they would probably resent any society they found themselves in, because Beings, Human, Mark I will always be a disappointment to leftists . . . . These tendencies suggest to them "proof" that since we have not yet acheived Utopia, then our civilization and economic system must be corrupt to the point where they are worthy only of being torn down.

That's enough for this post

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

No. 6 needs to be qualified: "Freedom is more important than comfort." There is a huge space in the middle where it is true, but out on the extremes it get's dicier. What degree of freedom, what degree of comfort? It's easy to say that if a dictator controlled all the food and demanded that I submit or starve I would choose the latter. In reality, I would have to examine and weigh which freedoms would have to sacrificed and to what degree.

 

[Liar]

Jeez people. Read the first line in the first post, please.
Lighten up and add yer own, or something.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

No. 2 needs fleshing out: "Hard work is the backbone of a good future."

As a matter of character, the habit of being willing to work hard and having the discipline to do so is an important virtue, and having it makes it more likely that a person can acheive The Good Life even with modest material blessings.

As a matter of economics, assuming one is not a wealthy heir, hard work is generally required to acheive comfort and security - these are far less likely to be gained without it, and it's certainly best to proceed on the assumption that that they won't be acheived without it. But it happens - rarely. It also happens that some people who work hard fail to advance. They may have other destructive habits, they may make bad choices about where to apply their hard work, or they may just have bad luck.

But, it's generally true and certainly not bad belief to hold - it can only help a person to believe it, and can do no harm.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

Originally Posted by only_more_so
Sydney Harris once said, "Any philosophy that can be put in a nutshell, belongs there."

What he said.

Oh yeah? How about this one:

Your purpose in life is your own happiness.

 

[Rumple Foreskin]

Life is like a poker game: you can't control the cards fate deals you, but can control how you play your hand.

Shit happens.

Rumple Foreskin

 

[English Lady]

If you haven't had a change of mind in the last 3 days, check your pulse.

The wise embrace their ignorance.

I Liar