Introduction
Philosophy, to me, is a young man’s game. As one matures and lives more deeply into life, the big questions are answered one by one. There are many unknowns (because they are unknowable) but very, very few questions. What’s more, if you have acquired the knack of multi-level thinking, no newly discovered question remains unanswered, assuming it is answerable, for long. What follows is not really philosophy in the sense of Kant or Descartes but are more general observations derived from my life experience and the life experience of those I have known or observed.
General
- There is no immortality in the physical world. You are remembered as a living individual to the second generation and as the name of a family member to the fourth generation then you are forgotten by the living.
- When a disaster is predicted, even if the disaster occurs, it will never be as bad as predicted because people will have done something to mitigate the disaster.
- There are two basic divisions of social thinking. One believes the individual is more important than society. The other believes that society is more important than the individual.
- Most people use themselves as the standard by which to judge the world. If someone says something can’t be done, what they are really saying is they can’t do the something.
Religion
- All people are religious.
- If no religion exists, they make one up.
- Most people are not aware they have a religion.
- Because people are religious, they all worship something or someone.
- People tend to worship more than on thing (or person) but there is always something they worship the most.
- You can tell what people worship the most by where they spend most of their time, money and attention.
- You can manipulate a person by manipulating what they worship or the conditions under which they worship.
Principle of Least Astonishment
The Principle of Least Astonishment states that if the evidence equally supports two different conclusions, then the least astonishing conclusion is usually correct. For example the evidence supported dust on the Moon but not how much dust. Some people seriously speculated that parts of the Moon could be covered by layers of of dust think enough to swallow a lander. Other people speculated that Moon dust would be no thicker than the dust on Earth. Neither side has sufficient supporting data. The least astonishing conclusion would be an Earth like layer of dust and that is how it turned out.
Of course, the Principle of Least Astonishment isn’t really proof for anything. It’s simply a mildly humorous way to appeal to common sense and an experience bred sense of balance in life. Oddly enough, even though it’s not logical, using the POLA does help maintain balance when people are wildly speculating.
Defining the Extreme
What is an extreme position? An extreme position is either a completely positive or completely negative answer to a question. The question is structured in a way that the answer must be one value of a mutually exclusive two-value pair. Basically a yes/no answer. The unspoken assumption is the “correct” answer automatically rejects any part of the ‘incorrect" answer. The answer must be pure yes or pure no to be “correct.”
Take the abortion debate as an example. If the abortion question is structured as “Is abortion OK? The only answers are “Yes, abortion is OK.” or “No, abortion is not OK.” If the abortion question is structured as “Under what circumstances is abortion OK?”. There can now be three answers. “Abortion is OK under all circumstances.”, “Abortion is not OK under any circumstances.” and “Abortion is OK under some circumstances but not in others.” The extremist will choose one of the first two questions. The moderate will choose the third question then attempt to define the circumstances under which abortion is OK.
Eagle Feathers
The old Plains Indians believed that if you put an eagle feather in your hair, then you would acquire the attributes of an eagle. People still do this but not with eagle feathers. For example, a man believes himself to be a furniture maker. He reads books and magazines about furniture making, uses the slang and language of a furniture maker, copies the attitudes and mannerisms of people who are furniture makers and participates in furniture making discussions. If he doesn’t actually make furniture, he is not a furniture maker. Simply reading, acting, and talking without doing like a furniture maker does not make him a furniture maker.
Sumner Lines
Average celestial navigation is based on the assumption that all lines on the earth are straight. This is a false assumption but navigators have successfully used this assumption to find their way. Point: For practical purposes, sometimes a false assumption can lead to a workable conclusion.
Werner’s Rock Formation Theory
Werner sat in Germany and developed a theory of rock formation based on local observation. When tested against the rest of the world, the theory was proven false. Point: Generalizing from one data point usually leads to false conclusions. (Except for this one, of course. Sometimes if you pick a really good data point, it works.)
Cycles and Epicycles
Prior to Copernicus, people believed that the Sun revolved around the Earth. When astronomical observation and mathematical calculation did not exactly match the theory, the theory was “nuanced” with epicycles to explain away the practical observation. Point: People will retain a false theory even when close observation of the way things actually are refutes the theory.
Freedom Defined
- Freedom is the space between what is forbidden and what is required. This idea can be used to gauge the amount of freedom in government, society, religion, and work. Forbidden things are what an individual wants to do but is prevented from doing. Required things are what an individual does not want to do but is forced to do. In both cases, an outside force compels the individual to act against what the individual wants.
- A social system that defines what is allowed to an individual assumes all else is forbidden. A social system that defines what is forbidden to an individual assumes all else is allowed.
Conflict
Life is continual conflict from the moment of your conception to the moment of your death.
General
- Apply your strengths against your opponents weakness.
- Defense is stronger than offense.
- You can’t win unless you attack.
- Static defense will always fail.
- The firstest with the mostest wins.
- Attack. If you are successful, press the attack until the enemy is obliterated. If you fail, defend then counter attack. Repeat until the enemy is weak then attack to destroy the enemy.
Time-Speed-Distance Triangle
- All conflict from one-on-one to group-on-group is based on the time-speed-distance triangle.
Drops of Distilled Philosophy
- Pessimist’s Philosophy of Life - Life’s a bitch then you die.
- Optimist’s Philosophy of Life - Life’s a bitch and any bitch can be screwed.
- Dog’s Philosophy of Life - If you can’t eat it or fuck it, piss on it.