Life On A B-I7

Words to Live By

I have to repost. “Words are not violence, violence is violence.” If someone’s words anger you, that is a natural human reaction. Anger never gives you justification to hurt someone. Never. Even those of us (myself included) that do not have what it takes to physically harm, much less attempt to murder a fellow being, still have to remind ourselves of this. I admire George Packer for putting such a noble thought into so few words. Living by these words is the key to peace and security for all of us.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 45

Take care of your own improvement day-by-day. This entails a willingness to engage in self-reflection each day. Honestly assess what you have done and what you need to do today to make you ready for tomorrow.

Charlie Kirk

Three days ago the outspoken right-wing organizer Charlie Kirk was brutally murdered. There are those calling for vengeance against his left-wing opponents. Retribution is not the answer. Retribution, especially that dealt through the use of violence is an authoritarian response. America has, at least up until now, prided itself on avoiding authoritarianism as a response to heinous acts. In the words of George Packer, “words are not violence, violence is violence.” Let’s keep these two concepts distinct from one another. Violence (in all its forms) is not a solution for political positions that are different from the ones that we may hold.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 44

Learn to love that which you are good at. Cherish those things and strive continuously to improve those skills. If you learn to love those things, they will be your refuge.

Nothing New Under the Sun

From the early 1800’s to the late 1800’s there was a concerted effort by the French government to suppress political thought using censorship. It didn’t work. The eagerness with which our current administration is attempting to limit political expression through the withdrawal of funding for public media and the far to frequent use of the phrases “fake news”, “enemy of the people” and “witch hunt,” is equally repulsive. History has demonstrated that censorship of thought cannot successfully be achieved. It’s time the administration grew up and started acting like adults. If not acting like adults, at least realizing that they are not any smarter than their historical antecedents.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 43

Philosophy is not only for the spirit, it is also for the ordinary life. The more you understand yourself and your responsibility, the better you are able to live a good life. Philosophy can deliver you to that end. Do not think that philosophical study is above you.

9/11

Today is the day to honor those who perished on 9/11 when the twin towers in lower Manhattan were destroyed. Not only did innocent people die that day but many brave first responders also perished. The best way to honor all the fallen is with an act of kindness. It will not only honor their memory but it will also make the world a better place. The event that occurred yesterday (unspeakable) is a perfect example of actions that degrade and lower us. We must rise above our worst impulses, not only in our actions but also in our thoughts, if we are ever to become a truly humane society.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 42

Accept the responsibility for your life’s outcome and you will be better able to steer your ship to the proper shore. This is accomplished by having self-respect.

Watershed Moment

Just to be clear, the Supreme Court of the United States has thrown 250 years of democracy in the toilet and turned the country into an authoritarian dictatorship with their ruling in July of 2024 that a sitting president can not be prosecuted for any criminal act.

Just to be clear, starting a sentence with the word “just” is bad grammar and makes no sense… Those of you who understand such things are probably abhored with me.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 41

Read and study to live. Acquiring knowledge is the true calling of every person. That is what separates us from the beasts and brings us true happiness.

I’m Having a Bit of Trouble

It’s September 9th already. Where in the hell does time go? I’m almost a third of the way through the month and I haven’t accomplished a damn thing, at least that’s how it feels.

I’ve certainly thought about doing a lot of things… That’s the problem. I spend too much time thinking and not enough time doing. I suppose thinking is good. Thinking and not accomplishing is better than not thinking and not accomplishing. It would probably be better however if I got in the habit of doing both.

I know this will sound like a bit of a stretch, but part of my problem is I chose to study Political Science in college. Let me explain. It made me too sensitive to how our country is run. The current reality in that area is down right depressing. It’s affecting my emotional outlook. I’m embarrassed to be an American. If I hadn’t studied Political Science during my formative years, I might be a more focused and a happier person. (Or that could just be an excuse.)

That raises the natural question, why did I choose to study Political Science? The answer is simple, I fell in love with a woman that was a Political Science major. There’s no better reason than that, right? It so happens her father was the Dean of the department, so naturally I declared Political Science my major and selected him as my advisor — to increase my chances of winning the favor of his daughter. A brilliant strategy. I did manage to wrangle one Sunday dinner out of the gambit. I suppose it would have been a brilliant strategy, if I had wanted to spend my life in academia. My love interest followed in her father’s footsteps but I didn’t quite have the inclination to do the same, so my plan never quite came to fruition.

What followed the failure of that plan is not all bad, in fact I have to admit, things have worked out pretty damn well over all. (Oddly enough, the person that became the love of my life is pretty damn politically astute, as it turns out.) The only side effect of all this is I probably take political issues a bit more seriously than most voters, and that can have a negative influence on my outlook at times.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 40

Sometimes it’s hard to get out of bed in the morning. Remember this, you are rising to do your work. That thought alone can bring you joy and inspiration. Get rid of the snooze button. We can only be of service to ourselves and others when we are moving.

Beer

What does the beer you drink say about you?

I stopped in at my neighborhood tap room for a glass. The bartender asked me for my choice, I told him I wanted a beer that was “exactly like me.” That drew a strange look and silence. He was waiting patiently for me to elaborate so I told him I’d have the “Irrelevant IPA.” To his credit he burst out laughing. (It would have been another matter if he hadn’t batted an eye.)

I finished the draft and as I was walking out my bartender friend asked me how my beer was. I looked at him and smiled and told him I was “feeling much more relevant now.” We both got a good chuckle out of that.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 39

It’s not easy. Do good, even if it requires hard work. Don’t be afraid to do what is hard.

Gustave Flaubert

Gustave Flaubert wrote five words per hour. Madame Bovary was written at that pace. I suppose you might say that is why it is such a good work. Although I can’t say that for sure since I haven’t read it yet (it’s on my lifetime reading list.) It’s really no wonder I’m not a good writer, My best calculation is that I write at a rate of roughly 111,600 words per hour…

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 38

Your job is to keep the flame of goodness in you alive, today and everyday. If other people fail to keep the goodness in them alive, that’s on them. As long as you take care of your flame, the world is a better place.

Injury

I’ve injured my leg. It hurts. I’m playing Pickleball anyway but I am being careful. I have no idea how I did it. This is about day six. I’m going to give it a rest next week (after playing two more times…) hopefully that will put me on a fast track to healing. I’m not used to being injured and I’m not enjoying the experience all that much.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 37

It’s how you look at it. Do you “have-to”, or do you “get-to”. For the stoic, it is the latter. Out of “get-to” comes enlightenment.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 36

To find our duty is our obligation. Once found, we must follow it. No shirking, no shrinking. This holds true in every phase of our life.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 35

We all have a purpose and we are all interconnected. So every action is part of a larger consequence, a larger reality. The most important purpose? To do good and be wise in every undertaking.

This needs to be read at the beginning of every day.

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 34

Think of adversity as presenting opportunity. Every impediment we encounter is an opportunity for growth. (Even though it is hard to look at it that way.)

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 33

Watch what you are saying to justify your actions. Excuses are just that. You become who you are through effort and practice and actions.

Hello

Today is Labor Day. Traditionally the day when America pauses to celebrate what makes America great, the wage earning working man.

When will MAGA voters wake up from their angry dream and realize that the richest people in America don’t pay any taxes. Since it is MAGA voters and the middle class that are shouldering the burden for the social and economic stability of the country, when will those supporting the policies that are enriching the few, vote for representatives that want to ensure stability for everyone, not just the non-contributors?

Stoic Thought of the Day — Day 32

Self criticism is good and it can be revealing, but that’s where it should end. Don’t beat yourself up. Self-loathing is self defeating.

Genius

What is genius? I think that can be examined a couple different ways. My answer to that is anyone that generates a new idea. Those can be hard to come by — but no doubt a sign of genius. What about other types of genius? Genius can be combinatorial. That is, a unique ability to synthesize newness from existing reality — facts, experience.

When someone says (for example) Gustave Flaubert was a literary genius, I think it’s fair to say that is correct. Definitely a genius of the second form and if you look at his work through a broad lens, probably a genius of the first form as well.

Where does that leave the rest of us? Most of us probably aren’t geniuses. So what is it we should be striving for? I believe knowledge is what we should be striving for. Enough knowledge to be able to appreciate, and with luck, understand what is and isn’t genius. Not easy. To do that we need to be committed to continuous learning.

It is important to be committed to continuous learning. Sadly, my impression is that only a minority of the population is thus dedicated. I think that explains a lot of why we are socially and politically as divided today as we have ever been as a nation. I’m not saying everyone needs to be a genius, but everyone needs to be able to think, ask questions, and struggle intellectually with solutions And of course, be able to discuss what they have learned with others with an open mind.

When you listen to someone, can you tell if they are a thinking person, or simply someone with randomly acquired opinions with no real expression of where they came from or what makes them correct… I think you can. A key part of being able to do that is spending time yourself in the task of gaining knowledge.