He was also known for his poodle if I recall correctly.
I think Alexander Pruss discussed something like "If you live forever you can achieve moral perfection" or something like that. You could find knowledge in the sense Plato and Aristotle understood it or go insane.
Or, you could play Nintendo Wii. If I live forever, I might see the day I can download "Majora's Mask" and play one of the greatest games of my childhood again.
Chesterton used to carry a pistol for self defence -- against pessimists! Any time someone would start waxing philosophically about how life was not worth living (a position that was much more popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries than it is today), Chesterton would pull out the pistol and hand it to the pessimist. I'm not amazed that none of them shot themselves, but I'm astounded that none of them shot Chesterton!
The main question of life after death is Will we somehow remember parts of our current life ?
If not, life's about living the same thing over and over, since possibilities for evolution are banished ... Buddhists talk about the life of suffering (of losses, of change, of aging, of illnesses, of fading love & friendship, ...), except, in this case, with no possibility of salvation.
But when there is some kind of "memory" of past lives, the picture changes dramatically, as we can learn from our countless mistakes, and enjoy the possibility for evolution (in allegoric terms, exchanging a Circle for a Spiral)
By the way, love the Blog's title "dangerous idea", especially in the current context ...
'Evolution' (*) is logically impossible if there is no goal toward which the change is to be directed. It's not enough to know where you've been, or what didn't work, or what was "sub-optimal" -- one also has to have some idea of what is "optimal."
"If you don't know where you're going, how will you know it if you get there?"
(*) Which word, contrary to the constant assertions of the "Darwinists," does not mean "change over time," but rather "ordered development" or "the working out of a plan."
10 comments:
Schopenhauer was renowned for his optimistic and cheerful outlook! :)
He was also known for his poodle if I recall correctly.
I think Alexander Pruss discussed something like "If you live forever you can achieve moral perfection" or something like that. You could find knowledge in the sense Plato and Aristotle understood it or go insane.
Or, you could play Nintendo Wii. If I live forever, I might see the day I can download "Majora's Mask" and play one of the greatest games of my childhood again.
I guess you haven't read E. M. Cioran's "The Trouble with Being Born" or, "A Short History of Decay." Talk about cheerful!
Chesterton used to carry a pistol for self defence -- against pessimists! Any time someone would start waxing philosophically about how life was not worth living (a position that was much more popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries than it is today), Chesterton would pull out the pistol and hand it to the pessimist. I'm not amazed that none of them shot themselves, but I'm astounded that none of them shot Chesterton!
I guess that Chesterton proved his point! He certainly wasn't lacking in intestinal fortitude.
Random: WILLIAM LANE CRAIG'S DEBATE WITH RICHARD CARRIER IS NOW ON YOUTUBE.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqoRVplbW5Q
I already listened to the audio of that one, but maybe Carrier fails less if I see his slides.
Carrier says that it was impossible to win the debate since the rebuttals are limited. Somehow I'm unconvinced.
The main question of life after death is Will we somehow remember parts of our current life ?
If not, life's about living the same thing over and over, since possibilities for evolution are banished ... Buddhists talk about the life of suffering (of losses, of change, of aging, of illnesses, of fading love & friendship, ...), except, in this case, with no possibility of salvation.
But when there is some kind of "memory" of past lives, the picture changes dramatically, as we can learn from our countless mistakes, and enjoy the possibility for evolution (in allegoric terms, exchanging a Circle for a Spiral)
By the way, love the Blog's title "dangerous idea", especially in the current context ...
'Evolution' (*) is logically impossible if there is no goal toward which the change is to be directed. It's not enough to know where you've been, or what didn't work, or what was "sub-optimal" -- one also has to have some idea of what is "optimal."
"If you don't know where you're going, how will you know it if you get there?"
(*) Which word, contrary to the constant assertions of the "Darwinists," does not mean "change over time," but rather "ordered development" or "the working out of a plan."
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