"Free your motherfuckin' mind on this motherfuckin' plane, Neo." -- some black guy in some movie I saw.
Okay, kids...you've had a few days to think about the implications of your thoughts and beliefs not being entirely your own. If you did really think about this, did it scare the shit out of you? It should. It should send shivers down your spine and maybe even make you question your humanity, or what it even means to be human, or possibly bring up that Big Kahuna question: If we are just going through the motions, following a program, then why are we here?
This is all good, baby.
It's good because the world isn't black-and-white; it isn't even grayscale. It's full-blown technicolor and messy and hurtling through space at thousands of miles per hour -- and most of us assume incorrectly that someone else is in charge of things. (Calm down! I'm not denying the existence of a Higher Power! We'll get to that later!). If you're going to thrive -- hell, survive -- you need some skills and some tools. But first, you need to want to.
As for me, I believe that the world can be a better place for all of us. Period. But it won't happen unless a quorum of us are actively trying to make that happen. And I believe that will only be motivated by everyone wanting to help themselves first; the truly altruistic among us are few and far between. Most folks stay tuned into station WII-FM: What's In It For Me? And that's OK as a starting point, because "the world" changing for the better only has meaning for people if it is changing for the better for people.
And that will only happen when individual people decide they want to change for the better, and then learn how. Until that happens, things won't change for the better for anybody.
And in keeping with that, let me give you this to meditate upon:
All human achievement begins in the mind.
Ready to start being a shepherd instead of a sheep? A producer instead of just a consumer? Or even just your own person making his own choices in life for a change? Then roll the dice and pass "Go":
http://www.helium.com/tm/345283/simply-critical-thinking-skills
http://www.helium.com/tm/351038/develop-critical-thinking-through
Phil
2008/02/22
So what's the PROBLEM?
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too hard to read." -- Groucho Marx.
PROBLEM is an acronym for Phil's Review Of Books, Life, Entertainment & Movies. I plan to make this a regular feature every Friday, then add what's been reviewed to the list to the right (--->).
This week: In the Beginning Was...the Command Line, by Neal Stephenson. This is a powerful yet slender volume all about the history of your other Significant Other, the personal computer, and how it, and your relationship with it, got to be the way that it is.
It is very well written -- in English, mind you, not in Geekese. Neal has been called "the Hacker's Hemmingway" (that's "hacker" as in "tuned-in-tech-wunderkind", not as in "cyber terrorist"). If you didn't grow up through, and experience, the transitions from the days of suction-cup-cradle modems and TTY machines to now, you need to read this book. If you did live through all of that, then you need to read this book.
Mr. Stephenson makes intriguing and delightful what your CS professor makes dull and, well, C.S. Neal is the lucid eye in the monstrous shitstorm of technical information. This book has been out for a while, so cheap secondhand copies are readily available online or in your favorite book reseller.
If you have ever asked why computers and systems are the way they are, or why we do things with computers the way we do, or why there are hot-key combinations that seem to be "universal", then quit wasting your time and mental health taking classes and get this book!
And as always: read responsibly!
Phil
PROBLEM is an acronym for Phil's Review Of Books, Life, Entertainment & Movies. I plan to make this a regular feature every Friday, then add what's been reviewed to the list to the right (--->).
This week: In the Beginning Was...the Command Line, by Neal Stephenson. This is a powerful yet slender volume all about the history of your other Significant Other, the personal computer, and how it, and your relationship with it, got to be the way that it is.
It is very well written -- in English, mind you, not in Geekese. Neal has been called "the Hacker's Hemmingway" (that's "hacker" as in "tuned-in-tech-wunderkind", not as in "cyber terrorist"). If you didn't grow up through, and experience, the transitions from the days of suction-cup-cradle modems and TTY machines to now, you need to read this book. If you did live through all of that, then you need to read this book.
Mr. Stephenson makes intriguing and delightful what your CS professor makes dull and, well, C.S. Neal is the lucid eye in the monstrous shitstorm of technical information. This book has been out for a while, so cheap secondhand copies are readily available online or in your favorite book reseller.
If you have ever asked why computers and systems are the way they are, or why we do things with computers the way we do, or why there are hot-key combinations that seem to be "universal", then quit wasting your time and mental health taking classes and get this book!
And as always: read responsibly!
Phil
2008/02/21
What, you thought I was going to post every stinkin' day?!
"Life is what you make it. I like to "make it", know what I mean?
Get real, Sparky!! I've got a life offline, too! I work, go to school, pet my wife and kiss my dogs just like you do. Ol' Phil doesn't live in an ivory tower...he lives in a brick ranch-style. So go ahead and sort your recyclables or get your tax stuff together until tomorrow, okay?
Phil
Get real, Sparky!! I've got a life offline, too! I work, go to school, pet my wife and kiss my dogs just like you do. Ol' Phil doesn't live in an ivory tower...he lives in a brick ranch-style. So go ahead and sort your recyclables or get your tax stuff together until tomorrow, okay?
Phil
2008/02/20
How much of your mind do you own?
"Ships are safe anchored in the harbour. But this is not what ships are made for." -- Hon. Chief Justice Andrew Kwok-nang Li
"Question Everything!" So instructs the old bumper sticker. Yeah, it's catchy and makes us stop and think -- which is surely the whole point, right? -- but we're not to take that literally, are we? Obviously not, for to do so would be a never-ending exercise in mental masturbation...wouldn't it?!
That depends on how you look at it, Grasshopper....
My reading of this admonition parallels my take on "pray without ceasing": I take it to mean not that we should spend all of our time and attention on this sole activity, but rather that we should adopt an attitude of vigilant questioning (or prayfulness, as the case may be). In other words, be willing to question everything. Being ready to roll up your sleeves and do the hard work of digging down to the roots of something, questioning the assumptions, weighing the arguments, and unearthing your own biases and prejudices.
"Good God, why?!", you cry, "Isn't life hard enough without making unnecessary work for ourselves?!" And my answer is: It's only hard because you aren't practiced at it...and you need to get good at this.
Again with your "why's"? Okay, wrap your brain around this: If you don't do this, your mind is not your own; it's the product of the manipulations of others, plain and simple.
Back when you were young and your mind was an empty sponge, all the authority figures in your life -- parents, teachers, clergymen, relatives, your Scoutmaster -- tried to teach you all sorts of things that would help you grow up to be a happy, healthy, likeable, productive, brave, reverent, thrifty, clean, trustworthy, educated and reliable bigger person. Almost all of which was undeniably well-intended, and most of which was truly helpful. But...
...they didn't know everything; they learned what they knew from their authority figures, who also didn't know everything. And your time and society and circumstances are not the same as theirs. Even if they were thoughtful, reflective people, what they taught you back then applied to that time and circumstance; they can't live your life for you, now. No, that is your job. So what they should have taught you, first and foremost, is how to think for yourself.
And to do that effectively you have to use some form of critical thinking. For those of you unfamiliar with this, it is the Scientific Method applied to your own reasoning. It is one of the important tools for preventing you from misleading yourself, from rationalizing the ludicrous, and for helping you sniff out other people's (and your own!) bullshit. For consciously leading a better life. That's why.
If you swallowed everything you were ever told whole, without chewing it and digesting it, then all your beliefs belong to someone else. You don't "own" them.
And if you don't own your belief structure, then you don't completely "own" your own mind.
Awww...don't lose any sleep over it. You've gotten this far, Sparky, so you can't be too far off. And I'll be back soon to help you over this hurdle.
Phil
"Question Everything!" So instructs the old bumper sticker. Yeah, it's catchy and makes us stop and think -- which is surely the whole point, right? -- but we're not to take that literally, are we? Obviously not, for to do so would be a never-ending exercise in mental masturbation...wouldn't it?!
That depends on how you look at it, Grasshopper....
My reading of this admonition parallels my take on "pray without ceasing": I take it to mean not that we should spend all of our time and attention on this sole activity, but rather that we should adopt an attitude of vigilant questioning (or prayfulness, as the case may be). In other words, be willing to question everything. Being ready to roll up your sleeves and do the hard work of digging down to the roots of something, questioning the assumptions, weighing the arguments, and unearthing your own biases and prejudices.
"Good God, why?!", you cry, "Isn't life hard enough without making unnecessary work for ourselves?!" And my answer is: It's only hard because you aren't practiced at it...and you need to get good at this.
Again with your "why's"? Okay, wrap your brain around this: If you don't do this, your mind is not your own; it's the product of the manipulations of others, plain and simple.
Back when you were young and your mind was an empty sponge, all the authority figures in your life -- parents, teachers, clergymen, relatives, your Scoutmaster -- tried to teach you all sorts of things that would help you grow up to be a happy, healthy, likeable, productive, brave, reverent, thrifty, clean, trustworthy, educated and reliable bigger person. Almost all of which was undeniably well-intended, and most of which was truly helpful. But...
...they didn't know everything; they learned what they knew from their authority figures, who also didn't know everything. And your time and society and circumstances are not the same as theirs. Even if they were thoughtful, reflective people, what they taught you back then applied to that time and circumstance; they can't live your life for you, now. No, that is your job. So what they should have taught you, first and foremost, is how to think for yourself.
And to do that effectively you have to use some form of critical thinking. For those of you unfamiliar with this, it is the Scientific Method applied to your own reasoning. It is one of the important tools for preventing you from misleading yourself, from rationalizing the ludicrous, and for helping you sniff out other people's (and your own!) bullshit. For consciously leading a better life. That's why.
If you swallowed everything you were ever told whole, without chewing it and digesting it, then all your beliefs belong to someone else. You don't "own" them.
And if you don't own your belief structure, then you don't completely "own" your own mind.
Awww...don't lose any sleep over it. You've gotten this far, Sparky, so you can't be too far off. And I'll be back soon to help you over this hurdle.
Phil
2008/02/19
Do you want to see how deep the rabbit hole goes?
A riddle, wrapped in a conundrum, smothered with melted cheese on warm focaccia bread.
If you are looking for pat answers and handy little thumbrules about how the world works, and you are happy to just conform and live in Ozzie-and-Harriet homeostasis, then you've turned down the wrong dark alley, Jack! Tough Nuts is where I ask the questions. Hard questions. The questions your parents were afraid you would ask them. The questions your minister gingerly dances around. The questions that scare the shit out of your Congressweinie.
The questions that bother you and keep you up all night.
But this is about real life, so we'll try to have some fun along the way, too.
As you have probably noticed already, the world is an exciting and fascinating place, full of myriads of interesting people and things. And in a lot of ways it's also pretty screwed up (notice, I could have said "f***ed up", but I'm not ready to alienate my fledgling audience just yet!). There are millions and millions of people, trying their best to lead good, productive lives, and to provide a decent future for their children. They volunteer, vote, go to church, donate to charities and even try to be conscientious and helpful...hell, some of them even go willingly to jury duty! And a good number of the people they elect try to serve the public thoughtfully and solemnly.
So: why is everything as screwed up as it is?
This is the first question, the question that is the door to the rabbit hole. But of itself it's too broad, too general. We need to proceed down the hole into Wonderland to start finding the kinds of questions we need to be wrangling. I won't attempt to "answer" it, but I will provide a hint at the beginning of an answer: The world is not in the better state that well-meaning people intend with their hard efforts because...most of them ask the wrong questions. And because of this, they spend their time and effort creating the wrong solutions.
Sound a little strange? A little spooky, even? You betcha. Most people go through their entire lives without grappling with some of the stuff you're about to encounter here. It disturbs them; it is painful to think about; it forces them to look at themselves too closely for their comfort.
But it's the best thing they could do for themselves, their communities, their world.
Remember...all I'm offering you is the truth. Wimp.
Phil
If you are looking for pat answers and handy little thumbrules about how the world works, and you are happy to just conform and live in Ozzie-and-Harriet homeostasis, then you've turned down the wrong dark alley, Jack! Tough Nuts is where I ask the questions. Hard questions. The questions your parents were afraid you would ask them. The questions your minister gingerly dances around. The questions that scare the shit out of your Congressweinie.
The questions that bother you and keep you up all night.
But this is about real life, so we'll try to have some fun along the way, too.
As you have probably noticed already, the world is an exciting and fascinating place, full of myriads of interesting people and things. And in a lot of ways it's also pretty screwed up (notice, I could have said "f***ed up", but I'm not ready to alienate my fledgling audience just yet!). There are millions and millions of people, trying their best to lead good, productive lives, and to provide a decent future for their children. They volunteer, vote, go to church, donate to charities and even try to be conscientious and helpful...hell, some of them even go willingly to jury duty! And a good number of the people they elect try to serve the public thoughtfully and solemnly.
So: why is everything as screwed up as it is?
This is the first question, the question that is the door to the rabbit hole. But of itself it's too broad, too general. We need to proceed down the hole into Wonderland to start finding the kinds of questions we need to be wrangling. I won't attempt to "answer" it, but I will provide a hint at the beginning of an answer: The world is not in the better state that well-meaning people intend with their hard efforts because...most of them ask the wrong questions. And because of this, they spend their time and effort creating the wrong solutions.
Sound a little strange? A little spooky, even? You betcha. Most people go through their entire lives without grappling with some of the stuff you're about to encounter here. It disturbs them; it is painful to think about; it forces them to look at themselves too closely for their comfort.
But it's the best thing they could do for themselves, their communities, their world.
Remember...all I'm offering you is the truth. Wimp.
Phil
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