Category: philosophy
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the “happiness” thing, team sports, usefulness
The problem with “happiness” is that it is easy to recognize as a concept but (for most folks) hard to nail down causality on a regular basis. Merriam-Webster tells us that “happiness” is “a state of well-being and contentment.” Easy enough – but can “happiness” be measured? Where is the “happiness store?” Can I get…
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parenting, birth order, destiny
Recently noticed a “social media post” from a well meaning individual about individual responsibility – that I would tend to agree with, but is still slightly specious … Before starting, I feel obligated to point out that no one has “perfect parents” – we are all imperfect human beings. I will argue that MOST parents…
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Capitalism, unions, THINK
Capitalism“Capital” is simply “money and goods” used to produce more “money and goods.” Merriam-Webster tells me the first known use of the term “capitalism” goes back to 1833. It is slightly interesting that “Banking” goes back to 1660. Then the parable of the “minas” also comes to mind (where earning “interest” is mentioned in passing…
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roots of happiness
A study of characterJust watched “Citizen Kane” again – always near the top of the “best American movies” list, it wasn’t a commercial success when first released. PART of the problem is that the movie is very much a “character study.” I suppose the main character getting divorced twice might have been more interesting in…
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fugitives, vagabonds, and vagrants
Fun with words…A recent Merriam-Webster “word of the day” was “fugitive.” Being a “fugitive” implies actively fleeing something — as opposed to being a vagabond which implies “wandering” (as in aimless movement). Then there is vagrancy – which implies “marginal” legal status at best. Laws against vagrancy used to common in the U.S. – I’m…
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Eternity is a long time …
Woody Allen started out “doing stand-up” in the 1960’s. (e.g. Spotify has “Woody Allen – The Stand Up Years Years 1964-1968”). I would have to re-listen to some of his stuff to give any sort of critique – BUT the fact that the “The Stand Up Years” was released in 2015 implies SOMETHING positive. ANYWAY…
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situational leadership, reciprocity, football?, Hamlet?, random thoughts …
Random thoughts …I find myself wondering this morning if saying “I’m a proud Gen Xer” is an oxymoron. Kind of like saying someone is enthusiastic about apathy. hmmm – I’m usually TRYING to be funny when I say “proud Gen Xer” – a line from “Chinatown” comes to mind “’Course I’m respectable. I’m old. Politicians, ugly buildings, and whores all…
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What makes a “team” a “team?”
… Meanwhile back at the ranch …SO I wrote 1600 words or so in a rambling post that started out with the intent of answering the “what make a team” question. THAT post desperately needs an edit, and maybe I’ll post it later this week … Shorter version“Team” is another of those “interesting” words. Merriam-Webster…
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What makes a game a “game”?
Movie“Free Guy” was “cute” and fun. First thought: they are examining a very old question. Maybe at the root of the movie is that the old “unexamined life is not worth living” thing. GamesANYWAY – the movie deals with ‘gaming’ in general so the “secondary thought” becomes just what makes something a “game?” Merriam Webster…
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“new freedoms”
new and improved!A random headline that caught my attention (I think it was an online post from a Scottish media outlet/newspaper) mentioned the “new freedoms” being permitted due to COVID restrictions being eased. That obviously set off my internal geek semantics alarms. “Free” is one of those “understood but hard to define” words. MAYBE “free”…