diff --git a/Notes/beliefs.md b/Notes/beliefs.md index 4ec281c..02a924f 100644 --- a/Notes/beliefs.md +++ b/Notes/beliefs.md @@ -1,8 +1,60 @@ ## Rough Notes - I can't remember where I read it, probably in Systems Thinking, something about dissent having to die off before a prevailing theory changes. - The assertion that individuals are locked in to their beliefs. +- I go through these arcs: + - a life of no substance is waste + - then, all is waste: + - Assessing substance is rooted in values + - how can something so subjective possibly reflect objective 'value?' + - That if I cannot grow + - That's ok, because I don't owe anyone anything? +- [belief] It's not enough to simply exist + - Your value (however you price it), must be undeniable + - Mediocrity is not just a moral failing, it's basically criminal (against God, why not.) + - That I deserve nothing, I earn everything (and even what I've earned, I really don't deserve, I just cheated, somehow.) + - That just being, is just waiting around to die (and why waste time?) + - That we don't ready ourselves for death through contentment, but by action. + - And since I am deeply unoriginal, I can only assume this is just a modern twist on Catholic guilt: + - in death, you shall be rewarded for the quality of your life, as measured by: + - children + - toil + - tithe + - there's no reward after death, but in those final minutes, sure, you'll rest-easy knowing you worked yourself raw. + - Small comfort for the ugly deaths then + - no shits given for your merits + - But it's frightening to kick the tires on the vehicle I've been strapped to. + - If I break it, dismantle it, then what? + - How do I propel myself forward? + - I think that's frightening for a couple reasons: + - Not just the obvious uncertainty + - But having seen people wrestle with it and struggle for _decades_. + - For all the hard work, to be knocked down on your ass unceremoniously. + - To search desperately for any kind of momentum, and finding nothing left. + - That sucks, so yeah, it's got issues, but the ride that moves I'm gonna latch on + [belief] moral superiority will deliver you unto the kingdom of heaven + - Who needs friends when you've got virtuous consumerism, aescetic inclinations (no gas, I ride), + - The best bandaid for loneliness is to imagine a carbon-neutral passive home, somewhere far away without the remotest possibility of connection with anyone or anything (maybe a snake, some kind of burrowing rodent.) + [belief] There's no time for fun, we have work to do. + ## Questions +- Why don't I ask questions? + - A question that ties nicely to a quote: + - "If you never say anything wrong, you never say anything." +- A general law is bound to have at least two exceptions? + - What about arithmetic? Though that one is bound to sneak an exception in through the definitions. + - I think we already called out Thermodynamics earlier. Again, saved by carefully crafted definitions +- How can I take anything I say outloud seriously? Or have the nerve to write down? A moment later, I've seen the other angle where I'm tragically misguided. Maybe I've just never thought something through well enough, to see it baked through, all the arguments and counter-arguments, where I'm left holding neither reason nor sentiment. Just a vague, fuzzy intuition, where I'm no longer suprised by the challenges. +- Why do I get caught off-guard? + - I didn't think of it first. + - I didn't consider the opposition, I just sat comfortably in my belief, in the false-security of the unchallenged, unexamined belief. + - Then, when the inevitable challenge does come, I'm shocked and bewildered and outraged and hurt. + - Because I threw myself upon a raft seeking relief without checking its worthiness. -## Quotes \ No newline at end of file +## Quotes +- "The Law of Conservation of Laws" + - Systems + - In the face of disputing evidence + - change the definitions + - don't scrap the law \ No newline at end of file