Wednesday, January 27
Mornings In East TN
Philosophical Questions: 1-100
2. Is free will real or just an illusion?
3. Is there a meaning to life? If so, what is it?
4. Where is the line between art and not art?
5. What should be the goal of humanity?
6. Does fate exist? If so, do we have free will?
7. What does it mean to live a good life?
8. Why do we dream?
9. Where does your self-worth come from?
10. How will humans as a species go extinct?
11. Is it possible to live a normal life and not ever tell a lie?
12. Does a person’s name influence the person they become?
13. Is the meaning of life the same for animals and humans?
14. If someone you loved was killed in front of you, but someone created a copy of them that was perfect right down to the atomic level, would they be the same person and would you love them just as much?
15. If you could become immortal on the condition you would NEVER be able to die or kill yourself, would you choose immortality?
16. What actions in your life will have the longest reaching consequences? How long will those effects be felt?
17. How long will you be remembered after you die?
18. If a child somehow survived and grew up in the wilderness without any human contact, how “human” would they be without the influence of society and culture?
19. How would humanity change if all humans’ life expectancy was significantly increased (let’s say to around 500 years)?
20. Where do you find meaning in your life?
21. What do you think would be humanity’s reaction to the discovery of extraterrestrial life?
22. Will religion ever become obsolete?
23. If you could teach everyone in the world one concept, what concept would have the biggest positive impact on humanity?
24. Is suffering a necessary part of the human condition? What would people who never suffered be like?
25. Does hardship make a person stronger? If so, under what conditions and at what point is it too much hardship? If not, what makes a person stronger?
26. Would things get better or worse if humans focused on what was going well rather than what’s going wrong?
27. What benefits does art provide society? Does art hurt society in any way?
28. How likely do you think it will be that humans will last another 1,000 years without killing ourselves off?
29. What do you attribute the biggest successes in your life to? How about your largest failures?
30. If freedom is simply being able to do what you want, are animals freer than humans?
31. Would you want to know you are going to die before hand or die suddenly without warning?
32. Is humanity headed in the right or wrong direction?
33. Does the study of philosophy ever lead to answers or simply more questions?
34. What is the best way for a person to attain happiness?
35. If you had to guess, what do you think would be the most likely way you’ll die?
36. Is it better for a person to have a broad knowledge base or a deep knowledge base?
37. What is the best way to train people to see the gradients in the world around them instead of just a simplistic “this is good, that is wrong” view of the world?
38. Is intelligence or wisdom more useful?
39. Which of your beliefs are justified and which ones aren’t?
40. What do you contribute back to society?
41. What are you going to do with the one life you have?
42. Is it more important to help yourself, help your family, help your society, or help the world?
43. What life-altering things should every human ideally get to experience at least once in their lives?
44. What is the most important goal every person should have?
45. Is it better to be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond?
46. What are you capable of achieving?
47. By what standards do you judge yourself?
48. Can human nature be changed? Should it be changed?
49. How replaceable are you?
50. Why don’t we as a species take more advantage of the fact that we have almost infinite knowledge available to us?
51. What two questions would you ask to get the most information about who a person truly is?
52. Some people believe that if life has no purpose, then there is no reason for living. While others think that if life has no purpose, that frees a person to find/create and follow their own personal purpose. Which is a more valid point of view or are they both equally valid?
53. Does absolute power corrupt absolutely?
54. Why do we judge ourselves by our intentions but judge others by their actions?
55. What activities cause you to feel like you are living life to the fullest?
56. Does knowledge have intrinsic value or does it need to have a practical use to have value?
57. What would you genetically change about humans to make them a better species?
58. How important is play in living a healthy and fulfilling life?
59. Where do you think is the most worthwhile place to find meaning in life? Work, family, hobby, religion, philosophy, helping others, all the small miracles, or something else entirely?
60. What is the biggest waste of human potential?
61. Is a life that focuses on avoiding pain and seeking out pleasure a good and worthwhile life? Why or why not?
62. Does jealously have value in driving humans to improve themselves or is it a purely negative emotion?
63. What percentage of your life do you feel truly alive? When do you feel that way? How can you feel that way more often?
64. What do you think your future self will remember about you now?
65. “Know thyself” is an ancient concept going back much further than Socrates and is at the root of much of philosophy. With that in mind, what are the most important things to learn about one’s self or is all self-knowledge equal?
66. What do you think existed before the universe was created?
67. Is math something that humans created or something we discovered? Is looking at reality mathematically an accurate representation of how things work?
68. Is it possible for a human to fathom the true depths of reality and existence?
69. If the universe is finite, what would beyond the edge of the universe be like?
70. What is the best path to find truth; science, math, art, philosophy, or something else?
71. As more and more is being discovered about quantum physics, we become less and less able to comprehend the nature of reality. Is this something temporary and our minds will adapt and begin to understand this new reality or is it possible that the human mind will soon reach its limits of comprehension? If it’s only temporary, is there is a limit to what the human mind can comprehend? If we are reaching our limits, how do we continue to study our reality?
72. Is there inherent order in nature or is it all chaos and chance?
73. What in life is truly objective and not subjective?
74. There has always been something. Before there was something, there was only nothing. Which do you think is more likely?
75. Is happiness just chemicals flowing through your brain or something more?
76. Why are humans so susceptible to magical thinking?
77. If every neuron in a human was accurately simulated in a computer, would it result in human consciousness?
78. Is it possible that some animals are self-aware and think about their ability to think?
79. How do you define consciousness?
80. Is it possible to prove that other people besides yourself have consciousness?
81. How conscious do you think animals are?
82. Assuming evolution is correct, do you think that if humans went extinct another species as intelligent as humans would evolve? If life exists long enough on a planet, is intelligence and consciousness inevitable?
83. Would it be more frightening to discover that humans are the most advanced species in the universe or that we are far from being the most advanced species in the universe?
84. How would you define genius?
85. There is zero chance that ALL your firmly and dearly held beliefs are true. So, which of your beliefs are most likely to be wrong and which are most liable to be true?
86. How much does language affect our thinking?
87. Why are humans so confident in beliefs that can’t be proven?
88. If all your memories were erased, what kind of person would you be?
89. Why do humans have such a strong urge to distract ourselves from the real world?
90. What is the benefit of consciousness from an evolutionary stand point?
91. Is the concept of “you” continuous or does past “you” continually fade into present and future “you”? In other words, what part of “you” sticks around over time considering that the atoms that make up your body are constantly being replaced and your memories are always changing?
92. Is it possible that someone’s genes might affect their political leanings? If no, why not? If so, what would be the ramifications?
93. Can rational thought exist without language?
94. Would selectively breeding an animal such as a dog based on intelligence, increase its intelligence over time? If so, how intelligent could dogs become? If not, how does intelligence emerge in a species?
95. Are there limits to human creativity?
96. Why do we resist doing things that we know are good for our well-being while craving things that are detrimental to our well-being?
97. Is it be possible for humans to create something completely novel and new that is based on nothing that previously existed? Or is human creativity just rearranging and building on previous ideas?
100. If there existed a perfect clone of you, would it also be you? Would it act in exactly the same manner as you (like a mirror) or would it act differently? If it acted differently then would it still be you? At what point would it not be you?
Tuesday, January 26
Transgendered Competing
DO YOU THINK IT IS FAIR FOR A TRANSGENERED MALE TO COMPETE IN HIGH SCHOOL TRACK AND FIELD EVENTS WITH OTHER NON TRANGENDERED FEMALES?
Personally...
I do not think that it is fair for the competition to take place between a transgendered male and heterosexual female...
God's Purpose = God's Will
Psalm 57:2 says, “I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.” This is key in understanding God’s purpose for your life. God has numbered your days and will fulfill every purpose He has for you. SOURCE: Cornerstone.edu
Monday, January 25
Classic Rock Memories
- The Beatles
- The Rolling Stones
- The Doors
- Bob Dylan
- Neil Young
- Jimi Hendrix
- The Birds
- T. Rex
- Chicago
- Credence Clearwater Revival
Not too many days ago, I decided to buy some noise reduction/cancellation headphones so that my wife could listen to her music without disturbing me... and... while that purpose was not full achieved, I started listening to the above online radio station and just about every song took me back to memories of my past.... most of them good, since I was a carefree soul back then...
Most of these songs and groups were the ones I listened to when I was in High School in Cairo, Egypt and VOA (Voice of America) was the only radio station we could receive... What we typically listened to was recorded music when someone returned to the US on what was called "home leave.".
The years '66-'68, I was attending college in NC and from '69-'71, I was in the US Navy, stationed at Little Creek, Norfolk, VA. I received an honorable discharge in 1972 and returned to college...
Bayes Probability Theory
Dr Stephen Unwin has used a 200-year-old formula to calculate the probability of the existence of an omnipotent being. Bayes' Theory is usually used to work out the likelihood of events, such as nuclear power failure, by balancing the various factors that could affect a situation.
The Manchester University graduate, who now works as a risk assessor in Ohio, said the theory starts from the assumption that God has a 50/50 chance of existing, and then factors in the evidence both for and against the notion of a higher being.
Factors that were considered included recognition of goodness, which Dr Unwin said makes the existence of God more likely, countered by things like the existence of natural evil - including earthquakes and cancer.
The unusual workings - which even take into account the existence of miracles - are set out in his new book, which includes a spreadsheet of the data used so that anyone can make the calculation themselves should they doubt its validity. The book, The Probability of God: A simple calculation that proves the ultimate truth, will be published later this month. SOURCE: theguardian.com
Watching The NEWS
The American Public is GULLIBLE and will damn near believe anything... especially if mainstream media shares it on their networks.
The American Public is finally going to get what they deserve... and, whatever it is... it will impact me only a little but not near as much as it will impact them... that is to say... those who are still working...
This is one of the DISADVANTAGES of living in a DEMOCRACY... an UNEDUCATED PUBLIC when it comes to voting AND/OR a public that is EASILY MANIPULATED...
- raising taxes won't bother us because of our low income
- increasing Medicare benefits will only help us
- limited healthcare resources will hurt us slightly because we get a priority
- waiting for operations will hurt us slightly because we get a priority
- we will not be taken into the military if we go to war
- our national debt will impact our grandchildren
- domestic terrorism happens in big cities for max exposure
I still have no desire to watch the news but that is not to say that I will never start watching the news again...
Sunday, January 24
Saturday, January 23
The Weekend
The other issue about weekends is that the movie theaters have more people attending them as do the restaurants, and the malls or any other public place which makes it especially worrisome with our COVID pandemic lurking about in the shadows.
For my wife and I, weekends are a break from doctor's appointments and the need to get CLEANED UP and drive for 30-40 minutes into Knoxville and have to deal with the city traffic... even though the traffic in Knoxville is not as great as the traffic in Nashville or Atlanta as we recall from our previous visits.
There are different shows on cable during the weekend as opposed to during the week and while that is somewhat appealing, cable programming leaves much to be desired outside of the news and a few cooking shows... in fact, my wife and I spend most of our time watching ROKU and long for the day when all we have with cable is simply a WIFI hookup.
My wife and I can sleep in just as easily on the weekdays as we can on the weekends and do so often when we do not have an early doctor's appointment... and, most of my appointments take place at the University Medical Center so I make them early in the hopes that I can get a parking place just outside the building rather than having to park in the garage and walk in the heat or cold.
The Quantum Mind
Assertions that consciousness is somehow quantum-mechanical can overlap with quantum mysticism, a pseudoscientific movement that assigns supernatural characteristics to various quantum phenomena such as nonlocality and the observer effect.
Other contemporary The physicists and philosophers considered these arguments unconvincing. Victor Stenger characterized quantum consciousness as a "myth" having "no scientific basis" that "should take its place along with gods, unicorns and dragons."
David Chalmers argues against quantum consciousness. He instead discusses how quantum mechanics may relate to dualistic consciousness. Chalmers is skeptical that any new physics can resolve the hard problem of consciousness. SOURCE: Wikipedia
The original motivation in the early 20th century for relating quantum theory to consciousness was essentially philosophical. It is fairly plausible that conscious free decisions (“free will”) are problematic in a perfectly deterministic world so quantum randomness might indeed open up novel possibilities for free will. (On the other hand, randomness is problematic for goal-directed volition!)
Friday, January 22
Profound Happiness and Enjoyment
One of the decisions that my wife and I made during the last few years of working before retirement was for me to take some consulting and teaching jobs since whatever income I generated would not impact or reduce my Social Security since I waited until age 67 to claim Social Security. We decided to use that extra income to refurbish the house, especially the kitchen and bathroom... but also to put in a 26 foot round pool, surrounded by a large deck with a gazebo and hot tub.
We knew that we could make this financial commitment because 5 years earlier, we achieved our financial freedom by becoming debt free
Looking back at our paperwork... all of this was done 10 years ago and I have been retired 6 years. There have been some repair bills on the hot tub but that is because we were advised to use powder chemicals when we should have been using liquid chemicals... and just normal wear and tear. However, the pool has never needed maintenance but we have had to purchase a new motor. During the summer months, the motor operates 24/7, so replacing only one motor is not that bad.
I am in a state of PROFOUND HAPPINESS AND RELAXTION every time I lower my body into the hot water of the HOT TUB. Out hot tub seats 6 people, so there is plenty of room for me to extend out my entire body with my arms over the sides to hold me up. I close my eyes and remain in that position for a good 30-40 minutes. Then, I turn on the jets that massage my upper and lower back which is especially comforting when I have overworked in the yard. I have lower back issues anyway so the massage is just a good way to keep my back relaxed.
I would say that I am in the hot tub every other day/night out of 365 days for a total of about 180 times a year and I get in the pool during the summer weeks about once or twice a week and typically that is for exercise purposes because I walk around the perimeter for about 20-30 minutes... after 4-5 revolutions one way, I turn and walk in the other direction against the water currents that my movement created.
This past summer, when we could not go to MYRTLE BEACH because of COVID, our backyard pool and hot tub got a workout and while others stayed inside, we were outside enjoying ourselves either in the sun or the shade, it did not matter.
This was money well spent...
Going to College
For my first 5 semesters, I took a variety of Freshman and Sophomore classes that back in 1966 had been specifically designed to FLUNK NON SERIOUS STUDENTS OUT OF COLLEGE. I don't think that happens anymore... as colleges and universities liked generating revenues from student tuitions. Nowadays, the first two years are designed to help keep you IN COLLEGE.
Not only were many of my first two year classes block classes (as they called them) but the final exams were FOUR HOURS LONG... nowadays, you'd be lucky to take an exam that was 50 minutes in length.
Cafeteria food was OK if I were to be kind... and, when I enlisted into the NAVY discovered that meals aboard ship were just as good as any nice restaurant MOST OF THE TIME, especially if we were out-to-sea... but, in port, they were like college cafeteria food, simply OK.
Some of my Freshman classes had 150-200 students and took place in the auditorium with the professor standing behind a podium on the stage... and, it was very easy to get bored and stop paying attention. These were typically art and music appreciation courses and were composed of dull lectures and slides.
Breakfast in the cafeteria was not well attended but lunch and dinner had waiting lines during the 3 hour time period range that students could attend. I tried going at the beginning, the middle time, and at the end and there were always lines.... with the wait time of 30-45 minutes... and, then almost impossible to find a seat... because students would hang around and talk after eating. The administration had counted on people eating and leaving... not staying.
Teachers HAD NO RESPECT for students until they reached their JUNIOR/SENIOR years... and then, they were pushed towards graduate school for some reason... other than more education for the sake of more education... and, not necessarily to get a PhD so one could teach. I did not understand the logic in that philosophy until I retired.
College for me was boring. Not much more different than high school, memorizing meaningless facts that would never be used after one graduated. NO PROFESSORS made learning enjoyable or interesting or challenging... teaching as if they did not really want to be there... but, had no other choice.
I wasted two years in college...
I wasted two years in the military...
End of the Week Thoughts
From 1962-1966, I attending high school in Cairo, Egypt as the son of a Diplomat so the house that we lived in was rather GRAND to say the least. The living area was upstairs with a bathroom for each large bedroom and there were 6 bedrooms. Downstairs, we had two rather large living rooms one of which had a stage for a small band, a kitchen, pantry, dinning area, and a all glass sun run in which we ate our morning meals. There was a patio completely surrounding the house and an acre yard that was completely enclosed by bushes.
We had a cook who had an assistant and we had a house boy who cleaned and a gardener who maintain the outside yard. My dad had an embassy car and driver who would also take us wherever we needed to go when he wasn't driving my dad somewhere.
It wasn't the life of a billionaire or even a millionaire, but it was a life of WEALTH and PRIVILEGE...
When I graduated from high school, I decided, for some reason, that I never wanted to live like that anymore... that I wanted to live like the COMMON PERSON lived... so, I lived in a trailer out in a field with no neighbors while attending college for 3 years until I decided that I wasn't satisfied and after dropping out, joined the US NAVY as an enlisted man which had never happened in our family... I was later told.
Military life was not for me either... too many rules and regulations... and too much power and control, especially over those who were of a lesser rank, even though from one man to another man, we were all equal... in the eyes of God.
Throughout my life, I did WITHOUT most everything that I did not need but as I grew older, I decided to reward myself with a few things... convincing myself that I had finally earned them. MONEY and thee quest for MORE MONEY was never something that I needed, even though I had earned both a BA degree and an MBA which was a ticket back then to HIGHER MONEY INCOMES. I remained in the south where incomes were low and in education where incomes were even lower.
After 45 years of BEING CONTROLLED BY INCOMPETENCE or by those who because they were being controlled too had to act like they were incompetent, I decided to retire... and, after calculating my finances... decided that I a little bit more than I needed to live until my wife and I were 95 years old... and, this was based upon the COST OF LIVING in East TN only... if we moved somewhere else, even in the same State, it would cost us more to live.
Every year, I calculate our finances and I now look at me dying today and would my wife have enough money to pay the bills until she was 95 and after each calculation, the answer is always YES... and, that includes living a MODEST LIFESTYLE like has been the case ever since I left high school.
Moving Wood
I remember well the time I finally got caught breaking the law and while my parents talked the neighbors out of pressing any charges, and my mother took me to the Church to beg forgiveness, my Dad had other plans to teach me a lesson... his punishment was HARD WORK... and so, a mountain of chores was placed upon me to complete each day.
It was in the summer months when all this happened, so one of my tasks was the mow the lawn everyday. If I needed more gas, I had to buy the gas out of my allowance or from earning money by mowing other people's lawns. This was only done Monday through Saturday.
But... the task I remember most was the MOVING WOOD task... as I referred to it later. My Dad purchased a cord of wood that was stacked on one side of the house. My task was to move that cord of wood to the other side of the house, stack it perfectly, measure and record the dimensions of the re-stacked wood. Then... move it back to where it was originally, stack it properly, measure and record... Then... I had to do this again... and again... and again... until I had completed 4 moves...
It took about 1-2 hours to mow the lawn and it took about 4-5 hours to move the wood... So, I was at this pretty much all day long. I had a wheel barrow to help move the wood. I could not do these chores at my leisure... I was up everyday at 7:00 am and had to start work by 8:00 am. I would finish the wood around noon or 1:00 pm, eat lunch, and then mow the lawn... so, I was finished around 3:00 pm and could usually do what I wanted or mow the lawns of the neighbors with whom I had contracts.
This was done everyday as well except not on Sundays.
Later in life, when I was faced with a stupid or redundant or meaningless task, I just kept telling myself I was MOVING WOOD... and thanked my Dad for teaching me this lesson of coping with stupid or punishing tasks.
A Purposeful Existence
Why are we here?
Do we exist?
What is our purpose?
What is life's meaning?
All of these questions have been asked only because no one knows the answers to them... we can guess at the answers, speculate on the answers, and even logically theorized about the answers almost to the point where we sound convincing... but, we simply do not know... and, may never know until we, ourselves, are no longer alive.
the great physicist John Wheeler (who coined the word "black hole") said, "No phenomenon is a real phenomenon until it is an observed phenomenon." So... perhaps we exist so that we can observe and absorb that observation into our consciousness in order to formulize understanding, then knowledge, then wisdom so that we can mentally evolve as we physically and biologically evolve...
AND IF... that is our purpose... then we are the result of some sort of intelligent design.
WE... that is to say MANKIND... is the only species here on earth with a consciousness... and, the fact that this consciousness cannot be adequately explained by science is remarkable...
AND YET... here we are with a consciousness... and, this consciousness is used to absorb observation and extrapolate from that observation so that we can grow and evolve...
So... consciousness is not only necessary for observation... it is also necessary for our very survival in order that we may continue to observe.
OUR CONSCIOUSNESS IS OUR ULTIMATE REALITY AND
PROOF THEREFORE THAT EXISTENCE IS OURS... without a consciousness, there would be no reason to exist and no reason to survive and no reason to procreate...
Life's Purpose: Observe and Survive
Thursday, January 21
Splitting The Difference
BTS was supposed to have a concert in Atlanta a few months ago, but it was cancelled or postponed because of COVID... I was going with her because I did not want her to do this alone because no one else her age was actually interested in this teenager appealing group.
From that interest she progressed into watching movies and series of Korean Shows on Netflix and HULU even though all of the movies were in Korean with English subtitles. She tried to get me involved but I refused to watch subtitles.
Whenever I am not in the living room, even it it is for a moment, she starts playing the music of BTS as if she is almost completely deaf and when I return I am not nice with my comments like: TURN THAT DAMN SHIT DOWN...
So, she decided to go to the our room in the basement that has been converted into a bedroom, with a couch, TV, and exercise equipment to watch her SOUTH KOREAN MOVIES and MUSIC...
EAST TN: Ideal Retirement Location
As I have mentioned many times before, I am living in the Tennessee Valley of East TN and as far as I am concerned, it is an IDEAL place to live, especially if one is retired... because of:
- its physical location weather protection
- its physical location geographically
- 30-60 minute access to everything
- Oak Ridge National Labs
- TVA Parks and Recreation
- Country Life and exposure to nature
- Tranquil surroundings
- University of TN
- its lower cost of living index
- its lack of urban influences
- its lack of crime
NOTE: Not everyone is suited for this type of lifestyle... but, let me assure you that we have local watering holes that serve beer, wine, and alcohol. We have illegal drugs being sold to our elementary school children and high school students. We have local prostitutes and call girls. We have several members of the Mexican Drug Cartels living in our area as well. We have political crimes and influence peddling. We have telephone scams and computer hacking and all sorts of people trying to get access to our data to perpetrate a variety of crimes against us.
- Racism
- Black Lives Matter
- ANTIFA
- White Supremacists
- Police Violence against Black
- Blacks killing cops
- Protesting and Riots
- Burning of city buildings
- Pipe Bombs
- Domestic Terrorism
What Is Consciousness?
Examples of the range of descriptions, definitions or explanations are: simple wakefulness, one's sense of selfhood or soul explored by "looking within"; being a metaphorical "stream" of contents, or being a mental state, mental event or mental process of the brain; having phanera or qualia and subjectivity; being the 'something that it is like' to 'have' or 'be' it; being the "inner theatre" or the executive control system of the mind. SOURCE: Wikipedia
Wednesday, January 20
Writing Is What I Do
Except for Reflections, which has been around since 2009, I only have less than 1,000 people who have visited my other three blogs on a regular or semi regular basic, usually ranging, on average about 10 hits a day... so, my readership is very small... and, I could increase it if I knew more about how to promote blogs or if I was willing to pay a monthly fee which I am not.
I am retired.
I am not financially well off... as they say
I have no hobbies or interests, other than writing.
I don't play golf.
I don't like to drink alcohol and because of chemo cannot drink alcohol.
I have nothing else to do but write.
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