Ithaca

Ithaca

Always keep Ithaca fixed in your mind.
To arrive there is your ultimate goal.
But do not hurry the voyage at all.
It is better to let it last for long years;
and even to anchor at the isle when you are old,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting that Ithaca will offer you riches.

Love this poem by Constantine Cavafy. Thanks Stephen, for sending it along a few years ago.
Continue reading “Ithaca”

Horatio Alger

Welcome to the Horatio Alger Society

To further the philosophy of Horatio Alger, Jr. and to encourage the spirit of Strive and Succeed that for half of a century guided Alger’s undaunted heroes – lads whose struggles epitomized the great American dream and inspired hero ideals in countless millions of young Americans.

An essay here to fill in the background a bit more: Horatio Alger: The Moral of the Story, by Theodore Dalrymple

I am linking this in connection to the previous item … realising that the archetype at work is the HERO… in a way I grapple with that image a lot. Even the links before that are a reflection of my interest in Pop Heroes.

Autonomous psyche

I have been writing some paragraphs and adding them to my Autonomous psyche page. These snippets are beginning to describe a basic philosophy I have about the psyche. I wish I could get it together beyond snippets. Here is a quote from today’s effort.

There once was a hierarchy of being, and it was valued to “know one’s place” somewhere between God and mere dust. The way such a perception of the world has been used for control and to induce guilt is bad. However there is another side to the ancient idea which originates with Plato. We need to honour the fact that our birth circumstances are potent. We do not choose many aspects of our lives; we do not choose our genes, our culture, our birth geography or our sexuality.

‘Bush junta’ complicit in 9/11?

Guardian Unlimited Observer | International | Gore Vidal claims ‘Bush junta’ complicit in 9/11

America’s most controversial writer Gore Vidal has launched the most scathing attack to date on George W Bush’s Presidency, calling for an investigation into the events of 9/11 to discover whether the Bush administration deliberately chose not to act on warnings of Al-Qaeda’s plans.

Even if the Bush junta was not complicit they have capitalised on it in all the ways that they would have if they were… and that is just as bad, and also reveals the bankruptcy of terrorism as a tactic.

Richard Stallman – forging language

Clarity, dedication, inspiration from RMS, as usual. His concern about language is often criticised by even those who support him, but I think he is right. “Piracy” for example is a propaganda word and we should never use it apart from its legal definition – raiding ships at sea, a serious crime.

In “Can You Trust Your Computer?” he tackles the propaganda use of the word “trusted” and distinguishes it from “treacherous”. It is a notion which we need to take on board. “We” of course are not “them” i.e. they who rule. They cant trust our computers, it is an issue that defines which side you are on. I hope this article becomes a classic and that people will adopt his usage.

Who should your computer take its orders from? Most people think their computers should obey them, not obey someone else. With a plan they call “trusted computing,” large media corporations (including the movie companies and record companies), together with computer companies such as Microsoft and Intel, are planning to make your computer obey them instead of you. Proprietary programs have included malicious features before, but this plan would make it universal.