In these interesting times, we all need someone to admire. I have found such a one in Benedict de Spinoza (1632-1677), the 17th-century rationalist liberal philosopher who advocated freedom of thought and expression, toleration, and simple kindness.
Tag: value
Who Is Your Black Flag Freeing? The Futility of Flags and Labels
I can easily tell some of my anarchist coworkers by the black flags on their desks. I inherited one of these black flags from a former developer, and I treat it with reverence. I do go back and forth, though, on whether it should be on my workstation.
Looking in The Mirror, I See…
It’s funny how words get stolen, perverted, and end up meaning the opposite of what they once meant. It’s how we ended up with “conservatives” who want to trash things worth conserving, with tight-fisted, thieving “liberals”, and with regressive “progressives”.
Defense Against The Dark Arts (of Archators)
Those who are against you owning and carrying effective weapons, and using them to defend life, liberty, and property, like to pretend the bad guy is your ethical equal. That his death, as a consequence of his attack on you, is some sort of tragedy.
What is The Value of Loyalty?
Everyday I wake up the slate is clean. No one owes me anything. I treated my wife and kids wonderful the day before for myself along with them. I treated friends, associates, and employees with respect the day before to harvest a culture and live a good life. However, when I woke up today I don’t think they owe me a thing.
Evolution by Learning
Any person has two sources of stimuli by which she gains knowledge, the experiential and the referential. And in both sources, there are granules of true or false information — code versus noise.
Seeds on Fertile Soil
I’ve told a few select people about this already, but because of the personal nature of it I haven’t spread it around too much; I don’t want to violate anyone’s privacy. A couple of months ago, out of the blue, I got a nice private message on one of those Evil Socialist Media Platforms.
How To Be A Successful Edupreneur
Newsflash: Whether you run XYZ learning center or Nike, you are creating a value proposition for your clients that hinges on relationship-building and positive experiences. Relationships and positivity are not unique to non-profit edupreneurs. Clients are paying you for a product. This is a free-market exchange.
Neither a Contrarian Nor a Conformist; Simply an Individual
Being a contrarian has value, but only when it’s practiced non-dogmatically. When the crowd is moving in a constructive direction, it can be useful to go along with the crowd. If going along with the crowd serves your priorities and principles, then to resist the crowd is to resist yourself. And that is the complete opposite of being self-authentic.
Your “Just a Phase”s Will Matter One Day
At various times, I’ve wanted to be a soldier a theologian, a philosopher, a musician or music businessman, and a farmer (among others, I’m sure). I spent so many hours and dollars acquiring music knowledge, raising chickens, and arguing the finer points of political philosophy. And yet here I am, doing marketing work. I must regret these passing fads, right?