In Other Words

Debatable

Banana and myself had a very interesting debate last night about God. She was provoked into asking a number of question because of my last post, ‘Red Eyed Wondering’. It was really impressive how she managed to vocalise her arguments. When I first met her we used to debate every so often, but she would spend half her time saying ‘I don’t know how to say what I think’ or ‘I can’t find the right words’, etc. Now, however, she managed to get her thoughts out coherently and convincingly.

She actually had me on the ropes a couple of times (yes, I know that sound arrogant, live with it) and in the end we had both left feeling just a little bit wiser. It’s great when you have a good debate with another person. Often I feel "It is better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it." (Jeseph Joubert) because, to use another quote, "I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" (Dudley Field Malone).

To put it in my own words, as long as you do not get angry with each other each discussion, will boost your understanding and capabilities, thereby making you better suited for your next discussion. Discussion are, unfortunately, a part of life, so you might as well try to be the best you can be at them. That way you can win the discussion that ‘matter’ (of course all discussion matter, but you get what I mean).

It is great to see how much better Banana Superhero girl has gotten at keeping her thoughts together and making a solid case. I honestly believe that the two of us are greater together then we could ever be apart. (Yes, I too have learned a great deal from her, including but not limited to picking up my dirty socks).

I sometimes really miss the stimulation I got from university. I’m quite stunned with how many people spend so little time thinking about the world around them. People that scoff at Philosophy, Psychology and a whole lot of other ologies, because they believe that they have no bearing on their life. It amazes me that they actually believe that. The better you understand the world around you, the further you can get in life, right? The better you understand something, the easier and more fully you can use it. Since Philosophy is the understanding of knowledge, well, that would mean that somebody that has a good understanding of Philosophy would be better suited to use the knowledge they have gained.

Of course even if you discard that argument as a loud of rubbish, there is always the undeniable argument that thinking and puzzling are just plain fun. So I’ll leave you with a simple and well known mind puzzle, (a paradox, really)

‘If god is omnipotent, then can he/she/it create a rock which he/she/it cannot lift?’

posted by Symbol @ 11.1.05