Satisfaction comes from effort and achievement, a direct result of one’s work.
Joy, however, often arises unexpectedly, independent of effort—more like a fleeting, almost parasitic ecstasy that overtakes us when circumstances align.
–
–
–
Tag: critical thinking
- Theme: Growth
persecution over prosecution
°
1–2 minutes
It is thrilling to extrapolate, dispossess, and liquefy arguments, ideology, and religion. It is exhilarating to be a hedonistic iconoclast.Yet, for most, our rebellion stays in the realm of persecution (harassment) rather than prosecution (legal process).
Organized responsibility robs us of enjoyment, converting libidinal angst into bureaucratic justification, dismantling the romance of rebellion.
- Theme: Self
Questioning courage
°
1–2 minutes“Those who lack the courage will always find a philosophy to justify it.” ~ Albert Camus
A positive variation of this could be: “Those who have the courage often find philosophies to question it.”
- Theme: Growth
Art: presentation over representation
°
1–2 minutesArt has shifted from representation to an emphasis on presentation, where an immediate felt connection with the artist’s genius/pain is expected.
This unmediated, instantaneous transmission thwarts the opportunity for thoughtful contemplation, insinuating emotive transference as the principal (and perhaps the only morally right) way to engage in art.
Demanding cautious consideration is labeled elitist; instead, the premise is that art should be blatant, obvious, abundant, heartwarming, brilliant, and presumptively democratic. It should require no thought or pause, only submission to the prescribed experience.
In response, art criticism should now only transcribe the emotive range or comment on the lack of openness. All limitations, though, are forgivable given the biographical specificity confronted with the impossibility of knowing another’s experience.
- Theme: Self
Fallacy: Reality as essentially rhetorical
°
1–2 minutesIn moments of idleness, we invent ways of being, transforming language into our reality—like a wizard casting spells.
Yet, the infrastructure supporting and stabilizing these dreams isn’t merely a backdrop for self-discovery and immediate desires, as noted by Benjamin Bratton.
Our era blurs sincerity and parody; assuming our rhetoric can reshape reality risks undermining the very structures that sustain us. Believing in the power of rhetoric over tangible reality will lead to the neglect and degradation (the condemnation) of the critical supports that uphold our luxuriously indulgent lives.
- Theme: Growth
Beyond Linguistic Duality
°
1–2 minutesAs soon as you start arguing a binary approach is developed from which to consider and oppose. This is often a linguistic move: seeking the antonym establishes distance and distinction.
Another way of knowing, outside of concepts of language and conceptual understanding, is realizing something in totality. This is a version of wisdom beyond blunt dualities, yet can appear unintelligent: they do not have articulated language or positions, yet they are avoiding the symbolic logic traps that tangle us.–
–
– - Theme: Self
contagion versus resonance
°
1–2 minutesRevolutions and ideas can be said to spread like a contagion or "memetic virus." This view looks at nodes and vectors, which we became familiar with during COVID-19, to target and trace spread.
Alternatively, we can see the spread as a "synchronous resonance" of like-minded actions happening in disparate places, setting up a rhythm. As the waves collide, amplification and density result, expanding the resonance and expanding the revolution.Equally, an empire can set up a resonance that imposes an order establishing reality. When strong enough, any counter-resonance is washed out or unheard: de-amplified or "noise canceled."
–
–
– - Theme: Self
Asking the question: the myth of the authentic self
°
1–2 minutesWhen you ask yourself anything, you are already shaping and imagining an outcome into which you will lean. By asking, we instill a manipulative motivation undermining what might be the "authentic" you. On the other hand, the fact that a question arises may be your subconscious means to redirect you to your authentic self.
This quandary highlights the impossibility of finding an "authentic core" unmediated by the dictates of survival, which is based on external context. The more you engage in the world the more "compromised" your "self" becomes, but this alteration is precisely what makes the resultant self something beneficial and worth having.
- Theme: Growth
when the measure becomes the target
°
1–2 minutesAchievement is hitting the mark, which requires us to incrementally measure and adjust.
Soon, we are successful: we have reached and superseded the goal.
We have become excellent at increasing the measurement and manipulating the scorecard metric, but have we displaced the goal with a measure?
Strathern’s law states, “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.”
This replacement can become a subversion, such as when NYC police needed to maintain high crime numbers for funding, they implemented a “stop-and-frisk” policy that infringed on citizens’ rights. Instead of “protect and serve” to inflate the measure it required harassment.
This is similar to a simulacra, where the original motivation is lost, yet the real-world effects are amplified and out of control
- Theme: Growth
Idle, Idol, Idyll, Ideal
°
1–2 minutesTempted by the serenity of the idyllic we become content unto idleness.
Yet the virtuous ideal is a persistent, returning idol demanding the sacrifice of tranquility for potential.
- Idle: not active; unemployed.
- Idol: an effigy; a celebrity.
- Idyll: a happy interlude; rural serenity, natural perfection
- Ideal: the perfect standard