tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post4059084766757902177..comments2024-02-07T02:21:40.638-08:00Comments on Idiot Philosophy: P.2 Zen and the Art of the JokeAndrew Louishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-25754092910998376552010-09-07T20:19:32.559-07:002010-09-07T20:19:32.559-07:00Okay, so he graduates from high school, starts a j...Okay, so he graduates from high school, starts a job and marries this woman his parents have for him. Now it very well could be that he does learn to develop a certain fondness for this partner of his, however consider something else. Consider that in the course of his daily life he's met someone else, someone who's actually a much better fit, and someone who (had he not been so screwed up in the head) he should probable have actually married. Consider that he actually loves this person, however he's unable to interpret it that way because he's been told that he can only love this one, and that to love another is evil. <br /><br />You see, what's happened here is that “love” has been institutionalized, and because of that the now man is unable to live the happy and fulfilling life he could be leading. He's confused, doesn't understand why he's with the woman he's with, and doesn't understand why he's feeling the way he's feeling for other women. The same thing happens when the church institutionalizes and capitalizes on spirituality. You end up with a woman or man that gets older and can't sift through the bull shit of their own religion. Once you start associating things like love and spirituality with the dogmas of certain ways of thinking and talking (and those ways of thinking and talking only), you've completely missed the point of what it was all about in the first place.Andrew Louishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-14237124490383394562010-09-07T20:19:06.428-07:002010-09-07T20:19:06.428-07:00Let me offer up another analogy that I've alwa...Let me offer up another analogy that I've always enjoyed with regard to raising a child within a system of Christian dogma. Suppose you have a son or daughter, and at the age of 6 you tell them, “You're going to one day marry person X, you will love them, cherish them and be with no other. In fact, to love and be with another is wrong and sinful, punishable by hell.” Now, this might sound a bit unrealistic but in fact, this is what many churches force on your minds starting from sunday school. At any rate, what do you suppose would happen? For a time what you were telling the child wouldn't be made heads or tails of, more then likely you'd get some sort of acknowledgment and he moves on. So lets fast forward a bit. In the teenage years (after years of forcing this dogma into their head) they will no doubt start to develop what normal people consider natural feelings for other people. Of course, since he was told that having feelings for other people is sinful, he will either not know how to interpret the feelings, or, he'll know what the feelings are and call them evil.<br /><br />continued...Andrew Louishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-11482672867852900192010-09-07T20:17:24.187-07:002010-09-07T20:17:24.187-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Andrew Louishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-55353308942472378822010-09-07T20:16:44.390-07:002010-09-07T20:16:44.390-07:00Okay, well, why was he doing this? He got it from ...Okay, well, why was he doing this? He got it from watching me do it of course. You know the drill, when you're sweeping up dirt and crap from your garage floor some of the muck get's caught in the broom and you have to smack it down on the floor to knock it out, otherwise it leaves a smear pattern every time you push the broom and it takes you twice as long to do it. Of course, at 5 years old the boy isn't going to grasp all that so it's hardly even worth bringing it up; and in this case I didn't, he just started doing it that way. So in that little moment I've built in him a sort of social dogma which he'll carry with him until he gets old enough to figure it out on his own. I realize how seemingly trivial it sounds, but I imagine it would be nice to catch him in the act (in how ever many years from now) of actually figuring that out, of having that realization – that would be exiting in a real personal way.<br /><br />Here's the thing though, little dogmas like that are easy to overcome, and some not. As a result I'm very cognizant of all the little commands, commitments and socially pressured ideas I force on the kids. Which is, in the end, what I'm really saying in this post. <br /><br />continued...Andrew Louishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-89042210738657463882010-09-07T20:16:13.382-07:002010-09-07T20:16:13.382-07:00Maybe it was a bad analogy... I suppose what I'...Maybe it was a bad analogy... I suppose what I'm highlighting here is the idea that we force convention before understanding, which I think is unavoidable, and that's the essence of Nietzsche's allegory. You often times have no choice but to pile a load on your child's back because their not going to grasp the what's and the why's behind doing and acting in certain ways. <br /><br />Here's an example, the boy (Evan) was sweeping our garage floor over the weekend with a big push broom, and I was sitting a chair just sort of watching and smiling. Every time he gave the broom a push, he'd smack it down on the floor, and then push again. <br /><br />continued...Andrew Louishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204999524677028033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37095350.post-2062303510310602002010-09-07T18:32:29.119-07:002010-09-07T18:32:29.119-07:00Perhaps the proper thing to do then is educate our...Perhaps the proper thing to do then is educate our children on the differences in people and to respect those differences. Learning not to laugh at a fat person is simply learning to respect other peoples feelings not resisting the temptation to be ourselves. Its important to always to remember that we dont know why he was fat...as you pointed out, it doesnt mean he eats there everyday. When I see someone who is that fat I see pain in their life or some other emotional issue their satisfying with food. Laughing at them or allowing our children to laugh does nothing but cause more pain and prove to them that they are as ridiculous as they think they are. You did the right thing in telling your daughter it wasn't nice but perhaps take it to the next level and explain why...its in explaining the why that she becomes armed with the knowledge to make a choice to be nice. Make sense?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10744635422143152038noreply@blogger.com