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  • Know Thyself Post #70

    Know Thyself through HISTORY:

    Fame and Fortune are cyclical and too much of either with eventually provoke the anger of the gods.

    -Gregory S. Aldrete, PhD, Polycratus of Samos-the Tale of a Tyrant

    In around 533BCE, Polycrates seized power of the island of Samos in Ancient Greece when, during a festival to Hera where the population dressed as if for battle and paraded to the goddesses’ sanctuary, Polycrates and his two brothers, armed with actual working armaments, murdered the leaders of the city during the ritual. After the coup d’etat, instead of dividing Samos equally among the three brothers as agreed, Polycratus went solo by murdering one brother and sending the other into exile.

    Polycratus built up his navy and soon began to enjoy the fame and fortune that came with flexing maritime power in the ancient world. With the subsequent pillaging and plundering brought about by maritime power came wealth. And as always, with wealth came envy and resentment from new friends and old enemies. A warning, as noted by the historian Herodotus, that his soon to be ex-friend Amasis tried to communicate to Polycratus:

    Now Amasis could not fail to notice how much exceptional good fortune Polycrates was enjoying, and it concerned him, So, when this string of luck continued unabated, Amasis wrote him a letter saying, ‘It gives me joy to hear that a friend and ally is doing so well, but I am not pleased by your good fortune because I know that the gods are jealous. I have never heard of anyone who enjoyed good fortune in all things, who then did not ultimately die in total disaster. So, Listen to my advice about how to deal with your perpetual good luck. You must select your most valuable possession-the thing that would most break your heart if you were to lose it-and then deliberately throw that object away.’

    -Herodotus

    Polycratus took this seriously and decided the possession he would most miss, was a gold ring set with an emerald fashioned by the famous Theodorus. He sailed out on one of his warships and threw the ring into the sea.

    A few days past when a fisherman who caught a prize fish, presented it to Polycratus as an offering. Polycratus gladly accepted and was pleased until he heard that as the fish was being prepared, the ring was discovered in its belly.

    The Gods had rejected his offering.

    Damn.

    Can we stop and consider the unlikeliness of such an event…. let’s say this ring was blingy, like 5″ blingy…. this 5″ bauble was thrown into THE AGEAN SEA, an area roughly 215,000 km², where it was promptly eaten by a single fish that was shortly thereafter caught by a single fisherman who happened to gift it to the very same person who threw it off a boat into THE AGEAN SEA! And the crazy kick to the crouch is that this was an offering to the Gods! I believe that if I were the kind of person who believed enough in God offerings to sail out to sea and Titanic my favorite bangle, I would also be the kind of person who would heed such a pronounced hard pass.

    It is believed when Amasis heard about the ring/fish boomerang situation he promptly broke off his friendship with the doomed warlord. A counter belief is that Polycratus abandoned his friend and went as far as backing/aiding the Persians in a campaign against Amasis. Suffice it to say, the two were no longer BFF’s after this divine diss.

    As fate would also have it, Polycratus continued on, as most megalomaniacs do, ignoring warnings and assuming eternal immortality. Ultimately his luck ran out and Polycratus’s fate was sealed. Some years later, finding himself strapped for cash, he was lured by the promise of treasure that his secretary verified in person to be good. Now either this secretary was not very bright and didn’t notice the trunks had only a thin layer of gold on top and were mostly rocks, or, he was in on it (as he gained control soon after). Either way Polycratus was so arrogant as to accept an offer from a longtime foe, verified by his moronic and/or double-crossing secretary, while ignoring warnings from friends, family, an oracle and, his daughter’s dream. Not surprisingly, when Polycratus went to retrieve his treasure and was promptly murdered. Herodotus wrote that Polycratus had  suffered a death too ‘disgusting’ to detail. Eeesh, too disgusting for ancient Greeks….the people who brought you keelhauling, combing and, crucifixion….damn.

    My questions for YOU are:

    • What would YOU sacrifice to the Gods if given the same advice from Amasis?
    • What would YOU do if it were rejected?
    … more “Know Thyself Post #70”

  • WIBCI Post #69

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: we learned from PHILOSOPHY? WIBCI we also learned from HISTORY?

    What is a Tyrant?

    Aristotle, famously offered a definition of the purest species of tyranny as:

    a non-hereditary political form where ‘one man rules without any legal restraint, and for his own self-interest’.

    Does this remind you of any current form of governing body?

    How would YOU define the body that governs YOU?… more “WIBCI Post #69”

  • Know Thyself Post #69

    Know Thyself; through your deal breakers

    What do YOU consider ‘compatible’ with YOU?

    What if we really thought about, really knew those characteristics we honestly judge as important for potential partners to exude? Not just romantically, but in potential friends, co-workers, bosses, representatives…anyone whom could influence our everyday lives. What would you really want to know, up front, out of the gate, no holds barred? What would you love to know that they didn’t know you knew?

    I find the following important to know:

    1. how many real friends you have from childhood
    2. amount of fragrance you bring with you
    3. the last thing you read
    4. # of times you’ve voluntarily vacationed at a theme park with costumed animals as an adult
    5. having any non-judgmental feelings about reality TV
    6. how you drive
    7. thoughts on evolution
    8. why you chose/are choosing your profession
    9. how you throw a ball
    10. any perceived ick-like feelings in your presence
    11. the level of hilarity you find within Monty Python
    12. feelings per country music
    13. affinity for stinky cheese
    14. best present you ever gave someone
    15. you tend to prefer the remake/reboot/sequel to the original

    What would YOUR compatibility determinants/deal breakers/would-love-to-know-without-you-knowing-I-know list be for a stranger? How would anyone whom currently influences your everyday life measure up against your list?… more “Know Thyself Post #69”

  • WIBCI Post #68

    WIBCI: Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: we thought about HISTORY/LITERATURE?

     

    Three great forces rule the world; stupidity, fear and greed.

    -Albert Einstein

     

    According to Wikipedia, the Seven Deadly Sins are defined as: The cardinal sins or capital vices within the teaching of Christianity (Christianity was not the only gang to use/alter/edit/amend/add to this list by the way), these are, alphabetically: envy, gluttony, greed, lust,pride, sloth, and wrath. These refer to “evil thoughts” that are categorized as either physical, emotional or mental.

    I disagree with this list/definition on two fronts:

    1. I don’t think I can separate thoughts/feelings into the categories of physical, emotional or mental. To me they bleed and blend; they are not compartmentalized
    2. I think there is only 1 Deadly Sin, which requires further explanation on my part…

    Seven Deadly Sins…..or just 1?

    After researching these words and what the Catholic Church considered ‘evil thoughts’, I found them to be redundant, just versions of Greed?

    GREED: /greed/n: an insatiable and inordinate craving to acquire or possess more than one needs. Excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions.

    Therefore Greed = the Desire for More ____:

    Envy: Desirous of others’ possessions, skills, and accomplishments to the point of wishing others’ didn’t possess them

    Gluttony: Desirous for more _____ to the point of waste

    Lust: Desirous to possess that which is fixated upon; normally intense and associated with sex, power and money

    Pride: Desirous of more praise and acknowledgement for how awesome one is

    Sloth: Desirous for more inactivity and inexertion

    Wrath: Desirous for vengeance for perceived wrongs

    Therefore if Greed is the root of all evil, then Ex Post Facto isn’t there only 1 Deadly Sin?

    What do YOU think?… more “WIBCI Post #68”

  • Know Thyself Post #68

    Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY:

    In Plato’s Phaedo, Socrates discusses what he believes happens to the soul after you die. He discusses the evils that exist in the flesh, or, the body. In an attempt to modernize the following, I thought…what word  best replaces ‘body’ that makes sense today?  Social Media? AI? Billionaires? Then I came up with it: GREED

    As long as we have Greed, and this evil can mingle with our soul, we shall never completely attain what we desire, namely truth. For Greed‘s forever wasting our time with its demands. Whenever it is ill it hinders us in our pursuit of real being. It fills us with passions, desires, fears, and all kinds of imaginings and foolishness. Greed alone, and its desires, cause wars, social divisiveness, and battles: for the origin of all war is the desire for wealth, and we are forced to pursue wealth because we are enslaved by the wishes of Greed. On account of all this, we have no leasure for philosophy. Even if we manage to free ourselves from Greed  for awhile, and try to examine some matter, it hinders us at every step of our inquiry, causing confusion and trouble and panic, so that we cannot see the truth for it. Truly we have learned that if we are to have any pure knowledge at all, we must be freed from Greed. 

    -Plato

    Can YOU come up with a better replacement?… more “Know Thyself Post #68”

  • WIBCI Post #67

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: we learned from PHILOSOPHY?

    WIBCI POLITICS did?

    But Socrates argues against democracy on philosophic grounds, consistent with his ethical theory. He maintained that most people remained unhappy souls, unaware of the true good. As such they were liable to vote into power leaders who also had a mistaken idea about the good. 

    -Paul Strathern, Socrates in 90 Minutes

    What do YOU think of this idea that without focusing on truly knowing themselves, people will perpetuate their unhappiness in the candidates they vote for? Do you think there exist such political self-fulfilling-prophecies? Is knowing what true good is, important?… more “WIBCI Post #67”

  • Know Thyself Post #67

    Know Thyself through your HISTORY:

    Can you remember the last time you had sick day? Where someone had to call/email into wherever you were supposed to go that day and explain how you weren’t going to make it in. Can you remember? Was it recent or not since you were a kid?

    If it was recent: Think back to it: Did you feel so bad you REALLY couldn’t go in, or just bad enough? Did anyone take care of you? If so, have you ever taken care of them? What would you say was your prevailing feeling that day? Did you do anything interesting? Did you seize this day? What was the best thing you did that day?

    If you haven’t called in sick since you were a little kid, um, good for you? Or maybe not so good? If your life is tyrant-free and allows for it, maybe you should call in not-sick? If you can remember back when you actually stayed home from school, try and remember how it felt? Did anyone take care of you? If so, have you since then, ever taken care of them? What would you say was your prevailing feeling that day? Did you do anything interesting? Did you do anything worth telling your friends about next time you saw them? What was the best thing you did that day?

    If you were to prepare for ‘next time’ and wanted to have something on-hand to learn, or relearn, what would you choose?

    Some ideas for things to check out found in most abodes:

    • The 7th book on any shelf
    • That drawer over there
    • The 23rd recipe in a cookbook selected at random
    • That closet over there
    • The unlabeled truck/box/container up in an attic/down in a basement/high on a shelf and/or buried behind many other things, that contains….well…you’re not really sure
    … more “Know Thyself Post #67”

  • WIBCI Post #66

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: We learned about AI?

    WIBCI we knew more about AI and what it is doing with all the data it is collecting?

    You ask it to do/write/calculate/compute/make yourself sound more like a robot and it collects/collates data sets.

    Now we aren’t naive enough to believe that it isn’t keeping a copy of this data, right? I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but I’m further assuming AI is keeping track for whom it wrote/calculated/computed/made to sound less human and ‘marking’ it in some fashion. Couldn’t there come a day when it has rights to that which it created? Couldn’t it decide to do something with all of the data it computed? Isn’t it in essence, theirs?

    WIBCI someone talked to us about it? My stance on this hasn’t changed… AI is Stupid.

    What do YOU think?

     … more “WIBCI Post #66”

  • Know Thyself Post #66

    Know Thyself through POLITICAL HISTORY:

    I was listening to a lecture about Cimon or Kimon, who was an ancient Greek nobleman, military hero, and prominent politician from Athens. The lecturer discusses what he calls one of the:

    ‘Most interesting institutions of Athenian democracy in this period was ostracism. Every year, Athens would hold a special election in which the citizens would vote, not for the person they liked the best, but for the person they hated the most. They voted by writing a name on a shard of pottery called an ostracon, several caches of which have been unearthed by archeologists. If a minimus total of 5,000 votes were cast, the top vote-getter was expelled from Athens for 10 years, and if he returned before those 10 years had elapsed, he was executed.’

    – Gregory S. Aldrete, PhD, Unsung Heroes of the Ancient World: S1E1 Cimon of Athens From Glory to Disgrace

    What do YOU think about this policy? On one hand, I believe it useful for the citizens to have the ability to voice such a strong displeasure with a politician. This is an efficient way of getting rid of bad apples or those that promised to be one way and then acted another. But on the other hand, this is pretty brutal no? Needing only 5,000 votes means political rivals could bribe citizens to get rid of competition. Man f$cking with democracy right from the beginning.

    What if this policy were in place today, archaic or brilliant? Who would YOU vote for?… more “Know Thyself Post #66”

  • WIBCI Post #65

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: POLITICS learned from HISTORY?

    WIBCI: Greenland were left alone?

    Greenland, the autonomous territory of Denmark, has become an asset of interest to the powers that be.

    The rationale that has been given for such a stance, as no such claim has been made by the people of Greenland, is that the people of Greenland would be happier if they were a territory of a different country…. say maybe the same country that recently was caught trying to stir up negative sentiment towards Denmark. Hmmmm…

    If only there were a World Report that measured happiness by country and has been doing so for over a decade…..

    Oh shit, there is:) https://www.worldhappiness.report and according to it, Greenland is currently the territory of the second happiest country in the world. Since the earliest published rankings, Denmark has come in 1st twice, second 8 times, and 3rd twice. Denmark has never dropped below being 3rd which was back in 2013 and Finland is the only country on Earth that has averaged happier.

    The country speculating and spreading falsehoods within/about Greenland has never ranked higher than 13th…ever, and not surprisingly, that was in 2015 under a different administration. Today this same country stands at 24th, the worst ranking for this country….ever.

    Not sure which data the powers that be are referencing, but, looks to me like Greenland is much happier as it is. I’m sure it appreciates the concern though.

    What do YOU think?… more “WIBCI Post #65”

  • Know Thyself Post #65

    Know Thyself Through Your Writing:

    What if all job applications included the following question:

    • Did you use AI to help you with the writing/filling out of this application, resume and/or cover letter?     Yes     No

    How would YOU answer?

    How do you think your current/former employer would prefer applicants to answer? I suppose this is dependent on the job and the employer.

    Personally, I don’t think anyone could write about me, any better than me. AI is Stupid.

    What do YOU think?… more “Know Thyself Post #65”

  • WIBCI Post #64

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: we had more space, to just be?

    WIBCI we were allowed the time to EMOTE?

    When was the last time you pulled over, closed a door, or excused yourself to feel an emotion? Whenever were you allowed to feel something by yourself with no human or electronic interference, guidance, or distraction?

    For example(s): you are so excited, you need to go for a run, or more like likely, you are so gutted, you need to cry in a bucket of some kind of ‘food’, or, so angry you drink a lot, smoke a lot and curse out people who aren’t present.

    I think these are good outlets. We aren’t Picasso’s who can paint our feelings out and we aren’t Bob Dylan who shits poetry. Our outlets aren’t as… elegant, in most cases and easily influenced. Go in a room, by yourself and feel about something. I doubt you will feel worse in the long run. Maybe when we feel terrible, it’s cause we haven’t sat and visited with our feelings for a while and they need to get out of the house and run around a bit?

    What do YOU think?… more “WIBCI Post #64”

  • Know Thyself Post #64

    Know Thyself through BODY LANGUAGE:

    So I’ve watched some documentaries on cults recently. In one particular cult, the creepy leader who wants control sexually over his women followers, as all cult leaders do, over time, brainwashes people into ignoring gut feelings and not display emotion.

    This is serious mind-f$ckery. No matter how slimy you are, how robotic and narcissistic you may be; you cannot silence body language. Why do you think the richer and more ruthless you are, the less you are the one present for the transactions or answering for the fallout. Body language, when it is NOT in your favor, must be hidden from view or veiled.

    But I think it is important to read Body Language; it can protect you, it can point out truths that aren’t being spoken, and you can actually ‘feel’ people. Why do you think it is more honorable to break up with someone in 3D, or in-person? I think it is because you are offering the other person the most answers to their questions. You are giving them the most data. There are things you are feeling when you break up with someone that you probably can’t articulate, or at least won’t do so well. But if you do it in front of them, you offer them the ability to read what you can’t say.

    I wish there were more in person interactions so I could better read whom I’m communicating with and this is a language I would like to be proficient in.

    What do YOU think?… more “Know Thyself Post #64”

  • WIBCI Post #63

    Wouldn’t It Be Cool If: If we knew what we liked?

    WIBCI we thought about WHY we like what we like?

    When dating someone either in the 2D or 3D world, we are matched with people whom appear to have the same interests as you. But…how much thought did you put into your own preferences? If you have ever chosen what these are, and are able to see them, pull them up and ask yourself, if this true? If you don’t have a ‘list’ somewhere, ask yourself what you ‘like’ in the following categories: food, weather, outdoor activities, color M&M, music, Sesame Street Character. If you don’t know yours, how do you know if you really ‘match’ with others?

    I love architecture. I do not ‘work’ in this industry or anything that touches it. I was not brought up appreciating it, nor did I study it at any point in my academic career. I cannot remember when this first took hold as something I dig, but I’ve thought a lot about it.

    I love architecture, but not generally speaking. I particularly like 17th-19th century homes. Not fortresses, castles nor churches… homes. I like architecture that was lived in; not where people sheltered in, a place that was once seized, nor places that speak of blasphemy and penance. I like places that were a families little world upon which to stamp.

    People’s status was important to people even centuries ago, but without social media, it had to be shown in other ways. This was done through clothes, means of transport, and of course, your home. According to information found at The House of Seven Gables, in the 17th century, a sign of affluence was the size and number of decorative nails/studs in your front door. They didn’t do anything, hence the sign of wealth. But I’ve found that these facts weren’t what I was most interested in. More than the aspects of architecture that showed affluence, I’ve discovered that the more Utilitarian the aspect of the house, the better. I love what the time period dictated was necessary, and often, the more humble the purpose, the better.

    I like coat chutes, boot scrapers, and coffin doors. I like milk doors and dumb waiters. I like transom windows and pocket doors.

    I learned this: Guests were not frequent in the homes of colonists in the United States, there also wasn’t Facebook. Therefore, if a family lost a child, they might have a painting of it done with the child pointing down. To any guest of the time that wasn’t in constant communication with the family, this would be noticed and the subject of the child would be avoided. This spares the guest of bringing up a painful subject and the family from the pain.

    I like stuff like that.

    What do YOU like and more importantly, ask yourself why? Then ask yourself, if people really knew their likes/dislikes and could communicate THAT in profiles, wouldn’t you be able to weed through the phonies pretty quickly?… more “WIBCI Post #63”

  • Know Thyself Post #63

    Know Thyself through YOURSELF:

    Have you ever thought about things you wished you liked, but you just don’t. Things you must unavoidably: see, eat, drink, visit, talk to, listen to, etc.- yet no matter how open minded you intend to be… they aren’t your bag.  There is no rational reason to loathe this ‘thing’ so very much; but you can’t help yourself. No likey.

    Things I do not like that I wish I did, or, at least, I wish I didn’t dislike so very much:

    • Jimmy Buffet
    • Tea
    • Florida
    • Trucks flying really big flags
    • Caramel
    • Men wearing tank tops
    • Misuse of the word ‘literally’
    • Hairless animals
    • The color yellow
    • Clowns

    I bet you have some, you just haven’t thought about it. Walk around with this one and notice things, and maybe, you might find yourself saying things like, ‘you know, I don’t want to stab myself as an excuse to get away from ____, but I most assuredly… do… not… like it.… more “Know Thyself Post #63”

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