There is one thing of which one can say neither that it is one metre long, nor that it is not one metre long, and that is the standard metre in Paris. - Ludwig Wittgenstein (1) When scientists decided to come up with the metric system, they needed a standard of measure. A metre stick stored in Paris, made of platinum, was chosen as the standard against which all metres were to … [Read more...]
Finale
“Let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die.” (1) We have an inbuilt desire to do things that matter. But what if everything we build and love and fight for is gone someday? Without a trace. As if it never was. Would it matter that we existed for an instant in the face of an eternity without us? The inescapable answer is that it would not. The problem is that we know, with the … [Read more...]
Religion and Violence
“Religion poisons everything. As well as a menace to civilization, it has become a threat to human survival.” – Christopher Hitchens (1) We are often told that religion, including Christianity, is the cause of great evil in the world—that in the words of Christopher Hitchens, “religion poisons everything." It is claimed that if religion is removed violence will be greatly … [Read more...]
The Ethical Life
Ethics is a wide topic that touches every facet of our individual lives and our society. I want to talk about a very small slice. The fact that ethics has, in certain cases, been boiled down to one concern – environmental ethics or how we interact with the natural world. In particular, reducing one’s carbon footprint. Let me explain. The BBC recently appointed Justin … [Read more...]
Sailing to Utopia
“A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing.” – Oscar Wilde [i] Oscar Wilde wrote that a map that didn’t include utopia was not worth glancing at. Why do we dream of utopia and strive towards it? The dream of a world of peace and harmony has inspired many throughout … [Read more...]
Good
“Am I a good person?” This is the great question facing all of us. We want to be good. We feel that if we do good deeds our lives will have meaning. We want to add up all of our good deeds and measure these against the sum of our bad deeds and hope that the scale comes out in favor of finding our lives good or justified. This is not solely a religious phenomenon. Secularists … [Read more...]
My Word Is My Bond
The basis of all human transactions is trust. Trust that others will keep their word and do what they said they will do. Let me rephrase: in a well-functioning society the basis of human transaction is trust that other people will keep their word. In a society where some use power or force to get what they want, or others deceit, there will be considerable costs to us as … [Read more...]
Equality
The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. – Ecclesiastes 9:11. We are told as children that everyone should be treated equally. Stories of those who fought to make things equal are celebrated. It is apparent to even the youngest school child … [Read more...]
Cynicism
“I think we too often make choices based on the safety of cynicism, and what we're led to is a life not fully lived. Cynicism is fear, and it's worse than fear - it's active disengagement.” - Ken Burns Standing on the sidelines and making witty commentary is much easier than full-throated engagement in the fray. It’s easy to ridicule what has not worked, it’s much harder to … [Read more...]
Some Thoughts on Hell
Imagine there's no heaven It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people living for today - John Lennon (1) John Lennon asked us to imagine there’s no heaven. I’ve tried, but all I come up with is hell. Many things occur on this planet that demand judgment and punishment, but many go unpunished. If there is no certainty of punishment, there is … [Read more...]