Philosophy Now Forum

Hi, I am Andrew Wolf, a 25 year old male diagnosed with bipolar disorder, also a college student. I am majoring in psychology, and an aspiring writer in the field of psychology, philosophy, and spirituality. I write, for now, on Yahoo Contributor Network. Here is my profile: http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/15908 ... _wolf.html.

There is one particular article that I would love feedback, concerning my tentative opinion on life's purpose, it's titled "Born to Lose": http://voices.yahoo.com/born-lose-11562956.html

If you disagree, please point out specifics, and showing the logical errors, or flawed assumptions. If I am not clear, then please ask questions.

I promise I will not be offended. Just please be as specific as possible.

To Andy Wolf

You seem to have a very grim view of humanity. So let me tell you about a really positive puppet theatre project I'm currently working on, which aims to teach the virtues - kindness, moderation, wisdom and fortitude - starting with puppets of Socrates, Confucius, Epicurus and Mahatma Gandhi; thus addressing the puzzles such quotes as these suggest:

Until some method of teaching virtue has been discovered, progress will have to be sought by improvement of intelligence rather than morals. [Bertrand Russell]

Will ever the day come when the wise will band together the sweet dreams of youth and the joy of knowledge? Each is but naught when in solitary existence. Will ever the day come when Nature will be the teacher of man and Humanity his book of devotions and Life his daily school? Youth’s purpose of joy—capable in its ecstasy and mild in its responsibility—cannot seek fulfillment until knowledge heralds the dawn of that day. [Kahlil Gibran]

If a noble disposition be planted in a young mind, it will engender a flower that will endure to the end, and no rain will destroy, nor will it be withered by drought. [Antiphon]

I have explained in some detail what The Arete Puppet Theatre Project is about at:

http://moralmission.blogspot.co.uk/

I hope you’ll excuse the blog writing, which still needs a bit of tweaking.

Life is whatever you make of it.

I enjoyed reading your article, real flow and a talent for writing you have. I'm also quite familiar with Zen Buddhism, but not really a "believer" in reincarnation, although I have high respects of the Zen Buddhists search for the perfect mind-set, also known as "emptiness".

I'd say however that you loose only as much as you are unable to cope with. I can loose my beauty (not that I am very beautiful, quite to the contrary by ordinary measures, but you get the point), but I would only feel the loss if I didn't see it coming and changed my focus in life before it arrived. If it comes like a shock I'll be feeling a lack of value where I otherwise felt valuable, if it comes as a "oh, a new wrinkle", like, totally not caring, choosing to focus on the sides of life which are good and prospective, like a working career or my physical health etc.

Hi VoT, are you back from your adventures? I recall you saying you were about to travel with no money LOL. So wots the goss

reasonvemotion wrote:Hi VoT, are you back from your adventures? I recall you saying you were about to travel with no money LOL. So wots the goss

back indeed, after three months living on the streets of Catalonia in Spain and the South of France. Hell of an adventure and lots of learning! You meet a lot of interesting people when you have no money... ^^ and I mean interesting as in weird, often outsiders of society, with their own special quirks and ways of living... and dreams, like an elderly American woman I dubbed the "Rogue Grandma" who tried to hire my as a dealer for her future cannabis-export to Norway and Sweden (where cannabis is illegal), and people like, socially awkward and special...

yes, I have almost done that...... not quite on the streets tho. luv it! So where to next?

searching for work in Norway north of the polar circle. Gonna settle down to get time to write some, try to make some skillz at computer game programming and with a slight chance finish high school through online-courses... the last is of course by a slight chance, I say like Winston Churchill: "Personally I'm always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught."

I wrote a lot of notes and completed some philosophical problems while I was travelling, and I now have enough material to make at least a small book on a science and philosophy of needs. Find it really interesting, but after studying needs in nature for too long you start having a lot of needs yourself! Food besides what other people have already eaten of; bed besides park benches; no needing to worry about hygiene and your own constant smell... etc. So, glad to be back, not looking forward to work though, but I guess that until I have magically conjured up an income from somewhere that's what I have to do :/

Its lovely to have you back.

reasonvemotion wrote:Its lovely to have you back.

lovely to be back