April 13, 2004

• HOORAH FOR AN OUTPOUR OF WRITING!!!

  
  

  Current location: Stellenbosch, famous for wine farms and it’s Afrikaans university.

  
  

  Topic: Dan’s Philosohpy

  
  

  So, the other day, I returned this philosohpy book that i had thought would be interesting.  I was taken in by the author’s story of pursuing his interest in philosophy, and his display of how powerful logic is.  But, I found it frivolous to be trying to find the meaning of things like, “What does a word really mean?” and all the examples to disprove soemthing are extreme examples like, “What is there were aliens that were indistinguishable from humans.” I’m not saying this kind of philosophy is worthless, it’s just not for me.

  
  

  What it helped me realize, though, is that what is for me is philosophy of life  For instance, I ponder many hours away thinking about things like, “If there are no good or bad experiences, only general experiences, does anything we do really matter?”  Since experiences in hte present lead to experiences in the future, then it is impossible ot judge any present day experience as either good or bad, because its affects must also be considered, and its affects are infinite and cannot be judged, so the initial experience cannot be judged.

  
  

  I think my interest in philosophy probably goes more towards ethics and morals.  Take this question.  “Why was the Holocaust bad?”  Philosohpy allows people to question the obvious, and despite the general concensus, especially by those closest affected, that the Holocaust was cruel and unfair to those who suffered, there are such benefits as its guidance to how we live today, and its affect on strenthening Jewish identity.  The reason I chose a historical event to philosophize about, is becaues there are present day events that would demand the same attentoin.  Politics is based on philosophy, but it would seem philosohpy often gives way to politics.  How else to explain Holocaust museums that say, “Never again,” while in 2004, it is happening again in various countries in various different ways.  I think part of the answer, is philosophy changes over time, as well as the fact that politics must deal with the practical.

  
  

  But, I wonder, if experiences are neither good nor bad, only neutral, or natural, then what is there to guide out actions, and to guide our politics?  Here, I’d say hedonism, or pleasure living, and the pursuit of happiness. 

  
  

  OK, so was invading Iraq good or bad?  It was a single event that is only a year old, and does not address a future of infinite years.  The problem with politics, as I see it, is it’s short-sitedness.  It’s like living day-to-day, hand to mouth.  Since the future is possibly infinite, shouldn’t our visions for governing ourselves be on a bigger level than mundane things like taxes, education, and war?  Why not concern ourselves with understanding what happiness is (and here I sound cheezy, forgive me) means for different people, and work towards achieving that.

  
  

  Philosophy has us questoin the accepted, and in terms of how to live a life, we are all philosophers. 

  
  

  Another situatoin I’ve often thought about is school.  Suppose 2 classes, one with an engaging professor, one without.  The feelings of the students in these 2 classes ends up being completely different.  In fact, it seems one class had a “better experience,” than another.  What is that?  If one person espends a year travelling, while another sits alone in his room for a year suffering from depressoin, is it necessarily true that the traveller had a “better experience?”  Philosohpically, I’d say no.  But in “reality” we’d all say yes.

  
  

  Ahhhhhhh…..this sounds like it coudl be interesting.  A divide between philosohpy and reality.  Philosohpy is governed by the laws of logic.  Reality, on the other hand, is governed by rules made up by people.  Reality, therefor, is not grounded in objectivity or logic, rather it is left up to human natural desires.  The same way that a leopard in the Kalahari desert can hung and bite the neck of a badger ( I just saw that on Animal Planet) humans have the freedom and power to do whatever their minds and bodies allow them to.  Humans, being a uniquely intelligent species, we have developed things such as culture, society, technology, etc.  Some of these things we probably did out of necessity, since species survival is boilogical in all species, I think.  Others we have developed to satisfy our needs to be creative, curoius, engaged, etc.  I thinkthis exists with other species as well.  When I see the similarities in behaviors between human and monkeys, I reflect on the time when humans existed without law, or without any conscoius purpose in life.

  
  

  That, “conscoius life purpose,” is another topic I think might be worth exploring.  And I htink doing htis kind of life philosophy might eventually lead to an understanding (at least for myself, since I’m certain I’m repeating what many others have probably done already) of how our reality works.  And, since most people share a common reality, and in that reality we have common goals, we may better be able to help more people achieve those goals, and I think that’s where my emphasis on practicality and tangible affects is important, and why I hope I’m living my life now as an example.

  
  

  I think my life has been filled with my own in the head sort of philosophical inquiry to try to uncover reality.  When I was younger, it was about religion, in college it was about education, and now it is about education and lifestyles after college.

  
  

  This writing today, I think (and I say “I think a lot to show this is not law and can be further discussed and altered) shows that what I write and htink is valid and extremely important.  It helps me make sense of my childhood, being a life philosopher since I was little, but never receiving anything externally to tell me it’s ok, or showing me how to grow as a life philosopher.  The things I’ve been discussing all along on my xanga site about lifestyle and educatoin problems stem from peole not questioning reality.  I’m in S. Africa today, and ecompletely happy because a lifetime of questioning and doubting how things should be done has finally erupted in me living a truly liberated life, in which I make all the rules.

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  —Pictures of mom and dad!!!—

  
  

  Topic: A very, very, special interest piece titled:

  
  

  JOYCE: THE VOICE OF TOWNSHIP DOGS

  
  

  4/12/04 12:29pm

  
  

  With her car loaded with restaurant scraps, Joyce spends 3 days a week driving the same route where she is greeted by what have become familiar faces in her life.  With 4 legs and wagging tails, the township dogs of the South African coastal town of Hermanus, gather arounsd as Joyce tosses fistfulls of food, as if feeding pigeons in Central Park.

  
  

  Joyce grew up in England where her dad showed her the art of taking in strays.  Now 78 years old, she has spent her last 15 years here in Hermanus, located about an hour from Cape Town, a place famous for it’s whale watching.

  
  

  “I would love to move to Cape Town,” she says,” but if I leave, many of these dogs would not survive.”

  
  

  Along with feeding the dogs, Joyce also reminds owners to leave them water, and to not keep them chained on short leashes. 

  
  

  “It amazes me how many times I have to remind them to give the dogs water.”

  
  

  I met Joyce a few days ago on a walking trail, where she was walking 3 of her dogs.  She invited me back for coffee and cake, and for several hours she told me about her long and exciting life.  When she told me of her work with the township dogs, I put other travel plans on hold to take the opportunity to check it out.

  
  

  Dozens of dogs freely roam the streets.  One of the older dogs ran along with Joyce’s car, having memorized the route over the years.  Those in the all black township have grown fond of Joyce, who is white and speaks only English.  As they call out, “Hello, Mrs. Joyce,” she calls back to them, “Can you please give your dogs some manzi, please they have no manzi.”  Manzi being Xhosa word for water.

  
  

  Joyce, who says she still feels like she’s 20, has gained a lot from this experience. 

  
  

  “I’ve begun to think, what does one need in life.  When I was younger I used to think I needed all this clothes.”  She took me to an old man’s shack, where I was introduced to an old friend of hers.  She brought him some old bread, which he happily ate.  Sitting on a milkcrate, he was wearing old worn out shoes, mismatched socks, and a mismatched suit as well.  Inside his shack was a single mattress and some other lose objects.  Despite my Western perspective of the poverty this man lives in, I quickly reflected on the home I often live while working for Outward Bound.  A simple tarp.  Having seen the township, both Joyce and I have been exposed to a reality than many white South Africans never see.

  
  

  “They’re too scared to come here, I think,” said Joyce.

  
  

  All totaled, there must have been 500 hungry dogs that Joyce fed that day. 

  
  

  “This started with one dog 15 years ago.  I don’t know what will happen when I’m gone.”

  
  

  Topic: Dude, Where’s my Country? by Michael Moore

  
  

  Michael Moore has done something completely amazing in his book.  He is out to find what the reality of our government is.  Something that we currently do not get from the one place we can hope to obtain it, the government.  Whether you agree with his anti-Bush rhetoric or not, he plainly lays out questions and concerns, that I now believe are the responsibilty of Bush to plainly lay out responses to.  What Moore is doing is cutting through the wishy-washy world we live in.  Either respond, or get out!!! is his message.

  
  

  Reading Michael Moore will be my inspiration for putting more real experiences into the college experiences.  That is my main purpose that I have given myself now, and it is essential for students to learn in a questioning environment that Moore has demonstrated.  I believe strongly in my vision that college needs more, and I believe my vision is a small part of Moore’s, by creating people who can cut through the bs of life, and find out what reality really is.

  
  

  It would bring me great hope if Moore’s ratoinality and his book were a cause in Bush’s losing the Nov. ’04 election.  This is the type of reality questioning that I was philosophizing (I hope that’s a word) earlier.  A Bush defeat, in my eyes, would be more a victory for those who questoin reality than a victory for Democrats, who would then still have to prove themselves.  It would also be evidence, that writing does have the power to help make a positive change. 

  
  

  “Good ideas, and good quotes, are timeless.  Implementing them into everyday life, takes time.” – Dan Lilienthal

  
  

  Topic: LILIENTHAL, What’s in a name?

  
  

  http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0203/p07s01-woaf.html

  
  

  This site is crazy…it’s about another American Lilienthal, w/ some interesting similarities to me

  
  

   

  • 10:35 am
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