Philosophy and ethics

"It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters, in the end."

(Ursula K. LeGuin)           

I used to dream about a new pair of cross-country skis for a season, evaluate different options, wait for a bargain, then purchase an expensive pair, and finally spend hours prepping the bases. Having invested so much time, money and effort in the skis, it seemed natural to do everything in my power to preserve them. I waxed and scraped them repeatedly, stored them carefully between uses, and skied carefully to avoid rocks or other hazards. In fact, I respected the value of the skis so much, I only used them in perfect conditions.

“…it’s easier to add stuff than to take it away.  It brings to mind thesecond law of thermodynamics in physics, which (very loosely) says that a system will always develop greater disorder (or randomness, or “entropy”) unless work is done on that system.  Stated from a clinical point of view: unless we invest more time and energy in our patients, their care will become more scattered, disorganized, and chaotic.”

"Vision is not enough. It must be combined with venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps. We must step up the stairs."

(Vaclav Havel)     

The German philosopher Hegel said, “We learn from history that we don’t learn from history.”

Life must be understood backward. But it must be lived forward. (Soren Kierkegaard)

I have been called argumentative, disputatious, a vexatious nuisance, oppositional, a disagreement looking for an opportunity, and far worse.

 With these descriptions, I would not argue. The folks who say these things are correct. But I wonder if they know why I like to argue?

Not to win. Not to prove a point. Not to sell a position. Not to convince.

“The saving of our world from pending doom will come, not through the complacent adjustment of the conforming majority, but through the creative maladjustment of a nonconforming minority.”

(Dr Martin Luther King)         

“The name of the game in this economy and this health care climate and this political world is exclusion. You know it and I know it. We just don’t want to talk about it.”

First they ignore you.

Then they laugh at you.

Then they fight you.

Then you win.

(Gandhi)