frelkins: Should I apologize, then, for not yet having developed sufficient wit to provide pleasure with style to those readers who are not pleased by the thought?
Cynicism is warranted to the extent that it leads to a realistic assessment and a predictive model of the world.
Cynicism is exaggerated when it produces an unrealistic, usually too pessimistic, model of the world.
But to the extent that cynicism is a negative evaluation of “what is”, I am not being a cynic in this topic.
I am not saying, bitterly, how sad it is that most people are really motivated by their selfishness, and how sad the world is because of this, etc.
What I am saying is that selfishness is okay. That recognizing your selfishness is the healthiest state. I am saying not that people who are selfish are corrupting the world. I am saying that people who are self-righteous are.
I understand people who want to reshape the world because they want it to be different, and are honest about this selfish preference and endeavor. I respect that.
What I don’t respect is people who are self-righteous in thinking that they know how to reshape the world to make other people happy, and do not see how self-anchored their motivation is. They are trying to do the same thing as those people who want to reshape the world selfishly. But the self-righteous ones, they sell what they are doing as being “higher on a moral ladder”, because, obviously, they know what is good for everyone.
I think that sort of behavior is just pompous, arrogant, and offensive.
Be honest. Do things because of you. Don’t do things because of others. Then, we can all come together and agree sensibly on how to act as to not step on each other’s toes.
But don’t be running around “healing” the world, pretending like you’re doing it a favor.
frelkins: Should I apologize, then, for not yet having developed sufficient wit to provide pleasure with style to those readers who are not pleased by the thought?
Cynicism is warranted to the extent that it leads to a realistic assessment and a predictive model of the world.
Cynicism is exaggerated when it produces an unrealistic, usually too pessimistic, model of the world.
But to the extent that cynicism is a negative evaluation of “what is”, I am not being a cynic in this topic.
I am not saying, bitterly, how sad it is that most people are really motivated by their selfishness, and how sad the world is because of this, etc.
What I am saying is that selfishness is okay. That recognizing your selfishness is the healthiest state. I am saying not that people who are selfish are corrupting the world. I am saying that people who are self-righteous are.
I understand people who want to reshape the world because they want it to be different, and are honest about this selfish preference and endeavor. I respect that.
What I don’t respect is people who are self-righteous in thinking that they know how to reshape the world to make other people happy, and do not see how self-anchored their motivation is. They are trying to do the same thing as those people who want to reshape the world selfishly. But the self-righteous ones, they sell what they are doing as being “higher on a moral ladder”, because, obviously, they know what is good for everyone.
I think that sort of behavior is just pompous, arrogant, and offensive.
Be honest. Do things because of you. Don’t do things because of others. Then, we can all come together and agree sensibly on how to act as to not step on each other’s toes.
But don’t be running around “healing” the world, pretending like you’re doing it a favor.