With the advancing of the age our brain begins to exhaust. Memory begins to deteriorate, the speed of our thinking slows down… That’s why it is a common practice for the doctors to recommend the deteriorating adults to solve crosswords and sudokus, as well as learning new languages and mnemonic techniques.

However a number of medical experts believe these methods to be not as effective as it is’ thought they are. Not very long ago an innovative team of researchers suggested a brand new method of renewing of the brain cells. They have discovered at the Yale University that during any game or competition the human brain is so deeply “absorbed” by the desire of winning that almost all brain areas tend to activate at their maximum.

The earlier notion was that this happens through the dopamine alone. However it has turned out that while winning or losing all brain areas react and respond in a way as if our life depends on it. And indeed, under certain circumstances and during playing games people react quite emotionally to their losses and wins. As a result brain cells simply wake up.

That’s why the scientists announced gambling as the most efficient supporter of the good memory and quick thinking.

Before I begin my philosophical argument, let me first inform you all of what I define as the deceptive Guru: a person who lectures moral values based on personal emotions as opposed to objective rationality. These deceptive Gurus set out a mission to universalize their message of “moral justice”. However, the logical fallacy of their belief is that it is inconsistent, ignorant, and not genuine. The deceptive Guru uses personal emotions and rationality interchangeably; in reality, both concepts hold a stark contrast to one another. Emotions are integrated as part of the human fabric; our personality defines our intricate mental characteristics and behavioral attitude. If we acknowledge that every single human contain their own unique personalities, then we should build our morality system based off of that collective pattern of human sentiment. What better way is there to accomplish this task than objective rationality?

“Why is using subjective emotions inappropriate to explain and defend ethical principles,” one might ask. Personal emotions are biased and only relate to the individual feelings. If we wish to create a moral system in which the mass can all agree upon, then we should adopt the universal perception of what is typically viewed as good and bad. However, adopting universal perception alone will not suffice in a world of vast opinions; instead we should appeal directly to our rational state of mind, and cheery pick the logical and consistent ethical dogmas. In other words, an intrinsic moral system is based on the collective perspective of what is generally discern as good and bad, and the faculty of reason should dictate our selective judgment. The method to choose what we perceive morally correct is similar to the American legislative process: only few laws are passed while many laws are rejected. Not every radical idea will receive recognition due to its impracticality to moral justification.

What the deceptive guru fails to accomplish is that he does not believe in a universal moral law. Instead the deceptive guru relies on subjective judgment to announce the moral correctness of a particular action. By doing so, he fails to reason with proper ethics because he does not take into account the perspective of another. Hypothetically speaking, a law case proclaims that a culprit caused two murders and critically injured an adolescent child. As the juror, one must decide whether the criminal deserves a life sentence in prison, a death penalty, or possibly a reduce sentence in prison upon the notion of mental instability. Before the case is presented, the deceptive guru decides that the defendant is guilty on all accounts of murder and assault; to him, the crime itself was enough proof to provide sufficient evidence of guilt. For this reason, he refuses to listen to the case to it’s entirely, and disregards the Presumption of Innocence. During a discussion with the jurors, the deceptive Guru confidently announces that the man is guilty and deserves immediate punishment. Somehow, the deceptive Guru has managed to garner the emotional support of the jurors.

Nonetheless, the reality of the situation was that the culprit was mentally unstable during the time of criminal activity; unfortunately, the clinical psychologist failed to provide a convincing argument to the jurors. And because he appeared normal to the public view, people did not presume that he was mentally insane. Now some might think, “So what if he’s mentally unstable? He still committed a heinous murder and caused a child to be hospitalized. This man deserves punishment!” Although the culprit did caused two deaths and critically injured a child, there is no justification to severely chastise him, especially since he was not mentally sane during time of assault. It is like sleep walking to a refrigerator to eat a meal, but you’re not consciously aware of it! Clearly, the defendant needs psychological help, not a life sentence in prison that will leave no resolution.

The deceptive guru is childish and often contradicts his own beliefs. For instance, he reads about Buddhism and Aristotle philosophy and has been learning from their ethical principles for over five years. When he goes to a bar with his friends, he engages in an intellectual debate about ethics and morality. His friends all agree with what he’s said and perceive him to be a man of principle. Later the day, the man goes home and encounters his estranged wife. The man is angered by her insolence and beats her to the brink of death. The problem with the deceptive guru is that he learns knowledgeable information, but does not actually practice what he learns. Similarly, a person argues for animal protections laws, but is a huge fan of eating at fast food restaurants that serve meat.

As you read this, I hope you can keep in mind that the deceptive guru is not actually a real terminology, but a metaphor I used to describe the ignorance of certain people. My advice is to always think objectively without bias, and use reason as a proper tool to defend ethical principles; never appeal to your emotions when speaking of “true ethics”. After all, if you’re in a life and death situation, would you use your rationality to help you, or would you allow your emotions to consume you in fear?

Virtues are qualities, or character traits, of a human being. They give us the means to acquire values, which guide our lives. It is a standard by which one acts and which one is judged. These virtues are shaped and molded throughout life; they are not innate, they must be learned and acquired. Our aim in life is to acquire these virtues, and our sole purpose is to live by them. They are not measured in degrees; they are absolutes. They promote individual well-being by developing a person’s morality. The virtues we strive to acquire are tested, and those that survive the struggle of life are deemed as a man’s personal virtues, his values. It may be a challenge, but by acquiring these virtues we reap the rewards. By obtaining and practicing these virtues, we obtain happiness.

Virtues are valued by society as moral well being. There are many virtues that could be defined and discussed, yet many different groups, or religions, accentuate several virtues as a moral code of sorts. However, each individual has their own set of virtues in which they develop over their lives. They are shaped often by the person’s culture, beliefs, and experiences. Now, this trio is constantly preached and practiced in thousands of Christian homes around the world. Even the Buddhist Eight Fold Path can be boiled down to virtues. And it is not just religion that explores the importance of certain virtues. In ancient Japan, warriors known as samurai followed a strict code of virtues known as the Bushido Code, which highlighted the seven virtues respect, courage, benevolence, loyalty, honor, honesty, and rectitude; they followed these down to the tee. Benjamin Franklin, a founding father of our country, listed thirteen virtues to achieve “moral perfection.”

An important virtue to me, and to many others, is loyalty. Loyalty, or the devotion to something, is important for a variety of reasons. Loyalty breeds trust, which is the building block of relationships. And life, at least a fulfilling one, is all about building relationships. Loyalty is present in everyday life. In my life, that statement holds true. There are several areas in which loyalty plays a role in my life. I am loyal to my friends and family; I will not desert them. I am loyal to my school; I will never betray the Rangers. And, most importantly, I am loyal to myself; my beliefs cannot be swayed, and I will always improve my life by making decisions based on self. Loyalty to oneself means one is devoted to whatever it is one believes in, whether it be a certain faith or a certain set of ideals. However, that is only half the equation. The other half lies in the very sensitive concept of self-interest. That is, one makes choices solely on the basis of making one’s self better off. To be loyal to one’s self, one must make choices in terms of self-interest.

Whether it be loyalty to self, family, country, or anything else, it doesn’t matter; these loyalties will be tested throughout life. It is when these loyalties stand strong through trial that we can consider loyalty a virtue.
Self-confidence is undoubtedly a trait worth striving for, but when it evolves into arrogance, it must some how be tamed. We tame arrogance with another virtue, humility. Humility allows us to know and cherish our own achievements while remaining modest. A humble person will never brag about his accomplishments. Instead he keeps his pride internal, hidden from any outside force. Humility acts as a barrier between arrogance, which, as we know from Greek literature, eventually leads to ones downfall. However, that is not to say that one cannot possess pride in one’s self. Accordingly, the perfect balance would be a prime example of the golden mean, a course between two extremes. In this scenario, one end would be low self-esteem and on the opposite end would be arrogance. The median between these two outliers would be humility.

Responsibility also plays a large role in anyone’s life, especially students. In order to succeed in life and become more productive, we must establish a sense of responsibility. Students must develop personal responsibility in order to keep top notch grades. Responsibility involves choices. To make these choices one must undergo a personal analysis, a weighing of cost versus benefit. Should one slack of one’s duties and hang out with friends? Or should one stay home and study rigorously in order to pass an upcoming test? The decision is one’s own; the result is a reflection on one’s responsibility. It is the trait that allows us to make the right choice.

As an athlete, the role of responsibility in my life is multiplied and becomes even more crucial. Each decision I make reflects not only on myself, but also my team, my school, and the community as a whole. If I am not responsible, I may not get to play. If I choose to slack off in class, my grades will suffer, and I will not play. An athlete must never shirk his duties and he must not let his team down; he must be responsible.

But what about responsibility makes it a virtue? For one, it is a character trait that we develop throughout our lives. It is, as the definition of virtue states, not innate. We establish responsibility in the early years of our lives and it carries into our adult years. It is shaped and molded by our parents. With their teachings and expectations, we practice responsibility. Secondly, our sense of responsibility will be tested. There will be times when being responsibility will be difficult, when the irresponsible decision looks more tempting. However, if responsibility is truly one of someone’s internal virtues, that person will make the right decision.

In Aesop’s fable The Boy Who Cried Wolf, there is one virtue that the boy lacks that eventually leads to his demise. This virtue is honesty. Being honest builds trust, which is automatically broken when one lies. This is what happened with the boy who cried wolf, he lied multiple times and by doing so, he broke his trust with the villagers. Dishonesty is an attempt to fake reality. Honesty is part of strong moral character. Its attributes are truthfulness and the absence of lying, cheating, and stealing. Unfortunately, this is not one my personal virtues, but i still view it as important. For it to be one of my virtues, I would have to show it in all of my actions; I would have to be totally committed to telling the truth. For it to be part of my virtues, it would have to become habitual. I am generally honest, but I have and most likely will tell a lie. To be considered virtuous, one must be committed to whatever type of action the virtue entails.

The most basic, and possibly the most important human virtue is rationality. Rationality is the application of reason. A rational man employs reason to make decisions, he is not controlled by emotion or by whim; instead he relies on the use of his mind. Rationality is man’s commitment to reality and reason as a permanent way of life. It is a virtue because it is a man’s only means to knowledge and reality. It is the basic virtue; all preceeding virtues and action must be derived from reason because reason and logic is the only source of truth. To evade rationality is to evade truth. Ayn Rand said, “Man has a single basic choice, to think or to not think, and that is the gauge of his virtue. Moral perfection is an un breached rationality– not to the degree of your intelligence, but the full and relentless use of your mind, not the extent of your knowledge, but the acceptance of reason as an absolute.” To be virtuous, one must follow his mind(reason), not his heart(emotion).

By utilizing reason, one can acquire another virtue known as justice. Justice is the virtue that allows man to live in harmony with his neighbor, and through this dependence various relationships form. Justice regulates these dependencies. A sense of justice gives us the ability to distinguish right from wrong. It allows us to give each man his dues. However, justice has many forms as perceived by an individual. Everyone has their own sense of justice. Perhaps one sees justice as defined by the American legal system, or perhaps one sees justice as vigilantism. All forms aside, justice holds that one should never ignore the facts of reality; if a person lies, don’t trust them. If a person steals or murders, prosecute him. The essence of justice simply holds that one should give to all men their dues, and that one should never ignore the absolutes.

There are multiple reasons why a person should acquire virtues, whether they be personal or social. On the personal scale, virtues are the road to success. It is virtue that allows us to build a strong work ethic and responsibility, which, through education, can lead to higher productivity. And why should a person want to be more productive? The reason is simple; Higher productivity will lead to a better paying job which leads to wealth, which is the measurement of success. Socially, virtues help tremendously. We are measured and judged by virtues. Virtuous people are trusted, and thus build more relationships.

On the opposite side, being full of vices holds many consequences. An irresponsible person will not complete his work, and thus fail at what he does. A dishonest person will never be trusted. An irrational person will never understand reality. An arrogant person will eventually crash and burn. So, the importance of acquiring virtues is obvious. They allow us to use reason and understand the world, they allow us to build positive relationships, and they give us the tools to obtain happiness.
As stated before, virtues are not innate. There is nothing embedded in our DNA that makes us virtuous, or by contrast, non-virtuous. Similarly, one does not wake up one morning and state, “I want to be virtuous!” Instead we acquire virtues at various times in our lives, and we continue to develop them every day in order for them to become habitual.

Parents are a monumental force when it comes to instilling virtues into their children. Habits formed as youth make a difference. Parents constantly promote virtues such as honesty, patience, kindness, compassion, and respect. As children, we are like dry sponges; we will absorb anything. The virtues they help teach us stick with us forever. My parents, for example, did an excellent job in promoting virtues such as responsibility and work ethic. Both my siblings and I have received top notch grades throughout our careers as students. this is because we have learned how to be responsible, and have developed a fine work ethic.

Education is also a very important way to acquire virtues, albeit a rather difficult one. Education is possibly the most influential part of any human’s life. It is more than simply memorizing dates and facts, or simply putting two and two together to make four. Education is the development of a man’s soul, his body, and most importantly, his mind. It is the way we learn not just how to make a living, but how to live. Education sharpens a man’s sense of self, his morality, and his rationality. It allows him to employ reason in all parts of his life.
Education teaches us virtues in multiple ways. Although it sometimes doesn’t teach individual virtues, education in general helps to develop our personal values. By working diligently in hopes for a brighter future, one develops virtues such as responsibility, work ethic, and self-discipline. The social virtue of friendship is also developed in school by interacting and cooperating with others. Although it may prove difficult to teach specifically for virtues, it can still be accomplished. Subjects such as philosophy can teach virtues by exploring ethics.  I can honestly say that this paper, which prompted my to delve into my self, has been the only challenging paper I have written. By writing this paper, I have explored the virtues of myself and of people in general. It has made me ponder the workings of a virtuous mind, and accordingly, a non-virtuous man. Education has made me think about morality; the meaning of it, and how we attain it.

Coupled together with education, literature is another driving force when it comes to acquiring virtue. Literature is highly influential because it develops moral literacy. Everyone should have one book that has influenced them in some way or another. People look up to the characters as they read about them. One internalizes the virtues that the author portrays in the characters. One may even try to emulate their favorite characters. However, authors don’t always paint their characters as virtuous. By reading about men and women who are full of vices, we learn that this may lead to their demise. We learn that hubris is what leads to the fall of the hero.

Various books on ethical philosophy offer examples and definitions of virtues in which we can learn from. Even oral stories can hold virtuous meaning. Parents preach the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf to their children. On a personal note, the works of Ayn Rand have recently been influential in my life. The Fountainhead is a wonderful book that has helped me with virtues, even with this paper. It helped me by preaching the need for rationality in men, that reason is an absolute and reality must be obeyed. Literature is passed down through the ages and has many lessons to teach us about virtue and vice.

The virtues we develop and maintain as humans are largely shaped by our culture. Many cultures highlight a certain set of virtues because of their faith. Other cultures naturally instill virtues into its youth. If one grows up in a rural, farmland setting, that person will know hard work, and thus develop virtues such as discipline, work ethic, and responsibility. In a highly Christian household, the virtues faith, hope, and love are taught and expected. Our virtues are shaped and molded according to where we grow up and what kind of environment we grow up in. No matter what culture one grows up in, it plays an undeniable role in teaching virtues.

Virtues are practiced throughout life. Although they are not constant, they must never be contradicted. If a person lies, that person cannot be considered honest in virtue; that virtue would have to become habitual. To practice our personal virtues, we make a commitment to them. Virtues give us the means to acquire values, which are strict moral rules by which we live our lives. By writing this paper I have practiced my virtues of work and responsibility. I did not shirk this assignment, which is part of my commitment to responsibility, one of my virtues.

In its ground state, rationality often overpowers emotion. However, when things get heated internally emotion flourishes into a powerful beast. Just like how fire is a good servant but a bad master, the animal incarnate of emotion should be one of control and good will. Sporadically, emotion disguises itself as the ugly ‘over sensitiveness’. Every action gets over read and analyzed resulting in negative interpretation.

In life, decisions often come in pairs – one seems more rational but the other just stirs up more excitement within and is definitely more attractive. People think that is an actual clash of reason and emotion. However that’s a clash between the inner voices (in my opinion). Pursue the emotional joy or engage in more rational practical trades? Tough to put your mind into something your heart has fled from. In every mind there is a perfect ideal combination and it is up to us through our life experiences to find that philosophers stone. Deep introspection and constant internal review should soon present itself with a combination of rationality and emotion that both your heart and mind agree on.Like someone? Go for it for the emotion or ignore it for the rationality? (One of the toughest decisions to make) .

There will come a time when everything soothes itself into the intricate but beautiful cycle of life. There will come a time when the heart and mind fuse into one powerful singularity. There will come a time when duty and rationality forecast the positive emotional returns of the future. Patience is often key to understanding as affirmed by experiences themselves. Look for the perfect jigsaw piece. Never stop finding, for caesura signals the entrapment. Having Freedom is knowing that freedom can never be taken away from you.

Be the emotional. Be the rational. Accept the dualities and synthesis is achieved.

 The concept of rationality, especially in  anthropology and comparative sociology creates considerable problems.  In the nineteenth century, anthropologists  typically  recorded magic and religion as irrational and  as the  product of a prelogical mentality.  It is  difficult,  however, to concede that a society could  exist in which irrational  beliefs were widespread, since the existence of  language itself implies the presence of  logical norms  (or negation,  identity and  non-contradiction).  There  has to  be some  public  agreement that certain terms  refer consistently to specific  objects and that, for example,  ‘up’ is the  opposite of  ‘down’.  Modern anthropology argues that (1) beliefs  which  appear absurd, such as all twins  are  birds, are in fact reasonable  once located in their  appropriate cultural context; (2) understanding other beliefs is thus a matter of correct  translation; (3) religious beliefs are expressive and symbolic, not  informative and  liberal; religious  beliefs  are  thus non-rational rather  than  irrational.  Critics  of this view have  argued that  by these  three criteria no belief could  ever be  shown to be irrational.

        HOWEVER, THERE IS A KIND OF AMERICAN WHO CLOAKS HIMSELF IN A SPECIAL “SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS” AND INTENDS TO USE THE EXISTENCE OF THESE SOCIAL PROBLEMS AS A LICENSE TO  DO SOMETHING WHICH IS EQUALLY AND EXACTLY AS EVIL AS PAEDOPHILIA ITSELF. AND THAT IS TO FORMULATE AN INDISCRIMINATE  “WITCH-HUNT” AND ALSO FAN THE FIRES OF AN IR-RATIONAL HATE IN SOCIETY TO SATISFY WHAT IS INWARDLY AN IMMATURE MEANNESS WHICH IS REALLY A DEFORMITY OF CHARACTER, AND AS PURELY AN EVIL AS PAEDOPHILIA ITSELF:

      TO MAKE USE OF A SOCIAL-ILL AS AN EXCUSE TO VENT A SELF-RIGHTEOUS HATEFULNESS MERELY FOR ONES PERSONAL GRATIFICATION AND SUBLIMINAL IMPULSE TO BE CRUEL, CONCEALED IN THE CLOAK OF DOING JUSTICE, FOR THE ADDED PLEASURE OF GAINING APPROVAL FROM ONES PEERS.

RATIONAL AMERICANS KNOW THERE ARE EVIL PEOPLE WHO RATIONALIZE THEIR OWN CRUELTY AND WHO THINK OF THEMSELVES AS NORMAL AND CONCERNED CITIZENS.

THIS DISCOURSE ATTEMPTS TO ALERT THE RATIONAL AMERICAN TO BE PREPARED TO ADDRESS BOTH EVILS.

AMERICANS WHO ARE NOT INTELLECTUALLY DISHONEST MUST BE PREPARED TO ADDRESS BOTH EVILS. LET THIS DISCOURSE BE AMONGST THE FIRST TO RAISE LEVELS OF AWARENESS. WE MAY FIRST CONFRONT SUCH PEOPLE BY PRESENTING THEM WITH A CONCEPT WHICH WOULD NEVER ENTER INTO A NARROW MINDED, SELF-RIGHTEOUS,MINDSET(MASQUERADING AS MORAL):

THE MERE POSSIBILITY THAT THERE MUST EXIST PEDOPHILES SOMEWHERE WHO FINDING THEMSELVES IN THE MISERABLE EXISTENCE OF BEING ATTRACTED TO YOUTHFULNESS OF FORM, BUT WHO THEMSELVES (BEING MORAL) WOULD NEVER GIVE IN TO THE IMPULSE!

A PEDOPHILE WHO IS AT ALL TIMES ABLE TO IGNORE AND CONTROL HIS OR HER OWN (AND WHAT MUST BE VERY DIFFERENT) PSYCHOSOMATIC IMPULSES.

AND YOU CAN BE SURE THAT SUCH A MORAL BEING WOULD (A) NOT BE DESERVING OF MY OR YOUR “WITCH-HUNTS” OR VENDETTA’S. (B) AND NOT DESERVING OF BEING ANONYMOUSLY HARASSED BY THE SOCIETY FANNING UN-NECESSARY FIRES OF HATE AND DISLIKE, RATHER THAN THE PERFECTLY BALANCED AND MATURE APPROACH WHICH IS IMPARTED HERE.

     THE AMERICAN SOCIETY IS NOT PREPARED TO VISIT UPON THE NEXT CENTURY THE SAME VENDETTA,S, HATEFULNESS, AND CRUELTY WHICH BURNED SUPPOSED WITCHES AT STAKE, OR WHICH WAS VISITED UPON BLACKS, JEWS, INDIANS, GAYS, TRANS-GENDERS, THE FORMERLY INCARCERATED (SUCCESSFULLY REFORMED), OR ANY OTHER NON PROFESSIONAL VENDETTA FORWARDED BY MEDIOCRE MINDS.

THE AMERICAN SOCIETY IS NO LONGER PREPARED TO BE “LED BY THE NOSE” BY VINDICTIVE PERSONALITIES

CLOAKED AS MORALLY CONCERNED CITIZENS AND WHO ARE NOT CAPABLE OF LEADING US INTO BEING OUR BETTER SELVES. LET OUR JUDGEMENT OF PEDOPHILES BE BALANCED, INTELLIGENT, AND MATURE.

LET OUR JUSTICE BE BLIND TO FANATICISM, SENSATIONALISM, AND GUILE. LET OUR JUSTICE BE KNOWLEDGEABLE,AND PROFESSIONAL, WITH THE CAPABILITY OF RENDERING SWIFT REPRIMAND WITH APPROPRIATE DETENTION (WHETHER THAT BE FOR LIFE OR OTHERWISE)FOR ANYONE WHO MIGHT VIOLATE THE HUMAN RIGHT OF A CHILD AND LET IT PROMOTE THE SAFETY OF THE SOCIETY , BUT IT MUST ALSO BE CAPABLE TO LET PASS IN PEACE, AND WITH SYMPATHY THOSE WHO ARE DEFICIENT IN THEIR CONDITIONING BUT WHO REMAIN AT ALL TIMES MORAL. IT IS NOT IN THE INTEREST OF SOCIETY TO BE LED INTO BECOMING EVIL ITSELF BY ADOPTING EVIL WAYS FROM MALEVOLENT AND MEDIOCRE MINDS WHEN CONFRONTING SOME LEGITIMATE  WRONGNESS WHICH THEY ARE INTERESTED IN ONLY SO FOR MUCH AS IT ALLOWS THEM TO BE BULLIES- BUT TO CONFRONT ACTUAL HUMAN RIGHT VIOLATIONS WITH A SWIFT, STOIC,EQUITABLE, AND RATIONAL JUSTICE.

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As an example in primal times, A caveman is desperate for a place to sleep and escape the cold of a raging blizzard, he finds a cave but is somewhat reluctant to enter due to the aforementioned rationality, yet his will to survive forces him into the cave.

Most of the time, when it comes to technology, we humans leap at the chance to progress in it, but other studies such as the human genome project could have extreme side-effects on us a race and therefore less people are willing to explore into the unknown void know as genetical modification or restoration, yet our will to survive and always improve upon ourselves will eventually drive us to rely on the genome project for the future. This proves that altought humans are rational, our subconscious will to survive will almost always over-ride that rationality, completely forgetting long-term effects for short-term effects.

Image by Lars Plougmann via Flickr

The questions reach a limit and limit cannot be derived as all things are ceteris paribus.

Man can’t say that God doesn’t exist, nor prove it.  We can explain away every oddity and mystery in the world, but we can’t explain away on small thing; logos, reason. Now, some may say reason is a product of time and time is a product of the universe, thus reason, too is a product of the universe and therefore, is no evidence of God. In digression however, one might site systematic reason as evidence of God through design. A thought which suggests that, our desire for “ethereal truth” is not to be found in some vaguely quantifiable heavenly realm, but in the very fabric of the universe we live. You can’t argue that reason isn’t universal, whether its science, mathematics, music, art, it all is a product of reason. No other idea or concept is inherent in all things physical and mental. This is the universe of reason and if God exists I would venture to say he is a reasonable being.

e can’t ignore the value of these sterile intellectual disciplines that seem to have work so well for us in the past. So, one must compromise. Though science has found no evidence of God, I say that science itself is evidence of God. It’s hard to dispute intelligent design because it’s hard to imagine that something could come of nothing, but seems to be the nature of the universe. Here we find a brick wall and though theoretical physicals boast the skill to see beyond the beginning of our universe, I feel that any beginning you can see beyond is not a beginning at all. Perhaps I’m thinking pantheism. The thought does seem to be a perfect melding of the God and science, and I believe that in order to understand our meaning and existence we must take into account all human knowledge, collectively and equally.

How much time does it take to stop and think really? I ridicule my friends because they actually think and in their world(s) others don’t so they get frustrated. I simply ask the question…’Are you thinking again?’ It’s become a running gag between us but it’s sad to know that there are so few people that actually think before they do or speak. Rational thinking cannot be applied to an irrational act. It just doesn’t work. I like to think of myself as a realist and in most cases I’m blatant and to the point. Make no mistake, being rude is not my thing, however, pointing out what should be otherwise obvious is something I can’t seem to bypass. My intent is to be constructive in my criticism to help people to realize what’s wrong and hopefully assist them in any way that I can.

My message is simply this…it only takes a moment to think before you do something that can take you a lifetime to forget.