Case, That is not nihilism, that's depression. - Care to tango?
m At 11:40 PM 1/28/2007, you wrote: >[Platt] >I'm not sure what to believe other than the highest good of all -- the >freedom to investigate, acquire, hold and change beliefs. So if Case, Arlo >or anybody else believes in nihilism (and I'm not sure they do) or are >flexible in their beliefs, that's OK by me. > >[Case] >Having now been firmly slapped with the nihilist label let me recommend >perhaps the finest statement of nihilism ever uttered. It was written by a >Jewish philosopher sometime around 300 B.C. near the time that the middle >east was conquered by Aristotle's student Alexander. It has inspired the >writing of: Shakespeare, Hemmingway, Browning, Shelley, Updike, Orwell, >Bradbury, Wharton, John Cougar Mellancamp and Kansas. > >It begins: > >"Vanity of vanities; all is vanity. >What profit hath a man of all his labour >which he taketh under the sun? >One generation passeth away, and >another generation cometh: >but the earth abideth for ever." > >Of man's special place in creation he says: >"...they might see that they themselves are beasts. For that which befalleth >the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one >dieth, ...All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust >again." > >He prefers life to death, sort of: >"...for a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that >they shall die: but the dead know not any thing." > >At one point the author concludes: >"...a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and >to be merry:" > >Of wealth he say: >"Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I >should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. And who knoweth whether >he shall be a wise man or a fool?" > >Of wisdom and philosophy he says: >"Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and foolish king..." > >But we warns: >"And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is >no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh." > >He see Value in wisdom but >"Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness. >The wise man's eyes are in his head; but the fool walketh in darkness: and I >myself perceived also that one event happeneth to them all." > >He sums it up this way: >"As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he >came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his >hand. And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall >he go: and what profit hath he that hath laboured for the wind?" > >At yet this work of nihilism inspired Pete Seeger to put this passage to >song. This is about life as pure experience. > >To every thing there is a season, >and a time to every purpose under the heaven: >A time to be born, and a time to die; >a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; >A time to kill, and a time to heal; >a time to break down, and a time to build up; >A time to weep, and a time to laugh; >a time to mourn, and a time to dance; >A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; >a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; >A time to get, and a time to lose; >a time to keep, and a time to cast away; >A time to rend, and a time to sew; >a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; >A time to love, and a time to hate; >a time of war, and a time of peace. > >Life faced and lived realistically without pretence. Is this what you mean >by nihilism? Because if so I want that sticker put dead center of the >bumper, right above the license plate. > >To those who have tossed their Bible's in with the coffee grounds I suggest >Ecclesiastes is reason enough to pull it out and look again. But I suspect >the author would be indifferent to where you put him, after all what are >dried coffee grounds but more dust in the wind. > > > > >moq_discuss mailing list >Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. >http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org >Archives: >http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ >http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/ moq_discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
