In the past four weeks, my whole life has changed fundamentally. My wife gave birth to our first child, and for the first time in my life I feel that my opinion has to count. This momentous event co-incided with my reading Bertrand Russell's Sceptical Essays. A brilliant work, which managed to shake my belief in critical theory, relativism, and the idea that everyone has their own truth, and we should respect that fact.
I still believe everyone has their own Truth.
I just don't believe we have to respect those Truths. However, that doesn't mean I think we should just rubbish any belief we don't like. Rather, I believe we should engage these opinions, and try to present the arguments for and against them, as well as why some might sit on the fence.
Having read my Russell, my new thinking is along the lines of:
- Here we are, humans in the 21st century
- We still have no idea who we are!
- We were, at some stage, forced to co-operate as a species in order to survive
- This co-operation became a matter for evolution, to the extent that it is fair to now say that co-operation is part of the human 'makeup'
- As we have progressed in the modern world, our individualism and belief that we are all self-sufficient (or can be) has clouded our judgement on what it means to be human
- We have moved away from real argument, in favour of soliloquy.
- This is not a good thing for two reasons:
- We must engage with each other in order to progress as a species, and find answers to those problems that will affect us universally
- We must engage with each other in order to find answers to those problems that plague us as 'races', 'nations' and other lines by which humanity is divided
- Not only is such engagement important, it drives to the heart of what it means to be human
- I hope you disagree, so we can argue the point
- My wife
- My daughter
- My family
- My friends
- Music
- Philosophy
- Literature
- Politics
- Current Events
- 'Gossip' culture
- 'Reality' TV
