The Black American Marxist and feminist political activist, philosopher, academic and author, Angela Davis, once wrote, "You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. and you have to do it all the time."
“I am only one, but still I am one.
I cannot do everything, but still I can do something.
And because I cannot do everything,
I will not refuse to do the something I can do.”
Edward Everett Hale
Friday 26 July 2024
A Challenge for Us All
Friday 19 July 2024
Effective Anger
The Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, once wrote, "Anyone can get angry, that is easy. But to be angry with the right person, in the right measure, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is hard."
Friday 12 July 2024
The Power of Conviction
The 20th century American philosopher, Donald Davidson wrote something like, "Nothing can be considered a valid reason for a conviction except a conviction" (which is how my Google translator rendered the German).
Friday 5 July 2024
We are All Complex Beings
The 15th century Renaissance Cardinal, philosopher and scholar, Nikolaus von Kues (or Nicholas of Cusa) once wrote, "We recognise the greatness of a man by how many opposites he unites in himself."
This is not the same as Thomas Carlyle's Great Man Theory, which states that certain people are born with exceptional qualities, which enable them to become great leaders.
"Why is it that sometimes I feel that I want to do helpful things, but at other times I just want my own way?" a little Cherokee boy asked his grandfather one day.
"It's because there is a battle inside every human being," replied his grandfather. "The battle is between two wolves. One wolf is kind and gentle, full of peace, generosity, compassion, and trust. The other is wicked, full of anger, hatred, greed, selfishness, pride, and arrogance."
The young boy thought for a moment, and then he asked: "Which one will in the battle inside me?"
"The one you feed," replied his grandfather.
In other words, a person will better be able to achieve greatness, or at least, to become their best self, when they learn to nurture their own positive qualities, rather than allowing their negative ones to take hold and run their lives. I believe that all of us have negative attributes - we all have moments when we are tempted to listen to the "bad" wolf and take the self-serving route. It does take greatness to acknowledge that wolf's existence and to consciously make the decision to choose a better path.