It just occurred to me that people are the closest thing (as far as we’ve been able to determine) that the Universe has to a consciousness of its own existence. To our present knowledge, humans are the only beings in the Universe capable of such a degree consciousness as to be able to contemplate anything beyond immediate surroundings. Also, human beings are obviously a part of the Universe, much as any bean can be said to be a part of a beanbag chair. Thereby it follows that – to our present knowledge – there is no other entity in the Universe that is aware of the Universe’s existence. tot »

You go sit on a bench in the park. It’s a nice day, a bit cold, but sunny outside. You breathe in and feel your lungs expand as you take in the fresh, invigorating autumn air. Presently you sit back and start to think. You think about an ice age, a nuclear disaster, a meteor that crashes into the Earth, blowing it to smithereens. Mutant killer locusts, alien invaders from outer space, Justin Bieber getting ten consecutive number one singles. The cataclysmic event of your choice. You look around. That guy walking his dog? Kaboom. Dead. That cute couple sharing an ice cream cone? Vaporized. That man in his thirties reading the newspaper? Obliterated. Those two old men playing backgammon on the bench next to you? It’s like they never existed. Your hopes and dreams?

tot »

I think that there exists a correlation between a person’s socio-political orientation on the left-right spectrum and that person’s perception of the strength of their own character, as well as of Man in the philosophical sense. tot »