Assorted Notes

WEDNESDAY, 30 JULY 2014

13:15

More than a month of silence … and then, this:

Is Brand Smit a middle-aged loser? Who makes the accusation? Who defends me? Who argues against me? Who is the magistrate? Society? Impossible. Society’s values and standards are primitive.

The fact is, in this existential complaint I myself make the accusation, and I myself am the prosecutor, advocate, and, finally, the magistrate. You find yourself guilty? Then society will treat you as guilty. You find the accusation groundless and reject it? Then society doesn’t have a case.

16:15

Two possibilities for me:

Option one: Mediocrity: I publish my books, but I don’t do any marketing; I know how to make money, but I don’t do it because I don’t want to take risks with my money; I know how to get in better physical condition, but I’m too lazy.

Option two: On fire: Live out the rest of your life like a protesting Buddhist in Saigon in 1963.

______________________

TUESDAY, 3 JUNE 2014

According to Wikipedia, artists and other creative people in early nineteenth century France started gathering in lower-class Roma neighbourhoods where the rent was more affordable. A common misconception at the time was that Roma people had reached France in the fifteenth century through Bohemia, the western part of what is now the Czech Republic. This resulted in French people calling the Roma in France, Bohémien. Because the creative types began gathering in the predominantly Roma neighbourhoods, people started referring to the artists and creatives by the same moniker.

What does it mean to lead a “bohemian” lifestyle? The same Wikipedia article where you can learn all of the above facts describes a bohemian lifestyle as unconventional, with few firm commitments, and a focus on musical, artistic, literary or spiritual ambitions. People who pursued a bohemian lifestyle in the nineteenth century and the first few decades of the twentieth century were often associated with unorthodox or anti-establishment political and social views. Frugality and even voluntary poverty were sometimes part of the story. The association with the Roma was also one of outsiders who lived apart from more conventional communities and who were not bothered that much with the latter’s rejection of how they lived their lives.

Some other interesting bits from the Wikipedia article:

[It] is not enough to be one’s self in Bohemia, one must allow others to be themselves, as well. What, then, is it that makes this mystical empire of Bohemia unique, and what is the charm of its mental fairyland? It is this: there are no roads in all Bohemia! One must choose and find one’s own path, be one’s own self, live one’s own life.” ~ Burgess, Gelett. “Where is Bohemia?” collected in The Romance of the Commonplace.

[…]

Bohemian is defined in The American College Dictionary as “a person with artistic or intellectual tendencies, who lives and acts with no regard for conventional rules of behavior.”

[…]

In 2001, political and cultural commentator David Brooks contended that much of the cultural ethos of well-to-do middle-class Americans is Bohemian-derived, coining the paradoxical term “Bourgeois Bohemians”.

[…]

By extension, Bohemia meant any place where one could live and work cheaply, and behave unconventionally; a community of free souls beyond the pale of respectable society.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemianism

______________________

SUNDAY, 6 APRIL 2014

Taking into account that there are always facts regarding a matter to which you do not have access, that there are always things about a person, an incident, or a historical event that you do not know, or that you haven’t yet considered in your arguments for or against something, can you ever really take a position?

What should you do? Sit on the fence on every possible issue? Should you think of a standard disclaimer to recite on every occasion (“As usual, I just have to say, I know …”)? Should you be more critical? More cynical?

To learn to control your emotions is a good start.

TUESDAY, 3 JUNE 2014

What would I have done if I were in Winston Churchill’s position during World War II – Winston Churchill, who is regarded by many people as a hero? Would I, for example, have agreed to the bombing of civilian areas in Germany in the latter months of the war, where I would have known thousands of people, including young children, would be burnt to death or where they would die or be maimed in other terrible ways?

I would like to say I wouldn’t have agreed to it. But because I wasn’t in his shoes, I can’t judge.

Then I thought, especially with Winston Churchill in mind: “I cannot judge, but I will refrain from worship.”

______________________

FRIDAY, 23 MAY 2014

Two days ago a 21-year-old student attacked people on the Taipei metro with a fruit knife. He killed four people and wounded another nearly two dozen.

Like any normal person, I was shocked and wondered what inspired the man.

Having thought about it a little, I realised he was a stupid fucking asshole.

I watched several clips about the incident on a local TV channel, and each time I said out loud what I thought of him, I felt better.

It was as if I understood.

Later I read that two Facebook pages had been started to support the killer. At first I couldn’t understand who the hell would create a page for such a low-quality person. One page had already gathered 63 “likes”!

Then I realised: There are other stupid fucking assholes in the world.

The more I thought about it, the better I felt. Not because there are so many stupid fucking assholes that pollute the world, but I no longer wondered what kind of people commit such horrible crimes.

Of course it can happen that a stupid fucking asshole appropriates the title for himself. Does this make him less stupid? No, it just makes him more of a fucking asshole.

———–

Read more about the 2014 Taipei Metro attack.

______________________

THURSDAY, 22 MAY 2014

Sometimes you are missing a piece of the puzzle, or you have a strong suspicion you’re overlooking something. But – you understand enough to take action, to do what you’ve got to do more or less right, even if your success is limited.

In some cases, though, these missing pieces of the puzzle transform in your head into the mythical “magic penny” you hope will drop sooner or later. When this magical knowledge finally also descends on your head, so you believe, every little part of the proverbial machine will fall into place, the machine will spring to life with a clang and a whistle and a few ringing bells, and everything is going to work out exactly as it should.

This persistent belief in Something that will be Wonderful to Know can become an obstacle to success. Instead of going into action, you wait. Or you keep dabbling, but you don’t want to take what you do too seriously. Certainly there must be more to it, you think to yourself. Certainly those already successful who claim to share what they know are holding back the gems, the really important stuff.

Since the end of last year, I have been looking into the possibility of making money by trading prices on the UK horse racing market. I have read everything I could find on the subject, from £37 e-books to forum posts to articles, and I have watched dozens of videos that explain what you should do and how things work. Still, every now and then I catch myself waiting for a magic penny to drop into my lap – one piece of information that will make it abundantly clear why some people are successful and some not.

I might be wrong, but I am getting the distinct impression I am waiting in vain, that there are no more lost pieces of information without which no mere mortal can ever expect to be successful, or deeply hidden secrets only certain successful people know.

I reckon the only penny that has to drop for me is that I have to accept that a good strategy makes more money than it loses, but that it doesn’t make all the money, and that it doesn’t make money every time.

I believe if you can internalise this and apply it to your financial speculations, but also if you apply the principle behind it to other areas of your life, you are ready to play with the big boys or girls. If you can accept this principle, you are no longer a child, because you no longer think like one.

This also highlights an understanding of success: successful people are not successful because they possess all the information or because they know all the tricks. They simply make the best of what they do have, and what they do know and understand. They are successful because they took action while many others are still waiting for that final penny to drop – still waiting for perfect understanding, or for a plan or strategy that will almost guarantee success every time they take a risk.

______________________