Humanist Thought of the Week

Playing Hookey

Have you ever woken up on a cold day and thought, I don’t want to get out of bed.

I feel that way all the time.

The problem is that I am a parent. 

I can’t play hookey.

I have responsibilities.

My son has to get ready for school, and I have to take him places and make sure he is fed and his homework done.

Sure I’m cold and my bed is nice and warm.

But I’m a mom. And I love being a mom.

So I get out of bed and do my duty.

And I find that being responsible feels a lot like love.

And that’s a good thing.

Charlie Hebdo & Free Speech

As a Humanist I am all for free speech. 

You can say anything you want.

But free speech also means - so can anyone else.

People are not only free to disagree with you – they are free to tell you they think you are an idiot for holding the views you do.

This isn’t to say that free speech doesn’t entail responsibility. It does.

There are consequences to all speech.  And we should all accept those consequences. 

However, the consequences for speech you don’t like should be ... more speech! 

And for the record, death threats and murder are not only not considered speech, they aren’t a very good way to make your views known. 

I hate to talk to people like they are children but... use your words!!!!  

Assumptions

It seems like I talk about this a LOT!

But it is so central to effective problem solving it’s worth repeating.

We all make assumptions.

We can’t help it.

If we didn’t, we would never get anything done.

The question is not that you assume, but whether what you assume has any relationship to reality or not.

Which is why, when you are trying to solve a problem, assume the problem has natural as opposed to supernatural causes. 

Sure, this “natural” assumption could be wrong and your problem could have a supernatural cause. But that’s highly unlikely.

In fact, and I realize my personal experience is entirely anecdotal, but ...

In my entire life, I’ve never had a problem that turned out to be supernatural in origin. 

Crazy, right?

What this means in practical terms is that if I had assumed my problems were religious or spiritual or supernatural in nature, I would have failed to solve my problems.

So.... if you have to assume anything, start by assuming natural causation and don’t waste your time on supernatural BS. 

Coming Down with a Case of the Stupids

It happens to us all.

No one is immune.

You can be the smartest person in the world and still act and think like an idiot at times.

I blame it on the brain.

It’s a big mass of ooey gooey stuff that is susceptible to chemicals ingested in the form of food, drinks and yes, drugs. 

Certain chemicals make us drowsy. Others make us antsy.

Some make us stupid.

So the next time you are acting all “holier than thou” because someone you don’t like was acting stupid, remember.  

There but for fortune, or the wrong bit of food go you or I and ... have a little compassion. 

Evolved Thinking

An interesting ad popped up in my Facebook feed the other day.

It said – “Are you interested in the evolution of your own spiritual level?” 

First – no idea what a spiritual level is.

However, if you were to ask, “Am I interested in evolving the way I think?” The answer is yes.  

I’m all for evolved thinking. 

My thinking has evolved over the course of my life. 

I have achieved what little level of evolved thinking I have through the guided evolution of intentional learning. 

It has made me a better, more compassionate and effective person. 

If you are interested in a little guided evolution in your thinking, check out the courses at Humanist Learning Systems https://humanistlearning.com