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False Dichotomy

There are a lot of things presented as dichotomies I find to be false. Thinking and feeling is one of them. Most of us, most of the time, are responding from simple habit and justifying it after the fact as coming from the heart or rationalizing it as only making sense.

Some people lament too little acting from the heart, or too little exercise of rationality as the cause the world’s problems. But we don’t need more or less thinking or feeling. What we need is more authentic experience, more actual choices being made, rather than habits continued.

Which isn’t to suggest that habits are bad in the general case — good habits spare a lot of wasted effort. The question is whether the habit actually helps you to achieve the things you want. And if you haven’t examined either your habits or what you want, odds are it doesn’t. But that’s a topic for a different, longer essay.

Comments

So presumably we ought to be teaching people how to understand themselves. To recognise, and hopefully rise above the habit and instinct in their motivations. Sounds about right actually.

Why Zed, I do believe you've been channeling the spirit of Socrates!

Why, yes, surely no man of reason could dispute that!

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