Seneca

September 16th, 2014

Seneca was a Roman philosopher who believed that, “True happiness is… to enjoy the present without anxious dependence upon the future.” He thought that frustration was usual a cause of “the collision of a wish with an unyielding reality” (p.80, Consolation of Philosophy) Seneca though that rather than wallowing your emotions, people should think about the situation that caused their pain and whist they could do about it. He did not believe that oneself should suppress their emotions but take control over them. 

Seneca believed that people must take advantage of everyday and act as though it's your last. There is no sense in being caught in frustration because you’ll miss out on more important things in life. In order to “endure frustrations” people must prepare themselves by being realistic and understanding all aspects of a situation. People must know that people cannot control reality or change other people, so instead they must work on themselves. People should not get caught up in worrying about something that has not happened or may not happen but should be practical when it comes to the future. 

To be happy, you must focus on the present and be grateful for the moment. By taking advantage of life and living in the moment you allow yourself to be reasonable and balanced with issues you may face.I agree with Seneca, in that people must be realistic about life and their expectations or else they will set themselves up for disappointment. If people allow themselves to be grateful for being alive, healthy and happy today but know that that might not stay the same in the future, they open themselves up to life and everything it offers.  

Is ti possible to be Jewish with out believing in God?

Is it possible to be Jewish with out believing in worship of a superhuman controlling power especially God?

Some people think you can consider yourself Jewish by following the traditions and culture of the religion with out believing in God. But also some people believe than religion with out god is like humanity with out life. 

As an example of someone who considers her self religious with out believing in god, Rebeca Goldstein has strong emotional ties to Judaism; she is moved by Jewish history and she identifies herself with the ethics of its civilization. Although she doesn't believe in any supernatural premises. She recognizes she is informed by Jewish values. 

On the other hand, Jews who believe there is a god think that there can be good Jews who are good people with out believing in God, but ultimately, religion cannot continue to exist with out a belief in God, because almost every religions depends on it. For an example, Jue Liberman, believes that Judaism with out God, will not remain Judaism, and will ultimately vanish. 

These two different opinions are very controversial, so is it possible to be religious with out believing in god? 

Honesty

Honesty is the best policy.

Is it?

We've all heard this saying before, but is it really something to live by? The Webster dictionary defines honesty as free of deceit and untruthfulness. This seems to be a negative definition. What I mean by this is that this statement defines honesty as being "free" of something, instead of what it actually is. I asked a random group of people, friends and strangers alike, what they believed honesty meant, which yielded varied responses. 

"Telling the truth."

"Being loyal to someone."

"Keeping your promises."

"Not betraying someone's trust."

"Being yourself."

"Revealing what you perceive to be the truth."

"Really saying how you feel and not holding back even if there are consequences."

Most people view honesty as a good value to have. In our society, being truthful and loyal is seen as being a good person. However, Socrates comes to mind in regards to viewing the other side . This Stoic is known for always questioning society's norms and finding the flaw in the status quo. Socrates would argue that while honesty can be a great trait in a person, it can also be a very hurtful and negative quality that one exhibits. A lot of people use honesty as an excuse to be cruel. For example, a friend tells you that you look like a giraffe because you have an unusually long neck. Though this may be honest, it is also unnecessary to share because it is mean; this is brutal honesty. People abuse the honor of honesty quite often, and it's always sad to see. But now we see that honesty can both be a good trait and a not so good one.

Abortion: Who Decides?

The problem with abortion is not abortion. The problem is that most women aren't given the chance to choose for themselves the fate of their unborn baby and the fate of their own life, their own body. So who decides whether a woman has the right to have an abortion?
 

Unfortunately, it seems as though most men feel the need to control the lives of women and pass laws that prevent them from having any choice at all. So I guess the underlying question is, why do a lot of men feel the need to have complete control like this?

Maybe it comes from a history of always having the upper hand, the louder voice, the 'I know what's better for all' state of mind. Maybe it comes from pride? Possibly that they're afraid? Insecure? Weak? Some might even say they're "control freaks". Maybe it's a cycle that they can't seem to get out of. Maybe their fathers and their father's father beat it into them that they must stand tall and make the decisions of the house, that they must be the dominant figure.

My question is, is there really any valid reason? No matter who thinks they're right, or just, or have the "word of God on their side", is it up to someone else to decide another persons life?

I believe that as long as women and men constantly compete over who controls who, no one will be happy, healthy, or successful. I'd like to believe that one day men and women are seen as equals, not one dominating the other, but a world where men can decide what's best for themselves, and women can decide what's best for themselves, and parents can decide together what's best for their children and their own future. 

Nature

Is man losing touch with nature? Today, most people don’t spend enough time outdoors. I think back to a time when the outdoors was all man had, and wonder how we could have let ourselves stray so far from it. Even though nature is all around us, we don’t appreciate that nature should be our best friend. I worry that with each individual who does not spend time in nature will miss out on the physical and spiritual benefits it has to offer. For me, being in nature provides the most serene peace of mind, and my body feels strong, as if in it’s natural habitat. It saddens me knowing that there are many people in the world who will never understand that connection to nature. My frustrations with these people lead me to wonder, will people someday view being outside in a city as equal to being in “nature”?

Even though man may not spend as much time outside, we are spending our days on the same land, in the same world as always. Just because there are buildings and roads everywhere, does not mean that we don’t appreciate nature; It is our new nature to have these things. Who’s to say that a city is not a jungle of its own? Many productive animals in nature build colonies, isn’t that what humans are doing (just on a larger and more harmful scale)? With this change in human’s connection with nature, I fear that we will someday feel the same freedom when we stand in the middle of a city street and take in a smoggy breath of air as when we once stood on a mountaintop and breathed with the trees for the same effect.

Can Chivalry Go Both Ways?

     Medieval chivalry is best defined as an aristocratic ethos that prescribed what qualities and attributes a knight ought to possess. Medieval chivalry has influenced modern and romantic conceptions of honor, especially military honor. Modern chivalry now is defined as men opening the door for women, holding the umbrella, paying for dinner and things like that. But can females be chivalrous too? Men should open the door for women and pay for dinner but it should go both ways and women should be able to open the door for men, pay for dinner, and pick men up from their houses sometimes too. I know a lot of people are uncomfortable with women taking on roles of men but times are changing. Women are not only more likely to be the primary caregivers in a family but they are also increasingly the primary breadwinners. 4 in 10 households in America with children under 18 have women as the sole or primary breadwinners. So with that being said I think if a women can take on the primary job of a man (to make the most money) then she can also be chivalrous too. I’m not saying that women should be treated as guys. We should still be respected as ladies. But is it possible to be respected as a lady and still share equal roles with men without looking manly or bossy? Or vice versa? 

AP classes for good college?

Questioning AP classes

                               

                       

Are AP classes really needed to get into a good college? We are going to take these classes anyways in college so why do we as high schoolers feel pressured to take them still? People rarely even take them because they want to, they do it so they can put another great achievement on their college applications. It more about the image rather than wanting to become a master in that topic. Truthfully, I don’t know if colleges will want to accept someone if they haven’t taken AP’s  but since everyone seems to be taking AP classes, it seems as if we have to take them to prove we are smarter than other people or to show off. It seems only smart people take them, especially in a school like San Domenico everyone has taken at least one AP, but I feel people who haven’t take one can be just as smart just in a different way. I myself have never taken one and have no interest to; most of the teachers I've talked to say they didn’t take any when they went to school, same goes for my parents. It a very new-age thing to do it seems; everyone’s standards are raising up making school and learning less of an interesting environment and more of a place that provokes stress, pressure and for some, anxiety. When people don’t take AP or honors classes they feel like they're not special and that they wont be able to accomplish anything in life, that they wont get into a ‘good’ college. It’s the  stress cycle of high school but like I said, I feel people don’t need AP’s to be smart, other kinds of people are just smart in different ways that society isn’t prepared for yet, like having a creative mind rather than being able to get high scores on a standardized test or all A’s in every class.  Some people who are more book-smart seem to lack having street-smarts or common sense. Its just the way we were born.