Napoleon Hill - Think And Grow Rich - ORIGINAL Full Length

Cosmological Argument Video William Craig vs. Peter Atkins Part II

Cosmological Argument Video William Craig vs. Peter Atkins

Self Analysis Test Questions: Understanding "Me"

On the Cosmos

Today we discussed the question of God's existence.  Is there an uncaused cause?  If all things in our known universe are caused, is there such a thing that had not been?

If there is an uncaused cause, an almighty force that began everything but was not begun, is this great Source of power intelligent?

If the source is intelligent, is it necessarily a being with personality--  with morals and Goodness?  Or is the great, intelligent source an evil thing?

And if the source is an evil thing, how could an evil God create as much Goodness as there appears to be in the world?  For as much evil as there is, there is certainly Goodness-- and if there is Goodness, how  could an evil creator produce such?  

The same question stands: how could an all Good God produce evil?

Or is this an arbitrary God?  

Benjamin Franklin's 13 Virtues

Franklin's 13 Virtues

1. Temperance-  Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.

2.  Silence-  Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling converation.

3.  Order -  Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.

4.  Resolution-  Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.

5.  Frugality  -  Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing

6.  Industry  -  Lose no time; be always employed in something useful;  cut off all unnecessary actions.

7.  Sincerity -  Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly; and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

8.  Justice -  Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.

9.  Moderation -  Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.

10.  Cleanlilness -  Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.

11.  Tranquility  -  Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.

12.  Chastity  -  Rarely use venery (sex) but for health or offspring, never to dullness (or excess), never to

                           the point of weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.

13.  Humility  -  Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

Napoleon Hill's 17 Principles of Personal Achievement

Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.

Lesson 1: Definiteness of Purpose
Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement. Without a purpose and a plan, people drift aimlessly through life.
Lesson 2: Mastermind Alliance
The Mastermind principle consists of an alliance of two or more minds working in perfect harmony for the attainment of a common definite objective. Success does not come without the cooperation of others.
Lesson 3: Applied Faith
Faith is a state of mind through which your aims, desires, plans and purposes may be translated into their physical or financial equivalent.
Lesson 4: Going the Extra Mile
Going the extra mile is the action of rendering more and better service than that for which you are presently paid. When you go the extra mile, the Law of Compensation comes into play.
Lesson 5: Pleasing Personality
Personality is the sum total of one’s mental, spiritual and physical traits and habits that distinguish one from all others. It is the factor that determines whether one is liked or disliked by others.
Lesson 6: Personal Initiative
Personal initiative is the power that inspires the completion of that which one begins. It is the power that starts all action. No person is free until he learns to do his own thinking and gains the courage to act on his own.
Lesson 7: Positive Mental Attitude
Positive mental attitude is the right mental attitude in all circumstances. Success attracts more success while failure attracts more failure.
Lesson 8: Enthusiasm
Enthusiasm is faith in action. It is the intense emotion known as burning desire. It comes from within, although it radiates outwardly in the expression of one’s voice and countenance.
Lesson 9: Self-Discipline
Self-discipline begins with the mastery of thought. If you do not control your thoughts, you cannot control your needs. Self-discipline calls for a balancing of the emotions of your heart with the reasoning faculty of your head.
Lesson 10: Accurate Thinking
The power of thought is the most dangerous or the most beneficial power available to man, depending on how it is used.
Lesson 11: Controlled Attention
Controlled attention leads to mastery in any type of human endeavor, because it enables one to focus the powers of his mind upon the attainment of a definite objective and to keep it so directed at will.
Lesson 12: Teamwork
Teamwork is harmonious cooperation that is willing, voluntary and free. Whenever the spirit of teamwork is the dominating influence in business or industry, success is inevitable. Harmonious cooperation is a priceless asset that you can acquire in proportion to your giving.
Lesson 13: Adversity & Defeat
Individual success usually is in exact proportion of the scope of the defeat the individual has experienced and mastered. Many so-called failures represent only a temporary defeat that may prove to be a blessing in disguise.
Lesson 14: Creative Vision
Creative vision is developed by the free and fearless use of one’s imagination. It is not a miraculous quality with which one is gifted or is not gifted at birth.
Lesson 15: Health
Sound health begins with a sound health consciousness, just as financial success begins with a prosperity consciousness.
Lesson 16: Budgeting Time & Money
Time and money are precious resources, and few people striving for success ever believe they possess either one in excess.
Lesson 17: Habits
Developing and establishing positive habits leads to peace of mind, health and financial security. You are where you are because of your established habits and thoughts and deeds.

Response to Animation Ari & The Web Comic

Animation Ari posted: 

animationAriAugust 30, 2013 at 3:02 PM

http://www.omo-cat.com/post/59713785775

I just thought this was really thought provoking. I really like the idea of the "truths" we know just being opinions because it seems so far-fetched but its not when you really think about it.

This is a response to the comic which is linked above.  Read it.  It is well done.  Only, that does not mean that the considerations written are well founded.  If you think about it, those considerations are really a modern version of Descartes' meditations which we are reading right now!!!

I can't wait until we finish sifting through Descartes and Locke and the other philosophers! Then we can see how they choose to answer those questions. 

What I have to say:

In regards to the question-based argument the author has presented, there are certain premises which have been PRESUPPOSED to be true. These presuppositions, or assumed truths, are made about the nature of opinion and truth. For example, the presupposition that "All statements of Truth are an opinion--" This is literally a paradox, and a logical fallacy.  The Author of the comic takes the following as Truth, that the only Truth we can know is that "All Truths are opinions, including this Truth, which is an opinion..." The previous statement has removed the argument from the realm of Reason and become grounded in pure Skepticism.  Here is another example of a paradox, for which there is no reasonable Truth value that can be assigned to it, as the statement is a paradox.   

"This statement is a lie."    If the statement is a lie, it immediately becomes true.  But if the statement is true, via our definition of a "lie", the statement becomes false.  As such, the statement is a paradox.  It would be unreasonable for us to utilize a statement such as this to build any system of belief, as a system of belief, or argument, depends on reason to convey any truth.  For the most part, anyway. The modern skeptic generally doesn't care.

The Skeptic is trapped.  There is no escape for that individual to pursue truth.

In my opinion, pure Skepticism leaves the believer founded in pure unbelief about anything and castrates that mind from ever becoming privy to any kind of truth-- This is not a value judgement about another human being.  I just mean that literally, a Skeptical point of view has no place to go in terms of reason and Truth.  In my experience,  however, individuals who claim to be Skeptics are often very opinionated and seem to make compelling arguments about all sorts of Truths they Believe in–– despite that their foundational premises are based in wisps of air. These are no longer grounded in Reason. After all, the individual has clearly stated in their belief system that Reason doesn't really matter anyway. 

Now the Skeptic might say:   That's just your opinion.    

I say:   Ok, I love you.  Whatever.

What is a monkey's Fist?

I dare you to attempt to figure out what a Monkey's Fist is.  Why is that the name of the blog?   Give it your bestest guess!

An "A" for whoever does a good job expressing their idea!

!

Open Discussion

Post what you like.  It's an open floor here!

Discussion Topic: Dream-building

Did you know that identifying your dreams is a fundamental step in the process of forming a good self image? Your identity is not only formed by  all the experiences that you have endured, but also your identity is determined by the direction you are headed.

The only way to discover the road to where you're going is to have a destination in mind. If you have nowhere in mind, you will get there every time!

Post your dreams and ambitions in the comments.  Practice dream-building. No dream is too big!  

Welcome

Welcome students!

It's a new year and here we are back at CP.   Here we are, together again!  Friends, faculty, new principals... etc...    And if you're reading this, it means you have what it takes to do excellent in my class and to persevere in life.   Why?  Because you took initiative.

Really, the tools for success in life are never far off.  But this year they are especially at your fingertips. Allow me to explain:


Throughout the year we are going to be very aggressively DECONSTRUCTING concepts like "normal," "respect," "education," "love," etc.   and understanding their  DIFFÉRANCE (not misspelled, I promise!)

We have in our hands a great opportunity to start anew.
My question for you ladies and gentlemen, is the following:

 "What are you going to make of this opportunity to start fresh?"  A new year is always fun at the start because of its possibilities, no?  It's always great to think of a blank page as everything it can become!   And I'm sure it's a perk to finally get out of our lazy streak and actually start doing something.  I'm sure many of you have suffered or are suffering from  the "I've-been-doing- nothing- for- so- long- I -might- as- well- do -something  syndrome."

Here's some food for thought:

For some of you the actual possibility of learning something new is EXCITING!
For some of you the possibility of learning something new was killed a million years ago somewhere in middle school where the teacher murdered your hopes and dreams for the future --or maybe your parents--  when they finally told you that the whole point of school is so you can GO TO A GOOD COLLEGE...  so that you can ... GET A JOB...

Well,  don't get me wrong.  Work is great if you love what you do.  If you have a mission–– a purpose.  I love what I do. Will you love what you do?

How many people spend life wondering if a job is all that there is to life?   Is it all about getting good grades so you can get a job so that you can retire when you're seventy-five years old and hunchback?

I'll let you guys know up front that my personal goals for you this year are the following:

I want YOU to be inspired that there's more to life than what you expect from it right now.
I want YOU to  dream big and be hungry for becoming a better person in all that you do.
I want YOU to realize that there's nothing stopping you from becoming who you want to become.

And then I want to give you some of the tools that I've learned along the way which will help you to get there.

So for  this first discussion.   Post in the comments your thoughts about your first day of class! Especially if you have any thoughts about where you want YOUR personal education to go. I don't care about people at large or where education "in general" should go.  I want you to make the question personal and to comment on what YOU want to learn and what YOU want out of life and this class.

All right gang!   Here we go!   Cheers!