"Operations of thought are like cavalry charges in a battle-- they are strictly limited in number, they require fresh horses, and must only be made at decisive moments"
-- Alfred North Whitehead, English Mathematician/Philosopher
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Woe to he who be in the liberal arts!
These are "tough times" for the sad-eyed Kurt Vonnegut types in the world, those who were born to be a pestilent, aching, protesting pile of worm-eaten shit to be kicked aside by a walking pair of cowboy boots laying claim to the town.
To have such romantic, intuitive, wistful passion that scarcely carries any currency. . . . . much less a counter where to cash in this pain for even a sliver of recognition. Such a worthless "crucifixion" for all those who truck in miserable right-brained pursuits and can't, or won't, condition themselves to work with math or science or economics or law or anything very rigorous. At its most practical, left-brain thinking deals with facts. . . . . and it is might and force that govern our universe. There are laws that rule the forest, beyond the beauty of the forest, and one necessarily requires a clear "working survivor's knowledge" before you can luxuriate in the other like a long-stockinged poet.
I can't tell you how many dim bulbs I saw who figured that someday they would "teach history or something". You didn't quite have the heart to tell them that everybody wants that easy job and the competition is ruthless. . . . . what do you bring to the table? I've seen willowy, pale women utter their conviction that "teaching English literature was their passion", even though most kids couldn't give a fuck about Emily Brontė or these other drawn, withered authoresses going on in sexual frustration about whatever. With so much abundance in our society, people have "the space" to think their dreams will somehow come true with the magical thinking of "light, easy brush-strokes" instead of dealing with hard particulars.
Left-brained thinking is an attitude, a way of life. It
is the code of business, medicine, and engineering. More often than not,
successful people are able to harness both the left and right sides of their
brain to become the most effective beast possible-- like tanks rolling over
daffodils. Dealing with logic, being willing to be proven wrong as you work your
way through "Calculus for Dummies" takes far more courage than floating
off in the ether of pain, and definitely requires more rigor and discipline
which at times can feel like the most exhausting of heavy manual labor when you
are "hitting the books".
But it's about "motivation", being willing to sculpt your brain tissue like a professional bodybuilder trying to gain the adaptive advantage over the rest. If you have a curiosity and a fascination for a particular topic, then you can do almost anything with enough practice and will. In school, because you're being marched somewhat against your will, resistance will mount and one will feel the existential absurdity of duty vs. slack. Part of the reason I ultimately left was because no one could really offer me a compelling reason to stay, beyond the hoary old argument
"that your life will go nowhere".If your life was already "nowhere", then how is that going to faze you?
Give a kid some incentive-- some REAL INCENTIVE to care, then he will rise far above the bullshit of collectivist education. . . . . trudging along at the class's degraded pace and all but begging for death. Oblivion or glory? Slavery or triumph? And that is the currency I deal in.
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"You want a-nuther song? Well I ain't plain' one mutherfuckin' note until someone comes up here and puts sum money in my god-damned tip-jar! You know I only came here for one purpose. . . . . to take yor fuckin' cash! Why, I could make more profit puttin' out my meth-head neighbor's asshole and ringin' a bell, hollerin' 'Man for sale! Man for sale!'
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(Rheeee of Crickets)
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("I heard that, Missy!")
© 2008 by Insufferable Industries
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