Feb 02

An Antidote to Sickness and Darkness?

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings, Republic of Bloggers 2 comments tags: Components of Human Nature, Human Condition, Human History, Human Misery, Political Opinion, Virtuous Discourse
An open letter to Chris Bateman responding to his blog-letter The New Sickness Unto Death at Only A Game as part of the Republic of Bloggers. Feel welcome to provide your own input via the Comments. Dear Chris, Thank you for engaging me in this poignant discussion about the COVID-19 crisis the world is facing. In addition, thank you for engaging in a private email discussion concerning the dark tone of your post. That was a highly meaningful exchange. I don’t intend to change your mind about the harms committed in reaction to COVID-19, but I will challenge you on some of your specific terminology. I do so to better inform my understanding about your position and to ask you to clarify where I see contradictions in your position. I think we share a common horror that reaction to COVID-19 has done as much damage as the virus itself but would differ about what where our interventions should lie. Now on to parts of your letter: — > Every expectation has now been upended by this monomaniacal fear of an infection that is certainly serious enough to warrant action, yet nowhere near dangerous enough to warrant abandoning democracy. … Are […]
Nov 15

Modern Philosophy and Its Loss of Wisdom

by Chris Billows in Republic of Bloggers 0 comments tags: Blogging, Components of Human Nature, Contrarian, Human Condition, Human Misery, Self Analysis, Virtuous Discourse
Some Background This blog-post is an indirect response to a blog-letter discourse that Chris Bateman and myself recently concluded that was about knowledge and how we know that we know. You can read it if you are so inclined at https://onlyagame.typepad.com/only_a_game/2015/09/knowing-that-we-know.html In reading Chris’ response, I was struck by the examples he used, particularly how he refers to John Haidt’s bias against philosophy. This got me thinking… I too have a bias against philosophy. It is apparent that Chris Bateman and I have different approaches about this question of knowledge. His focus on knowledge is cognitively and philosophically (epistemology) based, mine was emotional. This difference is likely from divergent backgrounds: Chris is a game designer, author, philosopher, and professor, while I am a social worker, ex-politcal party activist, and a wanna-be game designer. It was my game design interest that led me to Chris Bateman’s blog, where he taught me the value and practice of Virtuous Discourse. Enough background; the intrigue for me and the focus of this post is about my bias against philosophy. The Folly of Modern Philosophy As a part of my university coursework, I took Introduction to Philosophy which I enjoyed and did well in, but […]

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Aug 29

A Letter to Samsara

by Chris Billows in Spirit Speculations 0 comments tags: Fictional Letter, Human Misery, Personal Resolve, Self Analysis, Stages of Realization
Dear Samsara, I am writing to let you know that I have finally figured out how bad you are for me and that its time to break this thing off. You kept telling me that the pain of our relationship would get easier with time, that I would learn to live with the pain and come to accept it. I now don’t think so. I remember as a young child how my parents took care of me, yet you took the credit for all of the good things that happened. And when the bad things happened, you told me to just wait until the next good thing comes along. I believed you that life is full of ups and downs and you just had to hold on. As an older child I remember experiencing terror, tragedy, and self-loathing, and yet you were nowhere to be seen. You were never there to help me. Yet, I survived. And it was this survival that created this distinct self-sculpture. My scars became signs of battles survived and never won. As a young adult, I began exploring the limitless pleasures you offered. You provided entertainment, dining and drink. Yet these experiences always had a […]

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Aug 18

The Bankruptcy of Detroit (Motor City is Burning)

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Economic Disaster, Human Misery
How do democratically elected political leaders, their well paid bureaucrats, and astute citizens allow for the largest ever bankruptcy of a U.S. city? On July 18, 2013 Detroit declared what was already understood that they did not have enough money to pay for their commitments and obligations. The Mayor and the city Council knew that Detroit was losing jobs and people. But did they do anything to change how they operated the city? The people that the Mayor hired had to know that Detroit’s tax base had eroded over decades and that it was not going to be possible to continue spending money as they were. The people who did not leave Detroit, did not hold the government accountable to find a solution. The bondholders and business elite stood aside and did not demand that changes take place. This is the most startling example of a clusterf*ck. Detroit has been on a decline for decades. They did not lose half of their population (1.5 million to 700 hundred thousand) in the span of a few years according to The Economist. This is what has happened in Europe with is Euro crisis, with nation states not recognizing the limits of their […]

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Aug 03

Business Failures due to Slack Partners

by Chris Billows in Business Beller 1 comments tags: Human Misery, Personal Resolve
This post is a cathartic release. What I love about blogging is that it can become a way to share and put to rest one’s experiences. This post is my way to summarizing what three years of doing business online has taught me. Essentially there are two things needed for business success: 1) a product that sells (scratching an itch, fixing a problem, providing a solution that people want); and 2) find the right business partners to help you deliver the product. Finding a product that sells is a challenge but is definitely the sexier topic and there are thousands of services out there to help you find a product to sell. It is the second point about needing to find the proper business partner has crystallized for me just recently and is not discussed very much. It is because as a topic it is full of disappointment and unhappiness. Nobody can do everything by his or her self. You need to find and work with others who help you with technology, accounting, marketing, etc. You can engage these people by purchasing their services or by entering into a formal business partnership. Regardless of how it is done, finding the […]
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