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Well I actually made a friend that I was comfortable talking to about more abstract and fascinating things than mundane stuff like school work and whatnot. I usually like to talk about the vast and majestic universe, current affairs, and literature. Granted that I'am not as well versed in all these topics as much as him, I thought that whenever he would reply to me he was simply sharing his knowledge with me. He seemed pretty sincere about all our conversations IRL (school) and online, and is a year older than me.
Yesterday I asked him what I thought about this on Facebook, "The demystification of the present is the precondition of praxis, which is necessarily future-oriented and would be impossible if the future were wholly unknowable.", something that someone wrote on one of my previous blogs. + Show Spoiler +
Then I got this reply today
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Well, that sucks. Don't worry, theres better people out there!
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Ya, that really sucks man, if this is completely out of nowhere, I would just try and make sure all is well with his personal life. Otherwise, I don't know what to say, as time goes on people change.
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Everything is fine with his personal life, but I know that he tends to be very harsh to people he doesn't consider to be 'intellectuals' like him.
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yah, what a dick right there Reminds me when I still felt like speaking to people. 50% acted like they didn't understand what I said and the other 50% were just downright dickish. In the end most contact to other humangs is depressing and boring.
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could it be an april fools joke? I don't think I could write something more pompous than that if I tried.
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No, he always types like that and he sent it today, April 2nd.
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well that sucks. I guess people like him have some intellect and talent (or they think they have) and let it get into their head. At the end of the day, he's the idiot if he cannot be humble and chill about it. Don't let it bother you too much. Think it through, and then forget it and move on, not everyone is like him even if they have similar interest when discussing these matters.
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On April 02 2012 16:47 Azera wrote:Everything is fine with his personal life, but I know that he tends to be very harsh to people he doesn't consider to be 'intellectuals' like him.
if you look closely, the upper lip is playing ping pong with his nose.
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I have tried to type up several different responses to this post in order to ensure that you understand exactly what I am about to tell you. In this endeavor I have given up.
He is not saying that you are not intellectual. That is not what is at stake in his response. What he is saying is that the ways in which you are communicating with him focus on a personal identity of self as "intellectual" as *more important* than actual intellectual development.
Quite frankly, having looked at the quote that you talked about, it is ridiculous. There is nothing about that quote which is clear or succeeds in communicating meaning. It is literally nothing but touch-stones of "hey look I'm smart".
Seek to develop yourself as an intellectual through simple ideas, clear statements, and precise concepts. The mind works, fundamentally, by breaking things up into categories. Thus you should focus on stating things and ideas as precisely possible - in ways that are clear and understood. You think quickly by using assumptions; not everyone accepts your assumptions; thus you must identify, explain, and justify these assumptions.
When someone tells you, "I know what I want to say but I can't think of the words for it," they are wrong. All knowledge exists on top of words and symbols. If you cannot speak with clarity or precision then you do not *know* what you are trying to say. Therefore you are either using the words to fulfill a sense of self and a specific identity, or you simply do not understand what you are saying. It is obviously the former.
Always and only, be humble. --- Edit: I just looked at your signature. Did you take your quote from Joyce by any chance? Not many people your age are familiar with his work. Shit if you're 15 then again I'd say be humble and make your focus communication. The only known condition that facilitates consciousness is a certain count of synapses. The human organism can thus, through interaction, be expanded. Imagine that you, your mind, are just one synapse in a much larger organism of communication, thought, and learning. In some sense we do not use thoughts, thoughts and information use us. Make yourself the servant of this system and I promise you, you will be an intellectual.
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Hong Kong9145 Posts
If it isn't an April Fools joke that he or she is trying to play on you, that post is laden with enough pompous malice combined with pitiful self-defeating elements that it marks this person as probably not being worthy of the kinds of meaningful conversations you are trying to have with others.
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Well from YOUR perspective it seems that the guy really spoke out like a real asshole - it's never a pleasant experience to have someone you respect treat you any worse than you have treated them. It's a piercing feeling really, and your "friend" lacked the empathy and maturity to treat others how he would want to be treated. Like, reading that reply, there is literally 0 constructive criticism or thought to develop yourself from - he's essentially telling you to stfu and that your talks were more or less worthless to him.
Tell him to go fuck himself. Seriously. Friends aren't pompous fuckwads to friends. Neither are colleagues. There IS a respectful and cordial way to tell someone that you don't agree with their ideas, that you have a deeper understanding of a concept than they do (which you should clarify with in your rebuttal), or that you simply don't wish to talk about it. However eloquently he put it, he still showed his hand - he's a grade A asshole.
But again, this is what I derive from YOUR perspective.
EDIT - Precipice's post sums up the other guy's perspective completely.
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On April 02 2012 17:14 Golgotha wrote:Show nested quote +On April 02 2012 16:47 Azera wrote:Everything is fine with his personal life, but I know that he tends to be very harsh to people he doesn't consider to be 'intellectuals' like him. if you look closely, the upper lip is playing ping pong with his nose.
Haha
On April 02 2012 17:15 Precipice wrote: I have tried to type up several different responses to this post in order to ensure that you understand exactly what I am about to tell you. In this endeavor I have given up.
He is not saying that you are not intellectual. That is not what is at stake in his response. What he is saying is that the ways in which you are communicating with him focus on a personal identity of self as "intellectual" as *more important* than actual intellectual development.
Quite frankly, having looked at the quote that you talked about, it is ridiculous. There is nothing about that quote which is clear or succeeds in communicating meaning. It is literally nothing but touch-stones of "hey look I'm smart".
Seek to develop yourself as an intellectual through simple ideas, clear statements, and precise concepts. The mind works, fundamentally, by breaking things up into categories. Thus you should focus on stating things and ideas as precisely possible - in ways that are clear and understood. You think quickly by using assumptions; not everyone accepts your assumptions; thus you must identify, explain, and justify these assumptions.
When someone tells you, "I know what I want to say but I can't think of the words for it," they are wrong. All knowledge exists on top of words and symbols. If you cannot speak with clarity or precision then you do not *know* what you are trying to say. Therefore you are either using the words to fulfill a sense of self and a specific identity, or you simply do not understand what you are saying. It is obviously the former.
Always and only, be humble. --- Edit: I just looked at your signature. Did you take your quote from Joyce by any chance? Not many people your age are familiar with his work. Shit if you're 15 then again I'd say be humble and make your focus communication. The only known condition that facilitates consciousness is a certain count of synapses. The human organism can thus, through interaction, be expanded. Imagine that you, your mind, are just one synapse in a much larger organism of communication, thought, and learning. In some sense we do not use thoughts, thoughts and information use us. Make yourself the servant of this system and I promise you, you will be an intellectual.
I always approach him with a want-to-learn attitude, trying my best to be "humble".
On April 02 2012 17:23 itsjustatank wrote: If it isn't an April Fools joke that he or she is trying to play on you, that post is laden with enough pompous malice combined with pitiful self-defeating elements that it marks this person as probably not being worthy of the kinds of meaningful conversations you are trying to have with others.
What's a self-defeating element?
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On April 02 2012 17:33 SwizzY wrote: Well from YOUR perspective it seems that the guy really spoke out like a real asshole - it's never a pleasant experience to have someone you respect treat you any worse than you have treated them. It's a piercing feeling really, and your "friend" lacked the empathy and maturity to treat others how he would want to be treated. Like, reading that reply, there is literally 0 constructive criticism or thought to develop yourself from - he's essentially telling you to stfu and that your talks were more or less worthless to him.
Tell him to go fuck himself. Seriously. Friends aren't pompous fuckwads to friends. Neither are colleagues. There IS a respectful and cordial way to tell someone that you don't agree with their ideas, that you have a deeper understanding of a concept than they do (which you should clarify with in your rebuttal), or that you simply don't wish to talk about it. However eloquently he put it, he still showed his hand - he's a grade A asshole.
But again, this is what I derive from YOUR perspective.
What is the respectful and cordial way?
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On April 02 2012 17:15 Precipice wrote: I have tried to type up several different responses to this post in order to ensure that you understand exactly what I am about to tell you. In this endeavor I have given up.
He is not saying that you are not intellectual. That is not what is at stake in his response. What he is saying is that the ways in which you are communicating with him focus on a personal identity of self as "intellectual" as *more important* than actual intellectual development.
Quite frankly, having looked at the quote that you talked about, it is ridiculous. There is nothing about that quote which is clear or succeeds in communicating meaning. It is literally nothing but touch-stones of "hey look I'm smart".
Seek to develop yourself as an intellectual through simple ideas, clear statements, and precise concepts. The mind works, fundamentally, by breaking things up into categories. Thus you should focus on stating things and ideas as precisely possible - in ways that are clear and understood. You think quickly by using assumptions; not everyone accepts your assumptions; thus you must identify, explain, and justify these assumptions.
When someone tells you, "I know what I want to say but I can't think of the words for it," they are wrong. All knowledge exists on top of words and symbols. If you cannot speak with clarity or precision then you do not *know* what you are trying to say. Therefore you are either using the words to fulfill a sense of self and a specific identity, or you simply do not understand what you are saying. It is obviously the former.
Always and only, be humble. --- Edit: I just looked at your signature. Did you take your quote from Joyce by any chance? Not many people your age are familiar with his work. Shit if you're 15 then again I'd say be humble and make your focus communication. The only known condition that facilitates consciousness is a certain count of synapses. The human organism can thus, through interaction, be expanded. Imagine that you, your mind, are just one synapse in a much larger organism of communication, thought, and learning. In some sense we do not use thoughts, thoughts and information use us. Make yourself the servant of this system and I promise you, you will be an intellectual.
I have to more or less agree with the intent of this post. Thanks for working on several predecessors, giving up, and still contributing what remained of your thoughts. XD
However I think it's way wrong to assert that possession of knowledge is under sanction of language. With symbols I have no problem because you can come up with a precise and complete meaning in the abstract. I would call this naming an idea. Pi means the ratio of a circle's area to its radius. It's nice to have something solid like this. Dog doesn't mean anything, at least not the same thing to two different people. It's impossible to define rigidly. But we all know what a dog is, at least to us. How can this word be necessary to know what a dog is if it doesn't mean anything really? (Like all words, at some level, in multiple ways.)
Nevertheless it's good adivce: pretentious language can put people off and there's no good reason to risk it if you can say the same thing in simple terms. The most brilliant person can explain complex ideas to anyone using simpler familiar things. You should practice both though: fancy words will serve you admirably if you know how to wield them, and you might as well practice as soon as possible because making mistakes in youth doesn't cost you much. Same goes for speaking plainly. Intertwining the two is another layer of intellectual skill altogether. ;D
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Hong Kong9145 Posts
On April 02 2012 16:47 Azera wrote:Show nested quote +On April 02 2012 17:23 itsjustatank wrote: If it isn't an April Fools joke that he or she is trying to play on you, that post is laden with enough pompous malice combined with pitiful self-defeating elements that it marks this person as probably not being worthy of the kinds of meaningful conversations you are trying to have with others. What's a self-defeating element?
If anything sounds of being 'nincompoopery' and is 'faux[ly]-intellectual,' it's his pompous word choice. Feels like he is the kind of person who writes a deficient paper in Microsoft Word and tries to make up for it by right-clicking in certain places to bring up the thesaurus function in order to pick the longest word provided without regard to actual meaning simply because it sounds smart.
Doing that is, by the way, being 'false[ly] sophisticat[ed].'
Either this person is trying to be funny and failing miserably at it, or they are just pompously vacuous.
Edit: To be clear, this person is a tool.
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To be honest, your "friend" is a tool. He also is probably not as intellectual as you believe him to be(and even to a greater degree how intellectual he believes himself to be).
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he sounds like a tool.
If this guy kid legit he would just responded with "Im done talking about so and so etc"
instead (and I think its pretty clear to everyone who has read his post) he is "trying too hard" to sound like an intellectual superior for the sake of validation from people around him.
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Well, looks like he was spot on.
Besides not-copy-pasting stuff people post on the internet (especially if it's faux intellectualism!), you can read and apply this when having written conversations with people: http://www.amazon.com/Style-Lessons-Clarity-Grace-Edition/dp/0205747469/ .
The demystification of the present (nonsense) is the precondition of praxis, which (ambiguous) is necessarily future-oriented (unsubstantiated claim) and would be impossible if the future were wholly unknowable (double negative, unsubstantiated claim).
This is not something you can discuss, it's nonsense. If you genuinely want to make a point, or steal someone else's point, you present a case and an argument.
1) Define an actor ("We need to" - by using 'need to' you also replace the useless "precondition" with a useful construction). 2) Define what you mean by "demystifying the present". 3) Replace "praxis" with an action that can be performed by the actor, because as it stands, this is meaningless. 4) Resolve the ambiguity. It is rarely a good idea to use "which" after having introduced several nouns. 5) Present arguments ("since...", "because...") for every claim you make. 6) Use affirmatives instead of multiple negatives, otherwise...
"Except when expenses do not exceed $250, the Insured may not refuse to provide the Insurer with receipts, checks or other evidence of costs." (example taken from Style)
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I don't think that he had a kind or tactful response, but I think I identify with what he is trying to say. (Or at least with what I think he is trying to say.)
You said: "I was comfortable talking to about more abstract and fascinating things than mundane stuff like school work and whatnot. I usually like to talk about the vast and majestic universe, current affairs, and literature. "
From this statement I get the feeling that you place value and your idea of wisdom and intelligence around these certain abstract deep ideas, while finding your studies a necessary but intellectually 'lower' thing. While you might be quite sincere in your efforts to explore these topics, if that is indeed your attitude, it can be a very obnoxious one to other people.
One reason this can be obnoxious is because of what Precipice writes about communication. It often appears (to others) that needlessly large words are chosen for the benefit of your own ego, and that similarly, needlessly 'intellectual' topics are also chosen-- purely for egotistical and self-image reasons. This impedes any real learning.
A second reason this can be annoying, is that your attitude can convey to other people that the ideas that they are passionate about and their studies and intellectual work are not valuable to you, or that you consider it 'lesser', and by association that you consider them less intelligent as well.
Finally, I question your attitude towards your friend-- you have put him in a unfortunate position. You expect answers and wisdom from him (apparently very frequently from his statement). Yet if he is at all wise, he will know that he is probably not equipped to give you these answers, and that it is better to find them through self-reflection or equal peer discussion rather than a student-teacher type of relationship. He may feel frustrated by your desire for an answer because he doesn't know the answers.
His response, as I mentioned before, is not kind or tactful. It seems like an explosion of pent up frustration (probably let out by some little thing that tipped the scale). However, if you value him as a friend, you should recognize that everyone has moments like this and attempt to discuss it with him. Before you do this, make sure you consider the points I raised before very honesty. If you have in any way been doing it to pump up your own ego, apologize. If not, let him know that you are very sincere about it, and talked to him because you honestly thought he enjoyed discussing these things with you. Ask him why this is not the case, and listen to what he has to tell you carefully.
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