Broad-minded Revisited

[bobsavegan]

From Merriam-Webster...

Full Definition of BROAD-MINDED


1

: tolerant of varied views


2

: inclined to condone minor departures from conventional behavior

I am of the persuasion that the best way to learn and understand is to be broadminded throughout life.

[bobsavegan]

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

Aristotle

[The Lone Ranger]

And yet, by your own admission you judge things by how they "feel" to you, not by actual evidence, and you reject any opinions (no matter how well-founded) that differ from your own.


That's about as far from being broad-minded as is possible.

[bobsavegan]

Originally Posted by The Lone Ranger

And yet, by your own admission you judge things by how they "feel" to you, not by actual evidence, and you reject any opinions (no matter how well-founded) that differ from your own.


That's about as far from being broad-minded as is possible.

Feeling right to me is the best evidence. I don't automatically and necessarily reject others opinions until I actually try it for myself. I would say I doubt rather than reject.

[bobsavegan]

Whenever I can I try something new and experiment on myself I do.

Personal experience and feeling good about it are the best evidence to me. If I am unable to experiment on myself then I usually reject it or hold it in suspension should the time come when I can try it.

[bobsavegan]

I'm in the midst of a lot of changes.

Saturday I'm moving to another apartment in the same building. It's a smaller 1 bedroom.

Sunday I'm returning to the UU Society for the first time in 7 years. There will be a lot of old friends.

Tuesday I'm returning to the Philosophy Group at the UU Society. I will get a chance to try my philosophy in person.

I'll give them all a lot of time to gradually grow on me. I'll feel good about them.

[bobsavegan]

Originally Posted by bobsavegan

Whenever I can I try something new and experiment on myself I do.

Personal experience and feeling good about it are the best evidence to me. If I am unable to experiment on myself then I usually reject it or hold it in suspension should the time come when I can try it.

Sesame Street: Try, Try Again! Song - YouTube

[bobsavegan]

I agree with Sesame Street.

Whenever I try something new I try and try again before deciding whether to accept or reject it.

[bobsavegan]

Personal experience and feeling good are the two determinants whether something is rejected or accepted.

I called these determinants but maybe a better word would be conditions. They are the main ingredient of my understanding of the Human Condition.

[bobsavegan]

The Human Condition is an Interesting concept.

I first learned about it many years ago when I read a book by that title written by Hannah Arendt.

I no longer remember the details but I still have the general ideas of it.

From what I remember it said that our life as a social animal is a conditional one. There are many different types of relationships that are conditional rather than determined.

[bobsavegan]

con·di·tion·al.

[kənˈdiSH(ə)n(ə)l]

ADJECTIVE

1.subject to one or more conditions or requirements being met; made or granted on certain terms:
"Western aid was only granted conditional on further reform" ·
[more]

synonyms: subject to · dependent on · contingent on · based on ·
[more]

[bobsavegan]

Originally Posted by bobsavegan

con·di·tion·al.

[kənˈdiSH(ə)n(ə)l]

ADJECTIVE

1.subject to one or more conditions or requirements being met; made or granted on certain terms:
"Western aid was only granted conditional on further reform" ·
[more]

synonyms: subject to · dependent on · contingent on · based on ·
[more]

As you will notice from this definition there is a mutual dependence to all conditional relationships.

Years ago when I was reading a lot of books I read this book called "Mutual Aid."

From Wikipedia...

Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution is a book by Peter Kropotkin on the subject of mutual aid, written while he was living in exile in England. It was first published by William Heinemann in London in October 1902. The individual chapters had originally been published in 1890–96 as a series of essays in the British monthly literary magazine, Nineteenth Century.

Written partly in response to social Darwinism and in particular to Thomas H. Huxley's Nineteenth Century essay, "The Struggle for Existence", Kropotkin's book drew on his experiences in scientific expeditions in Siberia to illustrate the phenomenon of cooperation. After examining the evidence of cooperation in nonhuman animals, in pre-feudal societies and medieval cities, and in modern times, he concluded that cooperation and mutual aid are the most important factors in the evolution of species and the ability to survive.