Response to "The Art of War."

In Josh's blog he asked the question, "Why should we prepare for war in peace and prepare for peace in times of war?"

I think what Sun Tzu meant by this is that people should be prepared for anything. We have to remember that this was written in a time of constant struggle for power and territory. If a country was not prepared for anything and everything to happen they could be easily defeated. I think it's important for us to prepare for peace in times of war because we often put aside our ability for compassion and unity in times of war. We have to, or we'd never be able to fight anyone. If there is any hope for a resolution in war we have to make gradual steps toward peace. We should prepare for war in peace if for no other reason than to protect ourselves from the inevitable. Wars happen, we might as well be ready. A person who believes that we can reach true peace would disagree with Sun Tzu saying that we must be preparing for war in peace. Is there really a need to be continually preparing for war in a world in which we no longer continually struggle (at least not violently) for territory or hegemony? Most people would probably agree that a country must be able to defend itself, but some would say that the country should not be continually readying itself for war.

My question is: do you think there will ever be a world in which war does not exist?

Response to "Rambling"

This blog is in response to Jillian's question: Its difficult sometimes for me to truly grasp the infinitude of time and space. When thinking about space, I always raise the question, "well, whats beyond that?" My question for you is, How do you deal with or comprehend the infinitude of both time and space? Do you ever think about it?

I think more about time being infinite than I do about space being infinite. I suppose that's because I know that space is probably infinite and doesn't really effect me personally, but I know that my time is not infinite. I find it equally difficult to think of being "alive" or lasting forever and not lasting forever. I think it's extremely different for humans to think of a time when we will no longer exist. It's hard enough to picture our lives in fifty years, let alone forever. I happen to believe that there is something beyond this life, but it seems like there must even be something beyond that. In a life in which everything ends and is constantly changing, it seems impossible to grasp the idea of forever. Trying to imagine things not going on forever seems strange too. Imagining not imagining is almost impossible.

For those of you who don't believe in a afterlife, how do you comprehend the infinitude of time?

Exceptions

When I wrote my Q&A on my view of human nature I wrote about how I view people as being inherently selfish beings who only seek to do good if it is beneficial to them or makes them feel good about themselves in some way. The same day that I wrote the Q&A I was in the shower when I heard someone getting violently sick in one of the stalls next to me (it was the middle of the day, so I highly doubt that the girl was drunk.) I should tell you here that I have a pretty extreme fear of getting sick and usually avoid sick people at all costs. However, at that moment I seriously considered getting out of the shower and going to help the girl. Why would I do this? There would have been no reward for me to help her. In fact, I probably would have gotten sick. For whatever reason, I found myself feeling strongly that I should help the girl out. I should also mention that I don't exactly care for most of the girls on my floor. I think what Professor Johnson said in class now holds some weight for me: people just have some natural inclination to help each other out.

Have you ever wanted to help someone even if the consequences could be negative for you?