Response Essays - Essay Example

Response Essays All ideas are dangerous All ideas are dangerous as much as all men are dangerous. We may have something to fear from someone who has ill intentions towards us and we may be afraid of something which we do not understand or consider as being different from others like us. In the same way, certain ideas can push people to war, make them kill each other and even hate each other with a passion. Religious extremism is one example where simple ideas which were perhaps created to promote peace and equality are being used to promote war and destruction. Therefore, to say that all ideas are dangerous seems to be akin to saying that everyone is dangerous. While there may be some truth in that since economic competition between members of the same society could lead to everyone considering everyone else as a danger to them, it is also true that some people and some ideas are not only beneficial for society at large, they are also simply required for civilization to exist as we know it. For example, the idea of following the law, accepting others and being kind to strangers can help improve society since they bring a positive change to the way that we live and interact with other. On the other hand, taking what is not rightfully yours, killing others to further your own gains and being negative in life can lead to a situation where society exists merely as a function of existence. In conclusion, I would have to say that all ideas are not dangerous but a few ideas can be very dangerous. Law is mind without reason I agree with the statement since law in and of itself is made for the purpose of application. It is the application of the law which is supposed to have reason and leeway to allow the possibility of daily interaction between humans. In essence, while the letter of the law may give political bodies like the American congress far reaching powers which may be considered necessary and proper; it is the application of these powers which requires a reasoning ability that may not be present with all of us. The laws of the land depend on simple logic and the creation of a system which produces verdicts such as guilty or not guilty. However, logic alone can not form the answer to what we need as human beings and reasoning as well as an understanding of human emotions can help us create a better society. Had we been able to use logic alone and not make emotionally rash decision it is unlikely that we would need laws in the first place but because we do, we need laws that can not only protect us for the majority of the time but also protect others from us in some cases. Therefore it is actually a good thing that the laws that protect us from each other are without reason since that element of reasoning and understanding of the proper application of the law must come from within than from some other outside source. A child cannot be taught by anyone who despises him… In some cultures, especially the Middle Eastern and the Indian cultures, the teacher or the guru is nominally given the same rights and level of respect as one’s parents are given. This is as much as a sign of appreciation for the teacher as it is a sign of love since it is very unlikely that a parent can despise their child so the teachers has to return the same love and affection which is given by the child as per the cultural dictates. Therefore, the statement above is completely true in the context of a relationship between a student and a teacher. If a teacher is discharging his/her duties simply because s/he is paid to do so and can not pour his/her heard and soul into the profession then the teacher can be said to be despising the children since they are serving as little more than means for an income. On the other hand, if a teacher loves the children s/he is working with then the teacher will actually love the students as much as s/he would his/her own children. In this case the primary purpose of education will be fulfilled since the teacher will be able to connect with the children to learn from them and to teach them at the same time. No doubt the secondary purpose of using the profession as a means of income is also completed in this case but since the teacher loves the children as his/her own and the children appreciate the teacher as much as they would appreciate their own parents, education becomes more than a simple function which schools are supposed to perform. It becomes a way for society to evolve and develop into a greater and better entity than it already is. A life unexamined is not worth living. Although it is difficult to agree with the given topic, there is certainly a truth in the matter. Difficult as it may be to accept the fact that of the more than six billion people living on the planet, just a handful will have lives that are examined by themselves or others, we know that the life which is worth living is the one which is examined. Consider the examples of Caesar, Jesus, Michelangelo, Washington and other names which could be listed as the most influential and important human beings ever to walk the earth and we know that their lives have been examined ad nausea. On the other hand, billions today and billions before them have died without as much as a mention much less an examination of their life. We look at the lives lived by our heroes with envy since they performed great deeds and presented us with shining examples that can to be followed since they are the paragons of virtue, excellence, bravery or even scientific and artistic achievement. Perhaps we do this because our lives are lacking something which was present in their lives or perhaps because they have become as important for us as they were hundreds of years ago. In any case, their lives become the guides for what a good life is supposed to be and what an exemplary existence is supposed to look like. Of course, the life of a quiet farmer near the Swiss Alps or a dessert dwelling shepherd in Africa may be filled with idyllic days and peaceful nights with a loving family and a house full of joy. However, in the larger scheme of things such lives seem very ordinary and since they are unexamined, they remain not worth living. Our ability to think is bordered on all sides by our facility with language So what about people who only know sign language? As much as I appreciate the thought and the message carried by the topic, I do not believe that it is the truth. Our ability to think and create beauty from the same thoughts is certainly a function of the language that we have acquired but our ability to think is not limited by language alone. Perhaps our ability of expression may be limited by what language we know and how much of that particular language we have mastery over, but that does not prevent us from thinking at all. Undoubtedly, thoughts are connected to language since we have one or more languages in which we can think in. However, simply considering language as a bounding factor for thought is quite an atrocity since it limits what human beings can think of and think in. For example, a person who does not know Japanese may not be able to truly understand the poetry written by Japanese artists in praise of the cherry blossoms, but the idea itself and the beauty of the words can certainly shine through in translation because ideas are not limited to a language or a thought structure. Had ideas been limited by language, the nations of the would have been unable to experience and share the developments made by each other and not only remain in isolation as far as technological developments are concerned but also in terms of ideological developments. Therefore, it seems that the correct way to use the quote mentioned above would be to change the words ability to think with ability of expression. Anyone who has ever experienced poverty Poverty is certainly an expensive proposition but only for those who choose to remain a part of society and remain connected with the world at large. For those who do not consider poverty to be an issue for them may live quite happily without even questioning or looking at a better way of life. For instance, there are millions of people living around the world on the edge of poverty who may not believe that they are any worse off than their neighbor or any body else in the world for that matter. Essentially, these are a special breed of people who are content with what they have and do not seek out riches beyond their means or beyond what they have. Of course there is also a group of people who live within society as a part of the white collared public that may not be able to call themselves poor but realize how expensive it is to be on the borderline of being poor. These are the people who understand how expensive it can be to be poor since there are times of the year when they do experience poverty. For example, Christmas shopping can certainly be a time when debts may be carried on to credit cards and what needs to be done to handle those debts is certainly a costly procedure. That and other expenditures in the same manner become the cost of poverty for these individuals. The cost of poverty can also be considered in a political sense since the poor and the weak in society often have very little voice when it comes to decisions that are made at the highest echelons of government. All in all, I do believe that the quote is quite correct in suggesting that there is a heavy price to pay for poverty in society. Poverty is the parent of revolution and crime For the most part the statement given above is quite true since poverty of the peasants played a very important role in connection with the revolutions that have taken place in history. We may mention the French Revolution or the Russian Revolution as two examples of a situation where the poverty struck masses decided to over throw their rulers and become masters of their own destiny. However, to consider poverty as a parent of crime may not be true since crime is as often if not more often committed by those who are rich than those who are poor in society. For example, we have the case of companies like Enron and many others who have cheated their shareholders and caused pain and suffering to thousands of individuals. The owners and accountants at Enron were certainly not poor and the billions lost by the country in terms of white collar crime far outweigh the economic costs of the blue collar criminal. In fact, a rich person who ignores the poverty around him/her is as much a criminal as a poor person who decides to take something which does not belong to him/her. In the final analysis, I fee that it is not the nature of the crime or the extent of the crime which depends on poverty but it is the greed within the person which will give birth to crime. Read More