The Random Comic Strip

The Random Comic Strip

Words to live by...

"How beautiful it is to do nothing, and to rest afterward."

[Spanish Proverb]

Ius luxuriae publice datum est

(The right to looseness has been officially given)

"Everyone carries a part of society on his shoulders," wrote Ludwig von Mises, "no one is relieved of his share of responsibility by others. And no one can find a safe way for himself if society is sweeping towards destruction. Therefore everyone, in his own interest, must thrust himself vigorously into the intellectual battle."

Apparently, the crossword puzzle that disappeared from the blog, came back.


Thursday, September 17, 2009

The Human Puzzle















How did the cute little kid on the left become the grouchy old guy on the right?

Ever wonder how you came to be who you are? I mean, the kind of personality you have, the way you view the world around you, how you treat your friends (and enemies), and so on?

There are numerous studies and the issue has been heavily researched. The fight is always over Nature vs Nurture. The truth, and I think the research bears this out, is that it is a combination of the two. Therefore, the fight has been over which dominates the equation.

That, too, is silly. Neither dominates, neither is subordinate. It's a fluid equation. Take the simple math problem:

A+B=C

If we say C is anything other than 0 then whether A is greater than B is up for grabs. The same, I think, applies to the Nature vs Nurture issue. We may know what "C" is (who we are) but the value of "A" (Nature) and "B" (Nurture) remain unknown. Trying to determine those values is how psychiatrists and psychologists get rich.

And that is simply a blame game, anyway. Knowing which was more of a factor doesn't change anything about you. Besides, I think the influence of each varies throughout one's life.

Trust me. I have spent a good portion of my life trying to fix the blame for who I am on some one or some thing.

The problem is made even more complex when you consider that we eventually become self sufficient enough to influence our own end result. Now, that is truly a radical variable.

In the end, I suspect, we can only blame ourselves..

3 comments:

Michael Horvath said...

I prefer "accept responsibility for" rather than blame when talking about the things i don't like about myself. I can also be proud of the things that me, myself and I changed that made me the good person I am today.

The Jules said...

I blame my parents.

They nurtured my nature.

Douglas said...

MPH, we are not doomed to be anything when we are born. We may be set on a bad path, we may choose a bad path, but we always have the ability to change course. "responsibility", "blame","influence", are all secondary to "choice."

Jules, LOL! Thanks, I needed that.