Category: 🌎 World

Nature versus Nurture? Both.
Selfish versus Helpful? Both.
Men versus Women? Both.
Black versus White? Both.

Freewill versus Determined? Both.
Independence versus Community? Both.
Acceptance versus Improvement? Both.
Forgiveness versus Disapproval? Both.

Belief versus Action? Both.
Individual versus Collective? Both.
Rational versus Emotional? Both.
Strength versus Vulnerable? Both.

Habits versus Goals? Growth.
Similar versus Different? Diversity.
Working versus Relaxing? Balance.
Personal versus Social? Harmony.

June 8, 2022

Are you an angel?
I don't know.
Maybe you could be.
Maybe we all are.

April 28, 2022

I wonder if society would be better if everyone was encouraged to create an official and separate public name to be known by for their work as opposed to their life, with completely different profiles and names online for each role.

What

Separation of life and work by name. Offer and encourage the creation of an official government work name of a person's choice, likely allowed anytime after a person turns 18, or legal adult age. This name would be a work, craft, professional, and business name, separate from a person's life, social, family, and personal name they were given by their parents at birth.

Why

To encourage balance in all of our lives and to provide better online discussions and focus of work and interest groups, through natural categorization and separation of topics. A person could focus on their work or crafts only under their work name and profile, and could discuss personal events and social issues under their life name and profile. You could think of it as separation of life and work, as opposed to separation of church and state.

I think this could also allow people to have a personal identity and role in life that is not linked to their profession, by keeping their original given name as their life name. It may allow everyone to see other individuals in the world as a human being first, having their own worth and value in life regardless of their specific profession, level of wealth, or employment status.

Also, I do not mean that this would be mandated as a rule of law, whereby you could not discuss life issues under your work name, or work issues under your life name. Neither am I saying that a person must create this second work name if they do not wish to do so. I am only suggesting this separate work name as a possible solution and guideline for a way of living that could possibly improve everyone's health, wellness, work, productivity, social life, and personal connection with others.

September 29, 2021

The bar is so low.
It's dirty, laying on the ground.
We need thoughtful, caring people,
To raise it up and make the world go round.

June 20, 2018

Thinkist is a made up word that the founder of Life Thinkist came up with. The term thinkist was coined to describe a person with a certain set of philosophies about life.

In my mind, someone who is a thinkist is a person that is interested in improving their life, getting things done, setting goals, and learning to be happier. Without hearing the definition before, you might know if you are a thinkist or not, or maybe if you are starting to become one. Basically you are a thinker. And you use your thoughts to help you achieve what you want in your life.

Who Are Thinkists?

The word is also used for the website and to describe the people that might use the website or be interested in the type of tips, information, ideas, news, and apps that are talked about on the website. One idea was that people who use the website might even call themselves thinkists.

Improve your life, get things done, achieve what you want, and learn to be happier.

What Is The Definition?

When I thought of the word, a google search pretty much turned up only the quote "I'm the thinkist, you're the typist.", which of course is unrelated to our new definition. I was intrigued that the word hadn't really been used before, and was certainly not in the dictionary. I liked the word so much that I used it in naming the new Life Thinkist website. So then, what would be the actual definition for the word thinkist? What concept did I think was so important to both create a website about, and make a new word with a new definition? In May 2014 I defined a thinkist on the website as the following.

Thinkist - "A person who uses their thinking and thoughts to transform their life and the world around them for the better. Their thoughts propel them to ultimately take action towards making their vision come true." - Munro Stewart

The Philosophy Of A Thinkist

If you have found this website, you have probably started to become interested in learning about some of the same topics that I have been fascinated with. Things like life improvement, getting things done, happiness, goal setting, productivity, lifehacking, and simplicity. You may have already read some of the same books, articles, and information. You might have used some of the same software or apps to help you in your life. Or maybe this website is one of the first places you have come, and you can use it as a resource to become a thinkist and achieve what you want in your life. Being a thinkist is more of a philosophy on life and a term used to describe many of the things I have learned about life over the years. In coming up with the word, one possible goal is that it grows and becomes popular to mean something to people when they hear it. To kind of popularize a certain set of philosophies or principles about life and achieving what you want in the world.

“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe it can achieve…Man may become the master of himself, and of his environment, because he has the power to influence his own subconscious mind” - Napoleon Hill - Think and Grow Rich

The History Of Thinkists

I can't contribute the term thinkist to any one particular place. Really this idea comes from ideas and principles written about in so many books and by so many great people who have discovered truths about how you can be proactive and achieve what you want in this world. Some people have set out to learn about and teach about this stuff. People like Stephen Covey, David Allen, and Leo Babauta. While others naturally use these principles to gain great happiness or achieve great success, possibly without even knowing about the principles they've unintentionally used to do what they have done. People like Henry Ford, Steve Jobs, and Mahatma Ghandi have used the tools of a thinkist whether they know it or not. And maybe you have, or someone you know. If it were up to me, the term would evolve and not just be attributed to one person, book, or idea that I have read. With that said, I believe the author Napolean Hill is certainly one of the first well known people to write with such great clarity about a lot of the philosophies that I think of when I came up with the word thinkist. And for me, Think and Grow Rich would probably be one of the most important books I have read on the subject if I had to name just one.

Thinkists Keep Their Mind Open

However, the goal of being a thinkist or coming up with the word isn't to become a doctrine that is too rigid with a specific set of rules. Many people can be considered a thinkist, even if their idea of what it means to be a thinkist is slightly different.

All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability. The truth is outside of all fixed patterns...Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own. - Bruce Lee - Tao of Jeet Kune Do

October 13, 2014

Why would you choose to use text files for notes and lists instead of using a notes app? There are a number of advantages to writing your notes in simple .txt files using a text editor.

Keeping notes and lists in text files might not be everyone's cup of tea. But here are a few of the key reasons why I have kept a lot of notes, lists, tasks, journals, and other information in regular old text files.

1. Open Anywhere and No Data Lock-In

What's great about using .txt files for notes and lists is that you can open the files literally on any device. You don't have to worry about having the app or web app to open your files and read your information. You don't have to worry about your information being locked into a file format, operating system, or website that you can't get it out of. With Evernote, you need to use their apps and their apps only. They hold your data hostage, and if they decided now not to offer a free version, you'd either have to pay whatever they said to pay for it or be out of luck with all of your data.

2. Future Proof and Company Independent

You can open text files on any device, both now and way in the future. Text doesn't depend on a single company or piece of software existing to support a file format or web service. Plus, if you ever find or build a working time machine, you could even open a text file on a computer from 30 years ago. Though I don't know why you'd want to go back to the 80's. Before Google Keep, Google had Google Notes and they completely terminated it leaving people kind of helpless if they had used it. They came out with Google Keep, an extremely similar product, years later.

3. Simple, Like Writing on Paper

You don't need to use complicated software or worry about formatting when you use text. Remember, we used to just write things on pieces of paper. Think simple like that. I love software, but it's also amazing how complicated we ended up making it. Think of the difference from a pencil, eraser, and a piece of paper compared to Microsoft Word. It's crazy, because often what is really important is just the information, the text.

4. Text is Text, Words are Words

Writing in text files is more like writing on paper. You write exactly what you want and you don't worry about formatting. You can pass that text file literally anywhere like you would a book. You can copy it into anything and it looks exactly the same. You can open up the file and it looks exactly like how you wrote it. Open up a .html file or a .docx file in a text editor to see what is really in there.

Always bet on text

5. Actual Files, Sync, and Backup

Text files are actual files that can be saved, opened, synced, and backed up anywhere like mp3s, jpgs, or doc files. So not only can you open them up anywhere, but they exist on your computer, devices, USB drives, or hard drives. You own them. It's not just out there on the Internet somewhere. However, because they are files you can also still sync and access your text notes online using online storage services like Dropbox. Online storage services are great for keeping notes in text files because they allow you to sync your actual files both online and offline, so you stay in control of your own data and information.

6. Quick Entry of Notes and Lists

If you've typically used online services like Evernote, you might consider trying text files first as a quicker option for an inbox or notepad of sorts. Some people just like using a simpler app to jot down notes and lists in text files. Even if they use a more serious app for bigger reference material which includes pictures, audio, and document formatting. Text files are more like a paper notebook that you can quickly write down notes, lists, journals, tasks, or any information you want. It's a lot quicker to edit text files because text editors are much simpler pieces of software than Microsoft Word and other online alternatives for writing formatted notes.

February 5, 2014

Maybe I don't value law as much as most people do or understand how and why patent or other laws work. But all I can think about after hearing of the $1 billion verdict awarded to Apple is that I don't think Apple should have chose to sue Samsung in the first place.

It may help them to survive and prosper over the short term and allow them to feel justified that it was proven that someone copied their design. But in the end it just doesn't feel right to me how they handled it, and regardless of the law, I don't think it was the right thing to do.

They come across as a big company that is greedy and willing to criticize other companies and people who are trying to compete and create companies and products that allow people outside of Apple to earn a living. Even if everyone is stealing from them, I just don't feel that going to the extent they have will be rewarding in the long haul for them or for others. I guess, really what I'm saying is that the patent system is flawed. But even though Apple is playing by those rules, suing other companies may not be the best strategy.

You can now bet that other companies will go after Apple whenever they can. It will turn other companies and people against them and create more of a 'It's everyone against Apple' attitude. It may make other companies more likely to partner with competitors like Microsoft or Google, just when Microsoft needs a boost. It may make it harder for Apple to work with companies and get good prices on hardware.

Some good advice that I've read before is that you generally should never criticize, condemn, or complain about others, or about anything really. And even though they feel they are protecting themselves, all I can think about is it seems to me like Apple is criticizing and condemning Samsung. While that may be within the law it just doesn't feel like the way it should have been handled. And suing other companies may not be the best strategy or attitude to have for a company like Apple, or for any other company.

Samsung ordered to pay Apple $1-billion for patent violations

September 1, 2012

While some physical contact will always be accepted, I don't think there should be any deliberate hitting or body checking allowed at any level of hockey including the NHL, and so deliberately body checking or hitting other players should be banned.

Introduction

Being able to deliberately hit someone as hard as you can should be completely taken out of hockey at all levels. In fact I think this idea is way overdue. To me, it's almost like stating the obvious at this point. I'm surprised I haven't heard more people suggest that body checking should be completely removed from hockey. Here's why.

1. Hitting Is Barbaric

Physically hitting someone else when you can hurt them is both barbaric and cruel. I just looked up the definition for cruel and the first definition said "willfully or knowingly causing pain or distress to others." To me, it's pretty clear that you are knowingly causing distress to someone when you hit them in any way. But I don't care what the definition is, it just doesn't seem right to me to hit someone else. I don't care if it's part of a sport, or if they've agreed as part of the game to let them hit you. It's just not civilized to hit someone else in my opinion. To me, it doesn't really matter if it's your wife, a co-worker, a friend, or someone you play a game against for money. Hitting people is bad. Boxing is barbaric. Football is barbaric. Hockey is barbaric. The more we can move to a society where hurting other people for sport is not accepted, the better off we are in my opinion. In boxing and football, it's hard to get around the idea that you have to hit someone, but hockey could completely remove hitting, and still keep the main part of the game as it is. There is no reason hitting can't be completely removed from NHL hockey.

2. Hitting Is Unhealthy

It's quite clear that hitting in hockey is unhealthy. It's just bad for our bodies. I don't think we needed all the talk and reports about concussions recently to realize this. Broken shoulders, broken legs, damaged internal organs, and various other serious injuries over the years should have been enough. But with more and more reports about concussions it has certainly been making the point better known. I'm actually writing this point last out of these 10 points, as I was thinking of what to say to make people realize how bad that hitting is in hockey. But I don't really want to go research to make as strong of a point as I should. But I do think it's pretty obvious that concussions are bad, and hitting is bad. Enough said hopefully as I think it's pretty obvious at this point how harmful hitting in hockey is, whether you are a kid or an adult.

3. If It's Bad For Kids It's Bad For Adults

The debate I've most often heard so far about hitting in hockey is at what age level body checking should be allowed for kids. Though I'm sure it's been brought up, I haven't heard that much about completely removing hitting from hockey. But while we may like harming our bodies or feel we need to relieve stress in certain harmful ways as adults, it doesn't mean it's healthy. And what is bad for kids is generally bad for adults. Of course this can turn into a much bigger topic about whether people should be able to do things to their bodies even if it's harmful. But hockey is a sport, not mainly a stress reliever like smoking, drinking, or doing drugs. It should be fun. Instead of trying to figure out what age we allow kids to harm themselves by hitting each other as part of a sport, we should take it out of the sport altogether. It solves the debate of what age kids should be allowed to hit, and instead admits that hitting is harmful for anyone at any age and has no place in a fun sport like hockey.

4. More Protection Only Makes People Think They Can Hit Harder

"Back in the day when I used to play hockey in the 1940s, we didn't hit as hard as the guys nowadays". I'm sure some smart old guy without a big ego has said that. And do you know why he's said it? Because he didn't wear a helmet or nearly as much equipment or protection as hockey players do now. If you didn't have a helmet then you have to protect your head. If you don't have on three inches thick of plastic and padding on, then you have to think about how hitting someone as hard as you can will affect your body as well. The problem is that even though players have more protection, the impact is still great on their bodies. Players are less likely to get cuts or small injuries, but even with all of the equipment they wear they are still very likely to suffer a concussion, a neck injury, a broken shoulder, or a broken leg by being hit hard. This can occur when they hit the other player, hit the ice, or get hit into the boards. And when an impact does make it through a chink in their armour it can cause horrible injuries because the plastic and metal protection for one guy turns into a brute force object hitting the other guy if it makes it through his equipment.

5. Players Skate Way Faster Than They Used To

Besides having more protection now, players are also in better physical shape. They can skate faster than they used to and are stronger physically. It's bad enough to run as fast as you can into someone and hit them, such as in football. But when you are skating you can go at even faster speeds than two linemen hitting each other in football. And because players are now skating at even faster speeds and are much stronger than they used to be the result it pretty damaging. When two players are skating as fast as they can now and hit each other as hard as they can, which is completely within the rules, the impact is very big. And the damage is way worse than in the past and worse than we could have realized when the sport was first created.

6. Intelligent And Talented Athletes Will Choose Not To Play Hockey

Athletes aren't all stupid, and athlete's parents aren't stupid either. Hockey was already a rough sport to play 20 years ago as fighting is pretty much allowed, and often encouraged. Plenty of parents kept their kids from playing hockey. But with all the attention given to concussions and how unhealthy it is in the last few years, more and more parents should and will stop their kids from playing hockey; at least from playing hockey at any level with body checking. And more and more kids may even realize in their teens that they should maybe choose soccer, or baseball, or basketball over hockey when all they see in the media is their favourite player sitting out again with a concussion.

7. Hitting Causes More Injuries And Is As Harmful As Fighting

I personally feel that taking hitting out of hockey is way more important than taking out fighting. If two guys want to fight, whether it's on the street or in a hockey rink they will. It can even be banned and it will still sometimes happen. But hitting probably causes more injuries and affects every single person that plays the game. You can't avoid it, as every time you are out on the ice five other guys are allowed to hit you as hard as they can to take the puck away from you. There has been so much talk about fighting in hockey in the past. But I think removing hitting from hockey is much more important as it causes more injuries and doesn't just happen once in awhile, but constantly as part of the game.

8. Fighting Would Not Be Needed If Hitting Was Removed

Fights can happen sometimes even in sports even when there is no physical contact. I mean, I'm sure we've all had one or two bowling games where things got out of hand. But I think the main reason fighting is popular in hockey is because there is hitting in hockey. Fighting is just a balancing act, mostly because hitting another person is allowed in the game. It's legal. I understand that people can jab someone with a stick and get away with it too. But that is against the rules, and the guy should get a penalty. Hitting is legal, so you are allowed to hit someone as hard as you can, even if it's the other teams best player. And you do it all the time. Because of this, the talented players have needed to be "protected". But if hitting was removed, I think the need and desire to fight in hockey would go down dramatically.

9. There Is More Talk About Concussions And Suspensions Than The Game

Unneeded media stories about player's personal lives and the finance and business side of hockey are inevitable. They detract from the game sometimes and there is too much talk about both of them in the media. I don't think that will ever change as the media needs any stories they can find. But the amount of media attention and talk about concussions recently has reached a pretty high level. The first story in the hockey news always seems to be about what great player is out because of a concussion whether it's Eric Lindros, Paul Kariya, or Sidney Crosby. If it's not that, it's about showing the three big hits from five different angles where a guy got hurt. And if it's not about that, it's about a hit that they aren't sure should be legal or a talk about if the guy should be suspended, and how many games. What's the common theme with those three types of stories? It's all about hitting in hockey, and nothing to do with the score in the game, or the skillful plays in the game.

10. Hitting And Fighting Are Psychologically Unhealthy Too

Harming our bodies physically is unhealthy psychologically and causes us emotional and mental stress. I don't know that the previous sentence is a fact as I sit here and I never actually remember reading this specifically but I'm pretty sure it's true. Go look it up somewhere and I'm sure you'll find articles by doctors about how hurting our body physically isn't good for our minds either. Do a search for torture and mind, or cutting and emotions, or boxing and stress. In just one offseason, a number of hockey players who were known as enforcers committed suicide. This is one possible example of the mental stress that hitting and fighting can cause in hockey. I'm not going to look for more proof now, but I think we all just know naturally that hurting our bodies physically or having to do something that hurts our bodies physically can cause us quite a bit of stress and affect us poorly, mentally and psychologically. When you know you are going to be hit every day it can be tough on you psychologically, whether you are a boxer, a football player, or a hockey player.

Conclusion

I played hockey competitively until I was about 21 and enjoyed it. It's fun. But as I've grown older I've realized that the hitting and fighting parts of the game have just been accepted, but it doesn't mean that allowing them is best for everyone. Looking back at these points, I think I'd have to say that the first two points are certainly the most convincing in my mind and really all that needs to be said. Why do we think it's ok to hurt other people and to do something to our bodies that's completely unhealthy just because we call it a sport and people pay to watch it? Whether enough people would watch the game without hitting and fighting is another debate, and I've decided to focus this article not on that aspect of the debate at all and just think about what is best, healthy, and civilized. Hitting in hockey needs to go. I'm pretty sure that its part in the game will be questioned and debated more in the coming years.

Outline

1. Hitting Is Barbaric
2. Hitting Is Unhealthy
3. If It's Bad For Kids It's Bad For Adults
4. More Protection Only Makes People Think They Can Hit Harder
5. Players Skate Way Faster Than They Used To
6. Intelligent And Talented Athletes Will Choose Not To Play Hockey
7. Hitting Causes More Injuries And Is As Harmful As Fighting
8. Fighting Would Not Be Needed If Hitting Was Removed
9. There Is More Talk About Concussions And Suspensions Than The Game
10. Hitting And Fighting Are Psychologically Unhealthy Too

May 13, 2012

But if all of that isn't built on your own original ideas and truthful analysis, it doesn't mean anything. - The Whale Movie

• At this point in the course, I have given you all that I can in terms of structure, building a thesis, paragraph organization.
• But if all of that isn't built on your own original ideas and truthful analysis, it doesn't mean anything.
• Think about that, as you write and revise.
• Think about the truth of your argument.

The Whale - Rotten Tomatoes

Don't be a sucker.

• Dramatizes the destructive effects of racial and religious prejudice
• This US National Archives educational film illustrates how extremist ideologies use prejudice to divide populations and dismantle democratic societies. It highlights the importance of protecting the rights of all citizens to safeguard individual liberty and prevent the rise of authoritarian control

Don't Be A Sucker - US National Archives - YouTube

People may often do inconsiderate things when they are in groups, and people who strongly affiliate with one group of people may naturally want to harm outsiders who are not in that group.

• When people get together in groups, unusual things can happen — both good and bad.
• Groups create important social institutions that an individual could not achieve alone, but there can be a darker side to such alliances:
• Belonging to a group makes people more likely to harm others outside the group.
• In a study that recently went online in the journal NeuroImage, the researchers measured brain activity in a part of the brain involved in thinking about oneself.
• They found that in some people, this activity was reduced when the subjects participated in a competition as part of a group, compared with when they competed as individuals.
• Those people were more likely to harm their competitors than people who did not exhibit this decreased brain activity.

When Good People Do Bad Things - MIT News Office

Each technology we create is transforming society and we need to be careful about considering if and when different technologies may be affecting us either negatively or positively.

• A report commissioned by the National Science Foundation and made public today speculates that by the end of this century electronic information technology will have transformed American home, business, manufacturing, school, family and political life.
• The report warned that the new technology would raise difficult issues of privacy and control that will have to be addressed soon to ''maximize its benefits and minimize its threats to society.''
• There will be a shift away from conventional workplace and school socialization. Friends, peer groups and alliances will be determined electronically, creating classes of people based on interests and skills rather than age and social class.

Study Says Technology Could Transform Society - NY Times (1982)