Stream Theory
Post from January 31, 2016 (↻ June 6, 2021), filed under Philosophy.
Not just since the Law of Attraction is there this idea of “like attracts like,” of self-fulfilling prophecies, of better being “careful” what we wish for. While I do believe in (but don’t practically grasp) the Law of Attraction, I don’t like to work with it philosophically yet (perhaps because of said grasp). But there’s a similar concept that I do like to work with, and that’s focus.
Here I’ll put up one more brief thought experiment. Look at the following ideas and associations.
| Against terror | For peace |
|---|---|
| Take revenge | Recognize root causes |
| Bomb people | Take care of people |
| Mistrust | Find out motivations |
| Tighten control | Reach out to dissenters |
| Cut rights | Strengthen liberties |
| Reject | Talk |
| Resent | Forgive |
Compare (note that these aren’t and don’t have to be opposites). Then look at this one.
| Against cancer | For health |
|---|---|
| Condemn disease | Celebrate health |
| Increase research | Build up faith |
| Worry about life’s weaknesses and insufficiencies | Trust life’s resilience and strength |
| Complain about injustice and unfairness | Understand disease as a space to grow and learn |
| Transcend technical limitations | Transcend philosophical limitations |
Compare again. Extend if you like. Now this:
| Against gender bias | For gender equality |
|---|---|
| Emphasize injustice | Highlight desirable outcomes |
| Blend gender and oppression | Understand the importance of all beings |
| Build up rage against other gender | Develop a feeling for differences and similarities across genders |
| Propose quota to force one gender into, the other out of functions | Allow for equal educational opportunities to permit people to assume functions by qualification, not gender |
Understanding that we’re looking at these from a light philosophical point of view, what do you notice? Do you think the sides are equally valid and useful? Do you think they lead to the same results? Which course should we take—individually, collectively?
I will conveniently fall back to my student role and, until I can find out whether someone else has done similar with like intent, label this: stream theory. Why? Because how we think seems to impact how we further think, making for thought… streams. Stream theory. But maybe I’ve just lacked patience to think about a better title for this post.
About Me
I’m Jens Oliver Meiert, and I’m an engineering manager and author. I’ve worked as a technical lead for Google, I’m close to the W3C and the WHATWG, and I write and review books for O’Reilly. Other than that, I love trying things, sometimes including philosophy, art, and adventure. Here on meiert.com I share some of my views and experiences.
If you have questions or suggestions about what I write, please leave a comment (if available) or a message.
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Perhaps my most interesting book: 100 Things I Learned as an Everyday Adventurer (2013). During my time in the States I started trying everything. Everything. Then I noticed that wasn’t only fun, it was also useful. Available at Amazon, Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play Books, and Leanpub.