EPICTETUS VIRTUE ENCYCLOPEDIA
Once upon a time, I crossed the pathway of a philosopher who recycled himself in linguistics. He was not interested in academia nor journalism and was gifted in languages. Consequently, he went back to university after his degree in philosophy to pursue advanced studies in linguistics. I wanted his point of view regarding morality.»
I asked: «Why choose philosophy and linguistics?»
He responded: «Philosophy is designed to answer existential questions. I was gifted in languages very young. Reading various languages enables me to access quality material from good sources.»
I asked: «Who is Epictetus?»
He responded: « Epictetus depicts an ancient philosopher who roots from the era of slavery. To answer his existential question, Epictetus hypothesizes that the nature of things is invariable and inviolable for all men without exception. His writings state that a man's actions are prohairetic but his body, dignity, goods, and reputation are aprohairetic. Precisely, a man's actions shall be founded on moral purpose but his aprohairetic traits shape his judgment and power.»
I asked: «Does immortality exist?»
He responded: «No! Humans are mortal. Believing one can immortalize oneself via actions and/or philosophical scripts are mind playing themselves. There is no such thing as immortalizing one's legacy. Immortality depicts a mental, moral and physical state that does not exist.»
I asked: «When an individual purchases a firearm, what message does it signal?»
He responded: «Fear! You are arming yourself because you live in fear and believe that weapons can resolve the security equation.»
I asked: «When policymakers incite citizens to purchase weapons, what message does it signal?»
He responded: «Weapons are the solution to resolve fear and safety. If I tell you to do so then I have exhausted all resources in my power to protect you hence am now placing the monkey on your shoulders to resolve the matter. In my opinion, it broadcasts the wrong message.»
I asked: «On a psychological point of view, what occurs when you own a firearm?»
He responded: «You are more likely to respond with a gun to all situations that trigger fear in you rather than use rational reasoning. You are less likely to use your brain to address issues and more likely to mistaken normal everyday conflicts to situations that need to be addressed via violence.»
I asked: «Does the armed-to-the-teeth policy work?»
He responded: «No, there are many studies performed in many countries which prove a direct positive correlation between increased violence in populations armed-to-the-teeth.»
I asked: «Can the maturity of policymakers impact its output?»
He responded: «Yes, civilizations who have been around for centuries and that have built economies not overly reliant on weapon industries are more likely to promote weapon policies with strict regulations and licensing requirements. The latter disarms citizens by discharging them from the burden of carrying firearms. I do not see how countries can advance their existential cause if everyday citizens are dressed up like army and peace agents with bulletproof vests and weapons.»
I asked: «Can policies cause paranoia?»
He responded: «Yes! In all groups, whether policymakers or citizens, there are people unfit to rationalize problematics. However, if policymakers broadcast messages of fear and patriotism via firearms then it is highly likely that a significant ratio of citizens will adopt those policies even when they are irrational.»
I asked: «Can countries cheat the process of political maturity?»
He responded: «No! If you are a nation that has not been around for a long time, you have no previous record regarding human behavior locally, nationally and internationally. You are also more likely to make mistakes. If policymakers in a country are 1-digit-generation policymakers then these depict politicians that are born, bred and raised in-house hence have limited experience about human behavior.»
I asked: «Does the rational "We have to finish it" work?»
He responded: «No! We do not live in static mode and the world keeps turning. You might finish something that will eventually be replaced by something else that also needs to be finished. It sounds like a vicious cycle that does not address the core of the problem. This is a perfect example of absence of political maturity where policymakers affirm that it will stop raining tomorrow if "I finish it"! It requires more brain and less muscle to shift a nation to not only survive but also strive for many centuries.»
I asked: «Are all democratic countries de facto democratic?»
He responded: «No! Many countries do not comply with the same charts and rights that intrinsically define a democratic constitution.»
I responded: «Thanks for a wonderful lesson in Epictetus Virtue Encyclopedia! »