How to Think Like a Roman Emperor
If you have anger issues, this one is a great tool (h/t mindyourbusiness)
This week’s book:
Discourses and Selected Writings
Disclaimer: I’m not your Supervisor. These are my opinions after reading through these books a few times.
Epictetus was born a slave around 50 ad. His owner was Epaphroditus, a rich freedman who was once a slave of Nero. Though he was a slave Epictetus was sent to study philosophy under Musonius Rufus.
Epictetus was lame and there are some stories it was caused by his master and others that it was caused by disease.
He was a freedman when all philosophers were banished from Rome in 89 by the Emperor Domitian. He then started his school in Greece, and had many students. He did not leave any writings from his lessons, but one of his students, Flavius Arrian, took notes and wrote the Discourses.
Epictetus did not marry, had no children, and lived to be around 80-85. In retirement, he adopted a child that would have been abandoned and raised him with a woman.
He died sometime around AD 135.
He is my favorite Stoic teacher. I love his bare bones and very straight forward approach.
Following is a paragraph-by-paragraph discussion of one of his lessons. Epictetus’s text appears in bold, my replies are in normal text.
That one should enter cautiously into social intercourse
The man who consorts frequently with one person or another either for conversation, or for banquets, or for social purposes in general, is compelled either to become like them himself, or else to bring them over to his own style of living; for if you put by the side of a live coal one that has gone out, either the dead coal will put the live one out, or the latter will kindle the former. Since the risk, then, is so great, we ought to enter cautiously into such social intercourse with the laymen, remembering that it is impossible for the man who brushes up against the person who is covered with soot to keep from getting some soot on himself. For what are you going to do if he talks about gladiators, or horses, or athletes, or, worse still, about people: “So-and-so is bad, So-and-so is good; this was well done, this ill”; or again, if he scoffs, or jeers, or shows an ugly disposition?
I don’t hang out with many people and this is part of the reason why. At work they have heated debates about some TV show that I never watched or the “Strawberry Letter” on the Steve Harvey radio show. Sometimes we do talk about football and as much as I enjoy watching it, I don’t enjoy talking about it with a group. I especially do not join in the office gossip about whoever is not there that day.
5Has any of you the capacity of the expert lyre-player when he takes up his lyre, which enables him, the instant he touches the strings, to recognize the ones which are off pitch, and to tune the instrument? Or the power that Socrates had, which enabled him in every kind of social intercourse to bring over to his own side those who were in his company? How could you have? But you must necessarily be converted by the laymen.
In some small ways, I am sure that I am influenced by the people I work with. I do not have the skill to convert anyone. I do make smart comments sometimes that mostly only make me laugh, but I have been called a “history expert” because I do know much more history than the average American. So I have that going for me, which is nice.
Why, then, are they stronger than you are? Because their rotten talk is based on judgements, but your fine talk comes merely from your lips; that’s why what you say is languid and dead, and why a man may well feel nausea when he hears your exhortations and your miserable “virtue,” which you babble to and fro. And thus the laymen get the better of you; for everywhere judgement is strong, judgement is invincible. Therefore, until these fine ideas of yours are firmly fixed within you, and you have acquired some power which will guarantee you security, my advice to you is to be cautious about joining issue with the laymen; otherwise whatever you write down in the lecture-room will melt away by day like wax in the sun.[1]
If I am not certain in my beliefs and live in accordance with them, then my small chance of convincing anyone else of the virtues of Stoicism (even if I don’t use that name) become smaller. I have been told that they notice that things don’t bother me, and I just answered that there is no reason to get upset about things outside of my control. If I would have said that’s because I am a practicing Stoic, they would have thought I was even odder than what they think now.
10Retire, then, to some spot or other far away from the sun, so long as the ideas which you have are waxen. It is for this reason that the philosophers advise us to leave even our own countries, because old habits distract us and do not allow a beginning to be made of another custom, and we cannot bear to have men meet us and say, “Look, So-and-so is philosophizing, although he is this sort of a person or that.” Thus also physicians send away to a different region and a different climate those who are suffering from chronic disorders, and that is well. Do you also introduce different habits; fix your ideas, exercise yourselves in them. But no, you go from the class-room to a show, a gladiatorial combat, a gymnasium-colonnade,[2] a circus; and then you come back here from these places, and you go back there again from here, and remain the same persons all the time.[3]
I do not fear mixing with people because my beliefs are weak. I simply do not enjoy it much. Ever since I started fighting the ones who made fun of me in Junior High, other people’s opinions have not been very high on my list of values. I do enjoy concerts, football, and hockey live when I can. I went to the WVU-Kansas State game and really enjoyed yelling and cheering. Until the second half started anyway. No matter where I am or what I am doing I am still me. Even at work where I don’t say much, if someone asks me a difficult question, they will get an honest answer.
15And so you acquire no fine habit; you pay no regard or attention to your own self; you do not observe: “How do I deal with the external impressions which befall me? In accordance with nature, or contrary to it? How shall I respond to these impressions? As I should, or as I should not? Do I declare to the things which lie outside the sphere of my moral purpose that they mean nothing to me?” Why, if you have not yet acquired this state of mind, flee from your former habits, flee from the laymen, if you would begin to be somebody some time.
If I was not certain in my beliefs, I would be easily led astray by the people around me. The only one that really has any sway over me is my wife. In 33 years of knowing her, not once has she been a bad influence. I can say the same for my brothers and my Step dad, so in that regard I have been extremely lucky.
It is for this reason that the philosophers advise us to leave even our own countries, because old habits distract us and do not allow a beginning to be made of another custom, and we cannot bear to have men meet us and say, “Look, So-and-so is philosophizing, although he is this sort of a person or that.”
This is really interesting. One of the things I’ve enjoyed about moving to a new place is the lack of history with the people in my new social circles. It’s nearly impossible to reinvent yourself with history always haunting you.
If I would have said that’s because I am a practicing Stoic, they would have thought I was even odder than what they think now.
I’m exactly the same about my faith.
Reminds me of when I changed schools at 15.
Went from the nerd that everyone made fun of until I started fighting to a metal head with friends.
Nothing about me changed, but the people at the new school didn’t know my history.
I’m fairly superficial and stand-offish to people I first meet. The exception is people at church.
Wait, you guys talk to people?
The people I enjoy talking to the most outside of my family are Glibertarian meet ups.
I have an excellent neighbor group. Really good people.
I regarded it as a win when my neighbors stopped messing with my trash can.
Yes. So good he ditches out of our Glib Zoom to hang out with THOSE PEOPLE. LOL
I don’t have neighbors to hang out with, but my wife’s best friend and her husband go out with us occasionally.
We get along, but I never feel like I should hang out with him without our wives being involved.
*porn music starts playing*
Shirley the supermarket cashier is a nice sort. I could never be rude to her.
A terrible new test of stoicism.
https://x.com/KarluskaP/status/1849789634005303716
Be careful, being unable to differentiate satire from reality, Herr Grupenfurer Newsome has made cheap fakes such as this, verboten.
I, for one, am very concerned about what Herr Grupenfurer thinks about…stuff.
The Shining Pitch Meeting
Happy to see him doing more of the classics.
Yep. Made me realize just how stupid that (still iconic) movie was.
He should do Blazing Saddles and introduce the youngsters to filmmaking perfection.
In 33 years of knowing her, not once has she been a bad influence. I can say the same for my brothers and my Step dad, so in that regard I have been extremely lucky.
Yes. This is good.
I’ve known too many people with untrustworthy spouses to not appreciate that.
/considers some relatives’ ex-wives
Yes. Untrustworthy spouses are toxic.
https://www.npr.org/2024/10/25/nx-s1-5165353/washington-post-presidential-endorsement-trump-harris
‘Washington Post’ won’t endorse in White House race for first time since 1980s
“We are returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates,” Will Lewis wrote in an opinion piece published on the paper’s website. He referenced the paper’s policy in the decades prior to 1976, when, following the Watergate scandal that the Post broke, it endorsed Democratic nominee Jimmy Carter. The last time the Post did not endorse a presidential candidate in the general election was 1988, according to a search of its archives.
The real polls must be a disaster for Harris.
Former Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron, who led the newsroom to acclaim during Trump’s presidency, denounced the decision starkly.
“This is cowardice, a moment of darkness that will leave democracy as a casualty,” Baron said in a statement to NPR. “Donald Trump will celebrate this as an invitation to further intimidate The Post’s owner, Jeff Bezos (and other media owners). History will mark a disturbing chapter of spinelessness at an institution famed for courage.”
democracy dies in darkness
Narrator: “Unaware that the institution famed for courage has pissed away every shred of credibility Martin unzips and pisses harder.”
Jeff Bezos not a fan of the unrealized capital gains tax?
Ha! It was Bezos.
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/wapo-bails-kamala-wont-make-presidential-endorsement
I don’t think there’s such a thing as “real polls”, but this sure is funny.
I want to see what Rubin does.
As it was explained to me a long while ago . . .
The parties have access to party registration data and they have access to the voting logs. Thus, they know who voted in the last several elections. So, they can poll people that actually voted in the past rather that doing random polls of the general public. This allows them to gage trends in which direction past voters are going. So the parties know information that the typical pollsters can only guess about.
So, you watch what the parties are doing and ignore what the pollsters are saying.
Hope so then.
It’s also interesting to see what Donks in other races are doing. Many of them in swing states might as well wear MAGA hats, since they basically support the policies.
What Kinnath says is what my GOP insider acquaintance says about the internal polls they do. And the latest is that Harris in now up by only 3% in the Phila. collar counties (had been as high as 7%). Of course, now that Trump has been found to wear a Nazi SS uniform, thanks to the research done by one H. Clinton, one expects Harris to win at least 65% of the nation’s vote.
Having lived in Philly, it’s reaally hard for me to imagine that.
Are we gaslighting ourselves a bit?
It would so funny though.
It’s been reported that several Dem senate candidates have told the Harris campaign to stay the hell away.
She’s viewed as a boat anchor on the party.
Wow. If they aren’t endorsing her imagine what a WaPo endorsement would look like.
It might be kinda shrewd on them. I mean everyone pretty much knows what the WaPo thinks anyway. They exist explicitly to promote Democrats.
But not endorse in the last 2 weeks might work for their status somehow?
..
For me? This baby still looks really close for everything I’m allowed to see. Do not sleep on this one. There’s gonna be some shit left.
Wonder why they didn’t do 88. Eating pie after Mondale’s loss or because Dukakis.
Reagan too popular?
88? Isn’t that code? Are they signaling that Trump is Hitler? Connect the dots, people!
Massie is in.
Welp. The only decent representative is one board with Trump.
Shows you how bad the Harris campaign is on liberty that 100% tariff man is the clear libertarian pick.
“Least worst”
Better for Massie to be inside the tent with a vague chance of impacting policy. Maybe it’ll get the PRIME Act moving forward.
Yeah, Trump holds grudges. If you want any chance of getting his ear, you gotta do the thing.
I’d still hold a grudge if I were TM; not enough to try to thwart Trump.
Good list of reasons.
I agree. Energy, food and war are my three biggest issues.
I think getting rid of the income tax, which at this point I have little to no hope for, might be the biggest step towards liberty that we could take. At least they are talking about it. It is no longer considered crazy talk by some.
Yes, energy, food, and war are huge.
A man can dream, cant he?
https://x.com/i/trending/1849868386324603229
BREAKING: Lancaster, Pennsylvania officials have BUSTED a large-scale fraudulent voter registration scheme that includes thousands of applications with the same handwriting, fake signatures, false addresses, etc
They actually found one? This must hurt Republicans.
“Republicans pounce!”
I care, but
how would this result in actual voting fraud?
They can send in (or just insert into the counting process) thousands of ballots from those fraudulent registrations at false addresses?
If you’re wondering whether those junk mail ballots will just be “returned to sender”, well, even if they mail you a ballot you can still cast a provisional ballot. Or those ballots are never mailed but are set aside. Or ballots are just inserted into the counting process – most places, the return envelopes are separated from the ballot early on so there is no way to validate a mail in ballot once its in the pile of ballots to be counted.
Regardless, having a fraudulent registrations opens the door to a fraudulent ballot; there’s a lot of ways to make it happen.
Which court is going to order those ballots to be legal?
Don: How is imaginary people voting not voter fraud? PA is a winner takes all state, isn’t it? Those fake votes could swing the election.
“This is cowardice, a moment of darkness that will leave democracy as a casualty,” Baron said in a statement to NPR. “Donald Trump will celebrate this as an invitation to further intimidate The Post’s owner, Jeff Bezos (and other media owners). History will mark a disturbing chapter of spinelessness at an institution famed for courage.”
Such an excellent candidate her run is doomed without the endorsement of such thought
leadersmanipulators as the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times.What’s interesting is that these two particular institutions are basically the most loyally two newspapers in the country. They basically exist to tell Democrats what they want to hear.
*most loyally left
now that Trump has been found to wear a Nazi SS uniform
Black silk pajamas adorned with little red swastikas.
*heads over to Amazon*
It’s funny how all these butthurt defenders of democracy run straight to NPR to air their grievances.
https://thenerdstash.com/blizzard-is-now-selling-a-90-world-of-warcraft-mount-how-did-this-happen/
*falls out of chair*
“Welcome to McDonald’s, can I take your order?”
Pretty funny.
https://nypost.com/2024/10/25/us-news/holocaust-survivor-denounces-kamala-harris-for-boosting-trump-hitler-comparisons-says-ex-prez-is-a-mensch/
Holocaust survivor rips Kamala Harris for boosting Trump-Hitler comparisons, says ex-prez is ‘a mensch’
A Holocaust survivor has denounced Vice President Kamala Harris in a Trump campaign video for endorsing claims that former President Donald Trump is a “fascist” akin to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.
“Adolf Hitler invaded Poland when I was 9 years old. He murdered my parents and most of my family,” 94-year-old Jerry Wartski says in the clip exclusively obtained by The Post and set to be released Friday.
“I know more about Hitler than Kamala will ever know in a thousand lifetimes,” adds Wartski, rolling up his shirtsleeves to reveal his Auschwitz prisoner number.
“For her to accuse President Trump of being like Hitler is the worst thing I ever heard in my 75 years living in the United States,” he goes on, adding that Harris “owes my parents and everybody else who was murdered by Hitler an apology for repeating this lie.”
who cares what an old man thinks
All the talk about Trump being Hitler might get people thinking that maybe Hitler wasn’t so bad.
Another blast from the past
Scout says its “priority was to honor the spirit of the original Scout,” which was among the first mainstream SUVs and was sold by International Harvester from 1961 to 1980. The design isn’t overtly referential but still ties back to the original through the black “mask” on the front and rear fascias, emulating the classic SUV’s rectangular grille and indent in the tailgate.
——-
The two upcoming Scouts don’t just look rugged. Their styling will be backed up by a chassis and suspension designed for off-road performance, with the Traveler and Terra riding on an “all-new and proprietary” body-on-frame platform. The oddest bit is that both vehicles will have a solid rear axle, a setup no other current EV employs. Various suppliers have shown setups like this, with an electric motor incorporated into a solid axle, but until now, they seemed more angled toward the commercial segment. We’ll be interested to see how much of a penalty this is to ride quality. This sturdy setup is bolstered by a front anti-roll-bar disconnect as well as front and rear mechanical locking differentials. Although Scout hasn’t provided official numbers, the approach and departure angles are described as “competitive.”
Just like the one your grandpappy drove.
Water-fording in an EV. What could go wrong?
Riiiiiight.
Tesla did ok
https://x.com/WholeMarsBlog/status/1615213607876440066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1615213607876440066%7Ctwgr%5E0686136d085e66e21e5839daa109221f1f6f616b%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.carscoops.com%2F2023%2F01%2Ftesla-model-3-owner-drives-into-flood-waters-elon-musk-isnt-concerned%2F
That’s retarded on many levels.
So, with EVs, like everything else, just when you think you have reached peak stupid….
The overall look is “generic pick-up”. Meh.
+1 Rivian
The range-extender system, called Harvester, will utilize a small internal-combustion engine of unspecified displacement that will recharge the battery but not directly power the wheels, similar to the forthcoming Ram 1500 Ramcharger. Scout claims that the pure-EV versions will be able to travel up to 350 miles per charge, while the range-extender hybrids will have a range of over 500 miles.
The gas generator will live in the rear of the chassis, but Scout didn’t provide any other details on the system. Scout also wouldn’t confirm whether the gas engine would be sourced from parent company Volkswagen
It should be a 36hp air cooled flat four.
I miss my Super Beetle. What a crazy little car, but I can still hear (and smell) that lovely motor.
I had 2 of those. One was an auto-clutch (nobody believes me about this). The other was a wreck but had an intact floor pan, which is where the value is in a vintage Bug.
AutoStick!
Absolute garbage, but kind of cool.
Here’s a video
tw/Jalopnik
My dad was ALWAYS replacing the solenoid. It was not cool. I didn’t learn how to drive with a clutch until I had my 50cc Honda scooter.
@Ron – I saw your wife’s car accident predicament on the last thread. Glad she’s ok. I second the idea of getting another ’09 Corolla or at least another Corolla of that generation. Don’t br afraid to buy and fly to get a low mileage example if that’s what it takes. I have done that several times to get exactly what I want and have always been happier for it than settling. Those are fantastic little cars and they last seemingly forever with maintenance.
Especially if they come from a place with no road salt. I’ve had several vehicles that I could still be driving today if it wasn’t for the fucking salt.
That wreck looked awful. I had to tell my son that even if the other person is at fault, insurance won’t make you whole and it will fuck up your life for a while.
Anyway, I again rec Hyundai Sonata early 2010s. Reasonably priced, still with buttons and knobs, and reliable.
Yeah, never been in an airbag accident and am trying to keep it that way.
“if you put by the side of a live coal one that has gone out, either the dead coal will put the live one out, or the latter will kindle the former”
I get what he’s saying, but I see a couple of other things here. First, it’s possible they will change to be more like you rather than the other way around (most likely, you both change to be more like each other). And, of course, it’s possible they are someone you want to, or should, emulate, so that changing to be more like them is a good thing.
My teenage bestie came from a broken home with a mom who smoked weed and slept with whoever and did other things my parents didn’t approve of, but they pretty much stayed mum about it and let me do my thing. Anyway, my friend got kicked out of our private school for smoking during school, and she was sleeping around also and exposing me to dangerous things like Mötley Crüe and Helter Skelter. Some of it made me uncomfortable and she made an effort to not expose me to the full extent of her life, which I took as a sign of respect. But my parents pretty much stayed mum and let me do my thing.
Except one day, my mom says, “I don’t want her to be a bad influence on her.” I, in my wisdom, said, “Maybe I’m a good influence on her.” She wasn’t convinced. Anyway, I wasn’t. But she didn’t influence me, either. I cut contact about when I realized we were diverging, which was about at the end of my first semester at BYU because she accused me of abandoning her. Okay.
Anyway, I’ve had several friendships like that over the years. I’m not going to say I was trying to rescue or change anybody. I wasn’t. These people interested me for reasons I don’t know and don’t care. I was interesting to them too. For a while. Neither one of us would budge in our lifestyle choices and then the friendship dissolved.
The last one, well. I could put up with a lot of her bullshit. I cared more about her being interesting than I was dismayed by her lifestyle choices. But then she fucked with my kid. I have no friends left and I don’t want any.
Same woman?
Didn’t realize you’d known her that long.
Oh, goodness, no. I’ve had 4 or 5 friends like this in my life and the friendships lasted years, but the last one, that was a 25-year friendship.
Apologies; misread.
I ghosted (lost touch with?) a couple of women because their (sober) driving terrified me.
Hey, Tox, did you see my post to you the other day? I had to quit my anxiolytic because I was gaining weight like a mofo. Known side effect.
R C, what you said points up the idea of choosing your friends – and your enemies – wisely and carefully.
The older and maybe a little smarter you get the more you find it pays to hold first impressions at arms’ length. You’ll find fewer people that you dislike or like, but you’ll have good reasons to know why.