Dushan's Website
Thank you for 30 marvellous years
Extra
The Triple-Filter Test
In ancient Greece, Socrates (the famous philosopher) was
visited by an acquaintance of his. Eager to share some juicy
gossip, the man asked if Socrates would like to know the story
he’d just heard about a friend of theirs. Socrates replied that
before the man spoke, he needed to pass the “Triple-Filter”
test.
The first filter, he explained, is Truth. “Have you made
absolutely sure that what you are about to say is true?” The man
shook his head. “No, I actually just heard about it, and …”
Socrates cut him off. “You don’t know for certain that it is
true, then. Is what you want to say something good or kind?”
Again, the man shook his head. “No! Actually, just the opposite.
You see …”
Socrates lifted his hand to stop the man speaking. “So you are
not certain that what you want to say is true, and it isn’t good
or kind. One filter still remains, though, so you may yet still
tell me. That is Usefulness or Necessity. Is this information
useful or necessary to me?” A little defeated, the man replied,
“No, not really.”
“Well, then,” Socrates said, turning on his heel. “If what you
want to say is neither true, nor good or kind, nor useful or
necessary, please don’t say anything at all.”
Source: Jennifer Cook O'Toole
The Human Odyssey...
The earliest remains of the Homo
sapiens yet discovered dates back to 300,000 years.
We probably evolved in the
African region,
but then migrated to the rest of the world. Although our
physical appearance changed over time, our race didn't: we
remained human beings.
Remains of the world's
earliest religious worship site
have been discovered in Botswana, where our ancestors performed
advanced rituals, worshipping the python some 70,000 years ago.
So many religions have emerged and disappeared that no religion
can claim superiority over other religions. Religion is only one
of the
means to realize God, but
it is not an end to itself.
The central problem facing our planet is human overpopulation.
Today there are over
8 billion beings on Earth and the
population is still growing. There are too many people and
not enough resources for all of us. Yet,
we are not addressing this
problem responsibly. Do you really think your life will be
better if there are more people of your colour,
caste or creed on
Earth?
Initially used as fire for light, heat, cooking and for safety,
energy has been harnessed by humans for millennia. Today, fossil
fuels have become our main energy sources. This is leading to
climate change and global warming.
The Earth has entered a new era called
anthropocene, which marks
the beginning of the
sixth mass extinction. Many species have already disappeared
from the planet and our own days, as a species, are numbered.
Artificial intelligence has surpassed human intelligence. While
humans think they will be using
AI to win wars against other
nations, AI itself has outwitted human psychology to make us
lose each and every war. Warfare has never been a solution to
human problems...