h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Quincy: yes you understood me precisely. That was what I meant. Of course as a Satyagraha I am against all unnecessary violence, which means virtually all violence. Is nice to see someone knows what is 'satyagraha', too

Zorpheus: Without a social contexte, there is no meaning to any sort of action, except to the person him or her self. Consider if no one know you are married, how married are you? The ritual of marriage is supposed to be in the eyes of God, and also the Community, that is why weddings used to be such big deal. Now even if you are married in magistrate's office, you must have witnesses, and inform tax-thiefs, and others. If you jump off cliff with no one to witness, is this rite of passage, or mere idiocy? (Yes I do think is fairly idiotic rite of passage, but they mostly are, n'est-ce pas? )

Xanatic: The Israëli military is indeed damned efficient. They are entirely too efficient for my peace-mongering (is that spelt correctly?) philosophy. They make the Nazis look sloppy and underdisciplined. Are you old enough to remember raid at Entebbe? There was efficiency! Both most impressive and quite terrifying. If they ever decide to eliminate threats to Israël, consider it done. I spent some time in Lebanon and Israël in 1970s, and was most pleased to depart for Africa!

Their two years' compulsory service is also two years' service in a state that has been at constant low-level war since it was created. Those two years a soldier could be killed! I think this is also different from Denmark, n'est-ce pas? I am oppose to war, but it certainly makes either brutes and criminals, or adults out of them teenagers damn quick!

Consensus in discussion seem to me to be it is individual. 'I know an adult when I see one'? Sorry, I forget your name. Is that like 'I cannot define the pornography, but I know it when I see it?'

One more idea I suggest toward what is adulthood: adolescents are defining who they are, so they are passionate about everything from their hairs spray to their computer games to their religion. (I was a teenage hippy and I remember.) As time pass, you get more and more your identity settled. I don't suggest stagnant <smiley holding nose> but just at relative peace with your own self and who you are. The truly mature, not meaning same thing as elderly at all, are the ones who are not constantly ego-involve, but rather have move on. This is pinch from Piaget and Kohlberg, but also from my own experience as I watched my parents and myself, brothers, sisters, and friends grown older.

Thank you again for the stimulating thoughts and discussions.

S.

Piaget could never quite get his sock drawer in order, but he knew where his towel was!

Beg to differ on military. Big boys have big toys in U.S.
May be different in other places, but I doubt it.
All military establishments have fascist leanings.
Of course, the Narzis weren't besieged on all sides until they called attention to themselves... and the Israelis have had the Mandate charlies to look to for inspiration, too.

Opportunities for arrested development abound.

(warning: what follows is non sequitor)
Like Terry Jones said, most of the Crusaders were rich bored thugs who got tired of beating the crap out of each other, so they went looking elsewhere.

Whew! My tail is warm! Wonder why?

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