Monday, January 29, 2007

Existentialist Cyberpunk Commando

I wasn't expecting William Gibson at all: I really ought to read some one of these days, I guess. The Existentialist and Special Ops results are pretty solid, though.
I am:
William Gibson
The chief instigator of the "cyberpunk" wave of the 1980s, his razzle-dazzle futuristic intrigues were, for a while, the most imitated work in science fiction.


Which science fiction writer are you? [via]


You scored as Existentialism. Your life is guided by the concept of Existentialism: You choose the meaning and purpose of your life.

"Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does."
"It is up to you to give [life] a meaning."
--Jean-Paul Sartre

"It is man's natural sickness to believe that he possesses the Truth." --Blaise Pascal

More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page...
Existentialism
80%
Utilitarianism
60%
Justice (Fairness)
60%
Kantianism
60%
Hedonism
55%
Strong Egoism
35%
Divine Command
25%
Apathy
10%
Nihilism
10%

What philosophy do you follow? (v1.03)
created with QuizFarm.com [via]


You scored as Special Ops. Special ops. You're sneaky, tactful, and a loner. You prefer to do your jobs alone, working where you don't come into contact with people. But every once in a while you hit it big and are noticed and given fame. You're given the more sensitive problems. You get things done, and do what has to be done.

"VULCAN NECK PINCH!!!"
"owww.......(slump)"
Engineer
75%
Combat Infantry
75%
Special Ops
75%
Medic
63%
Support Gunner
56%
Officer
50%
Artillery/Armor
38%
Civilian
13%
Which soldier type are you?
created with QuizFarm.com [via]

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Principled Pragmatism wasn't an option....

Relativism
You scored 50 Objectivism, 47 Naturalism, and 73 Cognitivism!
You believe in moral propositions, but not moral facts or reduction of moral talk. You may be a relativist. Don't be scared by the fact that "relativist" is usually an accusation, spoken with a sneer - just because it's not in vogue doesn't mean it's wrong, which you know doubt know.
"The term ‘moral relativism’ is understood in a variety of ways. Most often it is associated with an empirical thesis that there are deep and widespread moral disagreements and a metaethical thesis that the truth or justification of moral judgments is not absolute, but relative to some group of persons. Sometimes ‘moral relativism’ is connected with a normative position about how we ought to think about or act towards those with whom we morally disagree, most commonly that we should tolerate them."

Link: The Meta-ethical Theories Test written by jacostyle on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test [via]


I'm a little surprised by the overall result, but the components are more or less all right (which is remarkable, considering that it's only a 15-question quiz).

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

Quotations #092

"In societies where men are truly confident of their own worth, women are not merely tolerated but valued." -- Aung San Suu Kyi, September 1995

"After mourning for the dead, we must swear to get rid of meaningless suffering which blights our lives. We must do away with all the stupidity and tyranny which create and relish the sufferings of others." -- Lu Xun, "My Views on Chastity" (1918)

"I was discovering something marriage does: it defines you, in part, as the sort of person who'd marry whoever your spouse was." -- Alice Mattison, The Wedding of the Two-Headed Woman (2004)

"How does it feel to be a problem?" -- W. E. B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk

"If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein. If there are any circumstances which permit an exception, they do not now occur to us." -­West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943)