Article 2: The Degree Of Happiness by Betrand Russell

This will be my second post and the article that I had chosen this time is an interesting article entitled “The Degree of Happiness” written by Betrand Russell. Once again the title reveals the content of the article but again the content is so impressive and qualified to be debated and questioned. Let start again, can you define the meaning of happiness? Open dictionary wouldn’t help because happiness is a feeling that every human encounter in life and largely in correlating with deep emotional feeling. Getting married, receive huge chunk of reward, celebrate birthday with a family is a common type of happiness that most of us enjoy and the quote “enjoy even the littlest thing” is often seem soothing because you know that happiness is a great feeling and everyone want to be happy right? 

To think it thorough there is a degree of happiness. Two sort of happiness is dividing open between two which is one, open to any human being and the other for those who can read and write. Sounds peculiar right? It has it logic as happiness does not depend on intellectual sources and can be as simple of lying on the sofa after a long day of work. Like I say, happiness is keen to be found at almost anywhere and even at the smallest and simplest thing like texting your girlfriend can cheer you right up. But for all we know, that type of happiness is only classified on the lowly educated section of the community or to be precise it only apply to normal-everyday civilian. 

Albert Einstein: He is happy in his world

To the higher educational section of the community like the researcher, archaeologist, scientist or even paranormal researcher, their happiness lies within their lifelong research which require little amount of emotion and more to their addiction and satisfaction from their work. Betrand wrote, "Einstein is happy while the best painter starve" proves his point that men of science still practices good old fashion domestic bliss from their curiosity and hunger for knowledge and solution to their problem. Though the term happiness varies from people to people, it is concluded that happiness is a strong feeling that nobody would object.

Article 1: Thinking Folly by Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle,the writer of the article "Thinking Folly"

Now let’s get into business. The first article that I’m going to share my though with you is entitled “Thinking Folly” by a talented writer named Eckhart Tolle. The title itself made me thinking on how the content will be. Remarkably Eckhart Tolle managed to steal my attention with his twisted theory about well….thinking of course. He wrote that the thinker, which he meant all of us humans live in a separate world and apparently not as friendly as we may assume because our thinking is filled with insanely complex world of continuous conflict and problems like an infinite twilight zone and represent the ever increasing fragmentation of the mind. I would say that Tolle is right because as a thinker, making a decision and being indecisive is always a part of our mind venturing into the unknown. 

Seriously, what are you thinking?

Conflict and problem infinitely cycles into our daily life create an illusion of separateness that makes us thinker felt not believing into reality although life is happening right in front of us. Now you know how otaku (Japanese title for nerds and geeks), atheist, communism and so on exist. 

So what is your brain-mover?

Our mind is a powerful tool if used wisely and a disease if in the wrong hand. Tolle also emphasize another interesting theory that thinking is a disease. How? Believe me when I say that we are not the one who control our mind as it is a completely on the opposite. Don’t believe me? Tell me how many times you get distracted on what you suppose to do, as an example, let say you’re on your laptop and decide to drink a while and open your fridge and found nothing but keep repeating the same action in hoping of there is something in the fridge. With a wandering but aimless thinking we back to our laptop without the water but then again a couple of minutes we do the same exact action again like being in hypnosis. That’s our brain and that is us it controls. Tolle also quote that our mind is a survival machine that attack and defense against other minds, gathering, storing and analyzing information but lack of creativity. 

Creative is said to come in a still mind and can be achieve in a quiet state of mind. So if you’re a heavy thinker, STOP it because you’re losing all your creativity! Though said, the mind carries a freedom that one can’t stop and having realized you are not on your on shadow make you wake up from the deep mind slumber.

Introduction of Critical Thinking

Alright let’s get started then, as this is my first post in this blog I would like to clarify that I will post a few of my though on the article stated in the book Study Guide of Critical Literacy on the subject COM 2533. But before I start, I would to explain a thing or two about critical thinking.

Well, basically critical thinking is a decision making process. Sounds plain is it? Believe me when I say it’s hard to make a decision because you need to carefully considering a problem, claim, and question on the daily basis or situation in order to find the best solution. Now you see what I’m talking about right?

Critical thinking utilizes our left and right brain to achieve our goal and what better than the combination of logical thinking in our left brain and our fantasy and imagination in our right brain. But beware; our brain can be fool although it has more power than a supercomputer and have more line than a server. Take care of your brain well with adequate food nutrition and make sure to USE your brain ALWAYS when doing critical thinking.

Yes, I am talking about you lazy bums who always stuck in front of your laptop. Free your mind and let it run and you’ll be surprise on what your brain can do.