I now anticipate the end of NYSC.
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Take a Stand, Listen / Opinions & Stakeholders
Throughout 2023, I have contended more than I ever have in my entire life! And the thing is, I have been contending for my life, literally. I won't come onto the internet to describe many episodes of tears, confusion, and painful anxiety. What I would say, though, is that you need to take a stand. You absolutely need to, so you're not tossed about by every and any opinion, no matter the source.
And while you build your stand, you need to be able to listen to advice. I don't mean to heed everything someone dishes out, but to be able to listen, and then act, ready to bear the consequences. I am strong-willed, so I know it's not easy. Man, I had to talk to God to objectively listen without bias to my desires.
Among many things, I'm closing this year with the understanding that (1) we won't always have what we want (and I will trust that God is wiser than me), and (2) parents are stakeholders in our lives; if we lose, they lose, and if we win, they win. They literally have stakes in our lives, so why not hear them out? That said, build the doggedness to stand for something because you are responsible for the outcome of your life.
Yes, I know. That last line is not original (😆).
Signed,
Dayo
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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this section of the show. Many things have passed before my eyes, but things I actually finished?
The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin. Never mind the fact that I didn’t easily imagine many descriptions, I like the story. I like what's going on, and so I am now on book two of the trilogy.
Why I Am Not a Christian, an essay by Bertrand Russell. I read it because 'no biases,' and honestly, I was disappointed. I was expecting damage-inflicting arguments against Christianity to the extent that I would have to rethink my faith. I think the arguments are weak, and at some point, I thought, "This does not make sense; how did he get from there to here?"
Why was I expecting such? I had read Why I Am Not a Muslim by Ibn Warraq a few years ago and was expecting the same level of intensity. Heaven knows I hate Ibn Warraq's book. While I am familiar with some arguments against Islam, this book carries the tone of a hateful person and unfounded praise for secular humanism, in my opinion. But I digress. I was disappointed because Bertrand Russell's arguments were weak.
In fear of confirmation bias, this is someone else’s review so you get what I mean by ‘weak’:
I probably would have liked this book a lot more if I had read it when I was younger, but now I find Russell's critique of religion profoundly disappointing. For a logician and philosopher of his caliber, his proofs--on the reasons why the basis of religious belief is existential terror, for example--are unconvincing and sometimes shockingly sloppy. They tend to rely on a straw-man caricatures that he sets up and knocks down, rather than actually engaging with the roots of faith or the complexities of metaphysics. Moreover, his critique of social mores is superficial, his proposed solutions naive at best, and his grasp of history so insultingly bad that he actually blames the outbreak of World War I on Christianity (p. 203). I expected more from such a legendary intellectual figure.
NB: I do not know if the author of this comment is religious.
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