Azelma wrote:
If I didn't criticize myself after my interactions with our dear friend Mazeltov and <Twisted> and the fall-out that ensued then I wouldn't be who I am today (seriously).
Have you really grown or changed? I don't think so.
Most people go through life and ultimately become middle-aged or old, but really change very little. They like to talk about their experiences, but for most people, they shape their perceptions of their experiences, not the other way around.
I would say that you are much more similar to yourself two or five or ten years ago than I am. I am very arrogant in the here and now, but behind that arrogance is the self-knowledge of the adversity, evolution and growth that has brought my worldview to this point - and the knowledge that most people simply do not evolve at all.
A lot of that evolution is internal, the product of self-reflection and private meditation. I am who I am, but my views and attitudes have, over any given period of time, probably changed more than anyone who posts on these boards.
Azelma wrote:
I also think it's foolish to assume that my opinion is always the right opinion.
Hypocrisy. If you did not believe your opinion was correct you would not harbor the opinion.
Azelma wrote:
I value being challenged by others, and so I enjoy associating with people who will challenge me (perhaps that's what made me even attempt to socialize with you outside of these forums). I have a romantic view of society and the world in general. This might be a weakness, but I like to see the best in people. But......
You say that because it lets you hold an unjustifiably high opinion of yourself, but none of it is true.
Neither in or out of game nor within or without of your person do you seek challenge. And seeing what you want to see is not a weakness of character, it is the result of weakness of character.
If you want to hold a high opinion of yourself you have to put your money where your mouth is...you have to spill blood...I have paid that price and you have not. That is the difference between us.
Azelma wrote:
I ended a long high school friendship in college because he cheated on his fiance (who I was also friends with) and I had knowledge of it. I then was confronted by the fiance and evaluated my principals. I knew it would end the friendship, and so I told her the truth. I ended that friendship because I despise cheaters.
Superficial. The bias against "cheating" is popular, contemporary, irrational and hypocritical.
A matter of principle is always unpopular.
Azelma wrote:
This is not my belief. I believe you are flawed because you ignore your short-comings outright and prefer to focus on (and overstate) your strengths. You said it yourself...someone who recognizes or tries to improve upon their weaknesses is "in a state of self-doubt and internal paralysis". Do I come across as someone in this state to you?
Yes.
You fear difficult thoughts and you are afraid to ask difficult questions about how things are and why you do what you do. You stick to positive interpretations and contemporary values because you are too scared to invent your own. Again, the ironic relevance of Mazeltov's observation.
One of the things I mentioned in my "How To Lead Pugs" guide is the connection between self-image and in-game performance - how many of the most ineffectual players are people who, although they may have "lives" in the conventional sense, are people with no internal drive.
Azelma wrote:
...I am quite moderate, and quite "neutral." You know those political tests you take where it plots you on the political spectrum for your fiscal views and your social views?
I took one a few months ago and landed basically right in the middle (leaning slightly left). It was kind of hilarious. Perhaps that does make me an uninteresting poster on these forums when it comes to intense debates...but I can only be myself.
Having liquid viewpoints about a variety of issues does not mean I have no principals though, and it does not mean that I don't have a center of gravity. I most certainly do.
That's exactly what it means.
Do you really believe that truth is dead in the middle of the rhetorical dartboard?
No? Then why do you lay there? Coincidence? Or is there perhaps a reason why?
Azelma wrote:
Yes, capitalize on your strengths...we should all do this. However, your steadfast refusal to work to improve upon your weaknesses is your fatal flaw.
If you believe this, you do not know me well.
Azelma wrote:
Having difficulty in relationships is not a fatal flaw. Refusing to work on your flaws, and overstating your strengths IS though. Read any Greek tragedy...
One of the defining elements of Greek tragedy is that no character ever overcomes his flaws.
The corollary is that it's not necessary. "Overcoming flaws" is a euphemism for "irrational vanity".
Azelma wrote:
It's hubris that is your fatal flaw, Aestu. I'm sure if you lived back then you'd have at least one play written about you. It wouldn't end well.
You do not know me well.
Would you care to guess who my favorite Greek hero is, and which of his is my favorite scene?
