Philosophical Business Cards! ;-D

If you were to carry around with you some token of your personal philosophy---something you believe or that you wish other people understood, or a provocative quotation that has value in your life---what would it say?

(Side Note: Sorry about the slight scratchiness of the audio. I'm still not sure why my camera does that sometimes.)

In case you were curious, here are some of my all-time favorite quotations, all of which will show up on the cards I'll be making:

The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off. -- Gloria Steinem

It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change. -- Charles Darwin

Wanting to reform the world without discovering one's true self is like trying to cover the world with leather to avoid the pain of walking on stones and thorns. It is much simpler to wear shoes. -- Ramana Maharshi

when man determined to destroy
himself he picked the was
of shall and finding only why
smashed it into because
-- e. e. cummings

I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires. -- Susan B. Anthony

It is well worth the efforts of a life-time to have attained knowledge which justifies an attack on the root of all evil ... which asserts that because forms of evil have always existed in society, therefore they must always exist. -- Elizabeth Blackwell

When people ask about life after death they're assuming they accurately understand life DURING LIFE. But do they? Do you? -- Brad Warner, *Hardcore Zen: Punk Rock, Monster Movies, and the Truth About Reality*

Everything has to be taken on trust; truth is only that which is taken to be true. It's the currency of the living. There may be nothing behind it, but it doesn't make any difference so long as it is honoured. One acts on assumptions. What do you assume? -- Tom Stoppard, "Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead"

When people are fanatically dedicated to political or religious faiths or any other kinds of dogmas or goals, it's always because these dogmas or goals are in doubt. -- Robert Pirsig, *Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance*

I know, I know. You're afraid of making mistakes. Don't be. Mistakes can be profited by. Man, when I was younger I SHOVED my ignorance in people's faces. They beat me with sticks. By the time I was forty my blunt instrument had been honed to a fine cutting point for me. If you hide your ignorance, no one will hit you and you'll never learn. -- Ray Bradbury, *Fahrenheit 451*

To discover the good and bad points of a person is an easy thing, and to give an opinion concerning them is easy, too. For the most part, people think that they are being kind by saying the things that others find distasteful or difficult to say. But if it is not received well, they think that there is nothing more to be done. This is completely worthless. It is the same as bringing shame to a person by slandering him. -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo, *The Hagakure* (translated by William Scott Wilson)

There's never been a true war that wasn't fought between two sets of people who were certain they were in the right. The really dangerous people believe that they are doing whatever they are doing solely and only because it is without question the right thing to do. And that is what makes them dangerous. -- Neil Gaiman, *American Gods*

There is no greater illusion than fear ... Whoever can see through all fear will always be safe. -- Lao Tsu, Chapter 46 of the *Tao Te Ching* (translated by Stephen Mitchell)

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• street
• evangelism
• pamphlets
• response
• business
• cards
• philosophy
• missionaries
• exchange

[hyrcan]

That is brilliant! haha I'm going to put some thought into what I would be giving out.

[pmcrimson]

Cool! Let me know what you come up with!

[EdWont]

haha, that's great! when i was an undergrad, i always wanted to carry around a bunch of ribbons that said things like "Way to Go!" or something to that extent, and give them to people who would be talking about their drinking and/or sexual exploits at inappropriate volumes. I've gotten less bitter/judgmental since then...plus, I'm not sure the satire would've been appreciated.

If I had philosophy business cards NOW, they'd say, "Think for yourself."

[pmcrimson]

Ha! My friends in college would have gotten your "Way to Go!" ribbons quite a lot, those bragging philanderers! ;-)

I like "Think for yourself."

[CousinoMacul]

Don't worry about things which you cannot control. For they are beyond your control so worrying is a waste of time.

Don't worry about thing which you can control. For every second that you waste worrying, is a second that could have been better spent doing something.

[pmcrimson]

I agree it's important that people recognize what is beyond them (to prevent wasting time and energy in useless moping) and what is within their power to change (their own behavior, towards others and themselves). Of the amateur philosophy posts I have in mind, I want to do one that talks about meaning in life as a human creation, not as inherent in events. It's a philosophy that, for me, commands active personal responsibility. We have a duty to create meaning through reflection and action.

[theboombody]

I'm a fundamentalist by the way, but philosophical business cards are still a good idea.

[theboombody]

Darn, you thought of this way before I did. I wanted to make some G-rated Shock Value business cards.

[phlewis86]

That's a great idea. 

[Frodine86]

That's a great idea!