Post photo: time out | © Shutterstock
With a message from Bertrand Russell, which he gave to future generations as early as 1959, I would like to slowly but surely take a break, albeit a small one.
The entire interview "Face to face", which Bertrand Russell already existed 87 years ago, you can find it right here in a nearly 30-minute version:
Bertrand Russell was a renowned philosopher, mathematician, logician and critic of religion, who also received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1950.
He is probably better known to us for what is probably the best book on the SPD, “Die deutsche Sozialdemokratie”, which he wrote as early as 1896, or for his work on Bolshevism, “The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism” (1920). As far as I know, he never wrote about the German Union parties, the respective professional politicians here traditionally and gladly do that themselves. Although they do not receive a Nobel Prize in Literature for their improved essays on sentiment, they are regularly awarded doctorates at German universities — which meanwhile allows good conclusions to be drawn about the quality and morality of the relevant faculties at our universities.
But he wrote about "marriage and morals" (pure Union issues) and also explained to us why he was not a Christian — he probably knew far too many pastors or supposedly Christian politicians. Which may have motivated him as early as 1953 to the following book: "Satan in the Suburbs and Other Stories".
I still think his writings on the history of Western philosophy (1946) are exciting and I believe that with the book "The Conquest of Happiness" (1930) he initiated a completely new type of self-help books that are no longer available in our bookshops are indispensable.
As I said, I'm taking a little break now and also considering whether I can do without social media and some other little helpers that I've come to love.
"The merits of democracy are negative: it does not insure good government, but it prevents certain evils."
Bertrand Russell, A New Social Analysis (1938)
Hello dear Henry
Just got back from a week in New York, where my son was with his family and finished a year and a half postdoc, but wanted to show us "his" New York again.
The appendix with Russel is of course very impressive. I still have to watch the whole half hour.
I would like to comment very cautiously on your plan to withdraw for the time being — if I understand correctly: from your close-meshed weblog — but from my point of view I agree with you if you see this as a break and not as an end.
I had the impression that you were and are so loaded with this new shitty war -- also because of your sometimes dramatic professional experiences -- that sometimes a lot of anger and bitterness was expressed. This is understandable, but if you don't do performance art or similar, for example, and you can and want to cope with and transport the strong emotions associated with it yourself, and thereby deal with emotions through emotions, it will probably become even more stressful and therefore also increasingly subjective, because you then have to constantly explain the opposite: that what you say is a desired “objectivity”, which can and may only result from a more sober, more rational, if not lifeless, approach to the object.
But after everything in you - I also think frustration about Europe and after your interim health slump - the latter is perhaps really not the adequate and good medium for you at the moment: it only heats you up even more.
I hope you don't find these statements of mine -- which of course involve a bit of a risk -- not offensive. See you again soon, at some point I'm sure we'll talk about the "talks" as well, which is a bit of a hassle, but it's almost a duty that you recognize and don't complain about, especially since it's "keep within limits"...
Walther
Dear Walther, thank you for your compassionate words. You are not the first reader who would like to read from me again soon. And I can't get away from it that much. If everything goes well, I'll be on a plane to the USA on Wednesday and let my feet dangle. Unfortunately, I can't make New York this time — it's supposed to be a little relaxing. Heinrich