About two years ago I discovered a philosophy that changed my life. The Spanish philosopher Miguel De Unamuno describes our actions as thus: "...our ethical and philosophical doctrines are nothing more than a posteriori justifications of our conduct, of our actions." This implies that we justify our actions a posteriori, or after we participate in them. For example, think of something that you take for granted. Let's say, driving your car. Many of us would justify this by rationalizing that even though it causes pollution and it's most important ally, oil, causes war and death, we still, nevertheless, must drive: how else would I get to school? Work? The doctor? It would be much too inconvenient to move somewhere so that driving is no longer necessary. Hence, we justify our beliefs in driving after we have included it in our "philosophical and ethical doctrines." This axiom can be easily applied to numerous other beliefs: what we eat, what we wear, our religious beliefs, our economic and political ideals.
If nothing else, because of this implication, we can now see and admit our hypocrisy, our duplicity.
I'm not sure that I want to explain this theory in any greater depth; his idea can't be forced upon anyone. If a person honestly examines his surroundings, this quote will have more meaning. Hopefully at least someone can see the importance of this philosophy; hopefully they can be brave enough to put it into action.
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