In Which I Thank People for Ruining Stuff

Ironic title, but it serves its purpose. Sometimes things need to be ruined to ward off false impressions. For example, I thank the person who permanently ruined April Fool's for me. Not sarcastic. I thank my father for ruining Ayn Rand: I actually thought she was interesting until he made the analogy (another one, but not initially mine) of stop signs. If they were invented during Rand's life (were they? Doesn't matter, it's a theoretical example), she would say "This is a good invention, but what if we had stop signs every three inches? THAT wouldn't be good!" We do not have stop signs every three inches, and as far as I know nobody plans on it, so there's no need for a serious warning. In other words, she made outrageous scenarios by stretching thin basic concepts. and of course that is considered philosophy by some.

One thing I always change my mind about is The Chronicles of Narnia. I didn't like it at first because animals died (I was huge on animals), then I liked it when I saw the movie in 2005, then shortly after the Prince Caspian film, Pam (a friend) pointed out how predictable they are, what with Aslan always coming to the rescue. I am thankful to her for ruining it for me, although I'm now pretty OK with them because of the fantasy stuff. I do plan on finishing the books.

So while by no means is ruining always good, it can be, it seems.

Comment or whatever,
Lewis

English Journal #2 - Technological Dependence

* In the book Anthem there is a lack of modern technology. Think of two inventions of technology you could not live without. Why? How do they make your life easier and more enjoyable?

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I'd say that one thing I need to make my way through life would be a computer. This is because of my habitual tendency to type up stories. I find this faster and easier than writing things by hand. I am not saying that I am opposed to writing things by hand; that is how I originally wrote this entry. It is merely simpler to type. The other thing I feel to be a necessity would be a phone. If I become lost, or if there is an immediate emergency, I find calling to be much more useful than mail or birds.

I'm sure I could adapt without these--I am relatively hardy--but they both make life easier.

L*M*W

[Not in journal] This reminds me of something I so often wonder: Have the vaccines and medicines that have strengthened us against disease also weakened our immunities? What I mean by this is that we might be pampering our health. If somehow we did lose our technological advancements, would we all die from weakness? For example, lions eat raw meat. The germs (usually) do them no harm. But if we ripped into an antelope, we might catch something awful. Basically, with all this medical help, our bodies might not think that they need primitive defenses, and lower them. We may be spoiling ourselves. This last paragraph here was sparked by something Tom Monteleone wrote on the side in The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing a Novel. Just something to chew on...so to speak.