Davis Clark - Existential Vision lyrics

For, truth to tell, dancing in all its forms cannot be excluded from the curriculum of all noble education: dancing with the feet, with ideas, with words, and need I add that one must also be able to dance with pen – that one must learn how to write. Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols, or, How to Philosophize with a Hammer What an extraordinary change takes place when one first learns the rules for the indicative and the subjunctive, when for the first time the fact that everything depends upon how a thing is thought first enters the consciousness, when, in consequence, thought in its absoluteness replaces an apparent reality. Søren Kierkegaard, Journal The ability to dance is lost in America; indeed, I don't think most people understand themselves, much less other people. I moved into my home – 2007 Chevy Tahoe – white – nearly one year ago; as an experience, it's been, more or less, trivial. Between an iPhone and MacBook, I can sit for hours, my mind entering world after world, far away from my physical body and car. A day or two ago, I looked out upon a palm tree, struck with how little time I spent appreciating nature. In that moment, I realized the depths to which our reality had changed. My basic knowledge of code is far more useful to my understanding of the world than any other science I have ever learned. Without a technical understanding of computers, the Internet, a smartphone, there is no practical difference between computing tech and magic. And, since 2005, there's been a 17% decline in the number of secondary schools offering intro to computer science courses? The dance was over long ago. Conceptual models In his cla**ic, The Design of Everyday Things, Don Norman notes the importance of a solid conceptual model: Conceptual models are valuable in providing understanding , in predicting how things will behave, and in figuring out what to do when things do not go as planned. A good conceptual model allows us to predict the effects of our actions. Without a good model, we operate by rote, blindly; we do operations as we were told to do them; we can't fully appreciate why, what effects to expect, or what to do if things go wrong. As long as things work properly, we can manage. When things go wrong, however, or when we come upon a novel situation, then we need a deeper understanding, a good model. Conceptual models long held by Americans have failed. Boomers derived identity from their profession, socioeconomic status, rule-anchored nature. Gen Ys are paralyzed in utter confusion. Boomers taught Y how the world should work. Y was unwilling to stand. Both are avid tech users, magic in the air. The path fades at the end of a career that's spanned four decades, the Ol' Boomer is realizing how little their loyalty ever meant, how people care nothing for their status, how fast the world explodes; thus, they k** themselves at ever-increasing rates. Traditional career paths, encouraged by the old, are often the only paths viable in the eyes of Y, churning forth unemployable graduates, loathsome millennials, voids, existing in utter confusion. 79% hold bachelor degrees; 25% live with mom and dad. Most don't have a clue what to do. Unfortunately, older Americans continue to interact with the young, on old terms, while our education system inundates the children with ancient curricula. Technological illiteracy is about half of what's wrong with world; I believe the other half is: most people don't understand people. Ecce h*mo Most people are not strong enough. Ben Horowitz, The Struggle Existential vision is the conceptual model that's been the foundation for my optimism throughout life's heaviest moments. It anchors my sense of self, without precluding change, and guides my interactions with people from every environment. Existential vision is rooted in an existentialist outlook, outlined as follows: Every human first exists as an individual – born and dying alone. Individual existence is tied to paradoxes, which cause inner discomfort (anxiety): living with the approach and presence of d**h; insatiable loneliness amidst social interaction; a desire for freedom, but disdain for responsibility; and the all-consuming fear of meaninglessness. Discomfort spurs the individual to action, which can lead in one of two ways: give oneself to a prepackaged, inauthentic identity; or embrace the struggle for an authentic life, accept that without discomfort there is no joy, learn and pursue one's true pa**ions, and consistently challenge oneself with life's toughest questions. The inauthentic operate by rote, blindly; they do what society tells them to; they'll never appreciate why, what effects to expect, or what to do if things go wrong. If things go wrong, the inauthentic will fight to maintain their grip on their prepackaged identity – they need an “other” against which to define themselves and validate their constructed identity. The authentic struggle is painfully raw and fraught with fraudulence, as the inauthentic strive to stifle independent thought. Nonetheless, the authentic individual remains so in all conditions.