odin
Officer
Confused Wanderer in the War Zone
chuch
Posts: 161
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Post by odin on Jun 27, 2010 22:17:29 GMT 1
Hey folks. I thought I'd start a thread for all the philosophically minded.
I'm interested to see what philosophical leanings other Warers have.Any Rationalists? Empiricists? Solipsists? Theists? Atheists? Feminists? Angnostics? Satanists? Feminists? Realists? Cynics? Skeptics? Pragmatists? Or god forbid Objectivists? (Damn you Ayn Rand.)
I generally classify myself as a Theist and a Pragmatist with unhealthy doses of solipsism thrown in for fun.
So... Any new insights on Camus' Problem of Evil?
Also as a disclaimer, I'm not a Taoist, so I can't really provide any insight as to the Tao of Total War. If you have any questions about Taoism please direct them at your local Taoist or failing that Wikipedia.
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Post by Sayn on Jun 27, 2010 22:43:12 GMT 1
You are aware that you wrote Feminists twice, right? Anyway, I'm personally very "If there's evidence then it's believable" so I guess I'm a Pragmatist as well. Which naturally means I'm very non-religious. I also have a pretty harsh view of the world, which is usually contrasted slightly in my nations, I think, such as my Asgardian Empire. Just for future reference, do we have any religious people here? I don't want to step on anyone's toes by mistake.
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Post by krennel on Jun 27, 2010 22:59:58 GMT 1
I worship the sun, though that groups with the whole "If there evidence it's belivable thing" Well not really, but that would be interesting.
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odin
Officer
Confused Wanderer in the War Zone
chuch
Posts: 161
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Post by odin on Jun 27, 2010 23:02:38 GMT 1
;D Fruedian slip?
I consider myself religious. I actually thought about becoming a pastor or maybe converting and becoming a priest.
Don't worry about stepping on my toes, I'm wearing steel toed shoes. I don't know that there's anything anyone could say that would offend me to deeply, other then proclaiming to be a Randist, which would more make me sad then offended.
Of course I might be more open then most. After all I'm playing the part of God in a game where the players are all trying to become the next God.
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Post by Sayn on Jun 27, 2010 23:02:52 GMT 1
In many ways, I guess worshiping the sun makes more sense than most religions. At least it is responsible for giving us life etc. Also, Odin, I actually do wear steel-capped boots.
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Post by dargon on Jun 27, 2010 23:16:09 GMT 1
Me I'm an Thesist which is kind of an odd term. No need to worry about offending me I'm pretty much immune to that sort of thing. Though getting me into a debate will be a little messy Oh I guess I would be an idealist and an exclusive anarchist.
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Post by Sayn on Jun 27, 2010 23:31:02 GMT 1
Alright, to kick things of a bit, here's a question:
What kind of nation do you tend to play, or want to play, in Total War games and why?
For example, though I am usually fairly varied in my play, I think I tend to go for the Empires ruled by a strong Emperor. Why? I think I have mild power fantasies. You know, the whole "I get to decide everything" part. I may be a bit of a control freak, as I'm sure the players of my own Total War 2260 can vouch for. I also like writing cool speeches for Emperors and similar characters. I don't know if this says something about me, personally, but there you have it. How about you guys?
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Post by dargon on Jun 27, 2010 23:38:35 GMT 1
I pretty varied and what I feel like playing depends alot on how I'm feeling at that paticular moment.
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Post by puppyavenger on Jun 27, 2010 23:49:56 GMT 1
hmm, philosophically I suppose I sort of think on two levels.
intellectually, I believe that Cartesian doubt and Humes disproof of causality preclude any definite conclusions beyond "there are thoughts". That is, there is no proof whatsoever that the sum of our experiences and senses are not the result of a fever dream, or something similar.
However, I;m just a tiny bit to empathetic to just accept that, so my politics, behavior and so on generally follow from the assumption that my senses and memory are at least moderately accurate. I guess I'm a bit of a rationalist "if it has an effect, it can be observed, if it can be observed it can be quantified" is a mantra that makes a lot of sense to me.
Politically, I'd be a panarchist if I had a modicum of faith in humanities ability to coexist peacefully without the threat of violence. Cynical as I am, I suppose I'm a soicial democrat.
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Post by Rationalgoblin on Jun 28, 2010 0:16:01 GMT 1
I'm a Mormon, and a Pragmatist, with slight shades of a dreamer sort of personality. I'm opposed to the full extent of Objectivism, but I think that a bit of it, combined with seeking Gods help, will achieve anything.
Still, I hate Ayn Rand with a passion. Accompanying that, I hate every last thing the Tea Party does. Also, I have a great belief in science, and see no reason why science and faith can't agree, in the end.
Yep. I don't get offended easily, so don't worry.
Anyways, I agree with you Sayn. I like the mighty Emperors, with the grand speeches and epic battles. I love having all-powerful rulers that decide the fate of countries on a whim. I especially like characters that proclaim themselves God, probably stemming from my Mormon belief that the righteous will be as gods eventually.
Of course, I also love scheming characters, of the kind that promise the world and deliver as little as possible, or as much as possible, depending on the circumstances.
Finally, I like my characters to have a strong belief in science.
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Murska
Officer
But I thought we were friends...
Posts: 155
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Post by Murska on Jun 28, 2010 0:19:57 GMT 1
...puppyavenger just summed my thoughts on knowledge up exactly in those two paragraphs in the middle.
I believe in existance being formed of energy and data, which is the patterns the energy is in. Dunno what that makes me, I'm not too versed in the english terms of philosophy. I also find the separation of 'mental' and 'physical' faulty. I believe it's all physical.
I also think that since I do not believe in supernatural, everything must be natural and thus follow the underlying laws of nature. Thus, I do not believe in free will and am a bit of a determinist. This doesn't affect my actions, however, since while we can't actually predict the future thanks to not being able to know the present exactly (uncertainty principle), it doesn't really mean anything.
And in Total Wars, I tend to look at the setting and then think up a general frame as to what kind of thing I wish to try this time. Haven't found any single one I'd particularly like thus far. I tend to like Espionage though; I have the Art of War on my desk and I believe in mobility and flexibility over raw power.
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Post by Sayn on Jun 28, 2010 0:22:02 GMT 1
Hey Murska, would you recommend reading the Art of War? I've been thinking about getting a copy.
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Murska
Officer
But I thought we were friends...
Posts: 155
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Post by Murska on Jun 28, 2010 0:26:06 GMT 1
It's very interesting. Mainly it's just common sense to me, though, but it's kind of a principle thing; can't call myself a strategist without a copy.
And it's a very good book, really. My version is in chinese and english, so I learn languages while I'm at it. Plus, spewing quotes of the AoW in a conversation makes you look smart.
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Post by Sayn on Jun 28, 2010 0:29:15 GMT 1
Well, looks like I'll have to get myself a copy then. While I'm at it, I should probably learn how to play Go (or at least slightly better, since I already know the basics). I've heard that Sun Tzu's warfare is kind of like playing Go, rather than Chess or something. Plus, it's just an interesting game.
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Post by puppyavenger on Jun 28, 2010 1:16:07 GMT 1
Go is fun.
Haven't read Art of War, and I really should at some point, might as well try and find a copy of Clausewitz too while I'm at it.
On a vaguely similar topic, anyone read Machiavelli? I found The Prince online and you can read a good chunks of the Discourses on google books, and I found thme both quite interesting.
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