Right Logic: Or, Being Virtuous In Mind, and Words

[0scar Wilde/ATT]

This class will focus on using logic for the purposes of good. How to analyze a situation dispassionately, and respond accordingly. This class will focus on thinking and speaking in ways that produce clarity and understanding in those you interact with.

Students will be graded on their ability to be understood, and the positive effects of their speech. Right logic is the domain of seeing the world as it is, without seeking to produce benefit for yourself, but for people as a whole.

[0scar Wilde/ATT]

First Discourse- Certains Characteristics of Right Logic


There are many things that exemplify Right Logic. Among them are truth, service, justice, honor, and charity.

To be truthful is a very important aspect of Right Logic. To be deceitful is a warning sign for misdeeds. It shows a lack of trust for the person that you are speaking to. It is a sign of ulterior motive. Many times people lie to keep something from being known. If something hidden by a lie were known, the odds of the person lying getting what they want would be much less. It is informative though, that people with a reputation for lying will find honest friends scarce. They will find themselves surrounded by people they cannot trust. A truthful man may very well have people that lie to him. But it is likely that other truthful men will seek out his company knowing that he can be trusted.

Service is the act of working for the good of your community, or people as a whole. The virtuous man can ignore his own goals to help others knowing that he is creating a better world by doing so. By helping others we improve lives outside our own, that improve other lives. Conversely, to serve only your own desires is to ignore your inner needs and to become impoverished in spirit.

Justice is a paramount aspect of Right Logic. To be just is to be fair. A virtuous man does not act so as to harm others for his own misdeeds. If you do something wrong, it is unjust to let someone else be punished. It is unjust to punish people for crimes they have not committed, or to attribute crimes to people that have not committed any. The just and virtuous man seeks to pay his debts, and create no debts for other men to pay.

Honor is the characteristic of being trustworthy. A man of honor can promise something, and it can be counted on that it will be done. A man of honor does not work towards ulterior motives while claiming to work in the public good. To be honorable is to be what you say you are, to be transparent when it comes to motives. Honorable men do not seek to look honorable, they seek to be honorable.

Charity is the characteristic of being generous. A virtuous man gives to others. To be kind to others is charity. To give food to the hungry, to help those in need is to be charitable. A virtuous man seeks to help mankind, and to hold that as an infinitely more precious goal then personal enrichment. To make the world better is to use one's resources in the best, most efficient manner.

Right Logic is the practic of logically following the path of virtue. These virtues are not the same in all situations. They must be balanced. The practice of Right Logic is to follow the path that enriches everybody. While Wrong Logic is geared towards getting you where you want to be, Right Logic is concerned with getting you where you need to be.

[Bletheropolis: the cat sleeps]

so is there a sequel to this first discourse?

[0scar Wilde/ATT]

For Blether anything. Sure, discourse #2

Help people without hope of gain.

This can be very hard. If you end up working with someone for many hours, you usually want at least a thank you. Maybe a couple of bucks. If that is the case, you are pricing you help. Help should ideally come from a desire to see people better off.

Why?
People will trust you. They will help you. They will feel comfortable around you. People that make of habit of being helpful naturally end up with people that care about them.

Dangers. Some people will take advantage of someone that seeks to be helpful. It is nice to put some limits on this. You will help someone with yard work. You will not buy someone a new car. You will drive someone to a doctor's visit. You won't redo the plumbing in their house. You may want to do these things for someone well down the road, but buying something expensive for someone, or doing large amounts of labor for someone who you don't know well, will often lead to that person expecting more. You don't want to be taken advantage of. Help to an extant that you are comfortable with, and hopefully seek to expand that comfort over time and help more people.

I only put such a large disclaimer because there are people who will take advantage of someone that is willing to lend a helping hand. It is sad. But, helping people can be a wonderful experience. You will feel better about yourself, and others will feel better about you.

Does anybody have any questions?

[Bletheropolis: the cat sleeps]

thanks, Oscar.
the limits to helpfullness makes a lot of sense. and of course the rewards you outlined are true.

I wonder, though, if it is right to apply Right Logic to achieve a Wrong Logic goal?
eg. Do (part-time) Charity work as part of sanctioned office "welfare" activity, to show off your organisational capabilities in order to achieve a promotion for yourself.

[0scar Wilde/ATT]

No. It is not.

While some techniques are Wrong Logic(lying, pretending to do something) the same cannot be said about Right Logic. It is very much about the intent in Right Logic. It is not automatically right to help your neighbor with yard work if you are trying to figure out how to break into his house. 'Good' things, done for bad reasons, soon show themselves to be bad.

In your example, I'm not sure that is Wrong Logic. It is not automatically Wrong Logic to want a promotion. If you know that you will work hard, and contribute well, then it is not in and of itself Wrong Logic. If you phrase your sentence differently, or somewhat modify your intent, that is not Wrong Logic at all. Do charity work as part of a sanctioned office 'welfare' activity, knowing that it will show off your organizational capabilities, knowing this will make it more likely for you to achieve the promotion that you would perform well in. If you perform a good task, you are not doing it as someone blind to the positive results. The point, is that one should not be doing 'good' things solely to achieve career goals.

[Bletheropolis: the cat sleeps]

so... I should stop my charity work! Good idea. I'll draft the email posthaste!
*wicked grin*

[0scar Wilde/ATT]

Are you doing charity only as a means for promotion? If so, that is a funny question.

It makes one wonder if there is any harm done by your self-centered intentions vs. the good done by your actions. When weighed that way, it is probably better to do a good thing for a bad reason than to not do good things. I suppose that would fall into a neutral gray area. It is neither great, nor is it horrible to help people for selfish reasons.

[Bletheropolis: the cat sleeps]

nah. I'm just having fun with ya. otherwise I'd have left this class long ago.

Truth is, I do charity because I like being useful and I think a) it's good for my spiritual resume, b) it's something nice to add to my yearly work appraisal, c) I get my little "highs" from i) recieving +ve feedback (aka encouragement), ii) seeing how the charitable event that my team organises brings out the generousity in my colleagues, d) it encourages me, the relative loner, to circulate amongst my fellow colleagues.

I'd just started the charity gig last year, a half year after I'd been born again in Christ. I thought it was a natural step forward for me, and the opportunity did present itself, so I stepped into the position. I also thought that it would be a good thing for me to have a +ve profile to management, whom I'd probably have to get clearance from for our activities.

I haven't yet changed my mind about this gig being a good idea, and I'm looking at a second "term of office" =)

[Mutanatia]

This class is hereby declared "retired" because the teacher isn't active.