5 ms·

I would say opportunity + curiosity + propensity is the formula and we know what curiosity and propensity are not chosen things. The other caveat is just anomal

I would say opportunity + curiosity + propensity is the formula and we know what curiosity and propensity are not chosen things. The other caveat is just anomalous ability and although rare we have strong evidence of these people existing. There's nothing wrong with that. I don't have the baggage that you speak but understandable. What you mean is applicable for the average folks, me included.

hoaw 8y ago
I get what you are trying say. It is just that most of society doesn't care if you are smart, creative or trying to do anything special when you are trying to get an education, apartment or anything else on your own terms. It is only once you succeed that people are quick to call you all those things before going back to enforcing the same rules you barely survived. It is sort of like an honorary degree.
- sebringj 8y ago
  There is something to be said for that, 20/20 hindsight is easy to classify and mistakingly so bringing reasons for things unknown or impossible to know ahead of time is silly. I get that too.
- a1369209993 8y ago
  > It is only once you succeed that people are quick to call you [smart, creative, etc] before going back to enforcing the same rules you barely survived. This very eloquently sums up most of my experience with society. If you succeed, it's 100% because of talent or privilige or dumb luck or not having to work a part-time job to feed yourself/your younger siblings/your ravenous creditors, and 0% because of any actual effort on your part. If you fail, it's clearly because you're a lazy good-for-nothing welfare-sucking leech, and any attempt to point out other reasons is just excuse-making. "If we succeed, no one will remember. If we fail, no one will forget." (Incidentally, while trying to find the source for the above, I discovered that Google considers it a "inspirational quot[e] about overcoming failure".)

hoaw 8y ago

I get what you are trying say. It is just that most of society doesn't care if you are smart, creative or trying to do anything special when you are trying to get an education, apartment or anything else on your own terms. It is only once you succeed that people are quick to call you all those things before going back to enforcing the same rules you barely survived. It is sort of like an honorary degree.

sebringj 8y ago
There is something to be said for that, 20/20 hindsight is easy to classify and mistakingly so bringing reasons for things unknown or impossible to know ahead of time is silly. I get that too.
a1369209993 8y ago
> It is only once you succeed that people are quick to call you [smart, creative, etc] before going back to enforcing the same rules you barely survived. This very eloquently sums up most of my experience with society. If you succeed, it's 100% because of talent or privilige or dumb luck or not having to work a part-time job to feed yourself/your younger siblings/your ravenous creditors, and 0% because of any actual effort on your part. If you fail, it's clearly because you're a lazy good-for-nothing welfare-sucking leech, and any attempt to point out other reasons is just excuse-making. "If we succeed, no one will remember. If we fail, no one will forget." (Incidentally, while trying to find the source for the above, I discovered that Google considers it a "inspirational quot[e] about overcoming failure".)