Adrian Beltran
- You probably don't know what's best for yourself
Given any single issue there is usually a multitude of nuanced stances one could take. Given any set number of opinions on an issue there is only ever one most correct opinion or answer. This means that by default most people usually don't know what is best for themselves. It is therefore very probable that you are very wrong about a lot of things.
Adrian Beltran
- The Mentally Handicapped
Do not feel sorry for the intellectually and developmentally disabled simply because they do not understand as you do. It is pretentious to assume your existence is superior to theirs merely because they are not as intelligent as you. There are very probably plenty of mentally handicapped men and women who live much happier and more satisfying lives than you do. And if you do not envy the man who is happier than you I believe that reveals a certain kind of intellectual disability in yourself.
Adrian Beltran
If you teach your child that they can accomplish anything they set their minds to, what you really will have done is set them up for a disappointment that will follow them their entire lives. Some people are simply incapable of great achievements and must settle for mediocrity. Even if you are incredibly talented at everything, the fact is there is too much to do in this life to do it all. Everyone dies.
Ralph Ellison
- Intro to Chapter Five of Invisible Man
And I recall the sudden arpeggios of laughter lilting across the tender, springtime grass - gay-welling, far-floating, fluent, spontaneous, a bell-like feminine fluting, then suppressed; as though snuffed swiftly and irrevocably beneath the quiet solemnity of the vespered air now vibrant with somber chapel bells.
Adrian Beltran
You will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do, unless you rape somebody. I guess there is the possibility that you might not regret it, however, I still urge you not to do that. Keep your bowlines in your pants. Don't explore women who do not wish to be explored or dream of little girls or discover the thrill of murder.
Adrian Beltran
Our minds feed off of contrast. Water never quite tastes as good as when you are desperately thirsty. In the same manner, happiness isn't really quite happiness if you have not felt unhappy. However this doesn't make unhappiness or pain or sadness beautiful, despite the fact that it can be at times. It just makes it something of a necessity.
Adrian Beltran
- Hard Work
Hard work isn't everything, and no amount of perspiration will make all of your dreams come true. No amount of hard work can make you a good novelist if you have no imagination. No amount of hard work can make you a good musician if you have no sense of rhythm. You are shaped by your genetics. You are irrevocably limited. It is, however, your duty to test these limitations and to work hard to become the very best version of yourself.
Adrian Beltran
- Change
Self is the compilation of experiences and memories and beliefs and attitudes that shape the way that one will react in a given situation. However, at any point in time one is acquiring new experiences and memories and beliefs and attitudes. Therefore the self is constantly changing. So in a way, the person you are now most probably isn't the person that you were ten years ago. In a sense you yourself haven't really been alive as long as you might think.
Sam Harris
My concern is that our religions, the diversity of our religious doctrines, is going to get us killed. I'm worried that our religious discourse - our religious beliefs are ultimately incompatible with civilization.
Sam Harris
Consider it: every person you have ever met, every person will suffer the loss of his friends and family. All are going to lose everything they love in this world. Why would one want to be anything but kind to them in the meantime?
Albert Einstein
- The word God
The word god is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honourable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish. No interpretation no matter how subtle can change this.
Epicurus
- Death
Death is nothing to us; for that which has been dissolved into its elements experiences no sensations, and that which has no sensation is nothing to us.
Adrian Beltran
- Mistakes
Mistakes are inevitable, but to say that they are necessary for progress is a load of bologna. A lot of really bad practice might lead to progress, but your mind is just as good at repeating mistakes as it is repeating the right thing. You must train your mind to perform the task correctly, and if you make consecutive mistakes, this road will be lengthened if not made indefinite. Perfect practice is impossible, however it is the model we must strive towards.
Adrian Beltran
- On Catholicism
If god is in the business of doing miracles, how come these miracles are all sparse and dubious? If god is in the business of revealing himself why does he not do so to everyone and fully? Even if it is our duty to spread the news ourselves in the time of Abraham essentially the entire planet was left out of the loop. Why was there a "chosen people" and why was the old testament so violent? Why was dying on the cross necessary for an all-powerful god to forgive the sins of his own creation?
Adrian Beltran
- Death
The best book I've ever read had an end. Every book must eventually come to an end. Certain stories must be brief. An ending is not and does not have to be bad. Your own life must end. Whether your story is one to be remembered fondly is up to you. Your life is in many ways your greatest masterpiece. Don't mess it up.
Adrian Beltran
- Terrorists
America will never forget September 11, 2001. Three thousand innocent lives were taken. However, there are bigger problems than terrorism. In that same year in America, over thirteen thousand people died from drunk driving accidents, over twenty-nine thousand people died from gun violence, and over seventy-one thousand died from diabetes. The truth is that we are far better at killing ourselves than terrorists are.
Adrian Beltran
I am not afraid of death. The way I see it, if I were to die right now then my life would have been enough, for if it was not enough then my life would have been a failure and death would be unacceptable.
Adrian Beltran
I find that whenever I am plagued with existential crises, such as that of the meaning of life, I feel better whenever I simply go and do something, whether it be very meaningful to anyone other than myself or not. Do not ponder the meaning of life, create a meaning in your life.
Adrian Beltran
- People
There are over seven billion people in the world, so you must think to yourself that at some point you will meet the love of your life. However, the number of people you will ever meet is a lot less than seven billion. Also, your mind simply does not have the capability to know more than roughly 200 people intimately at a time. There is a perfect person out there just for you, but the chances of you actually meeting this person at all are unlikely. So if you meet this person, never let them go.
Adrian Beltran
- Fairness
Life may not be fair, but this does not under any circumstances give you the excuse to not be fair. Be unfair if you wish, but do not even think about telling me that life isn't fair, because I already know this and by saying this you are basically blaming your unfairness on life, even though we both know that it is your choice whether or not to be fair. Even if life is unfair, you yourself can be fair.
