I recently read an opinion that the most profound thing separating human beings from the rest of the animal kingdom is that we can pursue truth.
Does that sound right to you?
I think that’s too nuanced, myself. To me, the biggie is that we can conceptually identify self-improvement, whether within a physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual framework. We’re able to measure our shortcomings and set goals above them. You don’t need to mess around with the epistemological hornet’s nest that is “truth” in order to pursue self-improvement.
I think “I can do better” is high profundity in phylum Chordata. What do you think?
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How do we know that some animals don’t conceptualize self-improvement?
I don’t know what pursuing truth means. Maybe the opposite is true, we are the species capable of lying.
Gee, and I always thought it was the opposable thumbs that set us apart…
Gerry, you’ve got a point there. I like to THINK that we’re constantly in pursuit of higher and better, but the truth of the matter is that many (if not MOST) of our species tends to make the conscious decision to do the opposite. Case in point? “The economy is fundamentally strong” and “The battle in Iraq is noble, it is necessary, and it is just. And with your courage, the battle in Iraq will end in victory.”
Yeah. Right.