30 December 2009

A Proper Start





There are two great powers...and they've been fighting since time began. Every advance in human life, every scrap of knowledge and wisdom and decency we have has been torn by one side from the teeth of the other. Every little increase in human freedom has been fought over ferociously between those who want us to know more and be wiser and stronger, and those who want us to obey and be humble and submit.

We've had nothing but lies and propaganda and cruelty and deceit for all the thousands of years of human history. It's time we started again, but properly this time...

~Philip Pullman
His Dark Materials: The Subtle Knife


Can we ever truly start over or are we always bound to our past?

6 comments:

  1. Hmm. Even if we start anew we still carry the past with us. I mean to start fresh aren't we committing to avoid what we did in the past?

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  2. Wow- I was going to say everything Stacy just said! I'll just pop in and agree, I guess. haha

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  3. I agree with Stacy, too. Thought provoking quote!

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  4. Everyone - I recommend reading the books. Whether you agree with his philosophy or not, it's still a fascinating idea.

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  5. I read one and two but not three. I like Pullman because I agree with his ideas. Even if you don;t like him, he makes you think and question.
    I think we are slightly bound to our past, but must learn to get over wrongs and move forward. You can't live in the past, but you can certainly learn form it.

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