Comments on: Is a Well-Lived Life Worth Anything? by Umair Haque

By: Liviu

Liviu — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 19:28:54 +0000

Umair, there is a solution, but the change you describe will take several generations at best, not ten years. That solution is a shift from a reductionist to a holistic mindset for the entirety of our global society. The reason it will take a few generations, is that the reductionist mindset is deeply embedded in the fabric of our society. In order to keep my reply succinct, I would suggest you and your readers take a look at philosophy of science.

Regards,
Liviu

By: Kent Burns

Kent Burns — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 13:09:47 +0000

Umair, nice piece. Simply put, you describe the difference between pursuing worldly success vs. pursuing significance. I, like you, prefer the latter.

By: Nadine B Hack

Nadine B Hack — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 08:21:32 +0000

I especially like what Umair Haque writes about “the ‘outcomes gap’between what our economy produces and…a meaningfully well-lived life.”

By: David Hurst

David Hurst — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 14:43:31 +0000

This is powerful manifesto. The great question is; How? As Peter Drucker put it: “The absence of a basic social purpose for industrial society constitutes the core of out problem…We have to develop a free and functioning society on the basis of a new concept of man’s nature…It lies in the philosophical or metaphysical field.” (2004)

Other than add “informational” to “industrial” there is little one would do to change this statement. So what is this “new concept of human nature”? Many of the proposals one reads e.g. Michael Porter’s shared value thesis don’t mention a new concept of human nature. Many people are coming up with new “principles” to be “applied” but these do not change our assumptions about human nature.

I want to suggest that the clues to an answer are coming from many fields – most of them have the word”evolutionary” and/or “ecological” in front of their names. Philosophically we have to turn to people like Stephen Toulmin, a student of Wittgenstein. Merleau-Ponty, Heidegger and other existentialist and phenomenologists are essential.
We need to understand how the eudaimonic becomes hedonic over time and how that fundamentally ecological process can be reversed. Ibn Kahldun had a great insight in the 14th Century – change comes from the desert. Of course the Old Testament tells us that too…If we want to understand change and renewal we need to take a close look at nature.