The greed of the powerful; the hubris of technocrats; the denial and obliviousness of the general population…what could go wrong? Headline: Strong typhoon heads for Japan and crippled Fukushima nuclear plant A renewed appreciation of the ancient Greek concept of hubris would appear to be in order. From Wikipedia: Hubris /ˈhjuːbrɪs/, also hybris, from ancient Greek ὕβρις, means extreme pride or arrogance. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of ones own competence, accomplishments or capabilities, especially when the person exhibiting it is in a position of power. Hubris is usually associated with the simple-minded. The adjectival form of the noun hubris is hubristic. It comes down to this: The forces of nature versus the designs of humankind. The events of the coming days will provide a glimpse as to what forces will prevail, and coming the years will yield the consequences. Hint: It would be the very emblem of hubris to bet on the designs of humankind. What remains is…an appeal to this figure of ancient Roman origin: Again, from Wikipedia: Fortuna (Latin: Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) was the goddess of fortune andpersonification of luck in Roman religion. She might bring good luck or bad: she could be represented as veiled and blind, as in modern depictions of Justice, and came to represent lifes capriciousness. She was also a goddess of fate: as Atrox Fortuna, she claimed the young lives of the princeps Augustus grandsons Gaius andLucius, prospective heirs to the Empire.[1] Tragically, it has come down to that. (Like hubris, tragedy is a Greek conception and is inextricably linked to hubris.)
Posted on: Wed, 16 Oct 2013 01:56:52 +0000
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