News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:People Who Are Obsessed with Success and Prestige by bumby on Tuesday January 07, 2020 @11:42AM (#21981610)
I think Brooks would probably push back on the hedonic idea of "do whatever makes you happy" somewhat. He seems to advocate cultivating moral character over chasing "happiness".

In The Road to Character he writes,

"All human beings seek to lead lives not just of pleasure, but of purpose, righteousness, and virtue. As John Stuart Mill put it, people have a responsibility to become more moral over time. The best life is oriented around the increasing excellence of the soul and is nourished by moral joy, the quiet sense of gratitude and tranquillity that comes as a byproduct of successful moral struggle. The meaningful life is the same eternal thing, the combination of some set of ideals and some man or woman’s struggle for those ideals. Life is essentially a moral drama, not a hedonistic one."

Re:People Who Are Obsessed with Success and Prestige by blueboo on Tuesday January 07, 2020 @12:38PM (#21982291)
What makes that last line so powerful coming from Brooks’ pen is that he wrote it as he was having an affair with his research assistant, for whom he later divorced his wife of 28 years. That must’ve been so morally joyful!
Re:People Who Are Obsessed with Success and Prestige by damontal on Tuesday January 07, 2020 @09:24PM (#21987674)
Do you know the circumstances of his divorce? What led up to it? Or are you just saying divorce is immoral?
Re:People Who Are Obsessed with Success and Prestige by brabel on Tuesday January 07, 2020 @01:41PM (#21983094)
Holy shit, that seems to be actually true!! Man, how hiprocate can people be?!