tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634628224045926034.post2011166067100628493..comments2023-08-29T01:27:13.772-07:00Comments on Magpie's Asymmetric Warfare: Nietzsche, the Übermensch?Magpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07528637318288802178noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634628224045926034.post-92113494421233752182014-08-13T23:14:07.136-07:002014-08-13T23:14:07.136-07:00"I find Nietzsche somewhat problematic. On th..."I find Nietzsche somewhat problematic. On the one hand, the man was insightful regarding social power, its source, and its application." <br /><br />I too, find him problematic. And, yes, he was very insightful.<br /><br />I am preparing at least two more posts on Nietzsche's political philosophy.<br /><br />"On the other hand, his rhetorical approach to sharing that insight is so over the top, so bombastic, so in your face, that if you believe that he actually meant what he said and was not trying to push people's buttons, you have to judge him to be an egotistical narcissistic sociopath. I cannot accept that characterization of him, though"<br /><br />Well, the possibility that he was just "trying to push people's buttons" should not be left out. You are probably in good company in your belief. I suppose that explains that the Frankfurt School guys did their utmost to rehabilitate Nietzsche's thought. <br /><br />Unlike yourself and presumably the Frankfurt blokes, I, at the other hand, tend to believe "he actually meant what he said" and was "an egotistical narcissistic sociopath".<br /><br />For one, that kind of ideas was more prevalent than one is predisposed to believe. Malthus, before Nietzsche and Burckhard and Stirner (Nietzsche's contemporaries) had ideas very similar in many ways.<br /><br />For another, Nietzsche never was an example of mental stability and research has shown that wasn't limited to the last part of his life.<br /><br />"If he was truly seeking power for himself, he would not have shared what he understood, regardless of how he shared it."<br /><br />Maybe he wasn't seeking power for himself. :-) Seriously now, I wouldn't try to make sense of a person like Nietzsche. <br /><br />This reminds me of a dialogue in the Red Dragon film. Will Graham said to Hannibal Lecter he (Will) had aprehended him because Lecter had "disadvantages". "What disadvantages?", asked Lecter. "You're insane", said Graham.<br /><br />At any rate, I cannot prove he was a sociopath, nor shall I try. I'm no psychiatrist. <br /><br />But, to tell you the truth, if Nietzsche and I were left alone in a room, I wouldn't feel very comfy. I wouldn't turn my back on him.Magpiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07528637318288802178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3634628224045926034.post-20370508804159762622014-08-13T18:24:43.903-07:002014-08-13T18:24:43.903-07:00I find Nietzsche somewhat problematic. On the one...I find Nietzsche somewhat problematic. On the one hand, the man was insightful regarding social power, its source, and its application. On the other hand, his rhetorical approach to sharing that insight is so over the top, so bombastic, so in your face, that if you believe that he actually meant what he said and was not trying to push people's buttons, you have to judge him to be an egotistical narcissistic sociopath. I cannot accept that characterization of him, though, because if he was truly seeking power for himself, he would not have shared what he understood, regardless of how he shared it. Personally, I think his presentation of the subject matter displays a great deal of empathy because he understood that, like him, people needed to be shocked out of their complacency and acquiescence to power. <br /><br />That said, anybody who accepts and praises Nietzsche's philosophy literally is a danger to society.Tao Jonesinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10041034009270339963noreply@blogger.com