Managing management

   We didn't get to talk about McWhorter's essay too much in class on Thursday, but there were some interesting points in it that I wanted to comment on. First, she brings up management. I remember learning about time management on the first day of 6th grade. My teacher explained there would be a lot more homework and a many more distractions in 6th grade, and that time management was a skill we needed to hone the sooner the better. If we didn't manage our time wisely, we would receive poor grades. In the beginning of high school, I learned about stress management. My health teacher talked about the dangers of not taking care of ourselves in times of high stress; the consequences being bad habits like smoking and drinking, even overeating. In adulthood, anger management is a term used often. If a person can't deal with their own anger and negative feelings, that person can become explosive, so watch out! And of course, in the nutrition world, the buzzword is "weight management." With all the management we feel obligated to practice, McWhorter wants to point out the need we feel to manage the earth. This also reminds me of the Land Ethics essay... all of this involves us acting upon the earth and changing it; managing it to fit our needs and wants. The interesting thing about management is that it completely relies on the person trying to manage. Outside influences are always present, but if that own self-will isn't there, management fails.

McWhorter also talks about revealing and concealing... not everything can be out in the open at once. Because we can only focus on one thing at a time, some things are forced to be concealed as others are revealed to us. In order to manage one thing, we need to ignore or put away another. I think this is the cool thing about studying nature and the environment in philosophy. We are challenged to put aside what we believe and take in the ideas of our instructor, fellow classmates, and historical philosophers. What do you guys think? What management do you see in your own life?