| The Amateur (6) |
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Your mind too works in mysterious ways. Although you are aware of this, you can't help wondering whether anybody else believes it, which makes it true as far as you're concerned. Not that I have anything to say about it, but isn't it a fact that they who think they can think tend to go barmy whenever others attempt to delay the process? Wouldn't it be convenient if one was aware of this at an early stage … although one could wonder who exactly would stand to gain. Let's put the theory to the test. I would like to recommend that those who subscribe to the metaphor "He who pays the piper plays the tune" turn things round for a change. With all due respect for all kinds of believers, I would like to suggest to them not to launch find-the-differences proceedings, for the sake of preserving the identity of the self. Although I think the time is not yet right to introduce quiz shows as a factor of influence, I'm convinced we're heading that way. Which does not necessarily imply that the general intellectual level of the Netherlands cannot but decline, as an average implicitly indicates that peaks must be on hand. Plenty of room for self-activation there, one would think, but given how keen people are to delegate matters, you should be careful not to fall into the trap of believing that it has been achieved. Unfortunately here's the bad news: thinking has been confirmed as a competitive affair, with a ranking and a premier league of its own. It's as much an established fact that most of you as well as I are not up to running an entire marathon as it would be an illusion to think that your thinking had a smattering of originality. Forget it. It has all been done before. There are more professional thinkers than there are places available on the honours list, so what hope could there possibly be for us dilettante thinkers? And yet not all hope is lost. Similarly to jiu-jitsu, the crux of which is to convert the opponent's attack into his downfall, I know from experience that feigned ignorance obscures recalcitrant intellect. And so, in so far as it's true that you and I have absolutely nothing useful to contribute, we should still find it a piece of cake to knock the stuffing out of those superior thinkers. (In response to an article by Hendrik Siering in the 12 October 2002 edition of NRC Handelsblad entitled "Thinking is a collective business") |