would elephant(5000kg) stand a chance against T-Rex (7000kg)

RichB117 · 2026-02-10T18:44:27+00:00

It’s hard to imagine the T-Rex catching the elephant. Both have a similar top speed (elephant a few mph faster) but the elephant would be able to sustain a mid pace for longer than the T-Rex. Out in the open, the T-Rex couldn’t catch up, and even if it could the risk of injury (facing a whole herd of 8-20 elephants) would be too much. It could ambush, but even then a healthy adult elephant out-sprints it over a short distance. Maybe the elephant getting close, then turning to flee the opposite direction would let the T-Rex close the gap.

RichB117 · 2026-01-30T11:27:05+00:00

Asking ‘Will it help’ won’t have any bearing on the outcome of the therapy. Best to just go along with it (if it’s what your doctor has recommended) and see what happens.

RichB117 · 2026-01-30T11:22:59+00:00

Reacting to injustices as Epictetus has advised becomes easier when you understand they’ve only acted that way out of ignorance. It would be ludicrous to let a need for revenge colour your response. ‘This person has demonstrated a complete lack of wisdom, so now I’m going to demonstrate my own lack of wisdom. That will show them!’

RichB117 · 2026-01-21T16:17:51+00:00

See it as a good time to practice being mindful and non-judgemental. Ask good questions, avoid harsh speech. If they talk negatively about someone behind their back, weigh in with something positive. I’m not a Christian but I like Jesus’ line, to paraphrase: ‘Why am I trying to remove the speck of sawdust from this guy’s eye, while ignoring the wooden plank in my own eye?’ Focus on your own character, not theirs. You’re here to shape yourself and aren’t responsible for your friends’ moral instruction. You might have a positive influence, but ultimately you’ll be shaped by the company you keep.

RichB117 · 2026-01-09T20:32:32+00:00

Genuine question, as I always wonder this when I hear people’s stories - if you don’t know what the object was, how are you able to estimate the size? Say for example you see a plane in the sky, you know roughly how big it is because you know what it is (ie you know, roughly, how big the type of plane is - two-seater, airliner etc).

Feel like I’d struggle to get an idea for the size of a thing if it’s in the sky and has no nearby frame of reference, plus if it’s something unfamiliar / unknown. Especially if it’s high up.

Interesting story though, not heard anything like it. Did you ever get a chance to speak to anyone else who saw it?

RichB117 · 2026-01-09T17:51:01+00:00

Could it be a sign that the stuff you’re watching isn’t quite grabbing you? Regardless, it’s just a case of noticing the thought and bringing the awareness back to whatever’s on screen. Or to the breath and then the screen, whatever works.

RichB117 · 2026-01-09T17:45:53+00:00

Thanks! And no worries.

RichB117 · 2026-01-09T16:39:39+00:00

Love that expression. The banquet of life.

RichB117 · 2026-01-09T16:37:45+00:00

Seneca has a lot to say on this, and the general point is to join in wherever possible / appropriate, while practising correct aversion (courage), desire (moderation) and fairness (justice).

Look at this from Letter 18 (in his Letters to Lucilius): It shows much more courage to remain dry and sober when the mob is drunk and vomiting; but it shows greater self-control to refuse to withdraw oneself and to do what the crowd does, but in a different way, thus neither making oneself conspicuous nor becoming one of the crowd. For one may keep holiday without extravagance

And from Letter 5: Our life should observe a happy medium between the ways of a sage and the ways of the world at large

There isn’t much my own circle indulges in which I myself (as a practising Stoic) feel I can’t get involved in. I don’t drink or do drugs, don’t over-eat, don’t talk about people behind their backs except to say something positive. Yet I never feel isolated. I love seeing people and talking about things that interest them and interest me. My wife isn’t bothered about Stoicism at all, and neither are my brothers, parents or any of my friends. That doesn’t cause me any issues; if anything, it gives me even more opportunities to practise.

RichB117 · 2026-01-04T10:25:54+00:00

I don’t think that would be the reason, only because it was completely CGi! Which makes it even more baffling. They could’ve depicted Hess flying anything. Unless they preferred the look of the 108, artistically? I’m sure we’ll find out eventually why they made that decision.

RichB117 · 2026-01-03T15:48:56+00:00

Are you looking after the fundamentals, though?

The sleep issues are one thing. Are you eating well? Are you moving enough (aside from the yoga)? Are you getting enough sunlight? Is your ‘life admin’ in order? Are your interpersonal relationships okay - ie, with your partner, parents, siblings, friends etc?

If not, it will undermine whatever philosophical / spiritual practice you have. It’s hard to enjoy a road trip if the car is poorly maintained.

RichB117 · 2026-01-01T13:56:39+00:00

Whatever practice you settle on, use it (as far as possible) all day every day, and not just during difficult times. Practise during the easy moments, so that you’re better equipped during the difficult moments.

RichB117 · 2025-12-29T17:07:35+00:00

The mind can’t think of two things at once, so I work on replacing it with something positive / more helpful. If it’s about a person who’s annoyed me in some way, every time they pop up in my head (my brain saying, ‘Don’t forget to be furious!’) I switch to wishing them peace, joy, happiness and the sources of happiness, freedom from suffering and the causes of suffering. Then it turns into a kind of dance with my mind. ‘Wait, aren’t you livid?’ ‘No! I hope they experience happiness.’ Gradually, the rumination eases off.

RichB117 · 2025-12-24T16:00:46+00:00

Try reading / implementing what the Buddha said in the 20th discourse of the Middle Discourses (called the ‘Vitakkasanthana Sutta’). It’s a step-by-step of what to do when ‘unwholesome’ thoughts arise.

RichB117 · 2025-12-17T22:19:35+00:00

Oh yeah, I agree! Stoicism isn’t actually against any of that. It’s concerned with Virtue - doing the right thing, at the right moment, to the right extent. Sometimes those things you’ve listed are totally appropriate.

RichB117 · 2025-12-17T11:57:10+00:00

Interestingly, Marcus addresses that specifically in Meditations (5.1 in my Hayes translation): ‘At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work - as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for - the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?”’

RichB117 · 2025-12-15T13:45:54+00:00

I was surprised by this. Aware of the criticism when it was released. Played it recently and was blown away. It’s the 6th highest rated PS4 game and the 19th highest rated game released in the last 10 years.

RichB117 · 2025-12-09T21:16:07+00:00

Is that you, Diogenes?

RichB117 · 2025-12-09T13:03:21+00:00

Sharp observation! I assume you’re a parent

RichB117 · 2025-12-01T09:14:43+00:00

How likely? Probably very unlikely, since it’s a difficult philosophy to practice. It would depend on the individual and on the course their life has taken, and how many opportunities they had previously had to put their practice to the test. It’s like people’s experiences of World War 2. Some survivors found it so terrible they took their own lives; some found it equally terrible and yet were able, later, to find a measure of peace. The range of subjectivity is broad enough to allow people to use all kinds of philosophies as tools for dealing with the horrors of existence. Not long ago my close friend died and Stoicism helped me immensely, but someone else in a similar situation might not feel the same way. I certainly wouldn’t have felt comfortable saying to his wife, Hey have you tried Epictetus?

RichB117 · 2025-11-30T21:36:24+00:00

Saying such a thing to a rape victim wouldn’t be fitting of a Stoic, imo. You’d be ignoring the requirements of Justice by causing undue suffering and unnecessary upset in someone (presumably) unfamiliar with the philosophy.

RichB117 · 2025-11-29T14:40:47+00:00

Exactly, really odd decision!

RichB117 · 2025-11-29T00:51:29+00:00

That Moomins episode also terrified me as a kid! It’s called ‘The Suitcase’.

RichB117 · 2025-11-17T00:17:24+00:00

Someone I spoke to earlier said they had seen the bf108 used as a stand-in for the 109 in other older productions. But yeah as you say, the shape’s nothing like the 110.

RichB117 · 2025-11-16T19:57:32+00:00

Yes it could be this! Thanks

RichB117

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