The most significant thing I learned in my intro Philosophy class was never taught by the professor, but in a heated debate with a fellow-student named Bryan. You see, at the time I was basically a humanist. I believed that all (or at least an overwhelming majority of) people were basically good, and would turn away from their evil ways once someone showed them that they had gone wrong. I also believed (based on God-knows what evidence) that this was a realistic task, though large. I really thought that people in general would be amenable to moral re-education.

Naturally, our class soon enough got to debating the classic dichotomyBridesmaid Dresses UK of whether people are born little angels and then corrupted by the influence of this fallen world, or little devils who need to be whipped into shape before they're fit for human company. Naive creature that I was, I came down mostly on Rousseau's side of the debate, and I was heartily offended when Bryan stated (with great confidence and finality) that the whole debate was missing the point, and that people are basically stupid. So stupid as to be un-trainable, even. (So much for their moral re-education!) Then the class got a whole lot more interesting, largely because Bryan was the only worthy opponent in that class of about 40 students.

(ASIDE: He was majoring in computer science, which impliesCocktail Dresses UK that he'd been taught enough logic to construct a coherent argument that didn't contradict itself. A rare talent.)

And so: battle was joined. Initially, over Tim Hortons' coffee in the Loyola building, with Bryan hammering on my blind faith in humanity. His weapon of choice was humanity's long and illustrious history of making the same mistakes over and over. ForParty Dresses a few examples: war, terrorism, torture, religious persecution, the endless string of corrupt bastards who rise to positions of power, and the number of people who keep getting into the same hopeless relationship again and again with different people. The battle was later continued at his place, over rye and ginger. I fought valiantly, but soon enough it became evident that my opponent was never going to run out of ammunition. He had a better case than I did. Thus, my intellectual integrity forced me to take his position seriously.

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