^Just one more question, Captain…

Boru

Wondering if excellence results from receiving the right influences at the right time or instead from having an excellent character which creates excellence as it unfolds and develops.

(September 15, 2026 at 10:04 am)Angrboda Wrote: Wondering if excellence results from receiving the right influences at the right time or instead from having an excellent character which creates excellence as it unfolds and develops.

The second option, I think.

Boru

(September 3, 2026 at 10:26 am)Angrboda Wrote: Salma Hayek at 60.

Jennifer Lopez at 56.



Boru

(September 15, 2026 at 12:46 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(September 15, 2026 at 10:04 am)Angrboda Wrote: Wondering if excellence results from receiving the right influences at the right time or instead from having an excellent character which creates excellence as it unfolds and develops.

The second option, I think.

Boru

Surely the child that has responsible parents, that encourage good habits and character, is better positioned to succeed than one who has a soundrel for a father and a spendthrift for a mother? And does not the young business person who is mentored by a successful senior better able to grow than he who labors alone? Well then, consider this. The one who is blessed with both, innate character and a good environment, will prosper more than one who is visited by either alone.

(September 16, 2026 at 10:44 am)Angrboda Wrote:

(September 15, 2026 at 12:46 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: The second option, I think.

Boru

Surely the child that has responsible parents, that encourage good habits and character, is better positioned to succeed than one who has a soundrel for a father and a spendthrift for a mother?  And does not the young business person who is mentored by a successful senior better able to grow than he who labors alone?  Well then, consider this.  The one who is blessed with both, innate character and a good environment, will prosper more than one who is visited by either alone.

Of course. But your original comment was that you were ‘wondering’ which was which, and I was wondering right back. Is a child raised in a nurturing, more loving environment more likely to achieve excellence? Absolutely.

But surely that’s more a rule of thumb than a metaphysical certitude. Consider Charlie Chaplin; an alcoholic/absentee father, a mother committed to an insane asylum more than once, and young Charlie sent to workhouses and pauper’s homes multiple times. I don’t think anyone could say Chaplin didn’t ‘achieve excellence’.

Life’s largely a crapshoot. *shrug*

Boru

Talking about older stars that are trying to look sexy, this is Tom Cruise on GQ cover. The man is 64 and they are trying to make him look like he's in his twenties. Instead he looks like an over-manicured man clinging to youth that is no longer there.

(September 16, 2026 at 3:06 pm)Fake Messiah Wrote: Talking about older stars that are trying to look sexy, this is Tom Cruise on GQ cover. The man is 64 and they are trying to make him look like he's in his twenties. Instead he looks like an over-manicured man clinging to youth that is no longer there.

I’m not a fan, but I have to admit that doesn’t look bad for 64.  Sure, he doesn’t look like he’s in his 20s, but still.

Boru

I'd say Chaplin is an outlier. Through selection we remember the stories of those who made it despite the odds. It's only to reinforce the morals our culture wants ingrained.