Probably you all knew the following verdict for a long time: Life is full of bullshit. Well, not me (although I had a feeling). I wasn’t aware of the magnitude of bullshitness in my life until, a few months ago, I finally read Harry G. Frankfurt‘s essay «On Bullshit». This little book, written by a witty American philosopher and Princeton professor, has recently gained attention among my peers – and very rightly so. Frankfurt explores the «contemporary proliferation of bullshit» in its various forms. Let me say this: There. Is. A lot of it.
Bullshit, in a nutshell, is what sticks in the blurry space between truth and lies. It’s the negligently trivial treatment of words, arguments, communication. Think spam. Think noise. Think nonsense. Think about all the senseless shit you get put up with in your daily life. When bullshit hits the fan, it covers up all the beauty around it.
There are reasons for bullshit of course. When information needs to travel fast and unverified. When you’re asked for your opinion and you want to avoid a lie. Politics. Frankfurt concludes: «Bullshit is unavoidable whenever circumstances require someone to talk without knowing what he is talking about.»
Now, I am new to this but will be sticking around for the next 60 days. In the meantime I will dissect all the bullshit I encounter in my life and share it with you. A pile of shit, on a silver platter. Is there a better way to start this?
PS. Think it’s bullshit to write all this in English? I will sneak in some German goodness just for you.