Apprentice Moses’ Speech:
Select Commentary
March 1, 2019
G.D.O’Bradovich III
introduction
Recently, Apprentice Moses sent Yours Truly the text for an upcoming speech and, as we see ourselves as a wordsmith of the highest order, we wasted no time in reading it. In our own way, we are impressed by not only by what was written, but by the implications and the unstated conclusions.
As a Great Occultist once wrote: “Select commentaries on a text should, initially, be considered in light of the immunity it provides for the commentator to express his views and, secondly, as a genuine type of praise.”
As a Great Occultist once wrote: “Select commentaries on a text should, initially, be considered in light of the immunity it provides for the commentator to express his views and, secondly, as a genuine type of praise.”
1
Is there a fine line between optimism and reality? Of course there is no simple answer to such a question. One person could argue for one side, just as easily as the other. It is all about perception, how individuals see things. Not just visually see, but live and experience life. To really find a concrete answer to the question, one must look towards the definitions of the terms optimism and reality.
The suggestion that there is “no simple answer” is a concession to the audience’s limited understanding, as we have no doubt that Apprentice Moses possesses, and operates under, a hierarchy of values. Apprentice Moses redefines perception as how one lives and experiences life.
As defined by Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, optimism is a doctrine that this world is the best possible world, or to anticipate the best possible outcome. Reality, as defined by Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, is the quality or state of being real. So just from those definitions, there is a very general line between optimism and reality.
Going one step further, “real” is “actually existing as a thing or occurring in fact; not imagined or supposed”, otherwise said, something existing as a fact or a “thing that is known to be true”.
Optimism is a way of thinking towards reality. Optimism is a tool used to overcome the standard of reality. Optimism is a very dangerous concept.
Apprentice Moses suggests that optimism can “overcome” reality and states that it is a “dangerous concept”.
Society tends to see optimism as the norm, the way people should be.
Societal expectations are that people have a natural tendency towards optimism.
Everyone has heard the age old question, is the glass half full or half empty? Society says that the optimist sees half full and the pessimist half empty, but what about the more pragmatic people of the world. What about those people that see the analogy as just a glass of water. These people are the realists of the world.
Apprentice Moses seems to support the pragmatic or practical view of reality and, by doing so, extricates himself from difficulties of maintaining the duality of understanding the world as either “good”, half full, or “evil”, half empty. By not participating in this conventional argument, Apprentice Moses places himself above the opinions of “good and evil” and, therefore, indicates that, as we have long suspected, he possesses a hierarchy of values.
Now clearly this hypothetical question poses no repercussions.
Apprentice Moses regards suppositional questions as having no unintended consequences, this is no doubt due to the question not partaking of reality.
But as stated before, optimism is a dangerous tool. To not have a fine line between optimism and reality is comparable to a poison. To have a healthy, optimistic view on anything, a realistic counterpart is essential.
The term “fine line” is repeated, but not defined, so it must be an example of “technical jargon” found in esoteric writing.
That realistic counterpart is the will or drive to act upon the optimism. Being optimistic is only the first step to success. Everyone must act upon this first step, and accept that optimism not acted upon is just hope.
Optimism without action is only the “desire for a certain thing to happen”. Apprentice Moses explicitly states that the “will” is necessary to act in conjunction with optimism- optimism without will is only hope. We cannot but notice that Apprentice Moses definitions of optimism without drive is analogous to Saint James’ observation that “faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.”
As a society, anyone can hope and ask for something, anyone and everyone can be optimistic.
In society, where the city is to be understood as an unnatural construct, everyone can have hope and express optimism. However, what is beneficial both for the overwhelming majority and for the city, is not beneficial to everyone, as a persistent minority will, due to nature’s capricious gifts, remain pragmatic.
But does it not seem as if most successful people have a story of hard work and perseverance.
As Leo Strauss noted in “Persecution and the Art of Writing”, one cannot expect proficient writing from authors in every sentence, for “even Homer nods from time to time.”
2
For example, imagine a young boy who aspires to be a professional athlete. Of course that young boy must be optimistic throughout life, but he must also look at reality. The reality of his situation is that the chances of him becoming a professional athlete are slim to none. It is not only optimism that will fulfill his dreams, but working hard towards his goals, towards his craft.
Apprentice Moses provides an example of the intersection of optimism, work, goals, and reality. The wording, "his craft", seems odd to apply to "a young boy". Of course, the "craft" is a term used both by witches and by Freemasons.
It is this sense of entitlement and complacency that optimism can create. A sense of entitlement that makes people not realize that it has to be a combination of both optimism and reality to achieve anything.
Entitlement and complacency can be the result of optimism. In our personal experiences, on innumerable occasions, we have observed that the result of optimism created by the modern idea that one can know both that one is saved from eternal damnation and that one is entitled to God’s material blessings produces “a feeling of smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself”. We suggest that Saint James would argue that the “feeling of uncritical satisfaction” that comes with this innovative faith without works is unfounded, as the “devils” also believe in one God, but “tremble”.
That being said, everything is about perspective. One might say that whatever happens is premeditated. Every event, every action is already meant to happen, and optimism is the driving force of reality.
While one might say that everything is preordained, Apprentice Moses does not, in fact, make this statement. Once again, Apprentice Moses is accommodating the common prejudices and uncritical thinking of his listening audience.
It is the exact people who think this way that are afraid of facing failure. These people who can fall back on this false optimism as a way of reasoning or excuse.
Apprentice Moses seems to be stating that those who see the universe as being predetermined are afraid of failure, as it is better to make no choice, or take no action, than acting contrary to the cosmos’ unknown expectations.
Failure is a part of life, a stark piece of reality.
As a future Occultist will observe: “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life.” This upcoming Occultist implies that life is a type of game that, in an unknown manner, is “rigged” in such a way that without mistakes, one can still lose.
Going back to the analogy about the glass of water. It is not about how full the glass is, it is about what is in the cup. It is the combination of failure and success and all of life that one must focus on.
Apprentice Moses rejects the accepted dichotomy of the aquatic explanation and creates new values by substituting one element for a mixture of “failure”, “success”, and “all of life”.
This is what realism is. It is not healthy to always be optimistic.
Apprentice Moses states explicitly that continual optimism is not “healthy”, while previously stating that society is overwhelming optimistic. The implicit conclusion is that society is not healthy.
Everyone has bad days were nothing goes right, and to move forward[,] it requires realizing that's ok. There is a difference between pessimism and realism, and pessimism is comparable to that same poison of optimism.
Too much of pessimism or optimism is unhealthy. As Ovid wrote: the middle way is the safest way.
But realism is often mistaken for pessimism because of the way society has almost been pampered to be so against the truth.
Society often confounds realism for pessimism, since society has no need of a third option that, by its existence, would suggest the accepted duality of “good and evil” is mistaken. We presume that the supposed “truth” of Apprentice Moses consists of the rejection of dualist conclusions which, in turn, is replaced by a hierarchy of values. This presumption is not a certainty.
Realism is the way to live and perceive while being both happy and successful.
We ignore Apprentice Moses youthful exuberance for his promotion of being “happy and successful” due, in part, for the notable absence of definitions.
3
The point being that the only safe way to live life is reality.
Not content to plagiarize Ovid’s suggestion a second time, Apprentice Moses now turns to ambiguous phrasing and vague statements:
Break down the word reality, the word real is evident. Reality is the only real thing that people have to hold on to. Nothing is for certain, but what has happened and what is happening.
Apprentice Moses insinuates that certain individuals claim a type of knowledge devoid of reality. Once again, he does not cite the famous philologist who wrote that “In the world of ideas of the Christian there is nothing that so much as touches reality: on the contrary, one recognizes an instinctive hatred of reality…”
Without reality who knows anything.
The correlation between "reality" and knowing suggests that reality or Nature can be the basis for an objective foundation for philosophy.
Human beings live in reality. It does not stop, it does not falter.
Contrary to modern idea that reality is fluid and one can change both reality and the reasonable conclusions reached from it, Apprentice Moses explicitly declares that reality does not “stop” for those who deny its existence.
Reality is not a choice, no one can choose to live in reality, it is just the way things are.
Apprentice Moses unequivocally states, without any supporting evidence or convincing arguments, that reality is “the way things are.”
Optimism and reality are like using a cell phone in service and wi-fi. To use a cell phone, you must have service (reality), but sure wi-fi definitely helps (optimism). No one can use a cell phone based only off of wi-fi, just as no one can live a life of optimism without reality.
We provide the above section for the sake of completeness. We omit commentary that will, in due time, be dated.
Is there a fine line between optimism and reality? Yes and no and maybe? Yes there is a line, but it is all based on perception. What one person says versus what another person says is hard to argue.
So there is a middle ground.
One must have reality, while one must not have optimism.
The acknowledgment of reality is a necessity for the individual, but not indispensable for society, whereas optimism is required for society, but not essential for an individual.
While someone hoping to live a happy healthy life, must have both.
At this point, we are uncertain if Apprentice Moses is intentionally plagiarizing both Plato and Ayn Rand or is attempting to meet either a minimum speaking time, a minimum word count, possibly both, or all three.
As the successful entrepreneur Joe Kraus once said, “Don’t forget to balance optimism with fact and belief with reality.”
The Gentle Reader may be interested to know that although Mr. Kraus has been immersed in technological enterprises for over 25 years, he graduated with a degree in political science from Stanford University. Kraus reminds the reader to balance “hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something” with “a thing that is known or proved to be true” and “an acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists” with “the world or the state of things as they actually exist”.
Although having both “confidence about the future” and knowledge “that a thing is true” presents no difficulties, any attempt “to compare the value of (one thing [the first statement]) with another [the second statement]” is problematic [i.e., the “acceptance that something exists” and “the state of things as they exist”], but not insoluble. Therefore, the Gentle Researcher is in the position of answering what was initially a rhetorical question:
Although having both “confidence about the future” and knowledge “that a thing is true” presents no difficulties, any attempt “to compare the value of (one thing [the first statement]) with another [the second statement]” is problematic [i.e., the “acceptance that something exists” and “the state of things as they exist”], but not insoluble. Therefore, the Gentle Researcher is in the position of answering what was initially a rhetorical question:
Is there a fine line between optimism and reality?
Is there a fine line between optimism and reality?
Addendum: October 18, 2019.
We have learned that Apprentice Moses placed fourth in the speech competition. The fact that there were only five entries is not material.
We have learned that Apprentice Moses placed fourth in the speech competition. The fact that there were only five entries is not material.