"Animals do not seem to consider the future in the same manner as we do. [Moi ici: Esse é para mim o significado de Adão e Eva passarem a ser mortais, quando tomaram consciência do futuro] If you visit the African veldt, and you observe a herd of zebras, you will often see lions lazing about around them. And as long as the lions are lying around relaxing, the zebras really do not mind. This attitude seems a little thoughtless, from the human perspective.
...
Relaxed lions are never a problem!" Zebras do not seem to have any real sense of time. They cannot conceptualize themselves across the temporal expanse. But human beings not only manage such conceptualization, they cannot shake it. We discovered the future, some long time ago —and now the future is where we each live, in potential. We treat that as reality. It is a reality that only might be-but it is one with a high probability of becoming now, eventually, and we are driven to take that into account.
You are stuck with yourself. You are burdened with who you are right now and who you are going to be in the future. That means that if you are treating yourself properly, you must consider your repetition across time. You are destined to play a game with yourself today that must not interfere with the game you play tomorrow, next month, next year, and so on."
Li isto há dias em "Beyond Order" de Jordan Peterson.
Agora, acabo de ler em "The Price of Time" de Edward Chancellor:
"The argument of this book is that interest is required to direct the allocation of capital, and that without interest it becomes impossible to value investments. As a reward for abstinence' interest incentivizes saving. Interest is also the cost of leverage and the price of risk. When it comes to regulating financial markets, the existence of interest discourages bankers and investors from taking excessive risks."
E o que é esta abstinência? O sacrifício, o adiar a gratificação imediata:
"Depois da expulsão do paraíso, porque descobrimos que éramos mortais, porque descobrimos que havia uma coisa chamada futuro tivemos de começar a trabalhar. [Moi ici agora: Na verdade no Paraíso também se trabalhava, ver Gn 2, 15] Trabalhar gera frutos que podem ser consumidos de imediato, ou podemos atrasar a gratificação e investir alguns desses frutos em buca de um futuro melhor. Ora uns investem muito, outros investem menos, outros não investem nada. Assim, quando o futuro chega, uns têm mais retorno, outros menos e outros nenhum. Nessa altura cresce a inveja e Caim mata Abel."
