Examples of Things Not Guaranteed In Life

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Yep...cause and effect!

You don't get the effect--if you don't initiate the cause.

You don't get the end--if you don't provide the means to that end.

Being able to take responsibility for ones action seems like the one that one has the most control over, of the things on the list.

Scary thing: when I logged in, so reloaded with just fnord's avatar.

Oh man, ya beat me to the punch.

Does this mean that there is no beginning and existence is infinite?

I like labpet's answer.

If it came down to a choice between the moon and the car, I'll take the car over a trip to the moon. I've never actually been a fan of space or sci-fi, and a moon trip would be a nice memory but the car would last for years and years.

There can be only one!

It means we have to work to get what we want most of the time. They believe in that maxim throughout the world....not just in the US.

I never got that PM--possibly another victim of the new and improved WP? In any case, good to see you back in action, Fnord.




I think the "nothing in life is guaranteed" concept comes up in other ways that are complimentary to kraftie's take on this. I have heard people say "nothing in life is guaranteed" in the context of something being a sure bet.

"Nothing in life is guaranteed, but if you step off a cliff..."

The thing about verbal communication is that it is never context free. Meaning is a consensus product and though lexicographers create records of the meanings that prevail in their time, even dictionaries are products of their context.

So you can't just look within and philosophize or ruminate on what people mean by a certain phrase or expression, you have to try to understand what they mean in the context in which they expressed it.

To parse someone's language for inconsistencies or compare it to the language of others that use the same words doesn't help to understand meaning unless the entire focus is on understanding the meaning in the specific context.

For example, Neil Gaiman said:

"The current total of countries in the world with First Amendments is one. You have guaranteed freedom of speech. Other countries don't have that."

You can't find out more about what Gaiman meant by those words by contrasting them with other famous quotes like, "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one," just because they share a couple of words.

You might be able to write an interesting essay by playing on the ideas of freedom and guarantee in both quotes, but the meaning of each one is not negated by the meaning or validity of the other.

The exchange of ideas through words is a thing that happens between people, not between words.

This helps a lot my friend. So, what I need to do is work hard to understand and practice learning and using context.

I get what you're saying and that makes a lot more sense.

By the way, you look sharp in your suit.

Thank you, Sir.

And I wholeheartedly agree with Adamantium's take on meaning. Yes, one must have knowledge of immediate context in order to parse the precise meaning of something.