Spoken by an ordinary man, those words are thin. Self-centered. Ignorant. Merely human.
Humans have weaknesses that cannot be measured.
But spoken by John Connor, the leader of the human resistance, in a post-apocalyptic world where evil machines are winning the war for survival… those words ring true.
Yes, humans are frail and destructible. Their flesh can be damaged and their minds can be hacked. They are malleable, prone to be misled, afraid to think for themselves, and often erratically emotional at the expense of mindful logic. They’re self-centered. And ignorant. Merely weak.
The greatest weakness of the human mind is its vulnerability — its susceptibility – to corrupt, defective, dysfunctional programming.
(Cue to culture.)
But human weakness bears human strength — the malleability of the mind can foster growth.
The greatest strength of the human mind is its flexibility to reprogram almost any program — is a brain that can change itself.
Or, as American psychologist William James, has said:
“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.”
The human being’s greatest strength is that he can alter his attitudes — his life — for the better.
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This fire in humanity must never be extinguished, for if it ever goes out we will all cease to exist.
Amen TransAlchemy.
In my opinion, the only one who can extinguish a person’s fire, is that person themself.