Hatrack River Forum: I’m one year old (hatrack-wise)!

This is topic I’m one year old (hatrack-wise)! – a landmark in forum Landmark Threads at Hatrack River Forum.

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Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

As you might have noticed, I love to ask questions. So now, after a year of practice, I come to the “big” (i.e. philosophical) questions, about myself, hatrack-wise:

Who am I?
Well, I start with an easy one [Big Grin]

. I am suminonA. And I have no alt-names.
[joke]All my other personalities agree that we can all post with one screen-name.[/joke]

What’s in a name?
I mean, what’s in a screen-name? What is “suminonA” anyways? Well suminonA is the mirror Latin cousin of Anonymous.
Why Anonymous? Because I don’t think that a name per se is relevant. As long as I don’t use my real name, it could be any name, even “no-name”. Also, it is good enough to avoid confusions.
Why the Latin cousin? Because English is not my native language, but a Latin one is.
Why the mirror version? Because whatever I write, what you see it’s a reflection of my thoughts. You don’t see me dirrectly, but my reflection(s).
Not enough? Well, there is a bit more to it. It is formed by the words : “sum I non A” which is close-enough Latin for “I am I and not A”. “A.” simply comes from “Anonimus”.

What’s in a number?
I mean, what’s in the post count number? Not much, most of my posts are made in game-threads and/or some other fluffy discussions. That is because I like to have fun, and I don’t do it to inflate my post count. I think that it would be more relevant to count how many posts one has read, but that is harder to implement. Anyways, that’s a reason why my landmark is time related.

Am I Real?
Well … no. At least not as far as I know. I do personally know 2 hatrackers (that’s how I got here) but I have no idea if they are Real. Back then I didn’t know that “being Real” was an issue, and now (when they are inactive and we all live in different countries) I still don’t believe it is. I only bring it up here because it sounds like a “philosophical” question. [Wink]

Where do I come from?
What place? Now that, I think it’s totally irrelevant. Not that I’m not proud of my origins, but if anyone wants to judge me, then I prefer to be judged for what I say and do, and not for my brave ancestors or my vicious present relatives. What’s important here is what I say and the manner I’m saying it in.
Likewise, I think there is personal information that is irrelevant when one is interested in what others think, the way the others think and why do they think the way they do. I try to avoid “explaining” (to myself) those things based on mere categories like gender/country of origin/country of residence/skin colour/weight/height and the like.
The past/present background influences a lot, I agree, but a person is not that background. Here, a person is what that person’s posts build up into.
If you are interested in my religious background, I can tell you that I was raised in a Christian family but have become quite a while ago an atheist. The kind of atheist that doesn’t believe in any of the deities “discovered so far”, yet doesn’t exclude the possibility of one being “out there”. I still need to learn more.

What do I know?
Not much. At least not that much. The more I learn the more I realise how much more there is to learn. It’s like I’m still reading the index of the Universe.
All I know is what others had taught me, what I’ve learned from what others have left for me to study and what my curiosity made me search otherwise. What I do know is that the Universe is coherent and consistent and based on that I’ve built values like “true/good/moral” and the like. I also know that I might be wrong on pretty much anything I already know.
And as far as the epistemological value of knowledge is concerned, I’m an egotheist.

What can I do?
I can communicate. Not exceptionally well, but I’m constantly working to improve my skills. As for now, I can communicate in English, French and Spanish, besides my mother tongue.
Oh, and I can ask questions! [Big Grin]

Why am I here?
I am here to learn and to share the knowledge that I have. Only by contrasting my ideas against the world I can see how much my world view approaches the “truth”.
Why am I still here, after a year? Because I like it here, despite the unfortunate moments when I felt like I wasn’t quite welcome. The overall experience was/is great and I think Hatrack community is worth the while.

Am I mature enough?
Well, that question is not for me to answer (about myself), but for you.
And it is not a question about age. I’m obviously in an age-range that allows me to write my own posts and to master some skills like using an electronic device to connect to and communicate through the Internet.
But maturity is not a result of age. It might be a factor, but I think maturity has to do mainly with education and knowledge.

Where am I going?
I’m going to … appreciate any comments that you might have. [Smile]

Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :

[Hat]

suminonA !

You really thought out your screenname, didn't you? I always wondered what it meant. Did you create it solely for when you joined Hatrack, or did you already use that name for other places?

I'm impressed that you know several languages. That is awesome.

quote:
The kind of atheist that doesn’t believe in any of the deities “discovered so far”, yet doesn’t exclude the possibility of one being “out there”.

Doesn't that description better fit with "agnostic" than atheist?

I understand you not wanting to share age or location -- but I would be interested in knowing what your "mother tongue" is...

Farmgirl

Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :

Congratulations! [Hat]

quote:
Originally posted by Farmgirl:

quote:
The kind of atheist that doesn’t believe in any of the deities “discovered so far”, yet doesn’t exclude the possibility of one being “out there”.
Doesn't that description better fit with "agnostic" than atheist?

Not necessarily. For example, strict materialism a la King of Men is not a requirement of atheism. [Smile]

Posted by Dr Strangelove (Member # 8331) on :

Very enjoyable Landmark. A good amount of smileys [Wink]

.

While I haven't interacted with you personally much, I will say that I've enjoyed reading your well-thought out questions and responses this past year. And your witty Q&A's in Begging the Question. [Smile]

I second the curiosity about your mother tounge. I'm going to guess Italian, but that's a blind guess.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Farmgirl:
You really thought out your screenname, didn't you? I always wondered what it meant. Did you create it solely for when you joined Hatrack, or did you already use that name for other places?

I thought Hatrack deserved a well thought screen-name. Incidentally, it’s the same that I currently use on PWeb, but that is a far more recent discovery (just a few days ago) [Big Grin]

quote:

quote:
The kind of atheist that doesn’t believe in any of the deities “discovered so far”, yet doesn’t exclude the possibility of one being “out there”.
Doesn't that description better fit with "agnostic" than atheist?

Well, technically that is close to “weak agnosticism” but I have reasons to dislike the term “agnostic”. Its basic meaning is “unable to know”.

A.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Dr Strangelove:
Very enjoyable Landmark. A good amount of smileys .

While I haven't interacted with you personally much, I will say that I've enjoyed reading your well-thought out questions and responses this past year. And your witty Q&A's in Begging the Question.

Thank you, you are too kind. [Smile]

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

Oh, and thank you, twinky.
I think you are right in your call about strict materialism.

A.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

No, I’m not ignoring your questions:

quote:
Originally posted by Farmgirl:
I understand you not wanting to share age or location -- but I would be interested in knowing what your "mother tongue" is...

quote:
Originally posted by Dr Strangelove:
I second the curiosity about your mother tounge. I'm going to guess Italian, but that's a blind guess.

Yet it is kind of a “trick” question… The mother tongues go with the birth place, you know. At least in my case. Plus it isn’t a language to be spoken in various countries, like Spanish or Portuguese.
And I don’t want to make a big deal out of it, if your curiosity is so strong I will answer you in a private message. [Smile]

A.

PS: No, no sono italiano.

Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :

ah.. so your mother tongue will actually identify where you currently live, as well as where you grew up. I see.

No, I'm not so curious as to break your respect in that regard.

However, if your mother tongue is not English, I must say you have a very impressive command of the English language, for someone who learned it as a second (or third, or fourth) language.

FG

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Farmgirl:
However, if your mother tongue is not English, I must say you have a very impressive command of the English language, for someone who learned it as a second (or third, or fourth) language.

Well, you could call it my second language, because I’ve been studying it for pleasure from early on. The funny thing is that unlike the French and the Spanish, I didn’t learn it while living in a country that spoke it as an official language. But (constant) reading, watching movies and online communications greatly help me maintain my level above a certain minimum.

A.

Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :

suminonA, that was a delight of a Landmark to read. I'm not around here so much as at other times in my life (too much work, too many other calls on my time), but when I am here, I will look for your messages.

Take good care.

Posted by Corwin (Member # 5705) on :

Nice landmark. I wasn't really much on the forum this last year, but I did find you in the religion thread, didn't I? [Big Grin]

Good idea starting it. [Smile]

Look forward to many more of your posts.

And I like the way you chose your screen name. Enigmatic at first glance, pretty clear once you pay more attention. Just like your... Neah, won't spoil it. [Wink]

Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :

You did pretty much give it away, you know. [Smile]

Thanks for sharing, that was an interesting landmark.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Corwin:
Just like your... Neah, won't spoil it.

quote:
Originally posted by ElJay:
You did pretty much give it away, you know.

Corwin and ElJay, [Hat]

Posted by BlackBlade (Member # 8376) on :

Enjoyable Landmark suminonA.

You divulged alot of info but kept some of it still secret. I might look over your landmark again and see what I can glean from you words [Wink]

Posted by Nell Gwyn (Member # 8291) on :

I also enjoyed your landmark. [Smile]

And from reading your posts, I would never have guessed that English isn't your native language. I'm 98% sure I know what is your native language, though. I'm keeping 2% in reserve in case it's more closely related to the other Latin languages than I think it is.

Posted by MyrddinFyre (Member # 2576) on :

Cheers [Big Grin]

Posted by Corwin (Member # 5705) on :

Now Nell has got me wondering if I got it right the first time... [Confused]

I'm thinking small. Nell, you?

A landmark and an enigma all in one. Neat. [Big Grin]

Posted by Eduardo St. Elmo (Member # 9566) on :

Gefeliciteerd! [Smile]

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

Edited to add:

quote:
Originally posted by Nell Gwyn:
And from reading your posts, I would never have guessed that English isn't your native language.

I’m sure that there are more people on this board not having English as a native language than what you or I might suspect. If you heard me talk it might be more obvious, but in writing it is easier to “fake the accent”. [Wink]

[You can still find phrases where my words don’t follow the precise English syntax/topic…]

End edit.

quote:
Originally posted by Nell Gwyn:
I'm keeping 2% in reserve in case it's more closely related to the other Latin languages than I think it is.

You can forget about that 2%. I’m not that subtle. Not in this case. [Wink]

A.

[ October 04, 2006, 06:44 AM: Message edited by: suminonA ]

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by MyrddinFyre:
Cheers

Gesundheit!

[this is ment as a joke, I've heard poeple making that "sound" when they sneeze [Big Grin]

]

A.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Eduardo St. Elmo:
Gefeliciteerd!

Gethankedartthou.

A.

Posted by suminonA (Member # 8757) on :

quote:
Originally posted by ClaudiaTherese:
suminonA, that was a delight of a Landmark to read. I'm not around here so much as at other times in my life (too much work, too many other calls on my time), but when I am here, I will look for your messages.

Take good care.

Thank you

I might have seen you once or twice, but then again, I'm really young (hatrack-wise).

A.