I think we're making great progress here at the Forum with new people joining regularly and discussions really taking off. Please keep in mind that the topics for discussions here are virtually unlimited. It's easy to start threads in the "General Discussion" forum, or any of our many existing subforums devoted to special topics. If you don't see a subforum dedicated to your interest, and you're concerned that your topic wouldn't be appropriate for the "General" forum, just let us know and we'll open a new subforum. The first step in building out the community further is discussing our common interest in Epicurus, but we do want to get to know each other as real people, and anything the forum can do to promote deepening friendships we want to do it. Aside from the direct Epicurean Philosophy topics that are obvious, here's a list of sidelight topics that might also be productive.
- Cooking (Foods known to be of relevance to Epicurus is an obvious choice),
- Travel (Locations of Relevance to Epicurus),
- Computers (For example I am a Linux user and am always looking for new ways to organize my research),
- Music (We already have a subforum dedicated to this)
- Pets (No one I know has a pet pig, but it is always interesting to discuss animals and their habits),
That's just a short list of examples to spur thinking. If you have other suggestions let us know and we'll add to this list to encourage others.
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Note: We have intentionally avoided setting up a subforum for raw politics. The project of reigniting Epicurean philosophy in the world today transcends and cuts across all geographic, racial, ethnic, and even political boundaries, and we are yet far too few to start dividing ourselves up in ways that throws cold water on friendship and sets us at crosspurposes. "Avoiding politics" however a fine and ever-changing line to walk, and it's important that we do discuss issues that directly flow from the last ten Principal Doctrines, and that directly effect our day to day lives.
We'll eventually find a way to incorporate more discussion of at least some "political current events," but the details of those day to day issues will probably always be more appropriate for other venues. Our goal here is to build and maintain a community focused on remembering the "eternal" issues, such as that the universe is natural and not run by gods, that death is the end of our consciousness, that the feelings of pleasure and pain are the ultimate guides to how to live, and that proper thinking keeps the senses, anticipations, and feelings at its center.
If we keep those in focus, then the less important and more divisive issues will take care of themselves. Living "as gods among men" is something that people of all sexes, races, parties, and persuasions ought to be able to agree on, at least for the time they spend on this forum.
