some thoughts on philosophy

Several days ago as I was leaving Lincoln, I spied an interesting event. Oodles of rain had come down that morning and the water was still sheeting off the high places. A sidewalk which ran down a steep hill had a steady stream running down it, but the sidewalk stopped halfway down the hill. As I neared that end, I spotted a massive migration of fish. They were coming from a puddle that had formed at the end of the walk. As I got closer more of them swam away from their protective eddy and into the main stream going down the curb of the steep street. Thet were tiny minnows but as soon as they realized they were headed somewhere uncontrollably, they desperately tried to reverse course. I felt particularly responsible as I think it was my approach which made them leave. As the slender silver minnows careened down the street, they each rotated around and tried they best to swim up a paved road and back into their puddle. I raced down the hill to see their demise. I could pick out each....