Question: Lyn, after reading Plato's Republic, I'm looking at Plato's Socrates as individual: He was famous and beloved by the non-oligarchical Greeks, for this bold, unique method--creativity--not to mention his love, and his passion for truthfulness. And Plato limits the practice of philosophy to those, in a republic, at a certain point, with (as he says, in this translation) “a ready understanding and a good memory, sagacity, quickness, high-spirited, generous temperament, and willingness to live a quiet life of sober constancy.”

LaRouche: He associates that, of course, with the old man.

Question: Huh--that makes sense.

LaRouche: The “old man”: That's me! [laughter] No, it's true.  The idea of the philosopher-king.

Question: Yeah, actually I want to get to another question?

LaRouche: Okay, good.

Question: Thanks. I understand that there's not a simple philosopher-training movement, that is, rather, to help people recognize the importance of accepting the leadership of the old man. And, to create a republic of truth-seeking in general, which will acknowledge the authority of the philosopher-king. But, why this is such a unique time, in this stage of decadence, that a youth movement, working, trying to engage people in dialogue?

LaRouche: From the evil, which was the Roman Empire, and the things which had led into it, of ancient Babylon and so forth.  Because the problem is, is that's the problem with humanity:  Humanity should function like this all the time. This is normal  humanity. What we experience, is abnormal humanity, or sub- normal humanity.

The normal thing is--I know this from childhood on--what makes for happiness in being alive in this society! What are the things that are beautiful, that you can recall, in terms of experience, as a human being? You know, looking back at what a human being is, looking back at your own childhood--your first recollections and so forth: What was good? What would you want to preserve? What would you want other people to have? What would you wish you had more of? Huh? And that's the point.

See, to think that being cognitive beings, not pleasure- seeking beings, who rely upon the occasional use of cognition to solve a few problems. That's the problem of inadequacy. That's the  problem of the true Sublime.

You have to enjoy life so much, that, figure this aspect of life: You have to have a sense of immortality. And that is a functional immortality, that you're making contributions to humanity. Those contributions that are of ideas, or perpetuation  of ideas that are essential, live forever. And therefore, your  thought lives forever, in that respect. See, you have a sense of  immortality, and mortality in immortality. Then you say, “I want  to do nothing, which I'd be ashamed of, in thousands of years to  come, or in the eyes of my ancestors. They may not agree with me,  but they can't be ashamed of me.” And you will live that kind of  life.

It's not a matter of trying to live in a way, which gets you a certain benefit, a certain feeling, or so forth. It's to live like that: If you feel that you're really a human being, in the sense I've described it, then you're a happy person. You're not only a happy person, you're a useful person, because the way you respond to problem, will be what society needs of you. What is needs of all its people. So, that's the essence of this matter, eh?

Just, when you get older, as I am, and have the experience I've had, you're able to look back at this in a certain way, which  is richer, than if you're younger. And, when you have to span the  difference between you and me, in age, and experience, you are  forced to look at a multi-generational process, as being the  natural unit of historical process. And you see this process.  You see what I went through, what I came out of. That covers about three generations. You see: You, you're three generations  ahead now. You see what faces you. You've got a span of six  generations; and, a little study of history, you get some more in  there, too. You'll get a sense of yourself as being an historical  being. And, you have a different sense of morality. And you feel  like an old man, when you're young--in the good sense.

And, the trick of being happy, is to learn how to achieve the  beauties of old age, while you're still young enough to really  enjoy them. [laughter]

-30-