Philosophical slapstick

[nancylebov]

A recent comment from solri:

I like the comment about Stoicism. If everyone were a Stoic sophos, you could punch people in the street at random and they wouldn't get upset. (They might, of course, decide it was their Stoic duty to punch you back.) There again, if everyone were that sagely, so would you be, so you wouldn't want to punch them, except perhaps in the following scenario ...

BAM!
"Ouch! Why did you do that?"
"Just checking your apatheia, mate."
"Ah I see. Well, I had a split-second fight/flight reaction when I was about to murder you, but I'd say that was a propathos, not a real pathos, wouldn't you?"
"I guess you're right. Try me."
BAM!
"Hmm, I don't think I even got a propathos there."
"But that's because you asked me to hit you, so you had already refused assent to the cognitive impression."
"You might be right, my friend. We should do this more often."
BAM!
"Teehee, I just did."
"Haha, you little Stoic rascal, you!"