Fantastic! You are gifted. Someone who has known freedom(s) and Me and Bobby McGee. That is the first song I ever sang at a Karaoke night. Hemmed in indeed. The freedom experiences were a lack of authority at one end and unlimited submission to it on the other. In one case, the authority wasn't lacking though, as you alluded. It was your own body but more so the architecture of your body and the hunger of it. Nutrition being the overarching requirement. The hem. The requirement of food for your body versus the requirement of contact with anyone who gave a shit about your welfare. But you were the master of the choice. In the other case, you were fenced on one side by the authority that provided, and to all evidence, gave a shit about your welfare and all your needs were met. You were only bound on the other side to the hunger of your mind. The hem. Your thirst was still limited to the resources available. You didn't write of the breadth of choices you had in this respect. I'm thinking that with most monastaries, at least the Catholic ones, attempts were made to have them well equipped with literature. Yet, you were still the master of the choice of what course of Enlightenment might give you an appetite.
Your analysis of today's politics is well framed within the hems of your experience. A long time ago, I made the statement, to the ether I suppose, you want to know what freedom is, it is knowing your limits. I once asked myself a question: Am I free or am I a slave? I couldn't answer this with a simple statement. I had to define for myself what is freedom as well as what is slavery. My, my, I need to dig up my notes from when, when. Maybe I will write it out on Substack maybe not. Difficult subject. But it came to comparisons of lawful and lawless, selfish and selfless. Like much of my work, it is still a work in progress.
The hem. One way may lead one to find one's limits, the other may lead to a bottomless pit. These days, with trillion dollar budgets, who knows how far this will go. I'm guessing that we will discover this one way or another.
Another note, I tried to subscribe, as you know. There was trouble. I'll try again.
You truly do have a gift for writing. I just got back from a midweek hiking trip. No cell, service, no GPS, limited food carried. Certainly free. Having joined the military voluntarily many decades ago for the fun travel and adventure I soon realized the lie. It was in fact slavery in a totalitarian society. I saw many people who were broken by that system, while others revolted and managed to get out one way or another. The enticements of military life, free meals, clothing, education,travel, and pay with benefits. But the deal carries the knowledge of being an enforcer of rules against people who will kill to avoid having outsiders enslave them in the Borg. A few days ago one Aaron Bushnell found freedom from the US uniform by self Immolation over the situation of the Gaza Genocide. "The most enslaved peoples are those who believe they are free." We americans whether we admit it or not no longer, perhaps never had a Republic, we have a bureaucratic, kleptocracy, of military fascist corporatism, hidden behind the illusion of freedom.
A very good article written by RFS (Rufus). Free markets, voluntary contracts, meritocracy, and very little government (if any). Sound money helps, too.
Private property is the basis of all liberty starting with our bodies and minds.
I could never live in a monastery. Catholic Schools were bad enough.
I also tried the freedom/starvation route. It got boring.
My goal was to submit to the "game" long enough to make my "Fuck Off" money and become a hermit. I succeeded.
PS: I don't believe in enlightenment, just knowledge. And just when I'm getting close to knowing it all, the memory goes.
Fantastic! You are gifted. Someone who has known freedom(s) and Me and Bobby McGee. That is the first song I ever sang at a Karaoke night. Hemmed in indeed. The freedom experiences were a lack of authority at one end and unlimited submission to it on the other. In one case, the authority wasn't lacking though, as you alluded. It was your own body but more so the architecture of your body and the hunger of it. Nutrition being the overarching requirement. The hem. The requirement of food for your body versus the requirement of contact with anyone who gave a shit about your welfare. But you were the master of the choice. In the other case, you were fenced on one side by the authority that provided, and to all evidence, gave a shit about your welfare and all your needs were met. You were only bound on the other side to the hunger of your mind. The hem. Your thirst was still limited to the resources available. You didn't write of the breadth of choices you had in this respect. I'm thinking that with most monastaries, at least the Catholic ones, attempts were made to have them well equipped with literature. Yet, you were still the master of the choice of what course of Enlightenment might give you an appetite.
Your analysis of today's politics is well framed within the hems of your experience. A long time ago, I made the statement, to the ether I suppose, you want to know what freedom is, it is knowing your limits. I once asked myself a question: Am I free or am I a slave? I couldn't answer this with a simple statement. I had to define for myself what is freedom as well as what is slavery. My, my, I need to dig up my notes from when, when. Maybe I will write it out on Substack maybe not. Difficult subject. But it came to comparisons of lawful and lawless, selfish and selfless. Like much of my work, it is still a work in progress.
The hem. One way may lead one to find one's limits, the other may lead to a bottomless pit. These days, with trillion dollar budgets, who knows how far this will go. I'm guessing that we will discover this one way or another.
Another note, I tried to subscribe, as you know. There was trouble. I'll try again.
You truly do have a gift for writing. I just got back from a midweek hiking trip. No cell, service, no GPS, limited food carried. Certainly free. Having joined the military voluntarily many decades ago for the fun travel and adventure I soon realized the lie. It was in fact slavery in a totalitarian society. I saw many people who were broken by that system, while others revolted and managed to get out one way or another. The enticements of military life, free meals, clothing, education,travel, and pay with benefits. But the deal carries the knowledge of being an enforcer of rules against people who will kill to avoid having outsiders enslave them in the Borg. A few days ago one Aaron Bushnell found freedom from the US uniform by self Immolation over the situation of the Gaza Genocide. "The most enslaved peoples are those who believe they are free." We americans whether we admit it or not no longer, perhaps never had a Republic, we have a bureaucratic, kleptocracy, of military fascist corporatism, hidden behind the illusion of freedom.
Too bad they didn't have satellite phones in 1980, outside of the backpack ones the military had.
A very good article written by RFS (Rufus). Free markets, voluntary contracts, meritocracy, and very little government (if any). Sound money helps, too.
Private property is the basis of all liberty starting with our bodies and minds.
I could never live in a monastery. Catholic Schools were bad enough.
I also tried the freedom/starvation route. It got boring.
My goal was to submit to the "game" long enough to make my "Fuck Off" money and become a hermit. I succeeded.
PS: I don't believe in enlightenment, just knowledge. And just when I'm getting close to knowing it all, the memory goes.