Getting Free

Surely it’s no surprise to the seven regulars hereabouts that I have long been an enthusiastic user and recommender of “positive” (humanist) psychology. I think the idea that one can be remade has appealed to me for a very long time; and of course the emphasis on individual uniqueness and personal fulfillment speaks deeply to me.

However, in reading the introduction to an older book of this sort, a dreadful thought struck me; and I don’t know how to resolve it.

And the young woman who labeled herself “the best slave” also clearly and beautifully demonstrates that it applies in only a very limited context.

This piece over at LRC is making the rounds. So far I have seen it at Claire Wolfe's and at The Picket Line. Plus a couple of people have emailed me the link asking my opinion.

It is mostly an OK piece, but for the most part it treats Latin America as a monolith, which it is not, and it neglects to mention several "Elephants in the room".

I’m finding some interesting, er, artifacts as I sift through stuff I’ve been carrying around for years. One thing that caught my attention last night is a copy of Fifth Estate’s spring/summer 2005 issue. I believe it was an essay—the title of which I’ve used for this ramble—that sparked something within me.

I will address the gross oversimplification of that statement, after interested readers follow me to the viewing room for a fascinating presentation.

I am, that is ...

This has actually been a long time coming, but it took me a while to realize it. Anyway, if you want to know, pull back the stage curtain ...

If your response is “helping, of course!”, I have to ask: Are you sure? I was, but it turns out I was wrong. And evidence suggests I’m not alone.

Rasmussen Reports recently announced the results of an interesting little poll of American voters, regarding the idea of “the consent of the governed”. Shall we poke around in the data a bit?

What with all the military madness this country maintains, I’m rather surprised it took the winter Olympics to bring one of my favorite Rush songs out of the recesses of my memory:

I ask the question with solemn seriousness. No, I haven’t been smoking or otherwise ingesting anything to make my brain go wonky. I have actually been thinking about the issue—from a very different context—for some time now, and trying to find a way to gather my thoughts for presentation here. I’ve not yet accomplished that, but a news article I just read crystallized the above question out of my mind.

What a fitting set of ideas to contemplate now—well, for those who are attached to the Gregorian calendar, anyway. Be warned: this isn’t a typical “bucket list” or similar set of externally–driven “achievements”—the short essay Joshua Zader posted may have most individuals squirming uncomfortably a few times. But it brims with the stuff that is most important in living a conscious life.

In Costa Rica, as in many other places, this year is a census year. I intend to do everything possible to avoid being counted.

My experience with the census started in 1970, when my parents received "the long form" (for lack of a better name). I recall my father feeling important because "they" wanted to know all about him. I saw the form and felt creeped out. It asked things like how many bathrooms in the house, how many TVs you owned, etc. I remember thinking that this was none of their business.

I have a lot of conversations with folks who understand the growing problems and potential for disaster. Many of them are already well down the road to preparations for survival, many have just started, and most are somewhere between. Unfortunately, a few still cling to the idea that - if "we" ALL just would pay attention and DO SOMETHING - the old US Constitution could be resurrected, we could elect the "right people," and the police state would be gone.

Bill St. Clair very kindly emailed me this morning, bringing my attention to an addition to one of his web sites that he thought I would particularly appreciate. Even though we’ve not yet met in person, he knows me well.