Freedom

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Wed Jun 15, 2011 11:08 am

How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World

[quote]Freedom is the opportunity to live your life as you want to live it.

The urge for freedom is so much a part of human nature that it can never be suppressed by laws, slogans, or commandments. There is a difference, however, between the urge and the reality.

For most people, freedom remains a pleasant fantasy â€” something to dream of while carrying out daily obligations in the real world. They spend their lives talking vaguely of what they want in life, what they think theyâ€™re missing, why they donâ€™t have it, and who it is that prevents them from being free.

For most people, freedom is an â€œif only.â€

Post by **Elderberry** » Wed Jun 15, 2011 11:56 am

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Wed Jun 15, 2011 5:40 pm

"You can live your life as you want to live it "
Patently false.
We struggle to provide resources to survive. This struggle consumes much of our energy and time. Even a person born with a"silver spoon" has problems, NOT having a "center" to their life. Dudley Moore in "Arthur" was typical of the "idle rich" who have common drives but, no where to exercise them. We each have our own personal limitations besides the limitations of economics.

Trishntek · Post by **Trishntek** » Wed Jun 15, 2011 7:26 pm

Some scholars have the notion that:

Freedom is not the ability to do what you want. But Freedom is the possession of the power and ability to do what you SHOULD do.

I often refer to wild animals in the context of freedom. They are generally born of their own kind who encourage their survival. They interact with their environment and take risks with the promise of reward. Many times the benefits of such an exercise are appreciated with great satisfaction. Sometimes the animal fails to recognize or respond to impending threats and suffers the consequences of unwise decisions.

True freedom is equally full of opportunities to succeed and possibilities of utter failure. Unless both are equal and relevant, there is no freedom.

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Wed Jun 15, 2011 7:40 pm

I like that Trishntek

I was reading a story about feral dogs in Moscow. They ride the subway to get around town. "Old" dogs teach new dogs the stops for the subway. One thing that I found interesting was; they will wait til the absolute last second and fly through the closing doors to board a train. They do it for the thrill.

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Thu Jun 16, 2011 10:15 am

can't sit still wrote:We each have our own personal limitations besides the limitations of economics.

That suggests that you didn't read the mind-opening book that I linked.

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Thu Jun 16, 2011 10:16 am

can't sit still wrote:I like that Trishntek
I was reading a story about feral dogs in Moscow. They ride the subway to get around town. "Old" dogs teach new dogs the stops for the subway. One thing that I found interesting was; they will wait til the absolute last second and fly through the closing doors to board a train. They do it for the thrill.

They use their brains to save their butts, rather than lying around whining about how the world isn't fair.