I am free… no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free…because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.
I am free…
no matter what rules surround me.
If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them;
if I find them too obnoxious, I break them.
I am free…because I know that I alone
am morally responsible for everything I do.
ROBERT HEINLEIN
How do you claim your freedom in life?
Do you live by a code of ethics that are of your own design?
Do you ascribe to values that are more tailor-made to your moral code?
Or do you readily allow yourself to slip and slide with whatever the most current moral trends are?
Do you sometimes feel as if you are living in a world in which intelligent people are being penalized by those who are far less intelligent than you, because your knowledge is inconvenient for them?
Everyone would like to claim to be a law-abiding citizen, who follows the rules of whatever jurisdiction they live within, to the T, and yet, if most people were to drill down on their collective attitudes and behavior, they might be surprised to discover what percentage of their own philosophy or moral compass is disparate from the larger population that they live within.
There are many categories of what I might call “a minor infraction from societal norms.” These infractions do not necessarily involve breaking a law per se, but they might involve choosing how we might communicate with, and thereby treat, another being or animal that is different than us.
In the course of our choosing how we wish to conduct ourselves, and what we choose to believe in, or even more importantly, what we choose to espouse to others, we start creating even further divisions between ourselves, and our collected colleagues, neighbors, workmates or school mates.
It is incumbent upon all of us to make these core decisions for ourselves. We might look at how others are stating that they feel, yet when it is only our reflection in the mirror we are looking to be accountable to, we might discover there are disparities between ourselves, and the overall societal norms that are so prevalent in life.
Finding moral fiber within ourselves, to stay truly dedicated to the principles that we profess to adhere to, could not be more appropriate, nor more valuable to our overall being… because in our choices, lies the true fabric of society.
The majority will adhere to the laws. Many will adhere to the outspoken morality, but far fewer will hold those core truths to be self-evident when they, themselves, are alone to give them full and supposedly real evaluation.
We are facing an existential crisis, as the willingness to verbalize a lot of the internal prejudice and unfair hatred that others are potentially feeling in their inner being has become allowed socially to become more expressed, and therefore more normalized.
If you are a truly sentient being, with values that have been cultivated over your time walking this planet, then presumably you will find your own pathway to freedom.
Happy Thursday!
https://brianweiner.com
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