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Why Is Independence So Frightening To Some People?
Submitted by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market,
In past articles I have examined the nature of power and division in our society and have always come to the same conclusion, that there are only two types of people: the people who want control over others and the people who just want to be left alone. However, there are also subgroups that swim within the boundaries of each end of the spectrum. Often, psychologists and self-help gurus attempt to promote the idea that the defining quality of the average person’s life is whether he is a follower or a leader. I have seen this spectrum applied to every political and social organization.
Ironically, I have heard so-called “leftists” argue that the nature of their ideology makes them more adept at leadership and that conservatives are more prone to become followers (ostensibly because conservatives tend to be more religious). I have heard the same argument from people on the so-called “right,” only in reverse. The problem is that very few people in our society understand anymore what it actually means to be a leader. Most Americans today are followers, whether they know it or not. And sadly, followers tend to also seek out control over other people, if only to make up for the lack of control they feel in their own lives. That is to say, most followers tend to pursue petty opportunities for leadership.
The concept of leadership has become ridiculously warped. Many people feel that to become a leader, one must clamor his way through the system — be it government or corporate — and achieve artificial status, which others are conditioned to recognize and respect. One cannot become a designated “doctor”, no matter how personally skilled the individual, without earning the correct accolades from the establishment, accolades that are essentially bought at the right price or given as a pat on the head to those who excel at parroting the mainstream consensus. The same goes for scientists, economists, political authorities, etc. This creates a professional class, a percentage of the population whose opinions are treated with immediate reverence simply because of their titles.
The reality often ignored in mainstream thought, however, is that many "professionals" are actually more clueless than laymen, if only because they have been subjected to far more complex indoctrination. How many Ivy League economists, for instance, completely overlooked the inevitable collapse of the derivatives market and the housing bubble simply because they were taught by the mainstream system that such things do not happen in American finance anymore? The truth is, a glossy diploma from the establishment does not necessarily make one intelligent, nor does it automatically make that person a leader to be blindly followed.
Others in our culture assume that leadership is measured by level of influence. Influence, however, can be stolen, rather than earned. The number of fans and worshipers a person retains is not a measure of the real man or woman. Some people lie about who they are to gain popularity, while other people devour such lies because they are desperate for an icon to show them the path to an imaginary promised land. Celebrity — whether by aid of media, finance or bureaucracy — is almost always superficial.
Still other men and women believe that leadership requires empty gestures of cultural rebellion. Do our style preferences, body art, sexual orientations, musical tastes, obscure philosophical hobbies and elitist attitudes really make us different or unique? No, they do not. These things are an expression of our orientation to others, not an expression of our inner selves. One can live a life immersed in what we believe to be the wildly eccentric and still be an empty follower, devoid of originality and independence. My generation in particular has become so obsessed with superficial expressions of artificial individualism I think future historians will on day avidly study this era in stupified wonder. How many times a day do we log on to our social media website of choice or walk outside our homes only to ask other people to love and adore our looks, our cynical but smarmy sense of nihilism, or our wit, carefully crafted to please as large a portion of the collective as possible?
This article from NaturalNews.com really says it all. Even when putting on elaborate displays of their brilliant uniqueness through "selfies" and tweets, Americans today at their darker core are desperate for the approval of others.
Carl Jung, one of the few psychologists in history I actually find useful, once said that all human beings are in search of a particular treasure, a psychological or spiritual treasure that is unique to them and makes them whole. Many people spend the entirety of their lives searching for this treasure in the world around them, rather than looking within, and they end their days feeling mostly miserable and thwarted. They look for it in politics. They look for it in religious representatives (without ever understanding their true relation to the religion). They look for it in wealth and stature. And they always come up short. This is the life of the follower, a life of endless transference in which complete happiness is always outside of oneself, somewhere over the horizon or in the hands of others.
One might ask what any of this has to do with independence and liberty? But, consider the implications...
How many socialists and collectivists in the world think THEIR happiness is dependent on the taxation of YOUR savings and labor, YOUR acceptance, YOUR submission to their ideal society. How many collectivists seek to complete themselves by forcing others to participate in their philosophical fantasies? How many of them will call you a "narcissist" or a "terrorist" because you only wish to make your own decisions free from the social pressures of their arbitrary group? They do not look within; they look without. And if you happen to be standing in their field of vision, you might become a prop in their self-serving theater.
Also consider that such collectivists will never be satisfied with the control they find in the outside world because the perfection they seek does not exist. Therefore, their efforts to force you to conform will only become more suffocating and demeaning to your humanity as time goes on. Followers are a cancer that never stops growing. They well eat up the Earth in order to diminish their fears. They'll say they are doing it for the greater good, but in the end, they are only self absorbed brats playing at being socially responsible adults.
On the other end of the spectrum, there are many within the Liberty Movement who also suffer from the follower’s disease. They are the relentless crybabies on message boards screaming: “We keep talking about the problem but when are YOU going to give us a solution!?” Or they ask: “When is EVERYONE going to stand up and do something about this!?” Or, "When are all of you going to realize the magnificence of MY solution and follow ME?" Notice the inclusiveness of such statements. What they should be asking is: "What can I do myself to fix the problems I perceive?" These people are always waiting around for someone else to take action, while never taking action on their own. They are followers by default of their own apathy.
These are the folks looking for the next George Washington (or to become the next George Washington) on a white steed ready to charge into the center of D.C. like some ill fated Light Brigade. They are the bitter pills that rage over the fact that movement activists didn't support their favorite random silver bullet solution flavor of the week, be it Bitcoin to 'Operation American Spring'. They are livid because no one will march lockstep behind them into whatever halfhearted battle they envision. They become indignant when activists move to support methods outside of their ideal. They want YOU to follow the plan and planners THEY follow, no matter how poorly conceived the plan is, and if you don't, then you must be some kind of traitor. They never consider that perhaps their ideal solution is actually destructive rather than practical, or that no one will rally behind them because no one has much faith in their abilities.
The point is, the fight for liberty is not a follower's game. It is a fight that begins with individuals taking individual measures first and foremost, and if anything, inspiring others through their actions, not demanding fealty for themselves, or their pet strategies.
What can be done to instill independence and legitimate leadership in Americans once again? The conundrum is that such values cannot be instilled; they can only be encouraged. Each individual must make the decision on his or her own to stop looking for the world to fix itself, or them. Each individual must take the first step toward the long journey of becoming a self-reliant and self-owned human being. When faced with this conundrum, I can do nothing but make suggestions:
Find a useful skill, something that you love, and master it completely. Try to become the foremost expert on just one thing — not to impress others, but to challenge yourself. When people assert the incredible effort required to master a skill, they grow their sense of self-worth instead of measuring their worth by the guidelines of hollow academia or the collective.
Never look for traditional leaders. Always look for teachers. A real teacher is someone who seeks to make each individual his own leader through knowledge and empowerment. A real teacher has no desire to rule others, only to help others so that they do not feel the need to be ruled.
Independence comes from self-leadership. As long as you are reliant on the system or its participating oligarchs to decide your future for you, you will never be anything more than a follower, even if the system has given you a “place at the table” and a title to make you feel special. As long as you are vying for approval from the system or the collective, you will never be free. When you can stand in front of a hostile crowd of people and give your viewpoint without fear of how they may respond, then you are on your way to self-leadership.
If you see a problem in the world, stop asking permission to fix it! Stop waiting for the establishment to police itself. Stop concerning yourself with the actions of others and take your own actions, however small they might be. Revolutions are sparked in the minds of individuals and implemented by the hands of the courageous few. There will be no mass awakening and there will be no grand march to glory, so stop holding your breath. If there is an unrelenting evil in the world, then you must fight it if you expect anything to change. If you are the only person who recognizes it, then you may have to fight it alone. The potential for success or failure is irrelevant. It is the fight that matters.
If you are going to lead others, lead by example. Hopefully you have realized by now that true leadership has NOTHING to do with people actually following you. Much more important is the ability to show people how to achieve something more by building something of your own. There are also far too many Americans who seek to falsely elevate themselves by attacking the achievements of others from the anonymous comfort of their computers, rather than doing anything constructive on their own merit. There was a time when Americans were respected as people of action, rather than talk. When you do talk, do so from a position of strength. Talk as someone who has actually done something worth talking about.
If you are going to join, do so with the intent to learn, and to teach. All organization must be voluntary if it is to succeed in the long term, and voluntary organization thrives when participants contribute their knowledge and skill sets without sacrificing their individual self determination. The group does not outweigh the individual, because without the contributions of the individual, the group is meaningless.
Make a list of your dependencies. Do you have the skills to survive without a job? Without money? Without on-grid utilities? Without consistent aid from others? Can you live without modern comforts if you had to? Do you have the fortitude to endure great hardship? Have you ever endured great hardship, or have you avoided it your whole life? The more self-sufficient you are, the less you will need to look to the system or other people to make your decisions for you. You will become fearless, and fearless people cannot be ruled.
I believe independence terrifies some people because it requires a human being to challenge the unknown and take responsibility for the consequences if he fails. Followers trade in their mental and spiritual freedom to governments, oligarchs and gatekeepers so that they never have to face these difficulties. Sometimes, they are simply lazy. Sometimes, they lack confidence in their own abilities. Sometimes, they are just cowards. In any case, the result is the same: a life of relative ease riding the tides in a vast school of self-serving minnows but always prey to the ever circling sharks. I say don’t be a minnow; man-up, and build something of your own.
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Who needs Independence when you can join the FSA?
.
Forward!
Texas independence! Scottish independence! Novorossiya independence!
Go Scotland!
That would be a massive kick in the nuts to the Empire.
I thought they were de-nutted decades ago....
As a staunch liberal, I believe government should take care of its people so long as people obey the rules...just like I believe parents should raise their kids until their children turn 70...so long as all expenses are paid for by their neighbors...then once the kids turn 70, they can rely on the government to take care of them...so long as they obey all the rules.
I agree but in my book it's 75. 70 is still young.
"Independence" code word for you are going to get screwed by the colluding powers.
Even superpowers like Russia, US and China collude against small "independent" countries from developing nukes by operating together in UN Security council.
The game is amongst them. Smaller "independent" nations are just pawns
Stockholm Syndrome...
How many socialists and collectivists in the world think THEIR happiness is dependent on the taxation of YOUR savings and labor, YOUR acceptance, YOUR submission to their ideal society.
Said by someone writing ON THE INTERNET to other people... READING ON THE INTERNET.
If y'all want to be so independent, move to fucking no where and turn off the internet. Discover how quickly everyone forgets you exist. There are several billion people on earth, any one of whom with comparable intellectual capacity ready and happy to easily replace you amongst those in society.
Either make the move, or stop pretending you want to be independent and just admit what you really want is people to think like you and act like you but are terrible at convincing them to do so. Leaders are those capable of persuasively convincing people among their group to think in certain ways - something most of us managed to discover in pre-school.
Independence is not 'frightening' either, it is more simply undesirable.
So in your world people should cut themselves off from constructive discussion and knowledge, or they aren't independent? You obviously don't understand the meaning of the word. Independence is about making informed decisions based on the facts, not cutting yourself off from everyone else's points of view and living in some cave. Many of us don't want to blindly follow someone just because they are "persuasive". Some of the most persuasive people in history have been liars, and they were only persuasive because the people around them were uninformed. The idea of independence is only undesirable to parasites who want to trick other people into following their ideals, or people who are afraid to make their own decisions. Which one are you?
Man up and send your kids to boot camp with CT Fletcher.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDYWxvUOlSw
Independence is about making informed decisions based on the facts, not cutting yourself off from everyone else's points of view and living in some cave.
That is your definition, the author begins:
there are only two types of people: the people who want control over others and the people who just want to be left alone
Many of us don't want to blindly follow someone just because they are "persuasive"
Not many people will claim they want to follow liars, but somehow it happens. Look at any president, for better or for worse they got to where they were because they were persuasive.
Leaders as a concept is extremely overrated, particularly as society finds less and less use/need for them.
The idea of independence is only undesirable to parasites who want to trick other people into following their ideals
Independence needs to be defined in relationship to something specific otherwise it's meangingless.
Independence from a number of things close to me is undesirable: the society I live in, the people I am close to, the job I have, the knowledge which has been built upon (comes free too, that's socialism!!) for the past several centuries by known and unknown researchers - leading to the possibility of the work I do... etc
Grandiose claims of independence rarely connect with reality.
"There are several billion people on earth, any one of whom with comparable intellectual capacity ready and happy to easily replace you amongst those in society."
The difference being, among those several billion people on earth, most don't have the comparable intellectual capacity to be independent or they wouldn't accept the edicts of a few socialist elites who prey on them.
Minnows = food.
The difference being, among those several billion people on earth, most don't have the comparable intellectual capacity to be independent or they wouldn't accept the edicts of a few socialist elites who prey on them.
Unlike y'all in the gulch.
How very ummm...elitist of you ;-)
@James Cole: There will be a time to cut the cord. That time is not yet come.
As a staunch Liberal I believe in the use of government force to rob and enslave people so that I don't have to take personal responsibility for caring for my own parents in their old age, plus I get off on forcing other people to live the way I want and pay for the things I believe in. But this isn't totalitarian idea , because I refuse to call it that. Live and let live is a awful philosophy, because it allows other to impose their beliefs on me - I find other's idea that they aren't communal property particularly offensive.
Imagine what a dim-witted loser one must be to emigrate to.... England!!! I don't even FLY through Heathrow anymore.
Harumph
Here is one you missed:
http://northwestfront.org/
Yikes! Wonder how they feel about kikes, dykes and, isn't that fonestar's image?
(Spoken in secret, in hushed and reverent tones by Satoshi-worshippers)
His name was 'Fonestar'
We are all subjects of a state run by a multigenerational bureaucracy. That bureaucracy is dependent on a never ending revenue stream that is produced with a series of mouse clicks over at the FED. It is conjured up on some hard drive. It is nothing more than a series of numbers on a computer screen. It is no more real than a video game. When that realization comes home to roost and the real goods trump conjured credit we will all be free.
I've already been through all that shit. I just want to fucking have a good time. And I will for now. Maybe I can be determined again. After this 1/2 gallon. Yeah.
The whole time I was reading this article, I kept asking myself questions about the motivations of the individual that wrote it.
Very disconcerting.
Read more of Brandon Smith's articles. He is a regular contributor to ZH. I find them all interesting well written and thought provoking. Then you will understand him better and you will know more about his motivations. They are worth reading even if you don't always agree. I usually agree with what he writes.
"Why Is Independence So Frightening To Some People?"
Simple. Because it's not free.
It takes work and involvement
Responsibility for self.
But I think there are three types of people. The third type is the sheep that want to be taken care of and not work. That will put up with great oppression.
good on ya bunkie...the great silent majority....all countries have one...the middle of the bell curve...whole flocks only need one shepard and a sheep dog or two...
Grudgers, Suckers, Cheaters.
Sheepdogs, sheep and wolves.
There is always a third who think they are entitle to what others have risked for and made. There is always a third who would rather be robbed than fight. And thereis always a third that will fight the first third. You can tell who they are because they are the ones being called greedy because they want to keep what they have made.
The Sheep - they are herd animals. They want what the herd wants - securitiy, and they are fine with it if a member gets picked off the fringes every once in a while. Sheep WANT to be herded, and if the government is a shepherd willing to do it, they will follow it all of the way to the slaughterhouse. Why? Because tey are given excuses to do it, thats why.
"There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still have to prove our worth anew each day: we have to prove that we are as good today as we were yesterday. But when we have a valid alibi for not achieving anything we are fixed, so to speak, for life. Moreover, when we have an alibi for not writing a book, painting a picture, and so on, we have an alibi for not writing the greatest book and not painting the greatest picture. Small wonder that the effort expended and the punishment endured in obtaining a good alibi often exceed the effort and grief requisite for the attainment of a most marked achievement." Eric Hoffer.
There is another category to consider.
There are now massive numbers of welfare-sucking leech maggots who spend time popping out children for increased welfare benefits; and think and scheme daily on methods to 'get over' on 'the man'. They are fooled in to believing that they are 'gaming the system' (and thus consider themselves to be 'free thinkers' in their 'creativity' in new methods of increasing their benefits while dealing Crack on the streetcorner). They are niether leaders or followers, and consider no one can tell them what to do. They are lawless and wholly without any redeeming qualities. A famous author once referred to this kind as 'USELESS EATERS'. This doesn't go quite far enough in the description.
Exactly. And, it's not easy, either. And it has no value anymore, like it used to. At this point I'm heart-sick with where we are as a nation - and that sounds like a raft of bull-shit politico speech but, I mean it. I was always the creative type, good w/my hands, mechanically inclined. I started my own business (on the side) that was always lucrative and attracted other creative types that were happy to pay me good $ for my cultivated good craftmanship - win/win, good business for all concerned. Everything is circling the drain and everyone is whistling past the graveyard - sick, suspended animation. This can't go on forever but, it might go on long enough to wear my ass out.
Can I have a witness??? : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7B5jXYRy3Q
I find it ironic that that earned a down arrow.
"Freedom ain't free" and of course the costs are personal...in reputation, welfare and your existence itself.
This is very well written wonderfully egalitarian missive. But why have elections in the first place if not for supporting a willingness to be led?
I've been on many a "damned crusade" (this place being one of them)...at least there is leadership here. "Thought Provocateurs."
I wanna know where it is in the folks we're paying?
This is America...we get ahead of problems, solve them before they metastasize into something worse. We take other people's interests into account...look for solutions "not all our own."
I find it odd that in the Greatest Bull Market in History (with worst recovery ever) the only solution presented is WOAR!
That's a form of leadership I guess...it's certainly not Statesmanship though. (Greatest cover up ever?)
So let's see here...total absence of leadership, screeds of WOAR!, violent suppression of "the cranky folk of Mizzou." And no one one either side of the political spectrum can say bad word about Wall Street?
Talk about "Da-da-esque." Putting the "sir" in "surreal."
Sign me up! I'm ready to go!
+1 just for "Da-da-esque"; that's brilliant!
"Why Is Independence So Frightening To Some People?"
Most Americans are pussies. Period.
Holder's trip to St Loius should be interesting.
I have concluded that socialism is for losers and wannabe autocrats. Those are the only two groups that really benefit.
I have also noticed a correlation: Pessimist-Atheist-Leftist. It is not 100%, of course but it is very common. That is the part left out of the article. Leftists pretty much believe everybody sucks except themselves and the fearless leader they like. So, YOU need lots and lots of regulations and YOU need to pay as much as possible to even things out. Because YOU are greedy you need to fund the socialist state or the poor will have nothing to eat. In fact, YOU are probably the reason there are poor. It is easy for government to get these people to sell every neighbor out to government. The make up stupid social responsibilities that do not exist and new rights like free healthcare. It is also why they cannot reconcile their ultimate dilemma which is the fact that if people really suck why do you want to give them so much power in government? The only answer is that their own do not suck. It is why they cannot accept the fact that their own get prosecuted to a higher degree than anyone else and most all the most famous tyrants of the modern era have been some kind of socialist.
In any case, I like the article and it is interesting that it is so difficult to convince people of the superiority of liberty. We might have to do autocracy once again to be reminded as to why liberty is in fact better even if it has a few sharp edges.
I don't perceive that correlation at all. Leftists are very optimistic that everything will be ok so long as their guy has his hands on the controls of society. I would grant you that there is a correlation between atheist and leftist but I bet it's at least as strong between atheist and libertarian.
Like most concepts, it is one amongst many. It is neither defining nor necessary to all people. If everyone was independent, we would have no specialization nor social organization. Being independent is a personal choice, however, it cannot take place in a society that lacks liberty.
Brandon fails to make this distinction and it is unfortunate. Just because some people have no desire for independence does not make them imbecillic zombies, slavering for a leader. Can you be independent and married? With children?
There are degrees of independence and each person has a level that fills their needs. Liberty is something alltogether different. Liberty allows us to pursue our independence to success. As long as we are denied opportunity because of the machinations of the Elites through the manipulation of markets and government, we are but slaves looking in on independence from the outside.
The frustration can be expressed in many ways, including rebellion or acceptance and all the stages in between. This has nothing to do with "manning up". It has to do with how we choose to organize our society. If we support the present organization, we are willing slaves. If we withdrawl and refuse to fund it, we demonstrate our willingness to bring it down. If enough people agree, the State will fail and we can go about creating something better, something which guarantees the liberty to be ourselves and pursue opportunities while guaranteeing the rights necessary to protect both minorities and majorities from the tyranny of the Elites and their favorite tools: law and money.
Sean, Brandon did not say that people who want to be led are 'imbecillic zombies, slavering for a leader'. How can you get that out of the article? Also, 'If enough people agree, the State will fail and we can go about creating something better', that means you want to organize a group of followers who will make you their leader and the levers of power will be in your control. Brandon is talking about individual independence and you are talking about forming a new government. Those are not at all the same. I can see why you don't like the article. You are one of the false leaders he talks about.
Nice try. No where did I advocate to organize a group of followers nor attempt to take over the government and substitute my own. I was talking about individual independence as well and the difference between it and liberty. Troll on little Phat.
I see zero need for a State or legal system, but some might and the price for society is compromise amongst its' members. How the compromise is ascertained is key and liberty is essential.
Excellent comment +1
Who is John Galt?
John Galt is a driver for Lyft.
Last time I took a cab it took three trys and fourty five minutes to get one to come to California and Presidio.
Tonight , for the first time, i tapped on lyfte , there were eight drivers available within a fefew blocks. I got a connfirm in twenty seconds and two minutes later the driver pulls up calling my name, Mr. Standard.
The fare was half of the cab fare, and it was a nice new Prius. The driver was a liberty minded african american.
The freedom of the internet kills another government monopoly. There is nothing the Board of Supervisors can do because they will be thrown out now that people know how wonderful Lyft, UUber and sidecar are.
Next\, maybe, will be the banks, made redundant by bit coin. who ever thought that cabs would just melt away along with the Soviet Union.
Oh yea great idea. Licensed cab drivers are there for your safety. These app-cabs are not safe. The drivers are not insured, don't have background checks, possibly running on fumes, and could be gangsters ready to kidnap you, or if you are a woman you could be forced to engage in sexual activities with the driver such as: oral, repeated vigorous vaginal penetration, sodomy.
You take your life into your own hands which is always a bad alternative to choosing a government run program where things are safe!
Here in India we would never allow such app-cabs.
Granted I have never been to India or ridden in one of the cabs there, but I had thought you just described the normal cabs available there, at least for a woman.
It must take lots of certification and training to achieve that level of official cab in India.
Listen,
Sometimes these women promise to pay for a ride to their destination by trading services of sexual gratification. It happens. But when you arrive at their far-flung destination they try to run from the taxi.
You see many bumper stickers stating the policy. "Ass, Grass, Gold, Cash. No one rides free!").
People are afraid of being independent because they have never actually been independent. The unknown terrifies just about everybody.
Current society has conditioned people to being dependent on others since the first thought they can remember, and parents, schools and mentors designed the system that way.
True independence died with Andrew Jackson. Afterwards, you had a bunch of banker butt lickers like Polk, Tyler, Fillmore, Buchanan, Lincoln and every one that followed, with Woodrow Wilson being the supreme fuckwad that sold his country down the river.
A caveman lived more freely than we do today. At least he lived and died by his own skill and wits, while depending on a little luck and weather.
Once you start looking at modern society and especially modern government through the lens of liberty...you get depressed.
A caveman lived in a tiny cave surrounded by hostile predators--from germs to tigers to his neighbor in the next hole in the ground. But you can't evn find a little bit of freedom in a peaceful suburb?
Stop cringing in your little man cave in front of a flickering screen that gives no warmth with nothing more frightening to deal with than traffic, pathetic hipsters, and the tax man. What are you afraid will take away your freedom if you try to exercise it...the saber toothed joooo?
Over the last thirty years, when I find that most of my family, friends and strangers, tell me that I've lost my mind and I must be bat shit crazy...then I know I am on the right track.
"We're trying to have society here!"
"Freedom in capitalist society always remains about the same as it was in ancient Greek republics: Freedom for slave owners."
— Vladimir Lenin
So to speak but today we have 2 levels of slavery: the common slave's work is replaced with machinery & even the serfs live like kings of old in the regard of delegating physical work.
The other level is income: slaves do work but do not get to keep the fruits of their labours, instead, that goes to their owners. That still happens.
There's a choice, however, to revolt, to work less, to hide earnings so they can't be taken, to migrate, etc.
True freedom exists for those who are armed & skilled in their weapons to protect it. Everyone else is a slave sooner or later.
What's a freedom? Can I get them on sale at Walmart?
"You didn't build that!..."
Those traits were punnished heavily. That type of thinking is even more dangerous than critical thinking.
If you think the greater problem is fear of independence, greater than the control which actively impedes it, I think you are just shy of understanding what's going on here.
I didn't ask to be here. yet still, I'm here. Cheers!
- BC
Ask the theists, they should know.
Is this post a satire or something?
That was one of the glaring questions I got as well.
At least for now, you have the freedom to convert your fiat into precious metals, the freedom to re-locate anywhere in the the country (or to many places in the world), the freedom to purchase guns (except in certain places), and the freedom to practice your chosen form of employment (though you may need licenses or permits).
You start to lose that freedom the longer you stay in the system, especially if you expect anything from the government, or if you place your fiat into banks or retirement plans.
You no longer have freedom to speak, freedom of privacy, freedom to vote (there are no different choices), freedom to own land or houses (they can be taken away or taxed so that you cannot afford them), freedom to avoid cavity searches, or freedom to choose your own doctor.
I will start by eliminating every system-serving public sector parasite that tells what I am not "allowed" to do?
OK so far author? Do I buy indemnity insurance from you, or will you appear in person to protect me?
Great! Thxs. Now onto the bankers and landowners.
Then one fine ('unfined'?)day:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAaWvVFERVA
If I follow his suggestions for being an independent individual, does that make me a follower? It's a trap! As a free thinker, I will ignore his suggestions. Does that make him a poor leader? This is hard.
Why would adpopting a good idea make you a "follower"? The choice is still yours, after all, as long as you understand what the choice is. If you blindly followed a suggestion without understanding why, that would make you a follower.
Haaah...brilliant Trucker. Circular reasoning mind trap at it's finest/funniest.
I like brand on though. He is a smith, which makes him a vulcan and that makes his rhetoric firey.
Who better than a smith to put a Brand On you?
Eh?
You've watched "Life of Brian", haven't you?
Brian: "You don't have to follow anybody.
You've got to think for yourself.
You are all individuals."
Crowd: "Yes, we're all individuals!"
Brian: "You're all different."
Crowd: "Yes, we're all different!"
("I'm not." "Shhh...")
Gibberish. Guess it is much easier to blame the individual than it is to balme the system the individual must exist in. Dependence is the result of our sytem of enriching the 1% and the protections provided to them against competition. Give the workers their fair share of profits and quit making them compete against 3rd world cost of labor and the whole dependence issue goes away.
No individual ever came to great wealth and success without an army of followers working for their cause. I.E. if everyone was like you desire noone would be successful because success is not earned individually. .
And the beauty of it is they did it without force, and could have never accomplished it without our obedient compliance. Our primary source of dependency is debt. It has been used to sustain our lifestyles while watching our economy, which ultimately for most consists of a decent paying job, go to shit. Now, rather than borrowing money in our own name to buy the things their marketers tell us we can't live without, we now have our government borrowing in our name to provide others who no longer have a job. The FSA is funded by debt, which we know is an asset in today's financial world. These trillions in debt are an asset because they represent title to our lives, to our productive life that the all powerful hold in their fists. With their ability to borrow in our name without our direct permission, they have effectively a blank check line of credit that can be used to put a collar about our necks as well as future generations.
Some would call that odious.
Your definition of "success" seems to be the system's definition of success, which is a skewed and perverted version of reality. Becoming a puppet for corrupt power brokers and gaining a few perks is not really true success in life. it's just selling out for a little status. In my book, that's failure.
You want Liberty? Try www.electanewcongress.com, www.electfawell.com, or www.scienceofliberty.us. Sorry, the free pdf is down now but hopefully it will be back up by late next week. SERFS UP AMERICA!
New American Re... You want Liberty? Try www.electanewcongress.com, www.electfawell.com, or www.scienceofliberty.us. Sorry, the free pdf is down now but hopefully it will be back up by late next week. SERFS UP AMERICA!
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Sorry didn't follow your links. Electing a new congress is a joke because it is The Constitution that is in need of repair - rewritten to more clearly and explicitly limit the government. Electing a new congress just means more blowhards that want to make you bend over and take it in the ass.
We are born dependent and historically our parents primary challenge was to teach us independence. Our first mistake was to allow the state to educate our children, allowing the indoctrination of dependency to be reinforced, the power of the state demonstrated daily. Each successive generation has further reinforced dependency as has our educational system.
It is not a difficult thing to teach dependence, as it is far easier than teaching independence. Like the difference in picking up a bad habit versus a good one. Dependency IS control, far more effective than using force or direct intimidation. Simply demonstrate infinite risks along with unlimited protection only the state can provide. On top of that create an unsustainable economy that is built on debt, basically enslaving the population with the threat of default and collapse if we don't keep up the payments.
Yes, they have constructed a beautiful cage that many if not most are very content to live in, as the options are too awful to face.
If you like your lack of independence, you can keep your slavery.
Article reminds me of Jack Nicholson's scene in "Easy Rider." He plays an ACLU attorney practicing in the "sticks" and the speech he makes about freedom, what it really is and why most people are afraid of truly "free" people resounds in this piece. Nice work. Humility and humanism are really lacking in Amerika these days.
This seems like a good time for a first post. Thanks for all the good info over the years zerohedge. :D great article Tylers. Best yet.
One of the best articles on ZH and that's saying something.
In depends very scary
Independence isn't frightening. It just takes too much effort. Sheep with comfy cushy lives just don't want to risk those comfy cushy lives.
Gerald Celente said it best. "People with nothing to lose, lose it". Americans have too much to lose.
America has gone communist, or close to it. Yet arm-chair so-called "patriots" still say its not time yet.
I don't know why it needs to be so difficult to find a leader. Where I come from, the one who outruns the giant fireball wins.
Why is independent critical thinking so frightening to Brandon? Why does he have to stick to old refried zingers and a verbatim verborragia of a certain ideological narration's textbook?
Ever hear of the Protestant Work Ethic? Rugged Individualism? Yankee Ingenuity? It all went the way of the Protestants. They stopped protesting and got fat and happy - not unlike Rome and other world powers which had it all.
Proftel:
To learn how the world is, read ZeroHedge.
To learn how the world really is: vineyardsaker.blogspot, paulcraigroberts.org, washingtonsblog.com, moonofalabama.org, redecastorphoto.blogspot among many others.
To learn how the rest of the world is scared shitless read: businessinsider.com and dailymail.co.uk.
hehe
But I am an investment banker and I am terrified of standing on my own two feet:
I need:
1) TBTF banks where we will be unconditionally bailed out when we screw up
2) QE to cover the losses from our incompetent trading
3) ultra low interest rates so we can borrow money cheaply, we could never make any money at normal interest rates
Investment bankers can't be expected to stand on their own two feet and we need the strong firm hand of national institutions to support us on our way.
The reward environment that banksters exist in does a fairly good job of convincing them to continue on and take the tit.
People recoil at independence because they have been psychologically programed all of their life to be dependent types. They don't don't even trust themselves, let alone others. Truly, they are sheeple.
Great article!
Agree on many, many points.
Only in the last 2 paragraphs does it derail a little.
Do you have the skills to survive [...] without on-grid utilities? Crap question framing. For how long? Under which environmental conditions? Are off-grid utilities available? (such as propane tanks)
Can you live without modern comforts if you had to? Yes.
Do you have the fortitude to endure great hardship? Does this imply without ever enduring some great hardship one is not complete as an individual? Tell you what, intelligent people can read other's experiences and put themselves in other's position (somewhat, never perfectly.) Or put differently, I needn't have experienced everything myself to learn from outcomes. But no matter your previous direct or indirect experiences, you will see if one can endure a great hardship exactly if and when it comes to it. So my answer is: I'm not arrogant enough to pretend I have a reliable answer to this question.
Hmm, on further reflection this might be a self-test on tendencies to display over-confidence to cover up fears, or longing for perfection ("the perfection they seek does not exist") - nice.
The questions could be rephrased thus: 'Do you have enough money to buy your own island, in fact, do you own your own island.'
If the answer is yes, you are a leader, if not, you were born scum.
Can you endure a thermo nuclear blast from an escallation of the Ukrainian situation?
Batman11 Can you endure a thermo nuclear blast from an escallation of the Ukrainian situation?
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Trying to understand your point. Could one endure a thermo nuclear blast whether they are dependent or not dependent on government? I'd say a direct hit means you're dead either way.
So what is your point again Batman11? Oh, you've gone retard. okay.
You do realize that it's your choice whether or not to live in a location where such a scenario is likely?
“I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind.” ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery
And a free mind will not allow for worship of idoltry. As soon as you worship anything including a single item, idea, etc you've lost the battle since people will fixate on whatever they worship and in turn shut off the critical thinking faculties and fall into a false sense of safeness since their idioltry is the right one. Plus it makes it easy to manipulate people then using that idoltry against them.
These things are nothing more than tools, some work better than others depending the system and problem but tools only. A gun don't keep you free a free mind and knowing how and when to use it does. A retard not knowing how to weld the tool will not be free but if they worship it they will think they are.
A free mind is not necessarily an educated mind either since education these days is about training human fidos to perform tricks for human fido treats. With that said there is some value in training to perform specific tasks but it is only part of the overall picture not the picture as society likes to push about higher education for example. How many of them miss the forest for the trees will worshipping themselves because of their education because they are exceptional in their ability to perform the human doggie trick their education dog trained them to perform.
When you worship a hammer you tend to see everything as a nail. It closes your mind and stunts your ability to be free, grow and mature. It is not the hammer (idoltry) that is the problem it is your worship of it that is.
A free mind will recognize the difference between the problem being a nail or something else and try to apply the right or best tool for the job in the tool box, if neither exist improvise in the short term while figuring out how to build or acquire the right or best one for the long term.
Because so many people have not the capability to self determine.
Mr. Smith,
i wish janus weren't so obscenely exhausted; as he feels some thought-reciprocity befits this bit of brilliance you've shared with we ZHealots.
and it is at such times and under similar circumstances that i pull over and let Christ do the speaking for me. it's something of a sin to say one has a 'favorite' Bible quote; and so i will do my best to avoid a transgression of said nature and say only that this one is among my most treasured.
JC addressing his disciples: "Behold, the Kingdom of Heaven is within you!"
ver-i-tas,
janus
Excellent.
Outstanding! Definitely striking a nerve with the ideologue troll crowd.
Bottom line is “They” need us, and “We” do not need them.
Being a competent individual does not mean that you do not work with others to accomplish common goals – what it does mean is that you will be a contributor instead of a parasite.
“You get a lot more done when no one is worried about who gets the credit.”
Best article I have read in a very, very long time. You absolutely nailed it. Thank you.
This article misses the point on many levels...
Man does not operate in a vacuum. We live in a world bereft of meaning. As a consequence people are floundering.
It is all very well to claim that folks should ascribe to something higher. But higher ideals are by nature built on underlying principle. Such principles do not exist. Instead we are reduced to our basest drives and instincts. Until such time as we again become a moral society we will continue to flounder.
I know that some of us disagree on the following... but I will assert than man left to his own devices, bereft of God, is incapable of morality. Now this is quite apart from the claim that God exists... but if He does not, then humankind is reduced to a Machiavellian construct. It is exactly such a world that we find ourselves living in, with those able to self describe purpose competing while the rest of humanity falls into disrepair, despair, and disorder. Sadly, and perhaps necessarily, the bulk of these self starters are sociopaths, or something worse.
Is it possible for those of us remaining, who understand that man does in fact have purpose, that God indeed exists, that it is in fact obligatory upon man, as a moral agent, to remain independent... for the responsibility is incumbent upon each of us to choose our actions... to counsel our brethren?
I would suggest we are rather in the position of performing triage... reaching those few desperate enough for truth to be open to possibility greater than themselves, while understanding that, as a race, we are set upon a course. History would suggest the only way back from such a place as this is through... not up. We will reap the consequences of what we have sown, and when the pain of this has become sufficient only then will we, as a race, be willing to reach for something more.
Man is by his circumstance free. It is his nature that imprisons him.
OK, where does one go to solve the issue of "I will assert than man left to his own devices, bereft of God, is incapable of morality."
Organized religion is its own definition of imorality.
I agree.
On the other hand, just because we require hope, hope does not necessarily exist. And in many ways it would be easier to believe this... that hope does not exist. It would be a great excuse not to care.
I believe the Bible both prescribes man's nature and it's remedy. We are by design confounded with the necessity of choosing our actions. We must also choose our fate.
That man's religious institutions have become corrupt at a time in which all of man's institutions have become corrupt is to be expected. The question is, can we as individuals reach beyond such corruption for truth... assuming that there is truth beyond the mechanical principle's that subsume the cold dead universe.
Ultimately, and despite however rational we as individuals believe our thinking to be, we will choose what we believe. We will base that choice not on knowledge, as all of what human's call knowledge is derived from unprovable premise, but rather upon desire.
I believe we are on the verge of man's darkest moment... I know many believe the opposite, and that we live at a time of great prospect and
enlightenment... to have hope in such a time requires courage. To share that hope is, I believe, the solution that you ask for.
The answer is not in man's institutions, religious or otherwise, but rather in God's words. It is funny that I should find myself penning, or rather typing such words. I am a man who would prefer not to care, and who, midst the early years of his adult life, considered himself an atheist and a scientific thinker. But I love truth more than my life... I always have, from my earliest memory. And the truth is that I do believe we have a God, and that we have His word... whether I want Him or not.
Unfortunately you are another person confused by the wanton overcomplexity disseminated by TPTB - you're only confused on a higher level than today's immoral masses.
One can determine and define morality oneself just by rational thought, without the need of a god or commandments, after carefully peeling away the onion layers of overcomplexity.
That way you end up with a very robust morality that needs no belief (except that one has not overlooked any important aspect towards forming the opinion - but by definition it is impossible to prove the non-existence of something.)
I do agree that people can take a shortcut to come to mostly the same results by picking a good god or book, but then it will always remain a belief.
However when those folks -like you- disparage people like me,
basically stating that because they were not able to rationally come to the same conclusions as their role model then also nobody else will ever be able to do so,
then that arrogance startles me.
Religion is a cancer
I am secure in my morality and I believe in no god. Treat others well because it's the right thing to do. Simple.
You missed the point... that you are secure in your morality is by its nature Machiavellian... When all of us are secure in our own morality only might makes right.
Good writeup, thanks. A lot of good stuff here. The indoctrination people receive throughout their lives sneaks in from lots of places. The critical thinking skills among Americans have been all but erased. For so many people, it's whatever the TV says. Henry Kissinger once spoke about leadership. One of the talking points of leadership quality was whether a person was "ambitious to do" or "ambitious to be". That one stuck in my head.
The Bushes are real leaders – the greatest leaders in Modern Times.
Just look, we had a senior Bush, a Jr. Bush and may have another Bush soon enough. Who can argue against that?
Plus, we Americans were mostly safe from terror under the Bushes.
"we Americans were mostly safe from terror under the Bushes",
but not so safe from terror BY the Bushes.
LMAO!!! BLAHAHAHA!
Cue up "And I'm proud to be an Amurican, where at least I knows I'ms free!"
What a hilarious article.
What are you people, a bunch of survivalists?
I notice that the people that always talk about "liberty" are the people with power and money ALREADY. I mean why would you want "liberty" if it meant you would be some shitty SERF to a wealthy person?
Ohhhh wait, in your FANTASY LIBERTY LAND, there are no rich people right? There are no powerful people outside of government that force THEIR WILL on others....OF FUCKING COURSE NOT. That would be a giant BLEMISH in your FANTASY LIBERTY LAND.
I love you Ayn Rand people. You love ROMANCE NOVELS. Romancing about being "on your own", being supermen that can take care of yourselves with no help from others.
GROW THE FUCK UP.
So, I guess you're a big fan of marxist/socialism?
Our country was founded on the ideals of minimum gov't, maximum personal freedom/liberty tempered by personal responsibility.
It's the responsiblity part that people have trouble with.
Yeah, because people that are screwed in society because they have no wealth are lazy and irresponsible.
Yeah, that's the problem. They don't "take responsibility" for having ZERO ASSETS.
They just need to "pull themselves up by their boot straps"....yeah that's the ticket. And apparently grow their own food on....what....land they don't own? And have shelter and warmth....where exactly?
I love how you people do nothing but slander and throw insults, instead of face reality. It's like the guy that works 80 hours per week for $7/hr isn't "taking responsibility". Right? He's a LOSER. He wants someone to take care of him.
He's IRRESPONSIBLE and probably BLACK! And maybe has a phone from the government!! And uses food stamps to feed his family!! How irresponsible!!
Hey they have a place like you want, it's called MOGADISHU, GO THERE, MACHO FUCKING MAN. Grow your own food, protect your own land.....zzzzzzzzz.
"The point is, the fight for liberty is not a follower's game."
That's true.
No one will follow you towards freedom (that's an oxymoron). If someone follows you, is for seeking security.
You cannot achieve freedom following others (that's another oxymoron). If you follows others, is for seeking security.
Kill your ego, or kill others. Both cannot exist at the same time.
Paradoxically, second choice is less safer but chosen by ones who look for security.
That's why psychopathy ends with -pathy, it's a pathology.
Everyone has the right to bear arms.
High school massacres are the American way.
Real individual liberty does not create a debt for someone else.
There are really two types of people in this world. The first is the most dangerous- they are the Caucasian American Baby Boomers. There is no such thing as a boomer republican. This group is filled with entitlement mentality, narcissistic ideologues and narcissistic control freaks (aka. THEIVES) are dangerous people.
They're all freeloading, entitled socialists who are now racebaiting.
Then there is the rest of us. Well, we're all kind of split up into the "doers" and the freeloaders.
'The first is the most dangerous- they are the Caucasian American Baby Boomers'
White Texan Baby Boomer: your right about one thing, I'm dangerous. But not for your reason.
Mr Smith, I finally got a chance to read this this morning. Good stuff. Thank you. Only a leader can recognize a true leader.
Drop the leader/follower view and think of people as equals. It then comes down to accountability. Nobody gets a pass.
I gave up on ever finding a person to lead me. I can figure it out myself. It is better to think of others as equals. Stop looking for both leaders and followers. Its a red herring. A trick if you will. Asking for a leader is asking to be ruled over. Ask others to follow and next thing you know you are leading the blind.
Take on the challenge and rule yourself.
I do have a take on this, and I have been around a long time now too, lived in many different parts of the world, take nothing from no one including orders, deal only with whom I choose to deal with and no one else,
That includes tax, bureaucracies or any other jumped up jobsworth who somehow thinks he has " authority".
i don't make waves, I seemingly acquiesce, easily and compliantly but like Michael Jackson, I am doing a moon walk, I seem to be facing the right direction and seem to be slow but in reality I am going in a different direction, my own direction.
No one notices, they are too wrapped up in their own self importance and are constantly looking for the rebel, the one who says loudly he is going a different way, even though most of them are going in the same direction, but facing backwards.
Those they just want to turn their faces around.
The real self sufficient that go there own way and face the direction of travel are the real targets of those people with the highest socialist tendencies.
The ones who are different from the herd, but do anything they can to condemn, like attacking those people who speak out then gorge on MSM lies and propaganda to denounce them, like rock stars or movie stars using tax Avoidance schemes. or Putin.
Always find a new bad guy.
But the reality is that the herd of sheep can sense something is wrong, and what we now see is even more people gathering closer together in their herds in trepidation,
They know something is wrong but cannot articulate it because the more they herd together the more the propaganda becomes effective and it also pulls in those on the edges.
They go for perceived security, and the number of true individuals that make noises gets smaller.
And that means they get more visible, more easily noticed as being outside group think, and more easily attacked and the attacks become ever more public and more humiliating.
But there is a guiding hand, as in all systems there are hierarchies, and the ones at the very top, those most on message and their unthinking brain washed celebrity sheep, are trotted out ever more shrilly screaming at those that dare to be different.
But the top of the hierarchies also know that it is a dangerous time for them too, because they also know the herd of sheep are uneasy, and history tells us that a herd of sheep that are uneasy can be unpredictable, they can break and run in any direction all at once.
That why the heavy hand of state is crushing down. They are scared.
Go to any farm and play with a herd of sheep long enough and you can be adept at making sheep behave like that very quickly.
Just do not be in the wrong place when they d stampede.
As the tension rises, real or imagined, there comes a point when one breaks and they all break as one.
This is happening now, and the places this happening is also easy to spot, The US, the UK, Europe everywhere except the Nordics, Arab land everywhere, Africa, very little despite all the wars raging,
Not even Japan is experiencing this deep unease.
But the one place above all others where the elites and their bureaucracies are the most fearful is the US, Tensions are palpable. So skittish are they that they cannot even bear to prosecute one of their own, fearing that alone is capable of bringing the house of cards crashing. That is why you have TBTP or TBTF. It can destroy faith, so better wash it and cover it up and pretend it never happened.
It is now time for those individuals who are serenely going their own way, those who see clearly what is going on, and who do not shout about it, rail against it, get all public and self promoting about it, those who no one notices but they are usually highly respected by those who do know them as being capable and straightforward and strong mentally and can be relied on in a difficult situation, clear thinkers that are not bamboozled by the bollox and spin and lies of every fucking retarded mouthpiece on TV.
They will be the catalyst, because they learned how to stampede sheep and still be safely behind a wall and not even the sheep knew they were there.
Its how to stampede sheep,
You throw rocks from behind the wall, the sheep hear the thud and look up, see nothing, but as more rocks thud around them they get more nervous,
The last rock drops in exactly the right place just as the sheep are bunched together so tight and skittering, that it makes them appear to explode.
People are exactly the same believe me.
The fucking corrupt scum called politicians, self serving arrogant morons have royally fucked up for thirty years, so self adoring and preening and arrogant in their supercilious attitudes, with their equally corrupt and toadying bureaucracies and now they are vulnerable, vulnerable as never before.
When things come crashing down it is not because of something that you can see, not something that some wise ass predicted. but because of what they don't see. Or cannot predict.
I love it when the ISIS and the Ukrainian Nazis and every fuck wit mouthpiece screams their lungs out on TV yelling me me me, with their fucking drivel. They are a great distraction and make the sheep even more nervous.
I know a lot of people are like me and see exactly the same.
But me, I like being tucked away behind the wall out of sight, with my rocks, and I can hear the thuds of the rocks tossed by the others, unseen but heard and I love lobbing rocks at sheep