One of the hardest challenges I have is to not let the evil in this world sour me against trying to save this world. I see a video about children singing praises about Obama in school. I see a story about “anarchists” acting out their abusive childhoods in Pittsburgh. I meet someone who claims to support the non-aggression principle support the use of force against someone else (by praising the murder of a census worker)… To see those who claim to hold the same values as I do act in the complete opposite way by supporting force! It’s hard not to fall into misanthropy.
Fortunately I have my friends to remind me that there is a minority of humans who still try their hardest to not only speak their values but live them. A group of people who looks forward to the future and strives to live it in their own lives as an example of what the future can look like. A group of people who do not stand for violence in any form. It’s very rare to find, and very scattered about this earth, but fortunately it exists to help me maintain hope that humanity is worth saving.
When I feel low about most of humanity, I remind myself why I am doing this. This video is part two of why I continue to strive for the best in this world.
Tags: anarchy, misanthropy, NAP, nihilism, philosophy
October 6th, 2009 at 12:54 am
“I see a story about “anarchists” acting out their abusive childhoods in Pittsburgh.”
Wow. You are painting with a really broad brush here. You are also doing a lot of speculation. Did you interview any of these people to determine their motivations and childhood life? I saw very specific signs such as “No Banks, No Boarders”, which concisely communicates to me that the people holding those signs are opposed to banks and boarders. Maybe we are referring to a different group of people.
October 6th, 2009 at 3:58 am
“I meet someone who claims to support the non-aggression principle support the use of force against someone else (by praising the murder of a census worker)…”
I also sometimes run into these people who claim to adhere to the NAP, and I try to disassociate myself from them or persuade them to rethink their strategy by being the change they wish to be in the world. Sometimes they are simply not aware of how they might be percieved towards the average person.
Also I have a recommendation for you to consider using the label “voluntaryist” to describe your self. Unfortunately, the English language, like most natural languages, are not perfect and tend to evolve over time. Words are basically a sequence of letters that produce a sound, and the general population hears these sounds and interprets their meaning based on their past experience of how that word has been used in the by others and in what context. Unfortunately, “anarchist” has a generally-agreed upon connotation to refer to someone who does not believe in rules, even though you or I may interpret it with the correct technical meaning. So I don’t feel you should be shocked or get all worked up when you see others inaccurately refer to themselves as “anarchists”. The term “voluntaryist” generally produces curiosity in the listener, making them more open to our message that all human action should be voluntary.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
“You are also doing a lot of speculation.” Have you interviewed me? You speculate yourself.
October 17th, 2009 at 5:46 am
I like that video a lot. One of my favourites.
October 18th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
good post, Rich. I wrote a post of similar sentiments called “Why I Fight” a while back. anyways, love the site, and thanks for the link – I linked you as well.
October 19th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Thanks Calen, hope to see you around.