Rich Dad, Poor Dad
Who are we who inhabit “the developed world”?
At “the top”… a tiny minority groomed for “aristocracy”… a privileged caste selectively bred in comfort, ease, and safety… reared to think they “have it”… and are entitled to own and rule the world.
And then there’s “us”… hundreds of millions reared to join the rank and file… nameless, impotent, disposable… trained to believe we DON’T “have it”… destined to do the heavy lifting and dirty work… rendered content with a life of drudgery in exchange for the occasional guilty pleasure.
So, which of these would I rather be?
The answer, of course, is neither.
How can anyone claim freedom and dignity as a slave beneath… or master above… another?
Next Meditation: Vicious Cycles
Civilization Existentialism Humanism bureaucracy caste system freedom masters and slaves rich dad poor dad Self-Actualization
Frank J Peter View All →
A uniquely burdened and blessed citizen of the world thinking and acting out loud!
One can live in freedom, without being either master or slave through self empowerment. I can be “me” without any label. I can think, speak and act as “me” without being dictated to. I may not always be “right” but as a self empowered being I am also auto-correcting. I can “see” my thoughts as they come forth for admission and I have the power to deny such to them if they do not fit my description of who “me” must be to myself and the world around me. Based on what you write, Frank, I think you are familiar with that process also.
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I agree wholeheartedly, Sha’Tara… with particular reverence for the uncommon virtues of empowerment, self-correction, and the refusal to be labeled. Alas, many people in the “free” world don’t even know what freedom looks like… much less what to do with it. Thanks and peace.
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Yes a master, whether it be a human or an organization of a culture like religion, corporations etc., lives a wasted petty meaningless life if the well being of the people are not the first and foremost priority. He becomes a slave to mediocrity or worse.
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Thanks so much for adding your voice of reason and decency to the mix, Mary.
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…. point being, do you have a choice to be either the slave or the master?
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Usually not. But the question was, “which would you rather be?”
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Agreed that the world is so deeply and widely “organized” by vast, often insidious, networks of interwoven dominance hierarchies… political, religious, economic, educational, racial, ethnic, etc… that, for some, total escape may be impossible without committing literal suicide.
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literal, indeed.
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I would add that even “the master” must sacrifice their freedom… forever a slave to someone… or to something… if nothing more than a slave to their own shallow ambitions.
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The pyramids would never have been built without the slaves.
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I would argue that we have built infinitely cooler and more useful things than the pyramids WITHOUT slaves.
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I would love to believe you. But we are all slaves.
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Are you asserting the idea that such things as pyramids could not come to pass without wretched slavery, abuse and inequality?
That is patently and demonstrably false.
The issue with that, is the multitude of structures built without slave labor, or pain, or vicious masters bearing whips. The results of collaborative science, culture and labor abound in the world.
This sounds to me like justification for poor behavior, which have mostly seen when folks begin believing that such a system benefits them, while ignoring the harm it creates. I find it very unimaginative, and in fact sad, to imagine that best humans can possible imagine is slavery, for building massive tombs.
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Indeed, plenty of existence proofs of the value of voluntary cooperation doing wonderful things… in education, medicine, space exploration… three that come immediately to mind. Thanks for sharing, brother
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Neither indeed.
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Neither indeed!
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