[MD] The End of Faith - Spirituality

[pholden at davtv.com]

Quoting Ham Priday <hampday1 at verizon.net>:

> Ron --
> 
> > I'd say you have me. We are bound to value, we are slaves
> > to choice.  Life demands it or moves on without you.
> > Choosing no choice is a choice.  We are only truly free of
> > value when we pass from this existence (relatively speaking)
> > this is an assumption of course but a reasonable one at that.
> 
> I couldn't let your phrase "we are slaves to choice" pass without comment. 
> Isn't that a curious way to look at Freedom, Ron?  I've always thought of 
> freedom as the capacity to choose; yet you see it as slavery!
> 
> We are all born as creatures of nature, which (from a biological standpoint) 
> means we must struggle to survive.  Struggle is a given in this world, for 
> the survival of a species or an individual.  No animal has the freedom to 
> sprout wings and escape from the vicissitudes of nature.  But do we say that 
> the need for a dog or a crab to struggle impairs its freedom?  Or that the 
> need to make choices negates man's freedom?
> 
> Freedom, like everything else in existence, is relative.  We must aim for 
> it, work at it, and exercise it in order to preserve it.  Jefferson said 
> "Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty."  In a free society we have the 
> power to choose our means of livelihood, our government representatives, our 
> recreational pursuits, our spouses, our spiritual beliefs.  This is not true 
> of Islamic cultures, for example, where the rulers are patriarchal 
> successors, belief and behavior conform to Allah's law, and marriages are 
> arranged.  If you've followed recent politics in Russia, you'll note that 
> they still follow the Soviet communist tradition: Premier Putin appoints his 
> successor, and public elections are little more than token endorsements. 
> Dictatorships restrict individual freedom, as do socialist states that tax 
> earnings at 60% or more.
> 
> Americans are fortunate to live in freedom -- so long as they value it. 
> Sadly, the recent trend to "social equality" has made many forget the 
> individualism and self-reliance on which our freedom is based.  Today's 
> liberals are not only willing, but eager, to trade individual freedom for a 
> welfare state that will provide cradle-to-grave care for all.  (I sometimes 
> wonder if they've ever read 'Animal Farm', '1984', or 'Atlas Shrugged'.)
> 
> I'm persuaded that the essence of man is value-sensibility.  Since we cannot 
> choose our values if we're not free to do so, living simply to satisfy our 
> hunger or gratify our carnal appetites is a regression to animal behavior. 
> Human beings are uniquely endowed with the capacity to discriminate between 
> values and to act in accordance with their choices.  As the "choicemakers of 
> the world" humans are a "more noble creature" worthy of higher aspirations. 
> Therefore, whether it's an "intellectual or social level" principle or not, 
> I agree with David Kelley that "no one can claim a right to make others 
> serve him involuntarily, even if his own life depends on it."
 
Beautifully expressed, Ham. Many thanks.

Regards,
Platt



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