The Philosophy of Small

[SternWake]

Perhaps I watched the News too often as Kid alongside my father, but I always saw humanity as a festering plague upon this planet.

I never figured life could continue on as it has, yet it has, and those things which I saw, and see, as pointless, such as mindless accumulation of material goods, seemingly only to impress other like minded people, is downright ridiculous.

However it appears people are judged by their possessions, first. How often is a person described by their persona and accomplishments and good deeds, compared to what they drive or what house they own?

I was lucky enough to come into a modest sum in my early 20's. Thankfully I fairly quickly realized I was better off spending it travelling, and I left overseas for nearly 3 years. That guy never came back. He did buy this Van with the last of it. He'd learned that less was more, especially when it all has to fit in a bag carried over your shoulder.

I never wanted kids, knew I had/have no desire or ability to keep a typical modern woman happy and have quit looking for the non typical. I watched my friends go down that road. No Thanks. Not for me. I can handle loneliness, my threshold for irrationality is extremely low. So it goes.

Less is more, except to those who have that ingrained sense of entitlement and the ingrained greedy One upmanship that drives the economy.

As Little as I have, I want less.
My freedom is my most valued possession.
If a material possession does not increase my ability to have better experiences in my time left on this earth, then it is a burden.

Selfish, perhaps. I view it as considerate to the planet, and to the poor deluded humans that will infest it after I'm gone.

 

[LeeRevell]

Y'all should Google up the "Universe 25" experiment. It was a super duper rat habitat, beginning with 8 rats - 4 females and 4 males - given everything they needed. In short order, they bred themselves to extinction. A few 'Beautiful Ones' were protected by their fellows, becoming the Elite. They could no longer fend for themselves. The majority devolved into fighting, killing, looting........

Reminded me of Detroit. Food for thought. Humanity has been running Universe 25 for many centuries.

 

[Bdog1]

You don't own stuff. Stuff owns you.

 

[LeeRevell]

Miss your property tax payment on your S&B home, you find out who really owns it......
Then you'd better have a van, RV or TT.

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Perhaps I watched the News too often as Kid alongside my father, but I always saw humanity as a festering plague upon this planet.   I never figured life could continue on as it has, yet it has, and those things which I saw, and see, as pointless, such as mindless accumulation of material goods, seemingly only to impress other like minded people, is downright ridiculous.

Pretty harsh.  I believe everything can be explained in terms of evolution.  Suppose in ancient times there was a guy who kept amassing more stuff, even after it seemed he had enough.  If an unexpected event occurred that gave him an advantage, he would survive and pass on those traits.  

Some people might like to show off how much they have, but I think a lot of people who have money don't want it known, they keep it to themselves.  

However it appears people are judged by their possessions, first.  How often is a person described by their persona and accomplishments and good deeds, compared to what they drive or what house they own?

I really don't see that.  I think people are most often described by their profession, like Joe the plumber.  When I meet someone at a festival we usually talk about what kind of instrument they play, Lee the bass player.  

My freedom is my most valued possession.
If a material  possession does not increase my ability to have better experiences in my time left on this earth, then it is a burden.

That's the truth!  

If I win the lottery, I'd buy some land, build a little campground on half, build some storage units on the other.  In one storage unit I'd put in some coin operated washers, dryers, and showers.  No dogs allowed.  Jams every night.  I can't do that, because I don't have the cash.  So I need more cash.   

 

[sushidog]

Miss your property tax payment on your S&B home, you find out who really owns it......
Then you'd better have a van, RV or TT.  

Yep. You better believe it. It happened to me - after they raised my property taxes 1,000% in one year. So I lost the house (a 40 yr old ranch style in the country, not some mansion in the city) my dad built with his own hands. If it can happen to me, it can happen to you too.

Chip