Book Recommendation: How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World

Lol. I have always looked to
Myself for fun and fulfillment. Never the GOVERNMENT and certainly NOT SOCIETY because they tend to chase the material bullshit.

^Amen

And then there are those who chase Nicespice for fun and enjoyment.

The best thing that happened to me was after 35 years of marriage was to become single and enjoy the wonder and blessings of God.

^^^^After my marriage fell apart and I picked up the pieces, I, too, have begun to enjoy some wonders and blessings while proclaiming, "Oh God! Oh God!"

Thanks for the book recommendation.

Thanks for the link Spice.

I am going to recommend my shit truck read this book. He has been acting up lately. Hopefully this will set him on the straight and narrow

Personal Growth: Is the Self-help Industry a Fraud?
Does the self-help industry actually help people change?

psychologytoday.com

I have always looked tostrip clubs for fun and fulfillment

I read the link Icey posted. It is true that you can not expect a book or a dvd to make changes for you.

I have read a lot of personal development books and they did not make the change, they gave me tools to use in making the changes myself.

I would say that without these tools I would not be anywhere near the place I am now.

In the 1960s, there was a surge of personal freedom. People did whatever made them feel good. It ended badly. Narcissism. Emptiness. Drugs. A lack of connectedness.

Jordan Peterson claims that a sense of responsibility is more likely to lead to a fulfilling life rather than the pursuit of personal pleasure. He’s not wrong.

If someone is looking for a book with life lessons, I’d recommend Walden by Thoreau, with its focus on simplicity. Or, for a time tested classic, try Meditations by Marcus Aurelius with a focus on duty.

Mark , I think you're right. I've seen a lot of what you describe... being able to indulge in whatever pleasures you want doesn't make you happy in the long run. Its all empty. Just a distraction, that you end up trying to distract yourself from. The most profound changes I've seen in people were made with a sense of responsibility, giving them something to work for and wake up for every morning. Something they watch grow and can be consistent at, that gives them a sense of purpose and achievement.

“You’re not acting irresponsibly by choosing for yourself. Your actions will produce consequences that you’ll have to live with; you’re accepting that fact when you create a morality for yourself. What could be a greater example of responsibility than an individual who chooses for himself and is prepared to accept the consequences of his own choices? The irresponsible person will refuse to take the credit or blame for his own actions. He’ll say that he did what he did because he was obeying a “moral law,” or because he didn’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, or because society wouldn’t let him do otherwise. He’s disclaiming the responsibility for his own acts. A free person has no one to blame. He has no boxes, no restrictions, no enemies to take the responsibility for his actions. But because he’s free, he can choose for himself to create a personal morality that fits his view of reality and will help him live in the way he wants to live.”

^ I agree. In fact, I was going to make a similar point. It just seemed like the book summary focused on freedom as the end goal rather than something that could lead to wise choices. Maybe if I read the book itself, it would clarify that.

I lived through the era of “ if it feels good, do it”. Oddly, things that make you feel good can have some nasty side effects.

Of course how happy people are depends on themselves. But who ever said that happiness was any kind of a goal?

How people are most likely to end up is a function of our society. I know things and can do things that most people never had the opportunity to learn. But this does not mean that I am better than them, or that I am more deserving of a decent material life than they are.

And people who live lower on the hog than what is advertised in the media are always being subjected to social attacks. So stress is continually being placed on them and on their interpersonal relationships.

Sure, they can be happy. I am happy. But this does not mean that I don't fight for social justice 7 days a week. I was not just happy, I was ecstatic, when I was able to help put a Pentecostal Daughter Molester into San Quentin. And I've got more things on the horizon now.

Just reading commentary about happiness and the Beatitudes, it is not freedom from concern or distress, it is more a paradoxical happiness.

If you want freedom from concern or distress, the opium derivatives seem to be the best. And your book looks to be trying to do something similar.

You book is written by Harry Browne, a Libertarian Party politician. All that amounts to is telling people that there is no collective responsibility for the state of our society. This is preposterous. Libertarianism is just a repackaging of the old Social Darwinism. Telling people that it is their own fault if things are not going well for them, and if they are not rich. This is just denial.

Denial comes in many forms, religious, motivational, recovery, therapy. But it is never any good. People who practice denial are dangerous to themselves and others, because their need to protect their own denial systems dictates how they relate to all situations. I see the things you post, and this seem to me to be how your are.

We all need all of our faculties, and this means that we have to understand the ways in which we have been harmed along the way, and how opportunities were closed off for us. People who understand this and actually face the repressed pain will have compassion for others, and they will be better able to educate and invest in themselves, because they know that they are worth it. And they will enter into the ongoing struggle for social justice.

Imagine this, a woman walks into a police station to report that she was raped. What she hears is, "Oh well we have therapists on call to help you deal with your problem, and so that you don't have to be carrying this around with you, and so that you might look at some of the ways in which you likely caused this. And we have motivational programs and spiritual healing programs too. You certainly have come to the right place."

This is the way it had been, and anti-rape activists correctly declared this to be Second Rape.

Well, psychotherapy, recovery, healing, that's all they are. And motivationalism, it's just straight up denial, about the worst way anyone could live.

Your book NiceSpice, if only it were printed on softer paper, then it would have some practical use.

SJG

"How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World" pretty much thats just another name for "Enlightenment".

In both the East and the West, Enlightenment was a concept invented by male celibates. Its just another name for dissociation.

SJG

That one always does have freedom, is one of the arguments John Paul Sartre makes, and his example is of those who chose to fight against Nazi occupation.

Very strange that one would try to use that type of an argument and get people to fight for Social Darwinism and for the marginalization of our most vulnerable.

SJG

The Tao Te Ching by Laozi (or Lao Tzu) is a good one

We need to have it so that threads stay open. Others might want to talk about this. Others might want to suggest other books.

As it is today, very difficult to keep topical threads open. So if you use just throw away threads, then it is very hard to find anything, just a big mishmash.

Lots of people have a broader range of stuff to talk about, outside of the basic PL envelope.

As it is now, this forum loses people who would be outstanding contributors.

SJG

“I am going to recommend my shit truck read this book. He has been acting up lately. Hopefully this will set him on the straight and narrow”

Just remember that you can’t control your shit truck—and there are other shit trucks out there. XD

@mark94 ah yeah, I agree about the YOLO mentality

@mark+@sirlap I’ll have to look into the other book recommendations

@SJG smash that like button

Looks like a how-to guide to becoming an anti-government, anti-social, amoral and self absorbed narcissist. Cool!

Ah come on. The amorality and self absorbed narcissism is just simply the American way. Browne can’t be singled out for that.

Anti-social...hmm, maybe. But I like to view it as more interacting with others in a way where harm (whether doled out or received) is kept to a minimum.

As for anti-government...yeah you nailed that one there lol.

@nicespice the Tao Te Ching is basically the foundation of Taoism. It's a very easy read and basically it contains simple advice on how to react to conflict and adversity in life. To me if everyone read it and practiced it, the world would be a much better place. If you are feeling angry or sad or conflicted about the adversities of life, it is the best therapy to read any excerpt from it. Highly recommended.

"Just remember that you can’t control your shit truck—and there are other shit trucks out there. XD"

Does that mean I am putting an add on craigslist? Oooooh shit truck... pleaaaaSe behave

The Tao of Poo, by MackTruck

^^^^ hell yea! I will be fanous someday

Mack os going to write a chapter called Funny how I destroyed a airplane shitter yesterday

You can read? Or was it an audiobook?

@flagooner I thought every good shitter has reading material beside the throne. Based on this I would think crazyjoe is very well read.

Has anyone read “Zen and the Art of Destroying Airplane Shitters”

^ LMFAO. Made me spit up my coffee. Thx!

Lmfao... this may be wishful thinking on Crazyjoes part but he did make me a shit ton of cash so I will have to consider. I should do a chapter on Lot Lizzards also

"When I let go of shit I am, I become shit I might be." - crazyjoe

"Those who fart, do not speak. Those who speak, do not fart." - MackTruck

Lol. I am not as full of shit as most with all my reading time

Ode to a busted commode
I shit therefore I am

"When you are content to shit by yourself and don't compare or compete, everyone will respect you." - crazyjoe

"The journey of a thousands turds begins with one shart" - MackTruck

"You can read? Or was it an audiobook?"

I was referring to @nicespice, she is a stripper afterall.

but yeah, @crazyjoe works too.

I appreciate the sentiment flagoober

我不能读

^ neither can I ;)

No amount of Financial Literacy, Libertarianism, or Motivationalism will ever change the fact that we have reached a crises point with an unworkable and broken economic system.

I've been reading R. N. Bolles for a long time. Though basically founded on Christian thinking, this is not overt. His books are not "self-improvement". Rather he is always wanting you to look into yourself and re-evaluate your past dealings, so that you can see what you want to do next. I find it very good. He is not motivating you, he is showing you how to trust yourself.

You can click on Look Inside:
amazon.com

SJG

ROLLING STONES HEARTBREAKER
youtube.com

我不能读

This is a great book:

amazon.com

Go ahead and click on LOOK INSIDE.

It is not a motivational book or a self-improvement book. I don't read stuff like that.

No, they are trying to get you to see yourself in various mythological stories, and they want you to look into your own experience.

It starts with Parceval. And he does end up redressing slights, even those from maidens.

But the biggest challenge is the first, the Red Knight.

So Parceval, unarmed, unarmored, and untrained, approaches and demands that the Red Knight surrender. He just laughs.

So the next time Parceval approaches, he puts a javelin into his forehead.

Of course the authors acknowledge a huge debt to Joseph Campbell.

SJG

Debunking the Gurus of Personal Finance
kpfa.org

Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry by Helaine Olen

amazon.com

SJG

Mindfulness Meditation, Jon Kabat-Zinn

amazon.com

SJG

Azteca
youtube.com