From: Dan Glover (daneglover@hotmail.com)
Date: Fri Jul 16 2004 - 18:55:55 BST
Hello everyone
>From: "Arlo J. Bensinger" <ajb102@psu.edu>
>Reply-To: moq_discuss@moq.org
>To: moq_discuss@moq.org
>Subject: Re: MD the metaphysics of free-enterprise
>Date: Tue, 13 Jul 2004 20:58:15 -0400 (EDT)
>
>Hi Dan (and All)...
>
>
> > Let me ask you though: freedom from what? What do you mean by "personal
> > freedom"?
>
>Since Anthony mentioned "Flow" in another post, I think I'll use it here. I
>was
>not going to mention it because it and its relation to the MOQ may be a
>whole
>other interesting area of talk. But... in my humble opinion...
>
>Personal freedom is my ability to participate in Flow activities of my
>choosing
>for the greatest amount of time, all the while not prohibiting or making it
>otherwise restrictive on others from participating in Flow activities of
>their
>choosing.
>
>Or, in the quick Wiccan mantra: And it harm none, do what ye will.
Hi Arlo
Please forgive the delay. I needed to look into the idea of freedom a bit
further before answering your post of July 13.
According to your answer, may I ask what is it that keeps a person with such
a life philosophy from slipping into hedonism?
The MOQ on the other hand is quite specific on this. I've taken the liberty
of culling some quotes from the Copleston annotations on Anthony McWatt's
website (thank you so much for sharing this document, Ant. It's wonderful!)
which seem to pertain to this subject:
"The MOQ says hedonism is the intellectual advocacy of biological quality,
utilitarianism is the intellectual advocacy of social quality."
"The MOQ supports intellectual freedom from the state but not biological
freedom."
"Freedom and order are contradictory but both are necessary at the same
time."
"The freedom-order issue is handled much more simply and precisely in the
MOQ by the static-Dynamic split."
"The MOQ would add a fourth stage where the term “God” is completely dropped
as a relic of an evil social suppression of intellectual and Dynamic
freedom. The MOQ is not just atheistic in this regard. It is
anti-theistic."
In regards to your answer: "Personal freedom is my ability to participate in
Flow activities of my choosing..."
I think if you had said "my ability to participate in intellectual
activities of my choosing..." then the MOQ would agree with you.
I noticed you answered my second question to you but neglected the first:
Freedom from what? From what I understand, suffering is what we seek freedom
from. From LILA'S CHILD:
"Dan Glover: Are suffering and freedom somehow related?
Robert Pirsig: Yes. If you’re not suffering from anything there’s no need to
be free."
Now taking this last into consideration as we look at the original question:
what is personal freedom? I think we can state that it is suffering that
drives our need to be free, even the need for intellectual freedom, for "Zen
argues that it is through stillness, not action, that a man can realize
himself, in the sense of actualizing his potentialities and developing his
personality towards the ideal state of harmonious integration of his
powers." (Robert Pirsig from the Copleston annotations)
Thank you for your coments,
Dan
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