In Freedom We Are The Problem

I don't believe that the last American election was rigged. I believe 77 million Americans wanted a convicted felon, that said such things as "I will be a Dictator for one day", to represent them. 

All over the world there is a growing frustration with "the cost of living" and we are blaming Governments for this problem. The perceived solution is to remove the current form of Government to replace it with one that won't make the same mistakes. 

It's not wrong to want changes but the Government isn't to blame.

If the Government was your spouse and they cheated on you... you would want to get rid of them. The issue is, in the case of a Government with freedoms and Rights, that in every and all instances where this sort of change happened the subsequent Government was always worse. It's a little bit like leaving your cheating spouse and then start dating someone that cheats AND is abusive.

Living in a country with freedoms and the right to vote means that WE get to pick who will be the representing our country. Since WE pick them, WE are responsible for the successes and failures of the of party.

In a free country, the Government is a representation of its people. The Government didn't create the problem as much as we told them to do it. Every year, millions of dollars is spent trying to figure out what WE want from our Government and what WE want is more spending. This information is used to create future campaign promises and we vote for them.

In a free country, the solution isn't to change the form of Government when things are bad but to change what WE THE PEOPLE want from our Government. We've reach a point now where we need to stop asking for "free stuff" and instead look at balancing the budget and get us out of all this debt.

Whether it be a Federal Presidential Republic (USA), a Liberal Democracy (Canada) or any other form of Government where the people have a voice is the best form of Government.

Wherever you go There YOU Are

Someone who hasn’t found peace within himself will not find peace outside of himself. It doesn’t matter where he goes, or what he does, the person that he is will be there with him.

"When a man is getting better he understands more clearly the evil that is left in him... A moderatly bad man knows he is not very good; a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right."
-C.S.Lewis

We gain peace through our actions; by doing the right things. In order to do those things, the right way, we must first learn about what those things are which is where Philosophy comes into play. Seneca, in his “letters from a stoic” work, believes the right things can be found in stoicism - to live in accordance with nature and to control our wants (as they may be as infinite as the universe itself).

“Enough is never too little, and not enough is never enough.”
-Seneca

Spend some time reflecting on what you’re doing on a daily basis. Are there areas that could be improved? Are you exercising enough? Are you eating correctly? How do you sleep? Are you helping others? Are you spending enough time with those close to you? Are you reading enough? Are you living below your means? Are you following through on your promises?

Recommended Readings:

• “Living issues in Philosophy” by Harold Titus & Marilyn Smith
• “Letters from a Stoic” by Seneca
• “Meditation” by Marcus Aurelius

iPod Nano Was My Introduction to Apple

My first introduction to the Apple device ecosystem was with an iPod Nano I had received as a gift roughly 15 years ago. I was immediately blown away by the simplicity and built quality of the device compared to other products of the time.

The iPod Nano never was an Apple flagship device yet they treated it with the same sort of care as any other device they produced. I've bought thousands of dollars worth of Apple devices since that iPod Nano. What would of happened if Apple had decided to treat the iPod Nano as a low quality/throw away product? If first impression is everything then it's very unlikely that I would of bought any additional Apple products.

A company shows their loyalty to their customers through the quality of their products/services. Apple understand that their reputation is on the line for any products that they release.

My friends are quick to point out how overpriced/underpowered Apple devices are but I can't see myself buying anything else but an iPhone/iPad/Apple Watch...

I will always remember when my friend was advertising his powerful new Android device only to have the screen fall off after the glue melted during an extended play session. What's the point of having all that performance in a device that clearly couldn't handle it?

The battery of the iPod Nano has since died but the device has remained almost identical to the day I first received it which is something I can't say about my other MP3 players of the time. I recently received a 2013 iPad, that still works, which I use for reading. Those "overpriced/underpowered" devices are good enough for me.

Qualities Worth Remembering

We'll die whether we live a life of virtue or not. Some people have lived in such a way that they've been remembered long after they've passed simply because they had qualities worth remembering.

To understand those qualities, we need to reflect on the historical figures we remember:

• When we think of Socrates, we think of a man who could of escaped his death sentence but chose instead to honor it. 
• When we think of Leo Major, we think of a man who single-handedly liberated an entire German occupied city during World War 2. 
• When we think of Benkei no Tachi Ōjō, we think of a man who killed 300 men while defending his lord, Minamoto no Yoshitsune, from attackers.

Honor, courage, duty...those are the qualities that they've been remembered for. We may never be faced with the extreme situations that they've gone through but we can still let their experience inspire us to move forward in life.

"If you want to enjoy real freedom, you must become a servant of Philosophy."

-Epicurus