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[–] GrandpaPepe 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

I will trade truth for free will and a good life. I don't want to be the guy in Truman Show who's been lied all his life.

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[–] 6943030? ago 

If you maintain your freedom you maintain the ability to pursue truth for yourself, rather than trust that what you are being given is true.

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[–] RaiFighter 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

No. I'd rather build a cabin than be given a castle, thanks.

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[–] 6943021? 0 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago 

It is my belief that one (or at least I) cannot live a good life without being free.

To me, freedom is the basis of all things good. We have been led to believe, in recent history, that what people most commonly pursue, what people most commonly desire, is happiness. This is false, for it is only true given that those people have already secured for themselves freedom.

However, today large portions of the world living under conditions that would have been deemed totally unacceptable in the past, not accept their situation, not even recognizing it as lacking sufficient freedom, and so they go on to pursue happiness--to work and consume.

I cannot be happy knowing I am condemned to a certain path, knowing that I cannot control my own life, make decisions for myself. If I could not speak my mind, if I could not live my life in the way I want to, without affecting others adversely, if I could not work either for myself or in a position within society that I myself desire...then I could not be happy.

Many of these freedoms are slipping away, and as a result I am becoming less and less happy, i.e. living less and less of a "good life". There are places where I cannot speak my mind, where I cannot speak what I perceive as the truth. There are incredibly limited options as to what roles I can successfully play within our society, and the paths to working for myself and living off of the land in a way to simply keep myself alive independent of society...these paths are growing rarer.

I spend a great deal of my time thinking, writing, and working in any way I can to raise awareness of the freedoms we are losing, because unless we maintain these freedoms, I will never lead a good life. I believe that all things that any people typically pursue, such as happiness or love, only have meaning if those people are free. Otherwise they are false happiness, fake love, etc. So I think that we would all be better off if we cling to our freedom, and so I always encourage others to fight for freedom. Though I will never attempt to force others to fight for this cause; that would be contrary to the purpose.

So no. I would never attempt to trade freedom for any kind of life, be it wealthy or famous or totally secure, because such a life would be meaningless to me if I was condemned to live by others' decrees.

[–] [deleted] 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

[Deleted]

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[–] 6944939? 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

I don't expect absolute freedom. I don't expect to be able to rise into the air at will, or kill whomever I feel like murdering. Frankly that isn't freedom. Freedom exists within the bounds of nature and the society of which we choose to be part. The kind of sacrifice you're talking about is inherent, yes, and perfectly acceptable. If it weren't acceptable, well, I wouldn't accept it. I'd fight for an independent existence or a new society.

[–] [deleted] 0 points 10 points (+10|-0) ago  (edited ago)

[Deleted]

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[–] oedipusaurus_rex ago 

I worked with a guy who was convinced that the line was "a walk on part in the war for a negro in a cage"

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[–] NZ_MPS 0 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago 

Dude! I was listening to a playlist of Led Zep and Floyd, this song was literally playing when I opened this thread (albeit way past this part), but what the hell are the chances of this ever happening?

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[–] MetalAegis 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

Probably like a billion to one, you should buy a lottery ticket and play the numbers that correspond to the letters in the songs tittle 'Wish You Were Here'

23-9-19-8 25-15-21 23-5-18-5 8-5-18-5

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[–] Gettm ago  (edited ago)

I would rather be a happy robot than have the lasers of infinity peering through me.

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[–] oedipusaurus_rex 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

I'm not convinced that free will exists.

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[–] ponchoman275 ago  (edited ago)

Maybe. I'm currently a student living with my parents and I have a pretty comfy life. Realistically my free will is limited because I can't really just quit school, move to another country or join a circus. Well theoretically I can, in the sense that I can also jump under a train tommorow, it's just not realistic. I'm sort of locked in to the student lifestyle and I'm really enjoying it. I honestly don't think I would mind if this was my life and I couldn't really change it. School is easy, I have tons of free time to be on my pc, go out drinking and do pretty much whatever I want (only limited by the size of my monthly allowance and some money from my summer job). This is my final year of school which means I will exercise my true free will from now on. I'm responsible for my actions, I have the freedom to make all of my choices. I don't want to say it terrifies me, but that is the first word that popped into my head so... I still have no answer to the question though.

Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does. - Jean Paul Sartre

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[–] PM_ME_UR_NOODZ ago 

I've refused to trade my pride and my self-respect for "a good life," and free will is infinitely more valuable. My answer is no.

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