Nadia, this is a very interesting post. As for beat philosophers, what do you think of Thoreau?
My take on free will is that we have it, but only unconsciously. That may be incoherent, but whenever I try to catch myself making a decision, it seems to me that I'm always recognizing that I have decided, I can never catch myself in the act.
There's no doubt, as I see it, that human beings can change their own behavior, sometimes they do it merely to show that they can do it. For instance, every time I go to the grocery store I buy Junior Mints. I can stop doing that, but I don't intend to. I could always buy something equally attractive instead, if I wanted to prove to myself that I have free will. If I start buying Three Musketeers, have I proved anything?
I fail to see your connection with free will and democracy. Autocracy is better equipped for change as it has authority. Democracy blows in the wind, decisions and planning are difficult to enforce, the more liberal it has become the more out of control it is. Parties simply play around with numbers, decisions are made by an invisible slave master, that of money. Freedom is a luxury few can afford, and if you can afford it, you are likely trapped by it. The world is run by financial crackheads. At least though I can say that, although many would wish that I could not. Power corrupts my words are unlikely to change anything, the day it does, democracy will buy it, absorb the counter culture, and continue on in its inhuman crusade for consumption. Britain has been playing that trick for Centuries. The Elite hold sway, it is freedom under an oppressive shadow and only a few get to step into the Sun.
I can’t know for sure if I have free will. But it certainly feels that I have more will and agency when my state is calm, my mind is quiet, and I can identify with the observer in my psyche. When I feel stressed or threatened, my responses seem to come from an automatic, patterned set of responses. In a state of calm, I can observe thoughts arising without needing to do anything about them. So if maintaining a climate of fear and uncertainty limits the potential for free will (or at least shrinks the choices that come into our conscious awareness), then it is a powerful tool for a political strongman.
Fight or flight is absolutely physiological. There are many feelings we have that are purely mental. But our fear response is deeply connected to our endocrine system.
For an article I was writing about the news & politics, I researched how cortisol works and the article said that there are receptors for cortisol in every single part of our bodies, because when we're in danger, the stress response is supposed to maneuver and control every last nerve & system in that moment.
For example: this is why we gain weight during stressful times, because cortisol can shut down our digestive system.
I was mugged at gunpoint in 2020, so I experienced this very profound impact of pure survival mode. And it, does, indeed, override non-essential brain functions.
So, Trump flinging a large amount of executive orders (most of which were blatantly unlawful or unconstitutional - and may not even make it past the courts) still caused a massive stress response across the country (and the world) and gets people into a fear mode that makes them easier to control - and less able to make calm and thoughtful choices.
* * *
You're right that calm spaces offer more choices.
I think a lot of how we change, grow, and evolve over time comes from the spaces where we can dream and imagine new things. And then project ourselves into the future and work towards those goals.
It's also why yoga and meditation bringing our nervous systems down to a calming baseline can provide mental clarity and give us new ideas to move ourselves beyond the problems we face.
Wow. I'm so glad you commented. That connected some dots I needed for an article I was writing (but hadn't finished) about how we need to learn to control our stress responses to Trump!!
Thanks Melissa, glad to have helped connect some dots for you and look forward to reading the article.
I’m based in the UK and we see a lot of US news here. But of course we’re viewing from a more distanced perspective and can’t really know how it feels like to be in the US right now.
However, I facilitate a number of peer learning groups for managers based in the US, many of whom will be directly affected by the EOs. I’ll be working with some of these groups next week, for the first time since January 20. This conversation has prompted helpful thinking for me ahead of the meetings, thank you.
Nadia, this is a very interesting post. As for beat philosophers, what do you think of Thoreau?
My take on free will is that we have it, but only unconsciously. That may be incoherent, but whenever I try to catch myself making a decision, it seems to me that I'm always recognizing that I have decided, I can never catch myself in the act.
There's no doubt, as I see it, that human beings can change their own behavior, sometimes they do it merely to show that they can do it. For instance, every time I go to the grocery store I buy Junior Mints. I can stop doing that, but I don't intend to. I could always buy something equally attractive instead, if I wanted to prove to myself that I have free will. If I start buying Three Musketeers, have I proved anything?
My apologies, Melissa!
I fail to see your connection with free will and democracy. Autocracy is better equipped for change as it has authority. Democracy blows in the wind, decisions and planning are difficult to enforce, the more liberal it has become the more out of control it is. Parties simply play around with numbers, decisions are made by an invisible slave master, that of money. Freedom is a luxury few can afford, and if you can afford it, you are likely trapped by it. The world is run by financial crackheads. At least though I can say that, although many would wish that I could not. Power corrupts my words are unlikely to change anything, the day it does, democracy will buy it, absorb the counter culture, and continue on in its inhuman crusade for consumption. Britain has been playing that trick for Centuries. The Elite hold sway, it is freedom under an oppressive shadow and only a few get to step into the Sun.
So you're saying you would prefer to live under autocracy, rather than a democracy?
I can’t know for sure if I have free will. But it certainly feels that I have more will and agency when my state is calm, my mind is quiet, and I can identify with the observer in my psyche. When I feel stressed or threatened, my responses seem to come from an automatic, patterned set of responses. In a state of calm, I can observe thoughts arising without needing to do anything about them. So if maintaining a climate of fear and uncertainty limits the potential for free will (or at least shrinks the choices that come into our conscious awareness), then it is a powerful tool for a political strongman.
Wow, that's such an insightful observation!
Fight or flight is absolutely physiological. There are many feelings we have that are purely mental. But our fear response is deeply connected to our endocrine system.
For an article I was writing about the news & politics, I researched how cortisol works and the article said that there are receptors for cortisol in every single part of our bodies, because when we're in danger, the stress response is supposed to maneuver and control every last nerve & system in that moment.
For example: this is why we gain weight during stressful times, because cortisol can shut down our digestive system.
I was mugged at gunpoint in 2020, so I experienced this very profound impact of pure survival mode. And it, does, indeed, override non-essential brain functions.
So, Trump flinging a large amount of executive orders (most of which were blatantly unlawful or unconstitutional - and may not even make it past the courts) still caused a massive stress response across the country (and the world) and gets people into a fear mode that makes them easier to control - and less able to make calm and thoughtful choices.
* * *
You're right that calm spaces offer more choices.
I think a lot of how we change, grow, and evolve over time comes from the spaces where we can dream and imagine new things. And then project ourselves into the future and work towards those goals.
It's also why yoga and meditation bringing our nervous systems down to a calming baseline can provide mental clarity and give us new ideas to move ourselves beyond the problems we face.
Wow. I'm so glad you commented. That connected some dots I needed for an article I was writing (but hadn't finished) about how we need to learn to control our stress responses to Trump!!
Thanks Melissa, glad to have helped connect some dots for you and look forward to reading the article.
I’m based in the UK and we see a lot of US news here. But of course we’re viewing from a more distanced perspective and can’t really know how it feels like to be in the US right now.
However, I facilitate a number of peer learning groups for managers based in the US, many of whom will be directly affected by the EOs. I’ll be working with some of these groups next week, for the first time since January 20. This conversation has prompted helpful thinking for me ahead of the meetings, thank you.