What is personal freedom?

[VestnikRA]

"Personal freedom is impossible without economic freedom. A working family, even one living in a modern city apartment, cannot be free, dependent as it is on an employer who determines one’s salary, on utility companies with the power to supply or withhold heat, water and electricity, on the availability of groceries and on the prices of food products and consumer services. The family is slave to all of these, and the children in such a family are born into a slave mentality."

-- Vladimir Megre, from Book 5 "Who Are We?" of the Ringing Cedar series of Books

Would you agree with this statement?

[Moxie]

I say (jokingly) that "I'm trapped in a body. Doing Time". That being so, well, no I'm not really free... have to bathe 'me', feed 'me', prepare this n that, do this n that, find something to wear, brush my hair. Golly I get tired sometimes....Tasks & more tasks. Even as a small child I thought it was a curious thing, wasteful even, to Have to do such things as eat food! What a mind I had even then! I have deep crevices between my eyebrows/deep wrinkles, saying "WTF" over! (of course I learned to make eating a luxurious, sensual and grateful experience... I LOVE food). And I'm growing my own organics.

So, we then (as you've heard stories of prisoners finding peace & freedom within prison) we go "spiritual". Freedom as a state of mind that does not include the body.? (that's a statement & inquiry)

The concept of freedom runs along the same lines as the concept of free will. Do we even know what they are?

Is freedom "control over one's life?" Is free will "the means to completely arrive at freedom?" If so, why have we not been paying attention and made ourselves vulnerable to the utility companies & paying jobs? Can we really be Other than who we are?

Oh, I remember..... mind control/programming, that's it, boing boing boing.

I'm shmirky this morning, sort of shruggy... say "whatever" out loud!

[Seashore]

"Personal freedom is impossible without economic freedom..."

-- Vladimir Megre, from Book 5 "Who Are We?" of the Ringing Cedar series of Books

Would you agree with this statement?

Yes!

Members have said very positive things about the Ringing Cedar series of books.

I have had to start a list of "Books I Might Want to Buy" to control myself and stop ordering books before I finish reading the ones I already have in a stack and haven't read yet!!

And I've had to limit the videos I watch because I can't watch them all!!

Can you tell us some more about Book 5?

[Angel in Disguise]

I agree with that statement... We are the only species on the planet that have to pay for food and shelter... Things that should rightfully be ours. We certainly got screwed !

[orthodoxymoron]

Work, money, business, competition, etc...are good things IF they do not become destructive. The hypothetical 'slave' family may need to rent a less expensive apartment or house...take the bus instead of having a car...take on a second job...and then wisely invest the money they saved...to start their own family business perhaps. They could potentially become very wealthy. Then people might point their fingers scornfully at this 'priviledged class'. I am concerned about the extremes in wealth and poverty...but communism, socialism, or corrupt capitalism is not the answer. Constructive Competition combined with Social Responsibility is the answer...or one of the answers. Work = Worth. We need the Pride of Earnership. I got that from Dr. Robert H. Schuller(senior). He is one televangelist who is worth studying...if you don't mind pomposity and superciliousness. 'The Power of Being Debt Free' is one of his better books.

[VestnikRA]

Originally Posted by orthodoxymoron

communism, socialism, or corrupt capitalism is not the answer. Constructive Competition combined with Social Responsibility is the answer...or one of the answers.

I agree with that. There ARE other answers as well and to me the best one may be found in "The Ringing Cedars of Russia" book series.

[Connecting with Sauce]

I never can get when the councils plant trees everyhere on enbankments and near roads and parks etc why why why they are not fruit trees, organic free trees... Money may not grow on trees but fruit does

[VestnikRA]

Originally Posted by Connecting with Sauce

I never can get when the councils plant trees everyhere on enbankments and near roads and parks etc why why why they are not fruit trees, organic free trees... Money may not grow on trees but fruit does

I think I know why.
The fruits growing on the trees are good for citizens but not for the council.
The fruit trees produce a lot of waste (for the councils) falling on the ground.
They don't want to spend money for cleaning all this mess.

[rhythm]

you are free when

you BELIEVE YOU ARE .....

or are you being fooled

you are what you think

believe you are ....

have you been told

some porky pies ...

[deb003]

Yes, sometimes, most time actually, i can be sitting on a beach, free of any physical responsibilities and still be in a prison inside my mind.
When I try to control people, places, and things, I'm in a prison. When I try to get approval from people, places in things, I'm in prison. When I am so stuck on feeling safe in the worls, I'm in a prison. When I lust and desire things, even desire spirituality, I'm in a mental prison of wanting. Attachment are a prison. Attachments to feelings, ideas, concepts. They are all to keep in in prison.
I've read books where poor people are actually happier than the person who has millions of dollars and can't see anything past their material goods.

I am still in a prison until I start releasing whatever comes up, whether it's a thought, a feeling, a thing, a person.

Tha'ts just my thought. i also have to release this one thought.

[VestnikRA]

Originally Posted by deb003

Attachment are a prison. Attachments to feelings, ideas, concepts. They are all to keep in in prison.

This is absolutely TRUE!

[Northern Boy]

Originally Posted by deb003

Yes, sometimes, most time actually, i can be sitting on a beach, free of any physical responsibilities and still be in a prison inside my mind.
When I try to control people, places, and things, I'm in a prison. When I try to get approval from people, places in things, I'm in prison. When I am so stuck on feeling safe in the worls, I'm in a prison. When I lust and desire things, even desire spirituality, I'm in a mental prison of wanting. Attachment are a prison. Attachments to feelings, ideas, concepts. They are all to keep in in prison.
I've read books where poor people are actually happier than the person who has millions of dollars and can't see anything past their material goods.

I am still in a prison until I start releasing whatever comes up, whether it's a thought, a feeling, a thing, a person.

Tha'ts just my thought. i also have to release this one thought.

You will never be free of responsibilities with out them you would soon become destructive it is the natural path one ends up on when you ignore responsibility. You are and always will be responsible for you actions and interactions with others and nature failure to be so results in pollution of the envoirment and eventually moral deprivation

To be void of feelings makes you incapable of anything with out feelings you can Kill someone just because you can do anything you want regardless of who or what it effects because you cant feel you wont know and others could do those same things to you the key to what you are talking about is Balance personal boundaries must be set as to not intrude on others .

Personal Freedom is the separation of the Individual and the state where you give up all state privileges bestowed upon you and take back all of your naturally inherited birth rights you no longer want to hold the states hand and have grown to the point of being self reliant. Your desk your job and all around your everyday life that is your prison all these things cause you to think about them rather then peaceful thoughts happy thoughts things to make you really enjoy your life there are too many obstacles in life the way we live it and those have been put there for various reasons of which one day we will find out about

[Northern Boy]

Originally Posted by Angel in Disguise

I agree with that statement... We are the only species on the planet that have to pay for food and shelter... Things that should rightfully be ours. We certainly got screwed !

they are ours but we willingly give ourselves away so we can fit into the mold they have created . You can build shelter and grow food they can`t stop you from that . You own land without having to pay for it , You can plant seeds in that land

[VestnikRA]

Northen Boy, I agree about responsibilty.
The more freedom you get the more responsibility you also take on yourself.
Total freedom means total responsibility.