Weekly Roundup #64
Liberty is a concept that I think we don't think about very often. We have lived so long in a liberal democracy that many of the features have blended into the background. They have become part of the furniture. Freedom of speech, equality before the law, avenues for reparation of injustice - all creations of liberal society that would look like fantasies for many previous generations. But that are just that - fabrications. There is no law of nature that requires that, once we have claimed them, we can’t subsequently lose them. As with many things in life, reflecting on their absence makes them seem all the more valuable.
Reading
I really enjoyed this article from The Atlantic this week. In it, Arthur Brooks looks at the role of adventure within our lives. I have touched upon this idea before here and some of the same themes are present. The challenges of an adventure, especially its physical ordeals, can throw better perspective on the rest of life, showing us the many benefits we can tend to forget. But there is more than this. There is the within the concept of “the hero’s journey” that has a bigger psychological connection. A connection to purpose and meaning. The mundanity of everyday life can cause us to forget about such narratives - an adventure can rekindle them.
This week I also published this essay reflecting on the challenging topic of assisted dying. This was being discussed in the UK Parliament this week before ultimately being passed. As I note here, it is essentially a question of difficult trade offs, with benefits coming at some cost of risk. There will still be much to discuss.
Listening
This week I released my first podcast episode for some time. In it I reflect on the importance of learning and how we need to continue to make it a feature of our daily lives. Whilst we may think of it as purely a means to an ends (and it is this as well) I see it as a much more central part of our individual flourishing.
Quote
“You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realise how seldom they do.”
- David Foster Wallace