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I am at work right now, so I can only respond to the abstract. One significant task for a future psychology of optimal functioning is to deemphasize individu
by adrianratnapala 9y ago
I am at work right now, so I can only respond to the abstract.
One significant task for a future psychology
of optimal functioning is to deemphasize
individual freedom and to determine which
cultural constraints are necessary for people
to live meaningful and satisfying lives.
The big leap here is the assumption that the allegedly necessary cultural constraints have to be determined from the outside. Liberal democracies, especially the USA, allow overlapping cultural groups to provide such
constraints along with the safety valve of exit -- e.g. the Amish can
have their culture, but individuals who are sick of it can still survive
as "mere" Americans.
Now it is true that nominally "liberal" regimes sometimes try to choke off these groups. E.g. it is very unlikely that a new group as outlandish as the Amish would be allowed to form. But if you don't like such burka-banning tendencies, please note that the problem is not too much freedom, but too much constraint.
- sverige 9y agoI'm not sure how you got from "Amish" to "burka-banning." The Amish do not actively work to add outsiders to their group, and hardly seem outlandish in their interactions with the larger society.
- adrianratnapala 9y agoThe Amish need various carve-outs from state and federal laws which partially exempt them from compulsory education and certain labour laws. But I suppose in a sense, that doesn't make them outlandish. They got those exemptions partly because they were a well liked group that were around in the US long before those laws. So in that sense, they are actually more American than, say, the New Deal. As for burqas, I don't see what they have to do with attracting converts, nor do I see what is wrong with recruitment. Nor can I think of any justification for a burqa ban that is remotely as strong the justification for the laws which the Amish are exempted from.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- ouid 9y agoI don't think you're thinking about this properly. There's no safety net for someone who wants to quit being amish. They are free to leave, but they do not have the capacity to fend for themselves outside of the cult. I think the larger problem is that you don't have a definition of freedom. You throw the word around like it has formal implications, but I challenge you to present one example of "freedom" that does not end up being oppression to someone else.
- joeblow9999 9y ago"but I challenge you to present one example of "freedom" that does not end up being oppression to someone else." Freedom to make hyperbolic comments on internet forums?
- Viliam1234 9y agoBut that oppresses my feelings!
- ouid 9y agoI'm using resources to post here. My internet is coal powered. Is that not oppressive to everyone? It doesn't matter that the answers are trivial. The point is that everything is scarce. Freedom is a meaningless concept unless you codify it. Liberty and justice are fundamentally at odds with each other. That's why we form governments.