Why Work? > Why Work?

On the Phenomenon of Bullsh-it Jobs

<< < (2/3) > >>

Nation of One:
I wonder what ever happened to Whyjob.  There were some characters in those forums.

It's amazing that more people don't voice their true feelings on this issue.  We were fortunate to have stumbled upon that forum when there were a handful of people being completely frank.  It was as if we were all intending on dying soon and didn't give a damn what the values of the herd (and the ruling elite) were.


--- Quote --- ... the feeling that work is a moral value in itself, and that anyone not willing to submit themselves to some kind of intense work discipline for most of their waking hours deserves nothing, is extraordinarily convenient for them.
--- End quote ---

I witness this also in the "thera-peutic industrial complex" where "therapists" and others in the mental health profession chant the mantra about how reporting to a "behavioral health treatment center" at the very least provides structure ... For what?  As preparation for the "work-shy" to be put back in a harness.

There is such a taboo against goofing off, farting around, and just sitting around thinking.  They seem to suspect that idleness leads to debauchery, drunkenness ... marijauna-induced comas ...  Maybe, for a great many, too much time on their hands does lead to self-destructive habits, but there are certainly those who can momentarily snap out of such habits and maybe get hooked on reading horror or philosophy ... or just tinkering with math, code, and depressive, defeatist, nihilistic ideas.

The work ethic seems to have less to do with economics and more to do with morality and social control.

Also, there must be a compulsion to justify one's standard of living.  Suppose one had inherited a fortune.  Unlike Arthur Schopenhauer, who openly strove to live the life of a scholar, kind of stretching the funds, there are those who must feel obligated to hold some kind of position with some corporation so as to appear self-made.

Of course, as the above article points out, what would happen were this entire class of people to simply disappear? Say what you like about nurses, garbage collectors, or mechanics, it’s obvious that were they to vanish in a puff of smoke, the results would be immediate and catastrophic.

It’s not entirely clear how humanity would suffer were all private equity CEOs, lobbyists, PR researchers, actuaries, telemarketers, bailiffs or legal consultants to similarly vanish. (Many suspect it might markedly improve.) Yet apart from a handful of well-touted exceptions (doctors), the rule holds surprisingly well.

It's so much more pleasant posting such things on a message board that few people read than to debate with those who chant the mantras ... those who wave flags and encourage youth to join the military.   ::)

Maybe the reason why reading Cioran had an even stronger impact on me than reading Schopenhauer was the degree of Cioran's shameless attitude toward loafing, stating that sometimes the best thing you can do to get through a day is to lay down and groan.  I'm not minimizing the effect Schopenhauer had on my attitude, but - you see - as a maintenance worker, one who collected garbage, cleaned toilets, mowed grass, cleared roadways of snow and fallen trees, etc, I had to imagine myself some kind of monk since I would be able to reflect on the ideas I had studied at night during the workday.  There were endless opportunities for reflection and meditation.  I just always wondered what Schopenhauer would have done were he in my boots.   

Then, a couple years after discovering Schopenhauer's works, sometime in 1993, I found Cioran's The Trouble With Being Born in a library.  Now here was a thinker who was not living off an inheritance.  How did he pull it off, I wondered.  At my innermost core, that inner presence who would daily drag his invisible chains as a "state slave" read Cioran as the most delightful blasphemy against my work ethic.  I had prided myself on being a conscientious "good worker," a workhorse ... "Mission Mike" ...  :o

I never imagined that my severe moods would lead to me shunning employment altogether, seeking refuge in the underground economy of welfare and government relief.

On whywork.org. Nat and I imagined we were part of some kind of organic SSI Monastery!   ;D

(Of course, mine is a very non-Hollywood rotten toothed grin ... dental horror!)

Nation of One:
And then I need a battery for the mouse ... and my mind goes through all that is required to produce batteries and computer components ,,, [sigh] ... and I feel ... pathetic. 

Was that an aphorism?

On the Great Refusal (from wikipedia):

 Herbert Marcuse argues that "advanced industrial society" created false needs, which integrated individuals into the existing system of production and consumption via mass media, advertising, industrial management, and contemporary modes of thought.

This results in a "one-dimensional" universe of thought and behaviour, in which aptitude and ability for critical thought and oppositional behaviour wither away. Against this prevailing climate, Marcuse promotes the "great refusal" (described at length in the book) as the only adequate opposition to all-encompassing methods of control. Much of the book is a defense of "negative thinking" as a disrupting force against the prevailing positivism.

forthebirds:
Have you ever seen that animated movie "wall-e?" It is computer animated and meant for kids, but it paints out a rather depressing view of what could be the future of humanity.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-kdRdzxdZQ

This, to me, represents how a gort would handle leisure. This is not what I was after when I came to why-work. I seek freedom to pursue knowledge and to improve myself. Now, I will not debate and try even not to judge anyone who wished to live a life like in that video clip... I still say that we all deserve the freedom to make that choice. We need to end wage-slavery.

Nation of One:
I am unable to see the above video you linked to.  Maybe it's because I logged into Windows 10 to download the update (upgrade 1511 from back in November).  I've been in Linux-mode for the last couple months since I prefer working with code with GNU's gcc, g++, and gdb ... although I do think Microsoft's Visual Studio is cool.  I just prefer using gdb ...

That must be it since my link isn't showing up either.  I'll check in here after I boot the computer into Linux.

I did find this though: Everything wrong with Wall-E in 12 minutes or less:

wall-e

Keep busting those gorts, forthebirds!

PEACE

Nation of One:
That was it.  I can now view both videos.  I'm sure I just have to load some kind of plug-in to Firefox in Windows but it's not too much of a priority.  I use Windows for certain tasks such as printing out important documents ... since, well, the printer is hooked up to a wireless router, and I was able to set up the printer as shared device for Windows operating systems (since the router had Windows compliant software), but I haven't gotten around to making it work in Linux. 

I don't do much printing these days anyway ... man, I can see how an ereader (that handles pdf files well) would be a glorious tool for a modern day scholar warrior to have handy ... I am still holding out on that transition.  And yet, just as I use Windows for some tasks and Linux for most other tasks, it is likely that I would only use an ereader for some things.  I would still prefer a big fat text book when I can find it dirt cheap ... I just can't seem to be able to justify the purchase at this time.  I don't want it to distract me from making use of my little book collection, which I consider to be a powerhouse.

I see your concern as related to Wall-E.  Were the masses liberated from wage-slavery and mandatory "day therapy bull-s-h-i-t programs" would they become fodder for the Mall Rat Machine?   We might "consume" literature, hiking boots, hammocks, and tents ... whereas you are afraid the masses would become addicted to stupid crap ... online c-a-s-i-n-o and fantasy football ...

As far as the film goes, yes, I can see that you nailed it on the head pointing out the creepiness of the futuristic Gort Colony ... scary stuff.  At least the film maker was able to get across the ugliness of such a scenario. 

I sometimes think that China's economy would be threatened were they to eliminate the consumer base, and yet ... Ugh ... My brain is resisting following this thought to its conclusion.  I hate to think of the role one plays as a "consumer".   The word screams gort.  They even refer to those coerced into psychiatric treatment as "mental health consumers".  I wonder if jailbirds are considered "penal welfare consumers" ...  ::)

I don't want to think about these things.  I need to engage in some "sublimation"    :-\

ts

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page