can a non-"hippie" be a free thinker?

[nicktecky]

Of course not!
By accepting the label she accepts the restraints of the label and so compromises her freedom.

[rococo]

there appear to be a lot of confused people here.

*rights are not necessarily realities. i.e. we have the right to think freely but most of us prefer the comfort of our shackles. it's up to the individual to decide whether they are ok with that or not.

*it is not wise to assume that people are idiots because they value different things to you and do things differently.

* some of the most amazing people that i've ever met were backpackers; some of them don't know the difference between iraq and afghanistan; some of them don't know who george harrisson is; some of them are lots of things that they "shouldn't" be and don't know lots of the things that they "should" know and yet they are beautiful.... how about we ease up on the judgmental stuff...?

*being a free thinker doesn't mean knowing everything. i dont know where that turkish town is. does that make me a bad person? by the way, do you know where albury is?

[redrabid]

Ahh, amazing indeed, travelling through the Middle East and not knowing the difference between Iraq and Afghanistan, or Iraq and Iran, being totally desinterested in the values and cultural sensitivities of the people whose country they are visiting. Valueing the world around them only in terms of entertainment: "Man, you should go there, such high waves."
Yes, I consider reproachable ignorance stupidity.

[usedtobebabson]

Well, free thinking is not always so free. Back then we had Chicago and Kent State. More recently "the Battle in Seattle over the World Trade Meeting. Free thinking is OK as long as it's within the narrow boundaries dictated by government, society and tradition. When you leave that thinking to think more outside the box, such as being for peace in a time of war, open sexuality in a time of Victorian restraint, or all for witches in a time of witch hunts, You may find out how free you are not....

[Susan Butcher]

...and you'll find that every society has secret police of one kind or another.

[graceslick]

Anyone who writes this sort of subject line is not a free-thinker already. A "hippie" is simply a term for whatever...you can do and think what you like, be called what you like, who cares.

[ericthompson13]

It's all in your mind.
What is free?
People have the freedom to think, but does this mean we are free thinkers?

I believe a free thinker is somebody who is able to observe anything objectively. Often prior associations and experiences govern someones opinions before they have a full understanding of the confrontation. When people become very involved with things such as activism for instance they delve so deeply into their tasks that they forget why. It becomes their norm rather than their fight and reason is pushed aside. Which leads me to believe that very few, if any, people are free thinkers. Most of our daily rituals are based upon human standards for civilized manner, which are broad due to high population, and we only act because we know that it is the humane way to live.

[ericthompson13]

I believe a free thinker is somebody who is able to observe anything objectively. Often prior associations and experiences govern someones opinions before they have a full understanding of the confrontation. When people become very involved with things such as activism for instance they delve so deeply into their tasks that they forget why. It becomes their norm rather than their fight and reason is pushed aside. Which leads me to believe that very few, if any, people are free thinkers. Most of our daily rituals are based upon human standards for civilized manner, which are broad due to high population, and we only act because we know that it is the humane way to live.

Your words on that other topic about LSD + this one = It makes me laugh ! Thanx !
I don't say more about it, it makes me laugh... holy shit.... thanx....

The connection between the real me and internet me is rather disappointing i assure you. Whatever your take on me.

[kswaby10]

Good point.




........................................
K. Swaby

[ericthompson13]

"Free" thinking is really just a term people use to sound liberated. hipsters and other new age spiritualists like ideas such as free thinking because it helps them to define their individuality. No label is necessary for anyone with any kind of self confidence.

[Baxter]

Non-hippies sure can be free thinkers. At least I would like to think so. There are norms that have impregnated our society for years and decades, and while the foundation often remains the same, it keeps evolving into something different.

For a couple of months I've been finding myself thinking more like hippies in the sixties did. Well, I guess I like the idea of their thinking back then. Although not necessarily in a left oriented way, because I consider myself a liberal, but the ideas of acceptance, other realities, being open-minded and a certain degree of spirituality. To me, spirituality doesn't necessarily have to be about religion, because I'm an atheist, but spirituality can exist in many forms and I like the concept of that.

Then what is free thinking really? Firstly, I think it's a clichéd term. But then again, to me, it's about choice. I have chosen to be all those things because of my integrity, and the fact that nobody else said I should be this and that, and no one did foist me about what I believe. It's easy to get lost in political perspectives when discussing free thinking (sometimes people border on anarchy). Free thinking is bigger than politics. It really is. And the fact that I don't share my free thinking with anybody else might also be considered free thinking (with the exception of sharing it with a partner).


Well, I don't know if this sounds pretentious or lacks 'logic' in every sense of the word, but I don't care, and I'm tired. It was hard to explain, so hopefully you will get what I mean!

[Susan Butcher]

You know what I'm thinking? I'm thinking that Osama was a cracking good villain, and I kind of miss him. Maybe other people are thinking this, but I haven't bothered to check and I don't particularly care.

[redrabid]

No need to worry.
Soon the first "true believers" will vow that they saw him. Risen from his grave in the sea, washed ashore, he spoke to them.
You too can be a convert, Susan.

[Susan Butcher]

You've done it now, RR. My pin-up of Stella Maris is growing a beard and a funny hat.

(No, no, JB, Osama, not Obama!)

[Susan Butcher]

Perhaps a role in the tradition of Dr Fu Manchu? Carol's been reading the Fu Manchu books recently, and the main reason Fu is a villain from the books' point of view is he's determined to undermine England's quite natural postion as top nation and guardian of civilization. That's like America's conceit, isn't it?

To get back to Baxter's comments on "free thinking", there's a kind of thinking that seems to me to define a "hippie", the urge to explore the region between "madness" and "sanity" without getting damaged in the process. It's hard to explain to a "normal" person why you'd want to take the risk and do this thing.