Basic Philosophy
For a post like this, the question is where to start and how much to explain. I will try to write as little as possible and point to other thinkers whenever possible.
Stoicism
I am a Stoic, especially in the tradition of Epicetetus. I was a Stoic before I was introduced to these works and reviewing the thoughts of many of the Stoics has made this very clear to me. I use the words of the Stoics and naturally engage in many of the practices.
The Daily Stoic has an excellent introductory article titled, What Is Stoicism? A Definition & 9 Stoic Exercises To Get You Started. Of those nine exercises the only one I struggle to do even when knowing it would be helpful is journaling. Though perhaps this blog is yet another attempt to do that.
Understand Stoicism and understand a great deal of my approach to living.
Work in progress.
There is no supernatural
Many people would rephrase that statement to say I am an atheist. Sure, if you must.
I attended religious elementary and secondary schools. A defining memory I have is from seventh grade. I recall we were in science class being lectured about the scientific method. My thoughts wandered to the religious class we had the previous hour and how the statements of the two classes seemed to be in such conflict. Through faith alone versus all hypotheses must be proven by experiment. While both of those are a bit simplistic, they do expose the great divide between the two. I have basically not been religious since that time, though of course there were many developmental steps.
I state there is not supernatural because there is literally no way in nature to test hypotheses about the supernatural. Something which has no effects is truly nothing at all.
Urban Libertarianism
Politically, I define myself as an Urban Libertarian. Basically I am throwing a modifier onto the Libertarian outlook.
Generally, Libertarians seek to maximize political freedom and autonomy, emphasizing freedom of choice, voluntary association and individual judgement. Libertarians share a skepticism of authority and state power. Another important aspect is avoidance of coercion to achieve societal objectives.
This is a very individualist outlook on life with high levels of personal responsibility and sometimes harsh consequences for those unable to compete. Over time, I have concluded that an important cause of problems in American society is on overvaluation placed upon individualism versus collectivism. There are times when the primacy of individuals must be subjugated for the well-being of the society. Since I think this change is mostly due to the transition to a more urban society, one in which the well-being of your neighbors greatly affects your own well-being, I use the Urban modifier.
So yes, there are times when it is not only acceptable but required to use a minimum of coercion to improve the well-being of society.
What’s good for business …
I don’t have a name for this viewpoint but use it regularly in developing thoughts about what works best. As a first approximation, I think does this benefit or harm small businesses. From this, I have come up with what some might consider counter-intuitive ideas. The clearest example I have of this regards health care.
I think that universal health care is the way to go. Why? Because it gives small businesses a level playing field upon which to compete with large corporations and also with other countries. Providing health insurance is a cost to the business but for the labor force it is an expected benefit of employment. A small business is therefore not able to compete for employees. Universal health care levels this playing field.
Small businesses provide employment, innovation, skills, leadership, and opportunity. the nation that does best in nurturing these qualities has a favorable outlook versus nations that do not.