Gasparilla

Today’s One Thing: Eat a pound of meat and 4 eggs before any other food.

Stormin’:

Donald Trump has talked about moving the FBI to a city in the middle of the country.

That’s not a good move, but I can live with it.

What I don’t understand is why the Department of Agriculture is located in the city of Washington DC.

I think the Department of Agriculture should be located in Omaha, Nebraska.

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Famous Ascetics and Their Teachings

1. Saint Francis of Assisi (1181/1182–1226)
   • Teachings: Emphasized humility, simplicity, and a deep love for all of creation. He renounced wealth to live a life of poverty and devotion to God.
   • Key Quote: “Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”
2. Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha) (c. 563/480–c. 483/400 BCE)
   • Teachings: Advocated the Middle Way, avoiding extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification. Taught the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path to liberation from suffering.
   • Key Quote: “To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others.”
3. The Desert Fathers (3rd–5th Century CE)
   • Teachings: Early Christian hermits who lived in the deserts of Egypt, practicing extreme asceticism to achieve spiritual purity and communion with God.
   • Key Quote (Abba Anthony): “He who sits alone and is quiet has escaped from three wars: hearing, speaking, and seeing. But there is one thing against which he must continually fight: that is, his own heart.”
4. Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948)
   • Teachings: Advocated nonviolence, simplicity, and self-restraint. Practiced fasting and minimalism as a way to discipline the self and inspire social change.
   • Key Quote: “Live simply so that others may simply live.”
5. Laozi (6th Century BCE, or earlier)
   • Teachings: Founder of Taoism, he emphasized living in harmony with the Tao (the Way), detachment from material desires, and embracing simplicity.
   • Key Quote: “Manifest plainness, embrace simplicity, reduce selfishness, have few desires.”
6. John the Baptist (1st Century CE)
   • Teachings: Lived an austere life in the wilderness, wearing camel’s hair and eating locusts and wild honey. Preached repentance and preparation for the coming of Christ.
   • Key Quote: “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
7. Rumi (1207–1273)
   • Teachings: Though not an ascetic in the traditional sense, Rumi emphasized detachment from the ego and worldly desires, focusing on divine love and spiritual connection.
   • Key Quote: “Try not to resist the changes that come your way. Instead, let life live through you. And do not worry that your life is turning upside down. How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?”
8. Teresa of Ávila (1515–1582)
   • Teachings: Advocated for deep prayer, self-denial, and simplicity to achieve a union with God. Her writings reflect her mystical experiences and practical guidance on the spiritual path.
   • Key Quote: “Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you, all things are passing away: God never changes.”
9. Diogenes of Sinope (c. 412–323 BCE)
   • Teachings: A Cynic philosopher who rejected material possessions and social conventions, living in simplicity to achieve freedom and self-sufficiency.
   • Key Quote: “He has the most who is most content with the least.”
10. Thérèse of Lisieux (1873–1897)
    • Teachings: Known for her “Little Way,” which emphasizes humility, simplicity, and small acts of love and sacrifice to achieve holiness.
    • Key Quote: “Miss no single opportunity to make some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kind word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love.”

This list showcases diverse traditions, offering profound insights into simplicity, self-discipline, and spiritual fulfillment.

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Diogenes of Sinope: A Brief Biography

Diogenes of Sinope (circa 412–323 BCE) was a Greek philosopher and one of the most famous and controversial figures of the Cynic school.

Born in Sinope, a city on the Black Sea, Diogenes was exiled for allegedly defacing the city’s currency.

This event, often interpreted metaphorically, led him to adopt a life dedicated to questioning societal norms and advocating for a return to a simpler, more natural existence.

After his exile, Diogenes moved to Athens, where he became a pupil of Antisthenes, a follower of Socrates and the founder of Cynicism.

Diogenes embraced and radicalized the Cynic philosophy, living a life of extreme simplicity and asceticism.

He famously resided in a large ceramic jar (often mistakenly referred to as a barrel) and owned little more than a cloak, a staff, and a small bag.

His way of life was a direct critique of materialism, social conventions, and the artificiality of societal values.

Central Ideas and Teachings

1. Living in Accordance with Nature:Diogenes believed that happiness and virtue could only be achieved by living in harmony with nature, free from the constraints of societal expectations. He encouraged people to discard superfluous possessions and live a life of simplicity.
2. Rejection of Conventional Values:Diogenes challenged societal norms, including wealth, power, fame, and social hierarchy. He considered these pursuits meaningless distractions from a virtuous life.
3. Self-Sufficiency (Autarkeia):Diogenes emphasized self-reliance and independence from external influences. He demonstrated this through his ascetic lifestyle, showing that contentment could be achieved with minimal resources.
4. Virtue Over Wealth:He taught that virtue and wisdom, not material wealth or societal status, were the keys to a fulfilling life. Diogenes believed that ethical behavior was inherently linked to simplicity and self-control.
5. Parrhesia (Frank Speech):Diogenes was renowned for his bluntness and use of wit to expose hypocrisy. He used humor and provocative behavior to criticize authority figures and societal flaws, often in public spaces.
6. Critique of Social Constructs:Diogenes questioned human-made institutions like marriage, politics, and organized religion, viewing them as artificial constructs that impeded human freedom and happiness.

Legacy

Diogenes’ eccentric behavior and sharp intellect earned him a reputation as both a philosopher and a provocateur.

Anecdotes about his life, such as carrying a lantern in broad daylight “searching for an honest man,” illustrate his disdain for deceit and corruption.

His influence extended beyond his lifetime, shaping the development of Stoicism and inspiring later philosophers to question societal norms.

Though often seen as a radical, Diogenes’ teachings continue to resonate in discussions about minimalism, authenticity, and the rejection of materialism.

His life remains a powerful reminder that true freedom lies in living a life aligned with one’s principles, unencumbered by external expectations.

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Ludwig von Mises was one of the leading economists and social theorists of the Austrian School, and his work influenced libertarian and classical liberal thought. Here are his major ideas, along with relevant quotes:

1. Human Action as Purposeful Behavior

Mises emphasized that economics is rooted in the study of purposeful human actions, as opposed to mechanistic or deterministic behaviors. He developed praxeology, the science of human action, which analyzes decision-making based on individual goals and subjective values.

Quote:

“Human action is purposeful behavior. Or we may say: Action is will put into operation and transformed into an agency. It is aiming at ends and goals; it is the ego’s meaningful response to stimuli and to the conditions of its environment.”

2. The Importance of the Free Market

Mises championed the free market as the most efficient means of organizing economic activity. He argued that markets allocate resources more effectively than centralized planning because they rely on the price mechanism, which conveys information about supply and demand.

Quote:

“The market is not a place, a thing, or a collective entity. The market is a process, actuated by the interplay of the actions of the various individuals cooperating under the division of labor.”

3. Critique of Socialism

In his seminal work Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis, Mises argued that socialism is inherently flawed because it lacks a functioning price mechanism for capital goods, making rational economic calculation impossible.

Quote:

“Without calculation, economic activity is impossible. The choice of economic calculation is a choice between capitalism and chaos.”

4. The Role of Entrepreneurship

Mises viewed entrepreneurs as central to the functioning of the market system. Entrepreneurs allocate resources by anticipating future demand, taking risks, and driving innovation.

Quote:

“Progress is precisely that which the rules and regulations did not foresee. It is the very task of the entrepreneur to create what has not yet existed.”

5. Sound Money and Criticism of Inflation

Mises strongly opposed inflationary monetary policies, advocating for sound money (such as a gold standard) to preserve purchasing power and economic stability. He saw inflation as a form of stealth taxation that disrupts the economy.

Quote:

“Inflationism is not a policy that can last. It cannot last because it is a self-defeating policy. The inflationary boom ends in a fiasco.”

6. Individual Liberty and Limited Government

Mises argued that individual freedom and economic liberty are inseparable. He believed that government intervention often leads to unintended consequences that undermine prosperity and liberty.

Quote:

“Freedom is indivisible. As soon as one starts to restrict it, one enters upon a decline on which it is difficult to stop.”

7. Subjective Value Theory

Mises expanded upon the Austrian School’s insight that value is subjective, meaning that goods and services have value based on individual preferences, not inherent characteristics.

Quote:

“Value is not intrinsic; it is not in things. It is within us; it is the way in which man reacts to the conditions of his environment.”

These ideas collectively form the foundation of Ludwig von Mises’s contributions to economics, political theory, and philosophy.

His works, such as Human Action and Socialism, continue to influence scholars and policymakers advocating for free markets and limited government.

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