Dysfunctionality and Redemption -- The Philosophy of "The Default State"

"When I gave up all HOPE of anything, I learned how to actually live. That which KILLS others became my source of strength" -- John Duran

“No society wants you to become wise: it is against the investment of all societies. If people are wise they cannot be exploited. If they are intelligent they cannot be subjugated, they cannot be forced in a mechanical life, to live like robots. They will assert their individuality. They will have the fragrance of rebellion around them. They will like to live in freedom. Freedom comes with wisdom, intrinsically. They are inseparable, and no society wants people to be free. The communist society, the fascist society, the capitalist society, the Hindu, the Mohammedan, the Christian — no society — would like people to use their own intelligence because the moment they start using their intelligence they become dangerous — dangerous to the establishment, dangerous to the people who are in power, dangerous to the ‘haves’; dangerous to all kinds of oppression, exploitation, suppression; dangerous to the churches, dangerous to the states, dangerous to the nations. In fact, a wise man is afire, alive, aflame. But he cannot sell his life, he cannot serve them. He would like rather to die than to be enslaved.” ~ Osho

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The world is a meritocracy, a relentless competition for limited resources and positions. People do not receive what they deserve; they acquire what they strive for, demonstrating their worth. When I dined in the cafeteria during my clerk days and received a meager portion of meat, it was because I failed to convince the arrogant server that I was worthy of more. When I complained to my superiors, they told me they could not do anything about him, because he was in a superior position himself.

The equality of relevancy is an oxymoron. The world is unfair because there are always those who matter more than others.

Those who are inherently less functional, especially those deemed unappealing by society, or even rejected as "insane", must prove their value in the world, just like everyone else.... If not more so. And yes, some of us, like my late grandfather, were too dysfunctional to fit in even if they tried. That's what you get, sometimes at least, when you have schizophrenia. Not everyone can just learn social skills and fit in successfully like everyone else. No amount of social proficency will solve your misophonia and let you live in peace with others such as family and neighbors.

There is insufficent justice in this world due to the necessity of appealing to others and making them understand. Should you fail to be understood, even the most caring of empaths can treat you like dirt beneath their boots, should they merely feel inclined to do so! Not everyone will grant you a job merely because you require sustenance and have bills to pay; not every individual will consent to be your partner simply because you love them and possess romantic and sexual yearnings.

Your hopes with others will forever be dependant on their consent, which will forever be beyond your control. Even a child can rebel against the most loving of parents! Even though a parent's love is crucial for healthy growth, they have no responsibility to love you or even be present for you. Hence why child neglect exist. This explains why there are parents who neglect their roles, and yet, there is nothing in theory that can prevent them from doing so, other than involving the authorities.

There should be a clear distinction between needing something and deserving it. Needing implies a requirement, while deserving implies entitlement. The world's cruel freedom dictates that most people owe you nothing, as they are not obligated to provide you with anything unless something, like the law and its enforcers, dictate them to. This is the essence of freedom of action and reaction. The only other way to get people to do what you need and/or deserve is through influence, which is indirect control. However, influence is likelier to fail than force -- or the mere feeling of having to help your needs and/or entitlements.

"The strong have the right to rule over the weak" only because there is no stronger entity to stand in their path in dominating the weak, other than the weak themselves, through various means ("slave morality", or turning weakness into a "moral value", a revolution, and so on).

You will not see me claiming that this philosophy blog deserves views, for no one is inherently entitled to read it, even though it needs views to remain relevant. The seemingly eternal link between needing and convincing others of your worth, is how you redeem yourself from being, by default, an irrelevant human being. This is a redemption that's expressed by proving to those you depend upon that they should assist you, and if they believe you deserve their help, then all the better.

And the more your worth is irreplaceable in their eyes, the more they will help you to get what you want, need, and/or "deserve". Should you fail, you might as well become as irrelevant as those I call the "corner people", along with their unfortunate, overlooked deaths.

A decade or so ago, I encountered a comment asserting that rappers like Eminem deserve their worldly fame due to the harsh reality they have endured. However, this is not true, as there is no such thing as "divine justice"; a justice to which every single being is entitled. Eminem had to fight his way to the top just like any other musician in his field, and had to practice much in order to be a master in his field. The only thing that he deserved is to practice his craft, which he did with excellence.

As long as you participate in a societal market, a realm that demands competition, you must maintain your value in the eyes of those you need, in order for them to take interest in you and help you live. Especially as customers. An irrelevant service provider WILL stay behind! As a philosopher, I must demonstrate to you that I am relevant enough to be worthy your time, for if I fail, you might as well devote your time elsewhere.

The relationship between a proprietor and their enterprise is intertwined, and the audience for the products or services you provide is limited. Therefore, you MUST prove that you are sufficiently worthy, and this has nothing to do with whether or not you deserve said worth.

The resource of the reader/consumer's mind is ultimately something that many other entities strive for, competing for its loyal dedication, even for a brief period. If I have "committed" dysfunctionality, then I must redeem myself if I wish to increase my potential and attain World Relevance.

Regardless of your starting point, or the hand you've been dealt, you must prove yourself to the world if you wish to remain relevant and desirable. Unless you would utilize your unfortunate upbringing for your own relevance, it is irrelevant itself to those whom you want/need to be relevant for. Some may assist you because they believe in your cause, proving their loyalty to you. But ultimately, it's a journey you must primarily undertake on your own. It is lonely at the top because honest human connections are built more than mere conditional interests. As such, do not expect to be less lonely, should you be in a position of power.

One of the purposes of this site is to maintain relevance beyond the end of my own lifetime. You might perceive this as pretentious or pompous, but my motivation is simply to contribute as much as possible, even after my own demise. Out of all fields, philosophy is the very field that is capable of great relevance, and thus, of redeeming intellects from their default state of unimportance.

Of course, I cannot control your thoughts, but that doesn't prevent me from attempting to influence them by trying to convince you otherwise, by adding more value to your life, thus ensuring more and more the reason for me to exist in this shallow world. Obviously, I cannot guarantee the site's longevity, but as long as I can produce relevant content, I still have a chance of achieving that goal.

I'm doing what I do because I am a broken man. A series of traumas has indefinitely changed the way I live, feel and think. Everything causes me a degree of suffering. It's only a matter of their individual extent. I lost hope for a happy, peaceful life after the things I went through. In the absence of greater hope, all I am seeking today are two things: Contribution, and power. For I have nothing else left to live for.

My aspiration is to make philosophy so relevant that people from all corners of the globe regularly engage with my site's content. Achieving this would provide me with the assurance that I have indeed produced relevant and valuable material for centuries to come.

I will not claim that this site deserves such a thing, for it is not something to be deserved but earned through relentless and unforgiving effort on my and my volunteers' end. As long as there is a significant possibility that this legacy will be deemed too unworthy before at least a century has passed since its foundation in 2019, my work in this world remains unfinished. I've much work to do.

Many are born with one form of dysfunction or another. The world may not always appreciate these aspects of our being. It may alienate us, reject us, and misrepresent us in ways that reflect its own misunderstandings. However, what we do deserve, is at least a chance to prove them wrong. It is, after all, what we all deserve the most: Chances. Opportunities. A test of of our skills. We do not deserve to win nor fail. We deserve to at least try to do what we truly want, in order to express our best version of ourselves, the "human godhood" within us.

Ultimately, we must all prove that our existence is worthy of anyone's time, regardless of the ease or difficulty of the task. How come? We do not want to be fired, right? We must at least prove to our employers that they should resume hiring us.

We are all irrelevant by default, and as such, unworthy by default. It is only through proving that we are relevant, that we can exit this state we were all born into.

No one will love or adore me otherwise... No one will necessarily love or adore YOU, otherwise. The constant need to prove myself to others, is why I am broken inside. No one would understand or value me otherwise... No one likes leeches. Because I can easily become a leech, I am working to maintain my sanity, because the last thing people like me would want, is to be broken further by this unforgiving, arguing world, who took my joy away from me.

Because I only want to contribute, none needs to stand in my way for redeeming this mentioned "default state".

Feedback by Mr. Nathan Lasher

This note might be a digression from the article yet I feel the need to say it. The real secret to life is in completing actions which change the world and having fellow humans become aware of the action that you are doing.

By them learning about it the action becomes a part of their own cognitive reality which in turn places it among the collective reality which is nothing more then the combination of cognitive realities by more than one human.

You can live forever in the minds and hearts of many people if you do an action worthy of making history. You won’t do it by doing nothing but going to work and coming home.

That action is a necessity of life yet doesn’t warrant you being remembered by many people. It is living an uneventful life that isn’t worth telling people about. To be a human worthy of other people’s attention you must do something worth it. There is a cost to everything in life. The most valuable assets you have to pay it with is your time and efforts. 

I believe Mr. Tomasio could talk about dysfunctionality as a result of the human condition. We by default are imperfect creatures. Shouldn’t the idea of this article be to always try and be better then how we are by default? Goes back to what I mentioned about how it is all about the actions which we do.

Philosophy is about the evolution of understanding. If life is all about gaining understanding then by default it should prove how important philosophy is.