Learning new things challenges you

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for August 21, 2019)

Usually, the more I learn about something the more I appreciate it.

There have been many times when a friend has introduced me to something I knew next to nothing about; something they were enthusiastic for, and before long I had gained a new appreciation. It doesn't necessarily mean it becomes something I'm seriously interested in, but I can still appreciate it through new eyes.

Recently I was introduced to the history of the Three Stooges by a friend who runs the internet's most in-depth Three Stooges fansite. I had never given them much thought, beyond watching them on cable TV as I got ready for school when I was a kid. But learning about them as real people with a real story gave me a new perspective and a whole new appreciation for them.

I've experienced similar things with karaoke, cats, and writing, with some of these things becoming important parts of my life.

Other times I have been introduced to something, and the more I learned about it the more I grew to dislike it; the less I'm willing to tolerate it. Government-- or more accurately, "the state"-- for example.

In some cases, ignorance truly is bliss.

The more I learn about government's origins and its true nature the less tolerance I have for it. I see no reason to pretend it is something other than a criminal mob trying to hide behind a veil of legitimacy and imaginary "consent of the governed".

It doesn't change what something is to make up cutesy names for it. Taxation is still theft, capital punishment is still ritual human sacrifice, "gun control" is still slavery, and police are still a street gang. Supporters can try to justify these things all day long, but nothing changes them into something other than what they really are. Their true nature remains the same.

If these are things you support, own it.

If you don't support these things when done by freelance individuals but have been supporting them when done by government, perhaps it's time you pick a side for the sake of consistency.

It's possible to be consistently wrong, of course, but it's not possible to be inconsistent and be right. If this matters to you, you know what you need to do.

The more you learn, the more you know. The more you know, the more responsibility you have and the more you are challenged. Which probably explains why so many people don't want to learn anything new.

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