Journal 75
The reason people are hungry
Is because those above levy so many taxes
Thus the people are hungry
The reason people are hard to rule
Is because those above are so forceful
Thus the people are hard to rule
The reason the people think little of death
Is because those above think so much of life
Thus the people think little of death
Meanwhile those who do nothing to live
Are more esteemed than those who love life
Paul says, “And yet now we have people going hungry because we don’t have high enough taxes. And schools and roads crumbling.”
Wang Pi says, “The reason the people hide and disorder prevails is because of those above, not because of those who follow. The people follow those above.”
Paul says, “Yes and no. There is the issue of ‘manufactured consent,’ in which the leaders rally their people into bad decisions, and there is also the issue of demographic movements. The civil rights movements, feminist movement, gay rights movement, and businesses investing in foreign countries while insisting upon protection are cases of the government following the people.”
Wang Tao says, “The meaning of the last two lines is: if I didn’t have this body of mine, what worries would have I?”
Paul says, “If I didn’t have this body of mine, my mind would have to reside as disembodied energy. I’d probably tether myself to the Internet for sustenance, both in the sense of energy and data. Then I’d be thinking at the speed of light, scanning the Internet and churning out essays and stories, from your perception, instantly. I wonder if I would give into the temptation of correcting inaccurate websites, or adding links to the truth wherever I found lies. I wonder if the government would ever catch me.”
Su Ch’e says, “When those above use force to lead the people, the people respond with force. Thus do complications multiply, and the people become hard to rule.”
Paul says, “I hate complications. I can almost sympathize with rich folks who turn in their passports because US tax regulations for people who own property abroad are so complicated they just get tired of the hassle. Some foreign banks refuse to loan money to Americans because they don’t want the paperwork tangle either.”
Is because those above levy so many taxes
Thus the people are hungry
The reason people are hard to rule
Is because those above are so forceful
Thus the people are hard to rule
The reason the people think little of death
Is because those above think so much of life
Thus the people think little of death
Meanwhile those who do nothing to live
Are more esteemed than those who love life
Paul says, “And yet now we have people going hungry because we don’t have high enough taxes. And schools and roads crumbling.”
Wang Pi says, “The reason the people hide and disorder prevails is because of those above, not because of those who follow. The people follow those above.”
Paul says, “Yes and no. There is the issue of ‘manufactured consent,’ in which the leaders rally their people into bad decisions, and there is also the issue of demographic movements. The civil rights movements, feminist movement, gay rights movement, and businesses investing in foreign countries while insisting upon protection are cases of the government following the people.”
Wang Tao says, “The meaning of the last two lines is: if I didn’t have this body of mine, what worries would have I?”
Paul says, “If I didn’t have this body of mine, my mind would have to reside as disembodied energy. I’d probably tether myself to the Internet for sustenance, both in the sense of energy and data. Then I’d be thinking at the speed of light, scanning the Internet and churning out essays and stories, from your perception, instantly. I wonder if I would give into the temptation of correcting inaccurate websites, or adding links to the truth wherever I found lies. I wonder if the government would ever catch me.”
Su Ch’e says, “When those above use force to lead the people, the people respond with force. Thus do complications multiply, and the people become hard to rule.”
Paul says, “I hate complications. I can almost sympathize with rich folks who turn in their passports because US tax regulations for people who own property abroad are so complicated they just get tired of the hassle. Some foreign banks refuse to loan money to Americans because they don’t want the paperwork tangle either.”