July 4th: Jack Nicholson On Freedom

Yes, it's that time again.
I am a creature of habit, and regular readers of Dojo Rat will know that this short video from "Easy Rider" is my favorite statement for "Independence Day."

I have had reason lately to reflect on the aspect known as Freedom. I never quite fit with the "in crowd" when I was a kid. I avoided team sports in favor of individual sports like wrestling and gymnastics. I opted for wilderness survival and mountain climbing training. I never had the perfect girl or perfect car in high school. Instead, I had old hot rods that always had to be worked on, and relationships that matched. And through that process of growing up, I found out what independence was. I lived in the woods. When my friends were getting married and having kids, I was getting my Black Belt.
I have seen friends, and yes, family members slip into comfortable consumerism. They have sold their soul to have that perfect car and trophy wife. They put the monkey suit on and shave every morning and drive through miles of stalled traffic to work at a shit job. They are marketing a version of the American dream that they barely believe in themselves. They have mid-life crises. They have broken marriages.
I'm the luckiest guy in the world. My wife loves me. I still live in the woods, but I have better tools to accommodate that now.
I have never been on an airplane in my life. Might have to someday I guess, but why break a perfect record now.
Every day I get up and decide what I want to do. I take the time to do Tai Chi or other martial arts before I go to work. I only work for people that pay well and respect me. My truck is ten years-old but runs great. I've managed farms and had lots of dogs over the years.
And now, through this technology, I have met people from all over the world. We are all connected, in part because of our love of martial arts. While we are all eclectic individuals, we are social animals and share our lives and ideas.
"The strength of the Pack is the Wolf, but the strength of the Wolf is the Pack"

Celebrate your Freedom.

July 4: Jack Nicholson On Individual Freedom

Well, it looks like this clip is going to become a regular 4th of July feature here on Dojo Rat.
From the movie "Easy Rider", Jack Nicholson, Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda posit on the qualities of individual freedom and the free individual.
This clip is for the younger Ratlets out there, if you haven't seen "Easy Rider", you should rent it.
Believe me, I've lived this clip, in various incarnations...

Jack Nicholson On Freedom

From "Easy Rider"

Here, from the movie "Easy Rider", is Jack Nicholson juxtaposing the concepts of "Individual Freedom" and "Free Individuals". It's a timely thought for this July Fourth, and rings as true today as it did in 1969.
It has occured to me recently that there is somewhat of a life-experiance gap between some of us older Dojo Rats and the younger, aspiring Ratlets that may be reading. There's just a lot of crap that we have lived through that is taken for granted now. I'm talking about the tragic assassinations of the Kennedy's and Martin Luther King, the National guard shooting kids at Kent State, Watergate, Iran-Contra, and of course Vietnam.
On the other hand, the '60's were also a time of great hope and promise. There was the civil rights movement, the beginning of environmental awareness, Women's rights and the birth control pill. We saw men walk on the moon. It was definately a decade when people broke out of "the hive mentality", a huge consciousness-raising experiment that changed the face of our great Nation for the better.
I feel our country is now at another "tipping point". Our back is at the wall of endless resource war and near financial ruin.
Yet we are facing a glimmer of hope, change and great things to come. Sure; it will take a generation to get our country back on track, but there is an undeniable wave of excitement and expectation for change.
Let's get this party started...