In departure from our usual format, and pausing the discussion on schooling vs. education, in this episode I present a story that I refer to as the fable of Socrates and Monosizea. It is an extract from a much longer essay by the law and ethics professor John Hasnas. The full essay is called The myth of the rule of law.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
If you're a fan of this show, you're welcome to become a supporting listener by going to my website and clicking the donate button. This podcast is free, and I intend to keep it that way, but your contribution whether big or small helps immensely and is highly appreciated.
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify on Bandcamp and on Youtube.
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
This is the fourth instalment in the series on schooling vs. education. This time I focus on conformity. What is conformity? Is it simply in our nature to conform or is it a learnt trait? Do the schools really play a role in teaching us to conform? What are the dangers of conformity? And what could be the antidote?
This is not an exhaustive discussion on the topic of conformity, which is vast, but a conscious attempt to focus our attention on this topic within the context of the State and its hegemonic relationship with society.
I owe a debt of gratitude to the channel "Academy of ideas" for their inspiring content that influenced me greatly in the making of this episode.
I mention in this episode, among others, Frederick Taylor Gates (grandfather to Bill Gates). Frederick Taylor was a business advisor to John D. Rockefeller and in 1903 he founded the American General Education Board. Gates wrote:
“In our dreams, we have limitless resources and the people yield themselves with perfect docility to our moulding bands. The present education conventions fade from their minds, and unhampered by tradition, we work our own good will upon a grateful and responsive rural folk. We shall not try to make these people or any of their children into philosophers or men of learning, or men of science. We have not to raise up from among them authors, editors, poets or men of letters. We shall not search for embryo great artists, painters, musicians nor lawyers, doctors, preachers, politicians, statesmen, of whom we have an ample supply.
The task we set before ourselves is very simple as well as a very beautiful one, to train these people as we find them to a perfectly ideal life just where they are. So we will organize our children and teach them to do in a perfect way the things their fathers and mothers are doing in an imperfect way, in the homes, in the shops and on the farm.”
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
If you're a fan of this show, you're welcome to become a supporting listener by going to my website and clicking the donate button. This podcast is free, and I intend to keep it that way, but your contribution whether big or small helps immensely and is highly appreciated.
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify on Bandcamp and on Youtube
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
This is the third instalment in the series on schooling vs. education. Delving further into the lesson of obedience, considering how families and communities are so much embedded in a culture of submission, that the belief in obedience becomes a presupposition, a world view that is held under the level of awareness, and like any other unchecked and unaware belief, it taints the lens through which we view the world around us, and continues to manifest and become our reality.
Source reading:
Education - Free and Compulsory by Murray N. Rothbard
Compulsory Miseducation by Paul Goodman
Drawing the Line Once Again by Paul Goodman
Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto
The Chained Elephant by Jorge Bucai
This episode is the second instalment of the series on Schooling vs. Education. In this episode I begin to explore the unspoken or implicit lessons of school: Obedience, conformity, apathy, class position, intellectual dependency and provisional self esteem, drawing from my personal experience and substantiated by the works of John Taylor Gatoo, I focus mainly on the first lesson - obedience.
Source reading:
Education - Free and Compulsory by Murray N. Rothbard
Compulsory Miseducation by Paul Goodman
Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto
Republic by Plato
Academy of ideas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyWFpsAnVuI&t=418s
The school sucks podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4WrRuddFFzXMfEK96aQgKU?si=e0baef9c6fbd47c5
In this episode I explore the implicit beliefs that must be held in order to advocate for compulsory schooling, how those become the field, the ground on which schooling takes place. I further explore the goals of a state compulsory school system and hope to show how real learning is self directed while state compulsory schooling is antithetical to learning and growth.
Source reading:
Anxiety by Fritz Riemann
The Drama of Being a Child by Alice Miller
Education - Free and Compulsory by Murray N. Rothbard
Compulsory Miseducation by Paul Goodman
Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto
Freedom's Progress? by Gerard Casey
Having delved into the philosophy of Gestalt for the past few episodes, in this episode I chose to share something about my own personal story, in particular about my army days. I aim to integrate many of the things that I have discussed in the Gestalt series (episodes 11-22) in this episode and see how they apply in my own personal story.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
In this final episode in our Gestalt series we take a close look at one of the central notions of Gestalt philosophy - creative indifference, exploring its relevance to the curious case of freedom.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
When the body says no by Gabor Máté
Creative process in Gestalt therapy by Joseph Zinker
Tao te Ching by Lao-tzu
I and thou by Martin Buber
Schöpferische Indifferenz by Salomon Friedländer
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
In this episode continuing our gestalt series, we take a closer look at two contact interruptions, or rather contact moderations: Confluence and deflection. Both have to do with the permeability of our boundaries, both are forms of creative adjustments, and as such are vital to our being-in-the-world, and both, when they become fixed and rigid forms of behaviour stand in our way of living freely in the here and now.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
When the body says no by Gabor Máté
Gestalt and process by Peter Dreitzel
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
In this episode we continue our gestalt series, and delve further into the world of polarities, observing how we fracture ourselves into a mind and a body. The body then takes the role of the disowned self. Since freedom starts with the individual, I believe that healing the fractured self is a vital step that can help us pave the way to a free society.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Creative Process in Gestalt Therapy by Joseph Zinker
Body Process by James I. Kepner
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, using the Gestalt lens to look at the development of the individual and society and the relationship between the two. Today we focus on polarities: the yin and yang of our existence. Enjoy
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Creative Process in Gestalt Therapy by Joseph Zinker
Body Process by James I. Kepner
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, using the Gestalt lens to look at the development of the individual and society and the relationship between the two. Today we focus on polarities: the yin and yang of our existence. Enjoy
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Creative Process in Gestalt Therapy by Joseph Zinker
Body Process by James I. Kepner
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Simon MacHale and Daniel Shafrir for their help and support in creating this content.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, using the Gestalt lens to look at the development of the individual and society and the relationship between the two. Today we focus on Retroflection: the psychological mechanism which I use to divert the energy that I wish to direct towards to the environment back onto myself.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
Owning your own shadow by Robert A. Johnson
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, using the Gestalt lens to look at the development of the individual and society and the relationship between the two. Today we continue focusing on Introjection as a contact interruption, how are introjects formed, and how they contribute to the preservation of the status quo.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, today we focus on Introjection as a contact interruption, how are introjects formed, and how they contribute to the preservation of the status quo.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir and Simon MacHale for their help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
We continue in our series on Gestalt therapy, viewing the self through the lens of the the philosophy of Gestalt, and exploring how we can extrapolate from that understanding of self as a creative dynamic process to society at large.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir and Simon MacHale for their help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
We continue in our series about Gestalt therapy, exploring the origins and formation of neuroses.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
In this episode we explore the concept of polarities, in particular health and illness as well as security and exploration with an attempt to reconcile between seemingly opposing human needs.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
This is part one of an introduction to Gestalt therapy, I am not sure yet how many episodes I will devote explicitly to the theory behind gestalt, but as it is an important part of my life, we will surely revisit it many times. As I am training in Gestalt therapy at the moment, this is a great opportunity for me to try and consolidate what I have learnt by presenting it here.
Sources reading:
Gestalt therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Fritz Perls, Paul Goodman and Ralph Hefferline.
Grass unter meinen Füssen by Bruno-Paul de Rock.
Gestalt and Process, clinical diagnosis in gestalt therapy, a field guide by Hans Peter Dreitzel.
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
In this episode we explore the similarities as well as the differences between the family unit and the State, drawing from child development research, and Gestalt therapy
Source reading:
The Drama of Being a Child by Alice Miller: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Drama-Being-Child-Search-True/dp/1860491014
Gestalt Therapy, excitement and growth in the human personality by Frederick Perls, Ralph. F Hefferline and Paul Goodman: https://www.amazon.com/Gestalt-Therapy-Excitement-Growth-Personality/dp/0939266245
Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743487486/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vamf_tkin_p1_i0
How to talk so kids will listen and listen so kids will talk: https://www.orellfuessli.ch/shop/home/artikeldetails/A1040990291?ProvID=10917736&gclid=CjwKCAjw14uVBhBEEiwAaufYx01bTAC-skyTuXk0B5iyQh-cueRjzJBV0lKjkN9siZFNdhG6x2orsRoCzD8QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ
A big thank you to Daniel Shafrir for his help and support in creating this content, for this episode and for all other episodes.
In this episode we explore what sets the State apart from other institutions in society.
Source reading:
Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard: https://mises.org/library/anatomy-state
If you would like to contact me directly, please write me an email to thecuriouscaseoffreedom@gmail.com
Presentation and production - Orí Harmelin
Bumper music - The tallest of Orders by Simon MacHale
Check out Simon's music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/71OkM6qFs6Xmc1hlOjXgIl?si=bFReoX_LSKS5EHXo4AJPlg
On Bandcamp: https://simonmachale.bandcamp.com
And on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi-A_N20DbM-GIdw50THPQ