FREE FRIENDS -- ABANDONED TO OURSELVES is an open Forum for Naturalists, Humanists, and Individualists to understand themselves better and argue more convincingly through free intercourse with Supernaturalists, Utopians, and Collectivists (whether still hidden in themselves or out in the open in others).

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The Forum is facilitated by Martin Huehne in Thailand and Jack Carney in New Zealand who both practice and advocate the three core philosophical ideas-values-methods of Naturalism, Humanism, and Individualism. Our chosen topics and guided discussions will be predicated on these three radical perspectives of the Human Condition that we consider best enable us to get and remain Responsibly Free.

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We invite all perspectives for an irreverent and passionate, yet reasonable and mannerly, exchange of ideas-beliefs. We agree with Montaigne: “It is good to rub and polish our brain against that of others.” We encourage constructive debates and mutual learning.

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Each weekly forum will be a combination of initiating posts by Jack and Martin on the central ideas-themes to be discussed and may include uploaded relevant books, articles, pictures and videos. The posts will be followed by two Zoom meetings to discuss the weekly ideas-themes live on video that will be recorded. No membership will be required and you will be invited to create your own posts attaching videos, pictures, etc., as well as commenting on others' posts. We hope you will participate to discover how Responsibly Free your Mind actually is.

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New ideas-themes will be posted weekly on Wednesdays ahead of the Zoom meetings on Saturdays and Sundays, so the attendees will be able to asynchronously publish their initial posts, comment on other posts and respond to comments before the scheduled live Zooms (Note: all days/times for New Zealand).

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The opening of our Free Friends Forum for posting asynchronous comments will be on Wednesday March 6, 2024.

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The first set of our weekly Zoom meetings will be on 9 pm Saturday March 9 and 9am Sunday March 10, 2024 (New Zealand time).

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--Asynchronous Posts Wednesdays
--Zoom Saturdays 9PM New Zealand time (for example, this will be Saturdays Australia 7-6PM; China 4PM; Thailand 3PM; Kenya 11AM; Nigeria/France/Spain/Germany 9AM)
--Zoom Sundays 9AM New Zealand time (for example, this will be Saturdays California 12noon; Florida 3PM; Chile 5pm; Nigeria/France/Spain/Germany 9PM)

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PERSONAL WORLD CLOCK   tinyurl.com/bdef97z7 

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USE THE BELOW ZOOM FOR EVERY MEETING
Jack Carney is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Join Zoom Meeting
us06web.zoom.us/j/8245320024
Meeting ID: 824 532 0024
Passcode: 772388
 

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ABOUT YOUR FORUM FACILITATORS

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Martin’s Epicurean Pleasure Philosophy

Martin has chosen pleasure as the goal of his life, and aims at pleasure by choosing carefully which desires to fulfil; he willingly accepts temporary pain if it is a side effect of actions (e.g. hard study, hard work, delay of enjoyments) to maximize future pleasure which is worth the endured pain or to minimize future pain. He upholds the No-Harm Principle and trusts his reasoning capability and his intuition toward love, friendship, compassion and justice to avoid counterproductive egoism. These items of his philosophy of life are identical with corresponding items of Epicurus' philosophy when it is interpreted consistently by resolving apparent contradictions between different quotes of the extant texts instead of being misrepresented as primitive hedonism or ascetic hedonism depending on which subsets of quotes are neglected or misinterpreted as absolute statements. Becoming or being his own authority is a derivative virtue, subordinate to the chief virtue prudence and to sustainable maximum pleasure as the goal.

 

Jack’s Voluntaryist Responsibly Free Philosophy

We are free to the degree: we take the responsibility to be; allow others to be; and trust ourselves to be. We are born into an evolutionary default setting of Obedience to the Gods of the Family-Clan. This is what the Great Reset must be: to grow up to become our own sole Authority based on Reason and Care for ourselves and others, Aka, Love. Everything, starting with yourself, must be Voluntary. Gently shake yourself awake from the Nightmare of Violent History brought on by Child Abuse-Neglect--learn the Lesson of Loss which is Reciprocal Care. Create and freely trade your unique worth and value. Stop trying to control others and start controlling yourself. Take the reparative NAP (Non-Aggression Principle) for peaceful restoration. From the Love of Wisdom and Liberty come to the Wisdom and Liberty of Love. 

“Voluntaryism is the doctrine that relations among people should be by mutual consent, or not at all. Voluntaryists seek to delegitimize the State through education, and we advocate withdrawal of the cooperation and tacit consent on which State power ultimately depends.” www.Voluntaryist.com

“The symbol of all relationships among men who neither make sacrifices nor accept them is the trader. He does not treat men as masters or slaves, but as independent equals. He deals with men by means of a free, voluntary, unforced, uncoerced exchange—an exchange which benefits both parties by their own independent judgment.” Ayn Rand

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“Define your terms, you will permit me again to say, or we shall never understand one another.” Voltaire

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HUMANISM
“Humanism: a doctrine, attitude, or way of life centered on human interests or values; especially: a philosophy that usually rejects supernaturalism and stresses an individual's dignity and worth and capacity for self-realization through reason". Merriam Webster Dictionary
“…a commitment to the perspective, interests and centrality of human persons; a belief in reason and autonomy as foundational aspects of human existence; a belief that reason, scepticism and the scientific method are the only appropriate instruments for discovering truth and structuring the human community; a belief that the foundations for ethics and society are to be found in autonomy and moral equality.”                          Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy

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NATURALISM
“Naturalism: a theory denying that an event or object has a supernatural significance; specifically: the doctrine that scientific laws are adequate to account for all phenomena.”  Merriam Webster Dictionary
“In philosophy, naturalism is the idea that only natural laws and forces (as opposed to supernatural ones) operate in the universe.” Wikipedia
“Naturalism is the belief that nothing exists beyond the natural world. Instead of using supernatural or spiritual explanations, naturalism focuses on explanations that come from the laws of nature.” Vocabulary.com

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INDIVIDUALISM
“Individualism: a doctrine that the interests of the individual are or ought to be ethically paramount; conduct guided by such a doctrine; the conception that all values, rights, and duties originate in individuals; a theory maintaining the political and economic independence of the individual and stressing individual initiative, action, and interest.”      Merriam Webster Dictionary
“Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and advocating that the interests of the individual should gain precedence over the state or a social group, while opposing external interference upon one's own interests by society or institutions such as the government. Individualism makes the individual its focus, and so starts ‘with the fundamental premise that the human individual is of primary importance in the struggle for liberation’." Wikipedia