Sunday, May 25, 2008

Proxy

Do we live proxy lives? Well, think about what you do and what you get. Do you do something that will immediately or directly get you what you need or want?

I've never really thought about this, but I say we do live disconnected lives. If you're working, you go to work to make money. The immediate result of working is receiving money. This money then is used to get you things like food or fun. In a life that is not a proxy life, one would do something where the act of doing is the goal or its immediate outcome is the goal. Proteanview compared it to tribes who go hunt or gather to get the food that they need. Or if you wanted to have fun, you would actually do the act of having fun like dancing.

I would say that the proxy life is what allows us to have complex and sometimes fulfilling lives if conducted correctly. But this is also a broad generalization. Maybe there are people who like working for a company and actually work for the goal of helping that company. Maybe some people don't pay for their fun. Maybe some people do gather their food at the end of they day.

For those who live the proxy life, the use of money and trade has allowed us to get material wealth and satisfaction. I like my video games, and for the most part, I worked to get money to get them.

Of course, there's always more to life than this proxy and daily grind. I think those who do the proxy thing really well, make loads of money so they can do loads of things. In those cases, the proxy life works.

For me, if money didn't matter, if I felt invincible, if I didn't need to worry about the future, I think I could enjoy myself more.

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