Laws?

"The more prohibitions and rules,/ The poorer people become./ The sharper the people's weapons,/ The more they riot... The more elaborate the laws,/ The more they commit crimes. (p. 57 Tao Te Ching)


The quote shows how it is human nature for some to rebel against those that put laws into place. It is human nature to have feelings of being completely free and being your own person. However, the fact that we are not free and essentially just play the role of individuals in a society. Laws are put into effect to try and "protect society" but are also meant to be broken by the outcasts of society.

Rebellion

People are hungry./ When rulers tax grain/ People are hungry./ People are rebellious. (p. 75 Tao).
Lao- Tzu describes the state how people react to the actions of the government. He describes how it is better when the government limits its power instead of creating laws and other regulations that impact the lives of individuals. However, when individuals personal lives are put into jeopardy, they can cause an uprising against their own ruling leaders.

Boundaries

"Neighboring countries are so close/ You can hear their chickens and dogs./ But people grow old and die/ Without needing to come and go. (p. 80 Tao Te Ching).

The quotation shows the instinct of individuals and the idea that they do not feel the need broaden their minds. They do not feel the need to advance their country based on the thought that their ways of thinking.

re: Mockingbird

In my last paper I examined how civilizations can be created and altered. In Rives Mockingbird skit he tells his master plan how he thinks that that through his intervention of releasing these birds into the environment that they would change civilizations. The diversity that would be present after the sounds of the different mockingbirds converge on one another. Rives believes diversity makes civilizations flourish.

Gorgeous

the gorgeous skit was very interesting to me because it seems like he is having a stream of conscienceness in a sense he goes from thought to thought, which brings him to the conclusion that all his thoughts about being gorgeous are true.
It was very entertaining and unbelievable seeing the transformation occur in the short time of the video.

mockingbird

Rives Mokingbird skit, shows his ideas of his master plan of releasing birds to bring together communities of all sorts. His plan reminded me of some of one of the internets main purposes. The bringing of people together in different ways seem to be only a fairy tale in reality. With the clash of classes and interests it is only possible to come together in an artificial matter, instead of in real life.

The te and god

P. 49 Poem


The poem states that ordinary people have qualities that resemble that of the Te. The poem reminded me of Christians say that we as people are created in the image of God. Even though people are not perfect they seem to have some qualities that are genuine, which overtake the other qualities,