Most of us now live in consumer-led societies. A person is thought to have the freedom to do pretty much anything they like, providing it is both within the law and does not directly hurt others. This second proviso is actually rather tenuous. Firstly there is the fact that your legal habits may impact on someone else - if you smoke, there are secondary smokers - if you get drunk, your anti-social, inappropriate or immoral behaviour could affect someone else too - if you gamble, there will always be scores of losers for anyone who wins. Secondly, within capitalism, for you to have something, it is invariably at the expense of someone lower down the social scale within your own country; a displaced working class of slave labourers in a less wealthy nation; or the animals or environment that so often provide the resources for your indulgences.
But I'm not really here to talk politics - I'm here to talk about the illusion of free will within our consumer culture.
In my time I have been dependent, to varying degrees, on various substances and sensory pleasure-seeking behaviours. I have also watched others die from and / or cause great misery through their addictions. Right now I am watching two people die because they are unable to free themselves from their tobacco addictions. They are quite prepared to die rather than give up their "little pleasure." This is not the kind of decision that anyone who is thinking straight would make. Their addiction has robbed them of their free will.
There may be people reading this who are tempted to say "well who are you to lecture people on addictions when you've been dependent on various substances yourself? You must have an addictive personality. I don't - I could give up anything I like, whenever I like. I just don't want to."
But I'm not just talking about deep down chronic addiction here. I'm talking about being anywhere on what I call "The Dependency Scale". Most of us are on it somewhere.
The Dependency Scale
To "want" can quickly escalate to "need" which can quickly become "having a right to." That's the dependency scale. We convince ourselves that we have a right to expect our desires for pleasure to be satisfied.
Do we really have a right to expect anything? Isn't the truth that most of us actually take for granted what we have and constantly want more or possibly different things on top? And isn't it also true to say that whenever we put our own selfish desires, cravings, wants or perceived needs before the needs of others, we are, in truth, acting immorally? The grave problem in consumer culture is that DESIRE is enshrined as a RIGHT.
Maybe you could ask yourself a question right now. How often have you heard yourself say "oh - I couldn't do without my [insert as applicable]" ? You might be talking to a vegan and find yourself saying "ooh - I could never give up milk" (or cheese, or meat, or whatever). You might be talking to someone who has boycotted palm oil because of the effect that its production has on the habitat of the endangered orang outang, and you might say "I don't know how you manage without ever eating biscuits" (or cakes, or margarine or chocolate...) You might be talking with someone who has no tea or coffee because they are ethically opposed to cash crops, or to taking stimulants. You might be talking to a teetotaler and you might see your own drinking as very moderate, but really, if you wouldn't go out into a public place without drinking alcohol (or even if you only drink at Christmas, but don't think Christmas would be Christmas without a glass of wine,) then you are somewhere on the alcohol dependency scale.
Back to those people who have died as a direct result of their dependencies - three people I know immediately spring to mind who lost their lives to heroin and its substitutes. There have been others that died from alcohol related illnesses. I know three people who were murdered because they gave in to lust while under the influence of substances, slept with someone they shouldn't have, and were then killed by outraged or jealous parties - themselves acting under the desensitizing influence of drink and drugs. Substances they would "never have dreamt of having a night out" without indulging in.
Selling Yourself Short
The Hebrew word for addiction literally means "to sell yourself." and that is precisely what most people do at some time in their lives. In the process, the free will is surrendered, the conscience is silenced and the ability to act in a moral way is sacrificed.
Give something up today - not your conscience or free will, but something that threatens them. Examine your life for any little pleasure that you know "you couldn't do without." Heed that warning sign and give it up.
Eradicate your habits. Regain your free will.
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