Get a Job?!

In much of the "developed" world people define themselves and each other by their job. How many times have you met someone down the pub and they've asked you what you do, like your job is the perfect representation of your personality. The fact that most of us hate our jobs doesn't seem to matter.

Of course there are a number of people with careers that are important to them, a professional doctor for example should take pride in his (or her) career. I know that if i was actually earning a living from my music i would be proud to call myself a musician when asked that question. The fact that i don't earn money from my hobby for some reason seems to devalue it in terms of "what i do". Yet the reality is that musician is a better description of my personality than anything work based.

The concept of work is a major factor in our society, if someone doesn't work, and theres a lot of people that can't for one reason or another, their social status is automatically devalued. I put this down in part to jealousy as most people would rather not be doing their jobs, but a lot of the stigmas come down to that sense of worth that comes from being a part of the system. If you don't work, people assume you are some sort of layabout living on benefits paid for by the taxes of those that do work. Yet those that can't work due to physical or mental illness are often the people who actually want to contribute the most to society.

On the subject of this idea of "worth", i can't help but feel those people temping or working in factories for £6 an hour are selling themselves short. Can anyone really say that their lives are worth so little as to spend so much of their waking time doing something that they either hate or at the least have no personal attachment to. Factoring in the time involved for travelling and everything else directly associated to work the average persons life is pretty much dictated by their job. Even what little free time they have at the weekend is spent drinking and trying to achieve that feeling of release before the pressure of Monday morning.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of people end up having to sell themselves short for a low wage just to be able to pay their bills and feed their family. A life without work is not the most prosperous career, the system forces us to comply and conform here.

The real benefits are for those at the top of the social heirarchy, far more than the average person. You earn minimum wage working for some big corporation, your money gets taxed before you've even seen it, then you spend whats left on goods made by and sold by big corporations, all subject to further taxes, not to mention the interest you have to pay on your loans/credit cards and mortgages. Every single employee of a big company is nothing more than a cog in the corporate machine, moving money from one fat shareholder to the next one.

The only way to be even remotely free from this is to avoid the whole work thing altogether, get yourself some benefits (you've paid for them in taxes all these years) and go and do something worthwhile, learn about things you want to know (education is always valuable), do a bit of charity work or spend a bit of your free time doing something for the community. There are loads of voluntary organisations out there that always looking for help. There are people less fortunate than you who need help, it might not pay well but its rewarding in a different kind of way.

Money is not the most important thing in life, it will cause you more pain and suffering than it will help you. Next time someone asks you what you do for a living, ask them why it matters. Tell them what you do for fun instead. If you want to work for a living, train yourself, get a skill or a trade, find something that you want to do that pays. Ask yourself how much you think you are worth, don't settle for less.

I know that life ain't that easy, we all have to do things we don't want to do. If you really do have to work in a dead-end job, then so be it, but never stop believing that you can't improve your life. If, for whatever reason, you don't or can't work for the system, don't feel like you are any less of a person, whatever anyone says. Instead make the most of your time, because its a luxury most people can't afford.

A simple story...

Consider this situation:

You wake up in a strange town in a foreign country, you don't know how you got there or how to get out and you don't know why you are there, but nevertheless you are there and you are lost.

Out of the crowds of people (all of whom seem oblivious to your presence) a man walks up to you and tells you he knows the way you need to go. He talks passionately about this amazing place, full of beauty and perfection and says that you must follow him to find it. You ask him how he knows about this place, and he tells you he read about it and he knows deep inside of him that its there and this is the way.

So you start to think that this sounds like a good idea, you haven't got a clue where you are going and this guy seems pretty sure and confident about it.

Just as you are about to walk off with this guy, another man comes up to you and urges you to stop for a minute and think. He tells you that he has seen no evidence of this place you are heading, infact as far as he can be sure there is nothing there at all. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a map. He shows you the empty space where you are headed. He then points to the opposite direction and tells you that there is a quaint little guesthouse where you can eat and sleep, next to it there is a train station which will take you to the airport where you can fly back home.

The first man interjects, telling you that you must follow him, for his way is the only true way, and if you turn your back on him you will suffer for eternity. The second man tells you that he does not want you to make the wrong choice and gives you the map, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out several other maps which all show the same thing, he offers them to you along with a compass, a train timetable and a card with the name and number of the guesthouse on it. He asks you not to believe him because he claims to be correct but to study these items and choose for yourself which way you wish to go.

I'll cut this story off here, its fairly straightforward, what would you do next? The first man seems adamant of this perfect place he wants to take you but the second man has given you hard proof, not only of its non-existence but also showing you the way home.

This seems like a no-brainer to me. Yet, all over the world there are millions (if not billions) of people who reject proof and evidence in favour of blind faith in a mythological god. These people, when presented with the facts they need to further and better their own lives, choose to follow the first man no matter how long it takes, blindly obedient and never questioning, happy in the belief that they are heading the right way, the "true" way.

We all get lost sometimes, we all find ourselves wondering why we are here at some point in our lives. Religions offer answers without proof, science offers us evidence to make our own judgments. Our decisions and our lives should be based on facts not folklore. If you choose to follow the second man in this story, then think about your life and ask yourself whether you apply the same logic.

If you do follow a religion, ask yourself why, research the arguments for and against your faith, ask your friends what they think, ask people who don't share your belief, ask as many questions as you can and see what answers you find. Consider the facts and then ask yourself if religion is compatible with them.

In religion, blind faith may be a quality, but in the real world it pays to open your eyes.

Got it on Vinyl

As a long time music collector (and semi-retired DJ) theres something about the phrase "I've got it on vinyl" that seems to command respect. Unlike any format that has come since, the big slab of wax has a quality about it that still appeals like no other.

In this modern age of digital downloads, the concept of a record collection is practically non-existent, there is no great kudos to be earned from having an ipod full of good tunes, especially considering the ease of file-sharing and illegal downloads. Even legitimately sourced MP3s from iTunes or CDbaby lack the desirability of something you can hold, touch and look at. Legal downloads offer the listener no real advantage over illegal music, no fancy packaging, no pride of place on the shelf and none of that mystical warmth that something as basic and analog as vinyl offers.

Even CDs have a distinct advantage, sure they were (and still are) easily copied, arguably the sound quality of CDs, if played through a decent system, is superior to all other formats. But a good purchased CD comes with a nice booklet and once again sits on a shelf for all to see and admire.

Any physical format of any piece of music has an immediate advantage in that it has a finite quantity in existence, whether that be thousands or millions of copies of an album, or a limited edition picture disc or digipak, perhaps its a rare first pressing of a classic album, with a different mix or the wrong information on the packaging. All these things make a good record (and to a lesser extent) CD collection special. None of these things can be applied to digital downloads.

What would be the point of releasing a "limited edition" MP3? Its digital, it is easily replicated and has no manufacturing involved beyond that of the musical creation itself. A thousand copies of an MP3 do not exist untill it has been distributed (virtually of course) so there could be no justification in calling a digital product "limited edition". Besides which, when those thousand run out, it can almost certainly be found on PirateBay or somewhere similar. Likewise there can be no good reason to "delete" the back catalogue of an artist when it costs nothing to reproduce an album digitally and, similarly, that music would find its own illegal distribution network.

For DJs, downloading tunes from Beatport, or similar stores offers a simplicity and affordability that is great, software like Ableton Live has opened a whole world of possibilities for performance. Yet, there can be none of the coolness of having the latest tunes on white label where MP3s are concerned. Of course the flipside is that more music can be released without the limitations and costs of vinyl.

Nevertheless, owning any piece of music on vinyl continues to maintain its desirability. Even if that record is not the most convenient format for listening on. Sooner or later, CDs will dissappear from record shop shelves, especially as the quality of downloaded music will innevitably increase alongside connection speeds and storage capacities. Virtual music collections are rapidly becoming the norm, but for the genuine music collector, vinyl will continue to be held with some esteem. Limited edition 12" releases can still be sought after and treasured, and take pride of place, even with a hard drive full of tunes. Those with good record collections can still be proud to say "I've got it on vinyl".

A real blog now...

I been blogging on MySpace for a while now.

And i quite like it, seems to be a good way to get my thoughts out and a fair few people seem to like reading it, so the next logical step is to get a proper blog going on here. Ain't really got a lot to say today except if you've stumbled across this place come n check out my music over at my MySpace.

I shall start to import my existing blog over here soon and then look after them both.

Enjoy

What is karma?

Throughout my life i have met a lot of people who have proudly claimed their "belief" in karma, a philosophy that if you do good things, then good things will happen to you. In one sense this obviously good, sharing mentality could be in itself viewed as selfish, that the only motivation for "giving" is the reward, albeit indirectly, handed back by karma. This in many respects fits with human natures own tendency, as even the most altruistic of actions can be seen as being "selfish" if you consider the overall feeling of well-being as something of a reward.

It would be very cynical of me, however, to judge the generous acts of obviously nice people in such a way as selfish. For what its worth, followers of the karma principle are generally good people.

But what of the belief in some sort of mystical force that exists around us in the form of so-called karma? There can be no doubt that in our society shit things happen to good people, while good things happen to shit people. Its just the way of the world. Karma has been a bit of a twat to me over the years, and there are plenty of people far less fortunate than myself.

This isn't to say that the fundamental principle of karma should be ignored, after all there is a kind of truth in it. If i do good things to those around me, then hopefully i will find myself around other good people who will share the same ideal and in turn help me out when i need it. Likewise its always nice to know that a "favour" may one day be returned in some form of kindness.

Similarly, if my own actions can inspire someone else to follow this ideal then sure enough altruism in society will increase. If me giving you back that £5 note that just fell out of your pocket inspires you to do the same thing when you see someone else drop some money then that is in itself karma taking shape. Should this continue forever then eventually that karma spirit will eventually come back around.

Of course the reality is very different, i have found and returned several mobile phones but whenever i've lost one it has never come back to me. Not that i would change my actions, returning someone's phone is not something i do for reward but simply because i consider it the right thing to do.

Ultimately though, i see no sense to "believe" in karma, even though i follow the principles of it. It comes with atheism, not just a disbelief in God but indeed any sort of superstition. The fact is that we are all just people living our own lives and there is no unseen force deciding our fate. Adopting a policy of following karma will not in itself bring us good fortune, but living a good life can be of benefit to us and those around us. Selfish acts will continue to be rewarded in shallow materialistic ways but selfless acts will reward us in ways that can not be so easily defined.

There is no need to imagine any sort of mystical force in order to justify or explain our actions, especially when those actions are inherently good. We dont need to believe in karma to be nice to each other, we can just do it because its right.

US Election - time for change?

Politically speaking, today is arguably the most important day of the year, and i suspect will go down as one of the most important days in American history.

As a British citizen, i have no say in this of course, but that does not mean that Britain, or for that matter the rest of the world, is going to be unaffected by the outcome of today. It seems pretty certain that Obama is going to be the next US president, and i sincerely hope that he will be one of the good ones.

How much of an influence the president actually has on America or the world is debatable, the last 8 years have shown that an idiot can stand up in front of the world and claim to have ultimate control over the worlds greatest superpower. Somehow, i doubt that is the case (although i suspect that Bush Snr is far more influential). Whatever happens behind the scenes, there is no doubt in my mind, or anyone else's that i know, that Obama would be a huge improvement over either Bush.

Just a short post from me today, nothing too heavy. For now I'm keeping my fingers crossed that today is the start of a new era of American politics, an era of change and hope for the future.