Obligations, Rights & FUability
In the modern concept of rights
developed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, v formulated as "life, liberty and
property" (highjacked – jds into) or
"life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," rights
transcend civil society, which then translates them into constitutional, civil,
criminal, and property rights. In contrast, the traditional Jewish view on
rights is derived from the biblical sense of the obligation of all humans
to God as their creator, sovereign, and covenant partner.
Daniel Elazar
One of the so called power phrases that
would resonate with my fee only personal financial planning first generation
entrepreneurial closed held corporation clients when I was in practice was
‘becoming independent of their independent business.’
Why?
At first glance, it would not be
surprising that 80%+ of their net worth was tied up in the business – so to
have ‘enough’ required a conversion of this asset and the income from it – to
passive investments to have enough and minimize the dependence of their
corporation.
Now digging deeper below the surface,
the quest to be independent of their independent business sequentially was in
excavating
To not be dependent
To not be a burden
For dignity &
avoidance of humiliation
To not be obliged
To not be under any one’s thumb
To not take shit
To have FUability
But this sequence wasn’t particular at
all to the first generation closed held corporation entrepreneur.
Initially, when prioritizing personal
financial planning objectives, it is not unusual for the goal of income
replacement upon disability is ranked toward the bottom relative to the other
goals of retirement, financial independence, education for the kids, income
replacement for the spouse upon the client’s passing etc etc etc.
However, when ranking – what is the
payoff or what is avoided by achieving each of these goals – and reranking
based not to the nake of the goal – but what is the payoff (gain) or avoidance,
income replacement upon disability – unless the payoff or avoidance can be self
insured with liquid assets – moves up close to the top. (Same holds true for
capital depletion due to long term care costs for older clients).
Why?
To not be dependent
To not be a burden
For dignity &
avoidance of humiliation
To not be obliged
To not be under any one’s thumb
To not take shit
To have FUability
Howdy Doody Do’s & Howdy Doody
Don’ts
Howdy’s Do’s (Shoulds) and Don’ts
(Should Nots) for kids
The Howdy Doody Show in the ‘50s (*)
We don’t wish to owe – to be owing – to
be obliged. And yet, Judaically, we secure our rights by fulfilling our
obligations. Furthermore, given man isn’t self sufficient but requires other
people, reciprocity requires mutual fulfillment of obligations to each other.
Being responsible is fulfilling our obligations – by agreement in action or
stored energy (currency of past actions).
To believers in G-d, we are given
inalienable rights. Still these rights are maintained – fortified by our
performing individually and as a country our obligatory responsibilities.
Responsible dispatching of our obligations – what we owe – what we are obliged
to – in reciprocation gains and maintains rights.
And yet, it seems – the demanding for
rights, new rights is based not on obligations in reciprocation being fulfilled
but on the basis of entitlement – asserting being offended & victimized
with an ever increasing shrillness & violence.
It’s coming to you?
When did you become the center of the
universe, Mister?
My father, Ellis Schwartz to this
writer age 9 over a cold hot dog
at Howard Johnson’s
Give me, buy me, take me, I deserve it
– I demand it –it’s coming to me’ – it’s my right – even ‘you didn’t build it’
is the manifestation of rationalization of theft – taking without payment –
avoidance of the responsibility of fulfilling obligations being obliged in the
name of ‘rights.’
The wrongs of rights.
Obligation – being obliged – without
reciprocation and or meaning – means ‘having to take it.’ Obligation as a means
to meaning – sheds the imposed feeling – humiliation of being forced,
compelled, coerced. Obligation in the line of meaning becomes in the call of
duty.
When religion is all obligation and
sans personal meaning – when the cup is more important than the coffee – 45%
become religion resisters who ‘are not obliged – and ‘rightfully’ so.
When you change the way you look at
things,
the things you look at change
Max Plank
Obligation is the call of
Meaning
Aligning – realigning one’s means with
meaning expresses/conveys the sense of grateful obligation.
Howdy Doody ‘Duty’
(*)
Howdy Doody was the first nationally televised American children's TV program
and a prototype for what followed. Buffalo Bob Smith hosts while the puppet,
Howdy Doody, starred.
