you know I hate to say it, but when I still lived in the mountains....like most New Hampshirites, even I didn't like people from out of state, not even where I spent some time growing up in Mass. Overtime I came to understand both sides, why mellow northerners are perturbed by what they perceive as very coy, intense people, often in a huge rush and not even realizing it, to the point where it disturbs others....and also that society in each place has it's own way that fits for that place and speed of life. I recognize the differences which are relative, suitable and appropriate. Certainly i don't expect someone from Freedom NH to gel in downtown NY, or vice versa. That doesnt mean I subscribe to one of them as being healthy though.
That aside as a disclaimer. It really is true that there is a HUGE amount of prejudice against out of staters, and it's very hard for me to ignore the idea, that old-yank attitudes are playing a role in punishing this guy as a statement to others; a statement that says: "you cant come to our state and act like a damned stupid flat-lander however you please." Even though I do agree he was very foolhardy, I think that 9300 dollars is an over-inflated infringement on his liberties that potentially threatens his welfare and subsistence. The "witch-hunt" tape is one that societies all too often play again and again despite eons of growth. Even here in this forum, heated opinions lead to some very extreme statements and righteous indignation about civil liberties, perhaps some which is paranoid and brash.
Sadly, hiking is so important to me that I could see myself struggling with denial at age someday and striking out with canes........but probably on the walk to Zealand falls or picture pond, not Green leaf!!!!!!!
But this witch-hunt thing is important. Its a component of society which unlike animals we as humans have the capacity to grow beyond. I once said in a secular document addressing the astronomical rise of atheism, "There is much skepticism and aversion in the west today with regard to organized religion. However, it does not do us any good to react with the same extremes which were responsible for our skepticism to begin with."
The human condition, especially western, and especially U.S. society is very unforgiving. Living in that unforgiving society causes great insecurity and often causes us to feel like we need to take up with one camp or the other. Usually feelings of anger cause aversion and drive people away from each other and objects, while enjoyments draw people toward one another and objects, so much that sometimes we collide or get entangled and then feel averse again. In feeling and being averse, we become alienated and run over-zealously back to a collision. Our nation, just like any other, constantly gets caught up in the embarrassing energy sink of public blame games and crucifixions, while collaborative efforts remain neglected. In doing so, and by taking up rigid positions on either side, we end up at outposts with limited networks and supplies. We participate in the big insidious cycles of life bouncing between liking and hating.
But what if we were to ask the question: was this man hiking smoothly up until only several years before??? was he saying to himself that very day," damn, I just can't do this anymore." ???? becasue we cannot account for his disposition or establish true negligence with any real fortitude, then what is applicable??? I'll tell you what. The court cannot function as a social institution. That failure happens again and again in America, and I cite the example of a dentist in North Conway who caught his wife cheating with private investigators but could not provide photo proof in court. He paid so severely in child support and alimony that he moved in with his mother, ate poorly and drove an ancient Jetta with ultra high miles on it. Courts cannot function as social institutions, nor government.
Because we fail to have social institutions, we need what in interim???........rules. Each state needs to have non rigid rules that act as guidelines for safe, responsible hiking, and they need to be public notice via all media channels and paper mediums.....so that EVERYONE has recourse. However, as a very arrogant and what I consider an immature society that shuns public institutions, we need a safety net. That safety net is a common ground. That common ground is universal ethics. There is values that everyone recognizes and agrees with. The right not be hit or sworn at. To be treated with decency. If as a society we identify and build on these universal agreements, it gives us a fertile soil to face these controversial topics when they arise. Some would say we already have such a bill of rights, but the bill of rights does not account for the endless science that reveals clearly how enmity engenders illogical outcomes, or that compassion reduces stress hormones and improves cognitive ability and critical thinking skills, Yet all of us do not wanted to be treated without compassion.
Although we as a society are not ready for it yet, there needs to be these values, and why?? .....because they are salutary.... ineluctably salutary. Positive values and accords engender positive outcomes. Without that climate to protect many of us from the ramifications of our or others inability to use freedom in a healthy way, then when these conflicts arise we react with extremism and take up highly disparate positions. Our dug in opinions stun us into ineffectiveness, while issues persist. It is not to say that we cannot make mistakes, but with these values mistakes have an almost inherently positive,construcitve forum to be received in. And becasue we have not these ethics to protect us, we have no leg to stand on for difficult issues, such that political incorrectness hangs the halls of society like landmines. We all want freedom but we just can't seem to accept yet that in a world where people on different continents are connected by computers, and we lack physical space and solitude even in wilderness, we have an overwhelming need to embrace the tractability of loving kindness and brotherly aid. No longer can the aspirations of all be met without obligation to each-other. Can we not have both tolerance and accountability??? are we such fools?? why is it so difficult?? because of un-salutary values and emotions which we deem acceptable, and at the very least we simply neglect to point out the reward of positive ethics. There is a painfully easy grace of equanimity, but it requires that we as a society agree that satisfactory life among one another........is all about taking enough personal responsibility to be nice.
