Peter

In a tradition as old as time, a subset of society has said fuck it and journeyed off into the horizon. Repulsed by society or just drawn to the allure of the unknown, they went forth.

They crossed vast deserts and endless oceans to find out what was out there. To the rest of society, this urge to explore was incomprehensible. Like other vices, this desire was reckless, wasteful, and irrational. Exploration doesn't resonate with the average person. Why depart the comfortable confines of civilization? What could possibly be out there?

If we look back, the right answer has always been to keep pushing boundaries. The crucial aspect is, in the moment, it's not obvious which bournadies are the right ones to push. Hindsight tells us pushing forward is the only correct move, as our predecessors discovered multitudes more than possibly fathomed. Whole continents. Microorganisms. Other planets. The movement of the solar system.

They kept going into the unknown, irrespective of what everyone else thought. And for all their efforts, pushing against immovable objects, some of them inched human progress forward. And that is all we can aspire to do. To contribute our small part to the collective sum of human achievement.

American society has lost its way. Where is the desire to be great, physically, mentally spiritually?

Society has gotten better at repressing explorative instincts, funneling inquisitive young people into mind-dulling academic and corporate institutions. We emphasize finding answers to known questions rather than embracing the process of discovering the unknown. Come to this classroom in order to "learn". Sit at this desk and "do" this job. Consume the spoonfed knowledge, regurituate the anointed takes.

Fit in. Keep your head down, work hard, get money, buy things. Feed your ego. Go on vacations, post about it. Feel good. Run fatser on the hedonistic treadmill.

Be the cog in the machine. And hey, we'll give you a good life.

Trading progress for pleasure.

Layer in digital distractions, a culture vacuum that idolizes vanity metrics and virtue signaling and the result is not pretty. There is a deficit of action, the doing.

They say my generation was born too late to explore the Earth, and too early to explore the universe. However, we are privileged to inhabit a new era, where exploration lives on in the form of progress; the advancement and refinement of humanity. Mental exploration is paradoxical . It can be done from your parents basement, yet the consequences, while not as physically direct as scurvy or dysentery, lead to your exclusion from polite (and profitable society).

The people pushing humanity forward are few and far between, almost like a rare sub-species of human that randomly has been deposited throughout the world. A Clark Kent-esque distribution of misunderstood aliens who don't quite fit in. Like the explorers of old, they are not content to live within the comfortable confines of society. They hold views shocking to the average person, and will accomplish feats mos think impossible.

These people are fascinating; they have a sparkle in their eye that says I have a vision for a better world and a swagger in their step that says "Fuck you if you try to stop me." They see the world differently and are doing something about about it.

The precious few real explorers must be protected from the repressive, judgemental, world we live in. I wish to find these fellow people, and explore alongside them.

make@peter.money