DerykStauder

Pushing All He Owns     CC Jean Stmmell 2017 in SF Our Freedom Only Extends as Far as Our Possessions Reach Edward Burmila recently wrote an insightful piece in the Nation linking economic status with how free we are: People are only as free as they can afford to be. � For Americans, lacking guaranteed access to basic necessities like housing, food, health care��this is a constant dilemma.� ?1 As a result of stagnant wages coupled with the ever-rising cost of living, working folks are often stuck in stultifying jobs they hate, in order to keep health insurance coverage for their family. Many struggle on a precarious treadmill, living one step from disaster, lacking the savings to pay for even a $400 car repair: if you lose your job, you lose everything. Under these circumstances, it�s not surprising that some Americans cling to the only shard of individualism they have left, even if it is pointless and performative.  Burmila says it is these workers, the ones with di...

I photographed this petroglyph in a remote canyon on a private ranch near Abiquiu, NM. It was carved over 1000 years ago by the Anasazi, a Navajo word for �the ancient ones.    �The Spiral is known as an ancient symbol of evolution. One of the oldest symbols of human spirituality in existence, the spiral has been found carved into cave dwellings, rocks and tombs all over the world. It is said to symbolize the evolution of  the universe, the never-ending cycles of growth, change and eternal life as well as the cycles of the seasons.� As Americans, we view time as a one-way street where things are always getting better: We call this progress. But philosophers and sociologists see things differently, viewing our idea of progress as culture-bound, specific only to the modern western world.  It turns out our belief in endless progress grew out of the Enlightenment, a reaction against the medieval belief that God�s will determines our destiny. Over time, the notion of prog...