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Selling Out to the (Camping) Establishment

What can you say about a camper who sells out to the Establishment, by flushing his principles and ideals down the toilet -- and a vault toilet at that!  Yes, reader, the unthinkable has happened: this old boy has become a campground host. I feel compelled to justify aberrant behavior of this type. 

If there is a better way to finish off a life than achieving Moral Perfection, go ahead and tell me what it is. Good ol' Ben (Franklin) would not have approved of this project if it were just a sterile sentimentalism. In order for Moral Perfection to be real and solid, there must be some way of objectifying and validating it.  Otherwise, a person would just fool themselves with feelings that bounce around in the echo chamber of their own skull.

One way of validating this project is to look at the effect we have on other people. That is why solitary camping needs to be abandoned.

In the tab at the top of the screen, entitled "Summiting: Ideals and Suffering," there are many juicy quotes from William James, explaining that significance and meaning in life result from chasing an ideal through struggle or even Suffering. The same idea can be applied to chasing Moral Perfection.

If left to your own choices, Other People could possibly be a source of pleasure and support to you, rather than the Suffering we are after. There are few better ways to be guaranteed of Suffering than in dealing with the general public, and one of the lowest levels of the general public is the tourist.

The conclusion of this chain of reasoning is that the pursuit of Moral Perfection benefits by overcoming the Suffering imposed on us by the lowest of the low, the tourist.

Granted, if I really lived up to this, I would have chosen to be a campground host in a national park; or a big state park centered around a motorboat-lake, an hour's drive from a burgeoning metropolis; or a campground near a plexus of motorhead trails.

Instead I have bitten off the modest Suffering that should come from a 15-unit campground in a non-motorized area whose clientele consists of mountain bikers, climbers, and a few hikers. Ya' gotta start somewhere!

Comments

Ted said…
Good luck with that. May you have a much better experience than mine as a camp host. I guess it's like Quartzsite: every full-time RVer has to try it once. 😉
Are you sure that you aren't painting with too broad of a brush? Comparing my clientele with your experience at a state park is like comparing a specialty retail store with Kmart.
Ed said…
You are forgiven!

How long have you signed on for this modest Suffering in your pursuit of Moral Perfection? Are you going to disclose the location of said Suffering so we can come an pelt you with rotten vegetables an other public humiliation?
If I reveal the location, every van-tramp I know will try to come in here and squat for free, and I'll have to bust them! (grin)

My penitence will be over with on 05 Oct.
Ed said…
VERY modest Suffering I do say, certainly not long enough for you to reach Moral Perfection. Let us know where you were for said penitence after you are gone.
Ted said…
Meh, people are people. But I take it back. You won't get past the honeymoon period if you're leaving October 5. Have fun!
Ted, you cynic, you! (grin)