Questions and Answers VI

[Parts I, II, III, IV and V]

This is the last post directly responsive to Mr. Licht's questions, observations and challenges. But it will by no means be the end of this discussion, which I intend to begin addressing next week, with further explorations into what hasn't worked, what has, and what may.

When he originally wrote to me, I knew that to give him thoughtful responses would take much more time than I could spare in a one-on-one, and if I was going to put the time into a reply that was worth the effort, it needed to be done in this open forum. I've actually been meaning to address the questions he raised for a while now, so Mr. Licht's timely email provided both a catalyst and a framework to begin that effort.

Here's the balance of his initial query:

I know you are a fan of "the prisoner". We ARE living in the village. More so all the time and on an accelerating path. But you and I, and a few pockets here and there are "not prisoners, we are free men! Or by our actions, are we?

What do you think?

I am asking your personal opinion for my own interest and direction and I will NOT republish your response.

He touched on an affectation of mine, but an inspiration, nonetheless. If you're unfamiliar with "The Prisoner," it was a TV series from the 60's about a secret agent who quit in anger from his agency. He is kidnapped and awakens in a fantastic locale known as "the Village," a gilded cage where his captors are constantly subjecting him to surveillance and subterfuge in a quest for "information."

The thing is, he doesn't know "whose side" his inquisitors are on--are they the foreign enemy, pumping him for state secrets, or is it his own government, that is, his domestic enemy, trying to determine what he knows and what he may have disclosed?

As in star Patrick McGoohan's previous series, "Secret Agent," they've given him a number and taken away his name, referring to the captive protagonist as "Number Six."

But the thing about Number Six, and what confounds his tormenters, is no matter what they throw at him, he never gives up. Each episode, he defies and rebels and attempts to escape, always seeking creative ways out of his trap, relying on himself, his intellect, his resourcefulness and daring to reclaim his liberty.

And each episode he is thwarted, betrayed, recaptured. But he never allows himself to be broken. When one idea fails him, he comes up with another, commits himself to it, and gives it his all. For the sake of his freedom.

That strikes me as a pretty fine ideal to strive for.

There is a way out of the box. Stick around and we can try to find it.

In the coming weeks we can look at lawsuits and gun groups and militias. We'll look at politics and education. We'll confront apathy and lack of resources and critical mass.

Just as I tied the responses together under "Questions and Answers," I'll come up with a unifying title for the next leg of the series--perhaps "Escaping the Village."

And as they say there on parting, "Be seeing you."