Coping With the Burden (Being a Good Human)

When Benjamin Franklin was developing his plan to attain “Moral Perfection” he concluded with the maxim “Imitate Jesus and Socrates.” Jesus and Socrates had at least two things in common. They each relentlessly pursued a mission to abandon long held cultural, political, and religious practices in favor of a more enlightened existence. And they were killed as a result. I think Franklin was in favor of the former, but certainly avoided the latter.

Some years later J.S. Mill would proclaim, “It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied…