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Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

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Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#31

And Maximalism papers over the messy realities of society. There is no conceptual framework that can see all of nature, they highlight aspects of it.

Agreed, not buying what the article is selling, which is trying to connect a modern fad, its namesake art period, and political discussions on capitalism and socialism and society at large.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#32

Two ideas which often I encounter together yet I have grown to find incompatible are self reliance and minimalism. If you wish to become more self reliant i.e. more able to handle for yourself rather than through another's labor the impositions you create in the world, you will find yourself needing to masters, access and eventual own many more tools and material. My father, a man capable of building or repairing alm…

Self reliance is probably more of an ideal than minimalism.

It didn't take much for man to realize he could do more by trusting another than figuring out how to do everything on his own.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does millet pass but bread doesn't? You dont mean the intersection includes growing millet, do you?

As far as I know millet can be eaten as a whole grain cooked with water or milk over an open flame. This would be akin to eating kernels of wheat without grinding them to flour and baking them with other ingredients. So you could just eat wheat but IDK how digestible that is. Perhaps someone here does?Cream of Wheat and Malt'O'Meal are the closest I've had.

But isn't buying millet just as un-minimalist as buying bread or wheat?

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#34
post #30
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have noticed that people pushing minimalism...or at least the idea of "throw it away and buy it if you ever end up needing it" is a luxury that I think many people take for granted. Even if you're not privileged I think there's value in consciously assessing where in your life you want to be minimal and where you don't. I just went through my old tech stuff and recycled cellphones so old they may not even connect t…

> I have noticed that people pushing minimalism...or at least the idea of "throw it away and buy it if you ever end up needing it" is a luxury that I think many people take for granted. I am inclined to disagree here and will say you're not making the full calculation. One of the biggest costs that most people have in their life is paying for a place to live (be it rent or buying and maybe paying back for that). If y…

I think this poster is generally making the argument for stocking yourself with multipurpose tools and discarding single task or infrequent task items. As a contrived example, a funnel is a tool which will come in handy in many situations. But an old baby toy will likely only come in handy when a nephew is over once per year. Heck a funnel is even a decent baby toy.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does millet pass but bread doesn't? You dont mean the intersection includes growing millet, do you?

As far as I know millet can be eaten as a whole grain cooked with water or milk over an open flame. This would be akin to eating kernels of wheat without grinding them to flour and baking them with other ingredients. So you could just eat wheat but IDK how digestible that is. Perhaps someone here does?Cream of Wheat and Malt'O'Meal are the closest I've had.

Quite digestible, but you have to cook it far longer, about 5–8 hours. There is a dish called Haleem that is popular in the middle east, but each country and region has their own version of it [0]. The version I am familiar with is served as breakfast food, similar to porridge. Its main component is wheat cooked overnight over low heat. Although it should be noted that it is made with wheat endosperm, not whole wheat. But buying one is no more difficult than the other.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haleem

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#37
post #10

In general I can appreciate the general tenets of minimalism. It may be just my own pessimism but it’s seems to becoming a movement that requires you to get rid of things and buy new “minimalist” items to replace them.

There are a lot of people chasing the aesthetic, but don't worry about that.

A lot of people can benefit from reducing their debt, lowering their cost of living, eating less food, saving more money, and focusing on things they enjoy more and things they don't less.

You don't have to go from living on 110k to 30k, nor do you have to throw everything out and replace it with white walls and black accents and an odd art piece here and there.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#38

Two ideas which often I encounter together yet I have grown to find incompatible are self reliance and minimalism. If you wish to become more self reliant i.e. more able to handle for yourself rather than through another's labor the impositions you create in the world, you will find yourself needing to masters, access and eventual own many more tools and material. My father, a man capable of building or repairing alm…

Self reliance is probably more of an ideal than minimalism. It didn't take much for man to realize he could do more by trusting another than figuring out how to do everything on his own.

It didn't take much for man to realize he could do more by trusting another than figuring out how to do everything on his own.

You cannot help anyone else unless you have some minimal level of self-reliance. That’s why airlines tell you to fit your own oxygen mask before trying to help anyone else.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As far as I know millet can be eaten as a whole grain cooked with water or milk over an open flame. This would be akin to eating kernels of wheat without grinding them to flour and baking them with other ingredients. So you could just eat wheat but IDK how digestible that is. Perhaps someone here does?Cream of Wheat and Malt'O'Meal are the closest I've had.

But isn't buying millet just as un-minimalist as buying bread or wheat?

In this example eating unbaked grains would be the compromise to remain comparatively minimal and yet become more self reliant.

Another example would be simple car maintenance. A minimalist would pay for an oil change.

One may want to become more self reliant and begin changing one's own oil. In this case you will need a catch basin, a funnel, new oil and filter. You may need a jack, jack stands and a specialty wrench.

You could become both more self reliant and more minimalist by getting rid of your car. If you live in an area with good transportation you will become slightly inconvenienced. If you live in a place with bad transportation you will become significantly impoverished.

Re: Minimalism conceals the messy realities of society

#40

Two ideas which often I encounter together yet I have grown to find incompatible are self reliance and minimalism. If you wish to become more self reliant i.e. more able to handle for yourself rather than through another's labor the impositions you create in the world, you will find yourself needing to masters, access and eventual own many more tools and material. My father, a man capable of building or repairing alm…

I wonder if self-reliance is really incompatible with most things, not just minimalism. At some level you rely on others, whether to farm your food or forge your steel or make your antibiotics.
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