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How to Be Idle
Nov. 6th, 2004 01:25 pmI think I'm going to create an 'idle' filter; I can tell I like this book enough that I will probably post excerpts from it along with my thoughts and reflections. If you are interested in being on this filter, let me know.
From How to Be Idle by Tom Hodgkinson, currently not available in the US (hmm), but I snagged a used copy from Amazon.uk...
preface
It's good to be idle. The purpose of this book is both to celebrate laziness and to attack the work culture of the western world, which has enslaved, demoralized, and depressed so many of us.
Doing nothing, however, is hard work, as Oscar Wilde pointed out. There are always so many people around trying to make you do things. This is why I have tried to create a kind of canon of idle writing, from the philosophy, fiction, poetry and history of the last three thousand years, to give us idlers the mental ammunition we need to fight the fight against work. The sheer number of great idlers in history proves that we are not alone.
Being idle is about being free, and not just being free to choose between McDonald's and Burger King or Volvo and Saab. It is about being free to live the lives we want to lead, free from bosses, wages, commuting, consuming, and debt. Being idle is about fun, pleasure, and joy.
There's a revolution brewing, and the great thing is that to join all you have to do is absolutely nothing. So join us, Liberty Lads and Liberty Girls. This should be the most enjoyable revolution the world has ever seen.
North Devon
16 June 2004
www.idler.co.uk
From How to Be Idle by Tom Hodgkinson, currently not available in the US (hmm), but I snagged a used copy from Amazon.uk...
preface
It's good to be idle. The purpose of this book is both to celebrate laziness and to attack the work culture of the western world, which has enslaved, demoralized, and depressed so many of us.
Doing nothing, however, is hard work, as Oscar Wilde pointed out. There are always so many people around trying to make you do things. This is why I have tried to create a kind of canon of idle writing, from the philosophy, fiction, poetry and history of the last three thousand years, to give us idlers the mental ammunition we need to fight the fight against work. The sheer number of great idlers in history proves that we are not alone.
Being idle is about being free, and not just being free to choose between McDonald's and Burger King or Volvo and Saab. It is about being free to live the lives we want to lead, free from bosses, wages, commuting, consuming, and debt. Being idle is about fun, pleasure, and joy.
There's a revolution brewing, and the great thing is that to join all you have to do is absolutely nothing. So join us, Liberty Lads and Liberty Girls. This should be the most enjoyable revolution the world has ever seen.
North Devon
16 June 2004
www.idler.co.uk
