Ownership is so interesting. It's something we think very little of philisophically, but so much about practically. Gaining something, mastering something, perfecting something, improving something, even yourself; that's what we are doing all day. If not, you might be dead.
My childhood was so fond, thankfully. I did have parents that had very generous views of property. What was theirs, was ours. In one way, it was generous. In other way, it wasn't ideal, possibly for them, possibly for both of us..probably just for them. I think about my Dad's toolbox. It was almost non existant, and not because he was completely useless with it, but because it was all of ours. If you wanted the crescent wrench, it was best to look in the "skinny droor", root around the garage, or maybe even look through the grass in the backyard.
Here's the weakness we encountered as a family: The curse of the commons. We didn't have any tools really. When everyone owns it, no one owns it. Even things as simple as tools are more interesting to me now, because of ownership, and especially after reading Boundaries Of Order. There is so much history that proves the curse also, that I will link at some point.
I have become, in fact, adamant about ownership. In my company and at home, I am pushing for everyone to own something, and for everything to be owned, to avoid the curse of the commons. Really, I have a plan to change the world(who doesn't, right?), but that will come later. To shed some light on the subject of ownership and boundaries, here are some of my notes from the most excellent book:
So insensitive have we become to the role of property as the most important civilizing influence in our world, that we have even learned to regard the infliction of our wills upon the lives and property of others as expressions of "socially responsible" conduct
As we shall discover, individual liberty and self-ownership are synonymous terms; we are free only insofar as we insist upon the exclusive authority to direct our own energies and other resources
As we shall discover in subsequent chapters, conflict is likely to emerge whenever ownership is divided from control. In the case of a business firm, a manager may have purposes of his own that differ from those of an owner.
"That dog is mine," said those poor children; "that place in the sun is mine." —Blaise Pascal
Boundaries are the means by which liberty and peaceful order become integrated in society. As the saying "good fences make good neighbors"
That's really just a taste from that book. It got me thinking about how boundaries, ownership and freedom are things hugely important issues in my life, but I don't have clear mental models for all of them just yet. I can tell you that I believe ownership beats commons, strong fences do generally make great neighbors, and personal freedom is something we all need and want. It's been so interesting applying those beliefs to my life and my company. I can tell you there is so much more to come, because, if I, as a child, had purchase my very own crescent wrench, I know for a fact it wouldn't have ended up lost in the grass.
