Virtual freedom

It's time to dispel a misunderstanding. Some of my readers--"some" and the plural form "readers" being a manifestation of my perpetual optimism--may have the impression that I hate technology, given the number of posts dedicated to my distaste for microphones, radios, and so on. Not at all.

First and foremost, I love the ability to blog. Here I am at a tiny Catholic college finishing up my degree in micromanagement, where we learn Catholic social justice principles such as the principle of subsidiarity, meaning that anything other than the boss's opinion or preference is a subsidiary concern, and yet I can venture out into the world under my true name, the Ignoramus, and do as I think best. It's not actual freedom, but it has a lot of the effects and rewards of freedom; you might call it a kind of virtual freedom.

The beauty part is that it is not really an escape under a pseudonym. Day in and day out I play a false part, that of the wise and educated man, and I use a pseudonym, "doctor"; here, in the shadows of my basement, alone in front of the computer, the mask drops. Here I gape and stare about me, aghast at the heights and the depths, in a state of trembling beyond wonder, and await the verdict of Reality.