What are the values and principles that guide this community?

[Hev]

This question delves into the underlying beliefs, ideals, and standards that serve as the foundation for the community's actions and interactions. It seeks to uncover the ethical, moral, and cultural principles that members uphold and abide by in their engagement with one another and the broader community. Understanding the values and principles provides insight into the community's culture, norms, and expectations for behavior. It helps prospective members assess whether their own values align with those of the community, facilitating informed decision-making about joining and participating in the community.

[Carl Dickson]

Your values are up to you. I can share my values, but that's not the best way to answer this.

What guides this community is:

• A belief that at the core there is an objective reality. Without that being true we can't even have this conversation.
• Reality is what's left when we strip away all of our interpretation of it. This makes reality the standard for determining truth.
• Knowing this doesn't make it easy. It requires getting good at seeing past our own interpretations. Perspective helps. Inquiry helps.
• None of this matters if we don't internalize the lessons we learn. If something you find significant doesn't change you, did you really learn anything?
• We're doing this as a group. Getting along with others in the group doesn't require a strict protocol. It requires being able to avoid conflict or resolve conflict in a way that both parties learn something valuable from. This requires commitment by us as individuals. And this ends up being something valuable to learn for many reasons, some of which may be unexpected by you when you start.
• A commitment to not compel others. We don't compel others to believe what we believe and we don't compel them to value what we value. We don't compel them to join our community and we try to be clear about what makes a good fit and what doesn't so we can minimize or avoid having to exile people who don't fit.

But that almost sounds clinical or academic. The lived experience of it is wonderful and uplifting. Empowering even. 

I'm not going to define values for the other community members, but I hope and think it's safe to say that most folks here:

• Value their independence and safety from compulsion so highly that they are willing and committed to not getting their own way if it requires compelling others
• Value social interaction with people who are not trolls
• Love learning and getting to the bottom of the nature of things
• Are willing to explore difficult topics with other people in non-confrontational ways that ends up being enlightening
• Are people who are purpose driven and like to accomplish things, although one person's accomplishment might be completely irrelevant to the next
• Have a sense of humor and like to have fun, whether it's in a nerdy way, an adventurous way, or both