Posts by Lawrence Bailey77

Andrew Price3 said:Quavo:

Death isn't some beautiful experience. Saying otherwise shows a complete lack of appreciation for life itself. It’s ungrateful for the love we share, the new days we get, the small smiles—all of it. I don't know why you'd cloud reality with that kind of thinking; if it helps you face certain truths, fine, but don't force that perspective on everyone else. That woman doesn't see death the way you're describing it. She sees it as an escape from her current misery. When you've had enough, you've had enough. That's what she understands. Death is coming regardless, so for her, it's just a matter of how much more pain she has to endure before it happens. That is the actual reality of death.

Well said; it's the truth. That's what her mind knows. I was looking at it from the heart. And the heart keeps secrets.

I am certain of one thing... feelings never deceive you. They are inherently honest.🧐

Unlike the mind, which believes absolutely anything is possible.😵

One really ought to be wary of the mind—both when it's racing and when it's silent.🙂

If I were to offer advice, based on over thirty years of navigating various life experiences, I would tell myself—and perhaps everyone else—to always trust that "gut feeling." For me, my intuition has never led me astray. The issue usually lies in how we interpret it. That raw, primal instinct isn't tangled up in mental gymnastics; it simply is what it is. It won't change itself, whereas the mind will find endless ways to "manipulate" that feeling to suit its own narrative.🙂 ...that's just the malice of the mind for you.😬

ironrider11 said:Quavo:

Uširo says: I’m done. I can't deal with this sub anymore because of you illiterate, self-proclaimed healers, amateur psychoanalysts, and the whole gang. You guys even had the nerve to call my 80-year-old mother on some cheesy late-night TV show just to ask $48 about how her son's health was doing.

As long as there are sheep, wolves wearing whatever skin they want will never go hungry...
It’s just in a wolf's nature to hunt, and in a sheep's nature to stay at the bottom of the food chain...
Everyone plays their part in this ultimate game of existence...

... you'll never run out of wool.😬

No, really... death? Please. It's everything else that matters. I suppose as long as some news anchor on CNN isn't announcing it, it’s not happening. And even then, it seems like only celebrities actually pass away. Most people just drift through life without ever truly living or truly dying; it’s all just a blur. Don't worry about it too much. I mean, sure, the whole "eco-friendly" movement is trending right now, and everyone acts like anything labeled "natural" is inherently good. But death? That doesn't fit the brand. Unless, of course, it's "sanctioned" death—like wars, car accidents, or violent crimes. Those things are treated as just part of the modern American lifestyle; people almost seem to crave that kind of chaos. But actual, raw death? No, that’s not part of the plan. It’s unrefined. It’s messy. It’s just... unpleasant.🙂

I am just sitting here watching you all.😵

Olivia Smith75 said:I was actually thinking about starting a thread similar to this one recently. What I find particularly fascinating is how much our individual perception of reality bleeds into every single aspect of our lives.
Take any random post on a forum, specifically those "my girlfriend is like this and that" type of stories. You see these massive discussions erupting about what kind of person she is, what’s wrong with her, what she should do, or how things could have gone better. But the reality is that this entire analysis is built solely on one side of the story—it's based entirely on events filtered through the lens of the person telling it. If that girl were to tell her version, it would likely be a completely different narrative that would flip the whole discussion on its head.
Meanwhile, the objective truth is an entirely different story altogether.

In my view, the ego—or rather, a fundamental lack of self-criticism (that innate human inability to be truly honest with ourselves or hold ourselves accountable)—is the primary driver behind these drastic discrepancies in how we perceive reality.

What really gets under my skin regarding this topic is the question of how far one should go when trying to analyze or reflect on things to achieve some semblance of objectivity. It’s much easier to just trust your initial gut feeling and run with it, but I am painfully aware enough that my own perspective isn't nearly accurate enough to let myself drift aimlessly with the current.

I find myself agreeing with 👍 and I suppose this conclusion stems from decades of observing such phenomena, among other things. 😬

Quincy:

What adds to my frustration regarding this subject is the question of just how far one ought to go in analyzing, contemplating, and attempting to view matters through an objective lens. It would certainly be simpler to just trust one's initial intuition and act accordingly, but I am painfully aware that my own perspective isn't nearly accurate enough for me to comfortably drift along with that current.

Don't worry too much... after a certain amount of time, the frustration will likely fade... at least, that is what I hope. From what I have gathered through experience, a person eventually learns to carry themselves through all of this, and you will be left with the reason and logic necessary to see even further ahead.🙂

PRECAUTIONS:
-In a world filled with lies and illusions, encountering the truth becomes inevitable 🙂 though, lest my perception be overly timid, I hope this encounter leads toward independence and freedom, where possibilities remain infinite. 👋

-Guard yourself and protect your essence, for God forbid some external force leaves you without a sense of self.🧐

Taylor Castillo88 said:Honestly, people who recognize their own ignorance have such a massive advantage over those who walk around thinking they have all the answers!

knowing that I know
knowing that I don't know
not knowing that I know
not knowing that I don't know

🧐

... so there you go, figure it out! 😬

CAUTION; But Let's just 😵zeznuti 🙂 be a whole different conversation altogether, if you catch my drift.

Kimberly Johnson4 said:We all know it... most of the baggage we’re lugging around, all those issues we deal with daily, they’re buried deep in the subconscious. My question is pretty straightforward: how do you actually get rid of them?
In tons of different philosophies and cultures, there’s this idea that humans are spiritual beings. And when someone can't figure themselves out—when they're just miserable, angry, depressed, or just feeling off—we usually say they haven't settled things within themselves yet. Nowadays, people turn to religion, or booze, or drugs... basically anything that lets them let their guard down enough for that subconscious stuff to start bubbling up to the surface.
Easterners meditate, Americans drink, some pray, others go the shamanic route... every culture has its own way of trying to sync up the subconscious with the conscious mind, what I'd call some kind of grand realization. So, my question is... how do you actually connect with your subconscious? How do you make sense of those deep-seated feelings, figure out what's triggering all that negativity, and finally... how do you fix it?

I would suggest an individualized approach... though, unfortunately, the circumstances that necessitate such "balancing" are usually quite unpleasant. In serious cases, having the influence of someone from your surroundings can be a great help, provided they are dedicated and experienced... which, based on my own experience, is rarely the case. 😵Quite the opposite, really. The idea of fighting fire with fire seems to me to be a rather difficult approach; or rather, you cannot cure brain damage by causing more brain damage. 🙂

In fact, no matter how flexible an individual might be, their problems—or the causes behind them—certainly are not. They are incredibly rigid. And if the people around them try to "help" with these issues, my experience suggests it often just leads to more inflexibility, resulting in even greater complications within the existing problem. 😬

God, the fallen ones... ☕ may they rest in peace. I hold them in respect, even if that respect doesn't mean much to me anymore, though clearly, it still means something. 🕺

John Martin18 said:I agree that fear is a real thing, which makes sense from an evolutionary standpoint... I don't want to steer the conversation too far in that direction, but I do believe that true Catholics feel much less burdened by it. For those who truly live out their faith, death isn't an end, but rather a beginning... I’ve had many opportunities to witness people's reactions right before they pass, seeing life fade away firsthand. To me, it all seems perfectly natural. From the moment we are born, we are moving closer to that moment every single day. How someone chooses to face it really comes down to their own convictions, or perhaps even their conscience... Thank God.

It strikes me that you might be rooting for your own "home team" here👋... well... Catholics certainly seem to be the heavyweights in the religious championships🙄

From my perspective... the religions I am familiar with—and what they "interpret" as (if I may use that word instead of "convince")—tend to idealize death. It is presented almost as a sort of "reward for faith"... dying as a believer to secure a spot in eternal paradise... though, I suppose, let us pause there for a moment... 😬

It is quite curious how every one of these gods seems to "love" only their own followers... and by some miracle, these "chosen" people always seem to live comfortably without being worked to death🤔

I don't particularly wish to dwell on this further, as it feels like a rabbit hole with no bottom... ☕

darkcanyon10 said:

I'm digging this. 😁

And for me, 😬 respect! 👍

David Vaughn75 said:Look, if you’re actually serious about this, just head over to your local family doctor and get them to write you a referral for psychotherapy. It's honestly the easiest way to get the ball rolling—just a quick trip to the clinic to get that paperwork sorted so you can finally talk to someone who actually knows what they're doing.

Look, there’s really no point in us trying to weigh in or give you any advice here—I mean, we don't know the first thing about your life. We aren't exactly mind readers, and without knowing what you've actually been through or how you operate, any opinion we throw out would just be total guesswork. It's hard to get the full picture when we're basically flying blind.

And yet, even with that knowledge, things still seem unclear to you...
I suppose I would suggest seeing a therapist.

I don't believe there is an immediate need for a psychiatrist or medication—not that I am attempting to downplay what you are going through, please don't take that the wrong way. I simply want to offer the most practical advice possible for resolving this.

Respect. 👍

Steven Richardson46 said:Hey everyone, I noticed there are one or two similar threads floating around, but every conversation tells its own story, right?

Looking at the numbers here, we’ve got over 42 million posts and about 500k members—though I’d say at least half of you are actually active. And naturally, within that active crowd, you’re going to find everything: regular folks, therapists, doctors, criminals, good people, bad people, those struggling, people in recovery, scammers, you name it. That’s why I figure this is actually a solid place to go looking for some real advice...

So, let me just cut straight to the chase. My parents really coddled me growing up, but I was also constantly getting picked on or provoked by other kids. Because of that, I never really learned how to make my own decisions or stand my ground... To be honest, I almost never hit anyone back, even when I was just trying to defend myself.

Even now, I still carry this lingering anxiety. It makes me terrified of confrontation, regardless of whether the person is in the wrong or if they're bigger or smaller than me...
It’s like my soul is craving a fight, but I just can’t find the guts to step up.
My self-esteem is still pretty low, though it’s definitely better than it used to be.
Other areas of my life have improved significantly too, and I can handle things now that used to be impossible, but I really want to tap into that full sense of masculinity within me..

And look, I’m not trying to be some "alpha male" wannabe or anything like that; I just want to be able to react defensively when it’s necessary, plain and simple.

Honestly, I think 80% to 95% of men lack any real backbone, and so far, I'm right there with them.
Most guys just don't want to admit it publicly.

Not necessarily... the public ends up doing the admitting for them.☕

The corrupt officials mess with their heads... predators exploit the kids... politicians sell off the next generation... organized crime runs rampant... spouses drive them insane... even "friends" just mock one another behind their backs.🙂

I mean, hello?!.. 🙄

If I were in your shoes, I’d actually consider myself lucky to have the capacity to distance myself from that mindset and maintain some semblance of a critical perspective toward it—and, quite frankly, toward my own role within it. It’s a heavy thing, I suppose. We didn't exactly get a vote on where we were going to be born.😵

Nicole Morgan5 said:You have much deeper issues than the person who started this thread.

Regarding that fear of getting into a fight, or that freezing up when the adrenaline fails to kick in—when there's no "fight or flight" response and you just shut down—that’s simply weakness taking over. You end up three times more vulnerable than you actually are. You fix that by joining a boxing gym, a karate dojo, or an Aikido club. With a little "professional guidance," you can actually build some real confidence.

The goal isn't to become some street thug; it's to stop that paralyzing fear from seizing you when things get dangerous.
In a gym, you’ll take hits—some controlled, some not—but you’ll develop confidence because you’ll feel comfortable within those "controlled" environments.

That’s where you learn that 90% of problems can be solved just by having the right posture and presence.

Besides, you’re clearly struggling with a massive ego because you’re terrified of the humiliation of getting hit a few times.
That’s coming from an experienced martial artist who dealt with the exact same thing until he was sixteen or seventeen. I can't even remember the last time I got into a real scrap "out in the wild," but I see these idiots all the time on the road—since I spend a lot of time driving—who jump out of their cars to try and lecture me with force.

Believe me, they usually scramble back into their cars pretty quickly without anyone needing to land a single punch. 👏

Some people build confidence through hard work, some are just born with it, and then there are the types who snort coke just to feel brave, only to have the adrenaline hit them in the wrong place instead of giving them actual courage.

It seems everyone tends to view their own struggles as the absolute center of the universe.🙂

Self-confidence... I suppose they just get a sudden rush of adrenaline where it counts most, rather than in the brain.

Though, I suppose a certain physical presence can occasionally overshadow even the most significant of problems.😬

... and honestly, no one else will ever truly grasp what you’ve endured... not even your own children, perhaps, but YOU will know the truth of it 👍

That internal realization—that sense of self—is something only those with actual experience and a bit of common sense will recognize in you. As for the rest? Well, if I’m being perfectly candid to hell with them 👍. At the end of the day, the only thing that really matters is that you can live with yourself. :mig

In my own life, I’ve certainly lived through eras where "being kind matters more than being right" was the guiding principle. My respect goes out to the people who keep pushing forward without compromising their integrity; I sincerely hope we never lose that specific breed of person who refuses to let standards slip 🙏
.
Respect!

Depression is, in principle, a physiological ailment, much like a common cold... though I emphasize the principle here, because the actual lived experience is a far cry from anything you'd feel with a sniffle.

Try carving that sensation directly into your cerebral cortex; it’s akin to the way a fever rattles your entire frame during a bout of influenza... that is essentially the physical reality of battling depression.

Psychology and psychiatry, if we are being honest, are still relatively infantile branches of science; these doctors will certainly try their best to assist, but one must manage expectations.

Those struggling with depression find themselves completely offsides. Society expects them to perform at a professional level when they haven't even been given the rulebook, let alone the stamina required for the opening sprint—to say nothing of a marathon.

If you lack the strength for a first step, then crawl. Or perhaps just move a finger, or blink an eye... anything suffices. Every movement is progress toward something better, even if you fail to perceive it. One's perception becomes so fundamentally fractured that you might not even realize you are breathing, or that your heart is beating, or that your body is alive, simply waiting for a tiny spark of willpower to stir it back to life.

The weight of it still lingers with me; I speak from personal experience after several years... though, truth be told, I didn't even find much relief, let alone a sense of truly living.

Even without medication or various other interventions, it seems the body eventually initiates its own recovery processes. One simply has to be incredibly vigilant and protective of oneself. God forbid you end up in a toxic environment. As for me, I have opted for solitude and isolation—a choice my surroundings react to with a certain paranoia, though I can easily bury my own anxieties beneath layers of their ignorance. I suppose I should thank them for their misplaced goodwill.👍 And as for everything else, 👎

Gregory Jackson3 said:sacrificing oneself for others
let go of that idea

Perhaps you could elaborate on this process? I suppose if you don't feel up to a lengthy explanation, a brief summary would suffice. 🍿

The thread title seems somewhat unstable to me, so I thought I might check in to see what is actually being discussed here 🤔 or perhaps who is driving which agenda. 🕺

Why bother with forgiveness?

ambertinker10 said:And I suppose the internet doesn't numb the brain either...

😁 Read more carefully; I was not discussing my own family, but rather the characters in the series...

I am speaking about the majority, which is why I used the term "us"...

If he’s relying solely on you, then he’s effectively just a puppet performing exactly as he dictates. I suspect they will dull your senses just enough to make you useful—once you've been sufficiently exploited by those who weaponize the web in that manner. It’s a grim cycle, I suppose. However, there is still a semblance of true liberty left online. There exists a certain segment of the population—people who are actually trying to preserve the very essence of what the internet was intended to be: a gift to humanity designed for the free exchange of information and open communication. Whether that ideal can survive the current climate is a question I find myself pondering quite often. 👍

I suppose if you’ve finally made peace with the slow, steady process of numbing your own soul, then you’ve essentially conceded that things are exactly as they should be—stagnant and unchangeable. It's a quiet sort of surrender, I guess. By choosing to dull your senses, you're effectively deciding that nothing can ever truly improve, which, in a way, might be the only way to ensure that depression doesn't eventually consume you entirely. Or maybe that's just a comforting lie we tell ourselves to justify the apathy.

😁 You really ought to read more closely. I am not referring to my own family here; I am discussing the characters from that television series...

🤦 ... yes ... I suppose now that I’ve actually taken a moment to sit with it and read your words more closely ... it seems you might just be profoundly bored with life. ☕

I suppose I should clarify that I’m speaking about the majority here—which is why I say it applies to us.

Are you perhaps acting as some sort of spokesperson for the masses? If I were actually looking to engage in a conversation or direct my remarks toward you, I suppose I would need to know if there exists someone capable of listening to both of us while remaining silent about your specific views. Or, perhaps more interestingly, I could simply discuss you with your parents, speaking of you in the third person, I imagine. That might be a more productive route, though I can't say for certain. 🙂

ambertinker10 said:Perhaps the word itself carries too much weight; it isn't that one cannot break the habit, but rather...

I don't watch much television; I simply lack the time or the desire to squander my hours in front of a TV or a computer screen.

Usually, I have found myself settling in after dinner to watch Black Rose, perhaps staying on to catch a bit of some lighthearted sitcom—something like *Schitt's Creek*, which is quite a delightful series to laugh at.

In essence, there are moments when I truly immerse myself in a particular show, feeling a certain "affection" for the characters within it...

More so for the world itself... and the very life portrayed within it...

I am referring specifically to that first series, Black Rose.

Of course, I have no idea how many people actually watch it, but having followed it from the beginning with a few breaks, I have grown fond of this series for several reasons...

1) I find myself drawn to those quieter settings—places with less traffic, more open space, a sense of emptiness, yet still remaining within reach of civilization.

2) I admire the lifestyle of the family itself; they are well-to-do, yet they remain grateful to God, possessing a home and a full table every day without needing to travel to the far corners of the globe to feel fulfilled. They live a standard life, yet one that feels more secure.

3) I appreciate the character Firat; while he is certainly capable and healthy, the man has a roof over his head and doesn't rely on complex technology. He can build something, sell it, and have enough for his basic necessities.

My goal is to ask if you experience similar "dilemmas," or perhaps something else entirely...

And that is, more importantly, just how much do we actually need to be happy? How much does the drive to possess more push us? I am young, only 22, and I believe I will eventually start a family; I will want to provide for my children, which requires money, of course. I don't shy away from technology either, but still...

Do we truly require so much? Do we spend our lives working for money only to spend it on various technological gadgets, or better cars and houses?

🙂 I suppose you should focus more on what YOU actually need, rather than focusing on what "WE" supposedly need... just an idea, of course..

The lifestyle you’ve described for your family sounds like an absolute dream to me. Honestly, if anyone wants more, they should go right ahead—just not at the expense of everyone else. Unfortunately, that seems to be the inherent nature of American capitalism, so I suppose you should just be grateful to live in such an environment. I wish nothing but the best for your family, and plenty of health to them.👍

On another note, television is essentially just a tool for numbing both the mind and the body. If I were in your shoes, I might suggest picking up some kind of manual hobby. A bit of direct interaction between one's consciousness and the physical world can be quite beneficial for the soul. You see, our hands are perhaps the only true instruments we have for manifesting ideas and turning dreams into reality. So, I wonder, what are you waiting for? 🤔

casualcanyon3 said:Thanks for the link; I actually sat down and looked through both that and the Milgram study! 🙂

👍 ... but do you remember that American "experiment"...

Just some facts for those of you living in a dream world 🙄

.. they used a bomb the second time because the gun wasn't effective enough .. and once again, everyone just looked away, retreating into their little holes of prideful American missions .. I suppose there isn't much else to say .. I feel like I am trapped in the experiment mentioned above, just waiting to see when the end comes, wondering if anyone will even bother to react .. haha .. I'll probably get banned for this too, since people fail to realize how they are making life harder for themselves and essentially deciding what kind of world their own children will have to inhabit .. but then again, who cares 😬 if that is what you want for your kids; I am hardly in a position to judge you 🙂

Eric Sullivan3 said:I really want to believe that not everyone out there is inherently "evil"😁
As for the whole violence and sadism thing, I honestly feel like we all have a tiny little bit of that darkness tucked away inside us somewhere, don't you think?
For instance, I definitely don't think every single person in that video above is some kind of monster or a total sadist, and when it comes to those folks who managed to escape, I suspect it was more about pure, unadulterated panic—just people being absolutely terrified by what they’d done and running for their lives as fast as they could!

Nicholas Gonzalez8 said:I honestly think that when things get this intense, all that repressed stuff just starts bubbling to the surface. You've got all this aggression people aimed at them, those raw emotions they had to bottle up just to avoid looking "weird" or being cast out by society, and those deep-seated fears—it all comes flooding back. It’s not that they’re bad people by nature, not at all, but in moments like these, they just get hijacked by these overwhelming forces. Whether they let it out in a way that looks beautiful or totally ugly, they're really just releasing everything they've been holding in. In a weird way, it's the only time they actually seem to be acting in alignment with who they truly are.

Melissa Sanchez8 said:I think that’s really the crux of it. Add to that the fact that it was carried out by a massive crowd... people act differently in a mob. Individuals who wouldn't dare do anything on their own get swept up in the collective madness...

No accountability, no consequences.
The fear of facing a punishment that doesn't fit the crime is a huge deterrent to acting at all.
There’s a reason we have laws and enforcement agencies in this country...

Everything in nature follows certain rules and laws. Humans aren't some exception to the rule. It's just necessary...

How much of a person do you think is actually gray?

A person is as "gray" as they allow themselves to be.
In cases like the one we're discussing, people are making conscious choices. They know exactly how much damage they're causing...

Drew Lee3 said:I’ve never really bought into this idea that humans are inherently sadistic. I don't walk around feeling an instinctive dread of my surroundings, and honestly, I’ve never once felt that creeping sense of insecurity or fear—not even when walking home alone in the dead of night. If there were actual reasons to be terrified, I’m pretty sure that over the years, I would have picked up on something in the words or actions of the people around me that signaled I should be on high alert. But I haven't. Maybe once or twice, I've caught a vibe from someone that they just lacked empathy, or that they got a little too much of a kick out of being cruel. But compared to everyone else I know? It’s negligible. Though, I do notice that certain parts of the world seem "denser" with these cold, unfeeling, sociopathic types who thrive on antisocial mob mentalities. Why is that? Is it because certain environments tolerate deviant behavior more easily, is it purely genetic, or is it something else entirely? Who knows, I’m hardly an expert.

Also, seeing how a few individuals acted toward the end of the "performance" doesn't actually prove anything. That whole setup might have just attracted the wrong crowd; extreme social experiments often act like magnets for sociopaths and psychopaths. I really feel like I need a more detailed breakdown of this study. Was there a massive surge where almost everyone turned on her, or was it just a handful of outliers—like 10 out of 100? There’s just too little information to go on...

jadetiger37 said:Look, I just want to point out one way of looking at this whole situation—I’ve worked alongside all kinds of artists who pull off all sorts of performances, ranging from the stuff that actually shocks you and keeps things interesting to the total nonsense that doesn't have a single point to it.
Look, they’ve got one massive, glaring issue—they’re basically invisible when it comes to the big money. We're talking zero footprint in terms of actual funding, marketing, or major sponsorships across the entire art scene. To take some of that anxiety off your plate, though—most of these shows are basically rigged from the jump. They’re pre-planned and pre-negotiated just to dodge failure because the market here is so incredibly tiny and stingy. Honestly? I think this piece of hers is a perfect example of exactly that.

Nah, whatever—it’s just about how you send the damn message, you know? 😉

I gotta admit, I spend way too much time spiraling about the human psyche—specifically when it comes to all the violence and pure destruction baked into our DNA.
Look, it’s easy to just throw our hands up and say violence is hardwired into our DNA—I mean, look at the state of the world, right?—but I always find myself circling back to the way a kid's brain actually works. It’s like this raw, unshaped block of clay. A child doesn't just wake up knowing the difference between right and wrong—it isn't instinctual. They don't get it until someone shows them, or until they're taught. Period.
So I'm sitting here looking at this performance—it’s basically just some high-brow attempt at "education," right? As if they actually have to teach us how to do art or whatever... give me a break.

Look, when you step back and really look at things, animals don't have "evil" in their DNA—everything they do is just following the cycles and the raw rules of nature. But then we humans come along, gifted with this massive intellect that’s supposed to set us apart—you know, the whole "higher evolution and progress" thing—meant to be used for the greater good of everyone. The catch? In way too many cases, we use that brainpower for the exact opposite... pure destruction.
And here’s another thing—no matter how much good and positive stuff gets done, the bad and evil crap will always have a wider, louder impact... How much of those two extremes we actually allow to seep into our own mental wiring basically determines which one ends up surviving in the long run.

Here’s a situation that’s crucial for what I’m getting at... It was about some domestic violence where the father—and I’ll be blunt here—was a straight-up monster, abusing his kids for years, extremely brutal and loud about it. When we asked the neighbors if they knew anything and why they didn't report it, their response was basically that they shouldn't meddle in other people's business and it wasn't their problem, even though they'd admit it was horrific.
One thing specifically bugs me, and honestly, worries me too—looking at how many people on this forum, even in "lighter" situations, run away from stepping up because of this exact excuse, or just out of fear and worry about the fallout from their actions...

The point is—ramping up traits like apathy, indifference, egoism, selfishness, alienation, and asocial behavior, while letting empathy, altruism, responsibility, compassion, and other pro-social behaviors slide, puts us in a spot where we aren't just dropping below the level of functioning animals, but we eventually start viewing every other human being as a threat.

So, my summary is that constant education in these areas is vital—even through sending messages like this, reminding us that we need to stay active in everything happening around us and with the people we can reach. Even though evil exists and always will, we still have the chance to protect ourselves from it, regardless of how it keeps finding its way back.

It's exactly what I was talking about—I don't feel that much fear about being surrounded by those kinds of people, but what really worries me is what happens if it *does* occur and nobody around me reacts or feels the need to jump in and help?

btw, Hazen, great topic... 👍

It's a shame that, for some reason, things aren't more active on this forum lately...

🙂

🙄 Regarding those quoted above... I am honestly just waiting for someone to start rationalizing murder; I wouldn't even be surprised if that happened. I mean... facts.. what does an opinion matter when someone is actually stabbing you with a knife?! Would anyone even bother discussing this while sharing their experience watching a performance? Ask yourselves; you don't need to answer me.

Keep-Calm
Having recently become a mother, I find myself occasionally reflecting on the fundamental nature of humanity—specifically how it appears at its inception. From my perspective, I see nothing but good. There is this innate craving for attention, love, and patience. What might superficially be perceived as "malice" actually seems to stem merely from a misunderstanding of one's surroundings and a simple desire to have one's needs met.

🙏 I truly wish you abundant health and happiness, and perhaps even more children if life allows; I say this from the bottom of my heart 😍. Regardless of the environment we inhabit, people like you make life significantly more beautiful and worth living—and perhaps, in my estimation, even worth dying for! 👍

P.S. I suspect that if an individual in that specific performance had begun acting toward the audience in such a way, they would have been instantly branded a lunatic or a maniac. I doubt there would have been nearly as much "debate" or controversy regarding beliefs about human nature. However, when the issue shifts toward COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY 😠, that incredible protective instinct
kicks in.
P.P.S. I am honestly unsure if Hitler ever killed anyone personally, yet all the blame is placed solely upon his shoulders as the ultimate embodiment of evil, whereas Stalin arguably slaughtered more of his own people than Hitler did others... not to mention the history of the United States, stretching from the past right up to the present day! ☕ ... the tally doesn't stop, and it shows no intention of slowing down.

.. I suppose this is an endless topic of discussion 🕺

She’s lucky to be standing at all... I find myself applying that same logic quite often, though I must admit, it hasn't always been kind to my health—there were even moments where it felt like my life was on the line. People will fight over just about anything, trying to convince themselves of their own delusions... but frankly, very few people possess the grit to actually look the truth in the eye, let alone subject themselves to an experiment by turning their own existence into a mere test subject. I suppose it takes a certain breed of artist to handle that sort of thing; only the most courageous and truly passionate souls, I think. In short, true artists 😍

There was this one old woman once;

If you truly want to understand the essence of a person, simply grant them power.

p.s. You might want to look into the Stanford prison experiment... decades later, they are still conducting variations of it and, predictably, shutting them down mid-way. It is almost hard to wrap one's head around the fact that professionals in these fields would engage in such nonsense 😵, but that is the reality of it, whether one finds it believable or not 😉

neonsailor26 said:You really do have the power to choose—it just takes a certain amount of backbone to actually go for it. And honestly? You shouldn't feel obligated to settle for just any job that comes your way (at least not if you're looking at the long haul)... I know some people might disagree with my take here, but hey, I guess that’s just how I see things 🙂 .

I'm with you on this... honestly, I'd say just run away from the grind entirely! 😬

But if life forces your hand, then you might as well jump from job to job like you're changing socks. 👍