Posts by Sam Green73

Round two

Adam Collins4 said:Hold on—are we really listening to someone who can't even put together a coherent argument about the law or all that nonsense regarding the USA's consistency?

Hahaha, give me a break...

Seriously, this guy is following me all over this board.

Adam Collins4 said:What "truth" are we even talking about?

Are you really just throwing out your own personal opinion and pretending it's an established fact without providing any actual evidence?

It's the same old story... just like when you were spinning those tales about the collapse of the USA and its laws...

Have you still not figured out the basic rules of a decent debate?

Anyway, can we please get back to the actual legislation? Let's settle that first.☕

I’ve already tried pointing this out right here
But I guess my way of communicating just isn't clicking with you. 😢

bluejackal2 said:Honestly, I think we should give the moderators some kind of pension credits or seniority benefits—man, this job isn't easy.

I really respect

Adam Collins4 said:Of course I don't have a bias; my only issue is dealing with people who are just plain dense and incompetent...

Like, they'll literally cherry-pick parts of a sentence just to make themselves look right... when in reality, they're about as bright as that journalist writing this article...

The fact is, this law has been on the books since 1977, and it barely saw any updates until 1990 and 1994, yet it still lists German Marks in the text.

So, total nonsense—this law was updated here in America, meaning it’s an American law, not something left over from Yugoslavia...

Now, go ahead and show me those "smarter" people, because to me, they just look like suckers who don't even realize this isn't Germany, for crying out loud...

So, what is my subconscious trying to tell me here?

I guess I’d say I’m struggling with low self-esteem, because that’s really the only way I can explain why I feel the need to insult and belittle everyone else so much.

I don't go around talking to imaginary friends 🕺

bluejackal2 said:Sounds like a classic case of moderator burnout to me.

Whoa, a medical diagnosis! I love it. 🙂

Honestly, that might actually explain a lot about what's going on here.

Thanks for looking out for me, 🙂

😲
Can you guys see him now too?

Do you ever get that creeping feeling that you’re being watched?

I’ve definitely been feeling a bit of that lately.

Are you guys seeing this person too?

Adam Collins4 said:So, are those laws almost going to catch up with you?☕

Adam Collins4 said:Unknown...

That was just your relentless little friend Jerry Robinson56 playing games with you, the one you kept calling out in these threads...

Seriously, just a few days after his brother passed away, this total moral wreck was actually asking for an obituary, hinting that the death was faked...

Honestly, who even are you? Now you're running right back to your little sidekick again...

Maybe he can help you find those laws you clearly aren't capable of finding on your own...

?

Let me know if you see 🙂 🙂

My doctor told me to just ignore it, but they keep showing up in my circle constantly.😲

Larry Allen34 said:But regardless, this whole discussion has been killed off—the moderator cleaning up the thread basically shut the whole thing down in the middle of the fray. It’s pretty obvious they just don't have the patience to let a deep dive actually unfold, nor do they seem to grasp the basic geopolitical terminology used in those PDF reports to streamline complex ideas. Honestly, the demand to back everything up with constant links is kind of ridiculous too. Engaging in high-level geopolitical analysis is almost inherently at odds with that requirement; if you're constantly tethered to external links, you aren't really exploring the unknown anymore—you're just posting established facts...

Damned.
That sounds like exactly the kind of thread I'd love to be moderating! 😢

BTW
🙏 🙏 🙏

Looking at the color palette they used in this game, I honestly feel like we can finally put this debate to rest.

We'll get those PMs sorted out ASAP.

Olivia Smith2 said:Hey everyone—just wanted to share an update. My doctor lowered my dose of aripiprazole from 10 mg down to 5 mg, and after a little while, I’m actually feeling quite a bit better. My cognitive clarity is returning, and I finally feel more like my old self again.

It’s only now becoming crystal clear just how much of a necessary evil these medications really are. It breaks my heart that so many of us have to rely on them, but hopefully, there's some small comfort in knowing you aren't alone. Isn't it true that struggling with your mental state is often just a side effect of being on antipsychotics—even something like aripiprazole?

That is wonderful news!

It makes total sense—medications for mental health are obviously going to impact how you feel mentally.
I was actually reading the other day about how even common things like cholesterol medication or even basic Tylenol can mess with someone's mood.
Finding that "Goldilocks" zone—the perfect drug and the exact right dosage for your specific body—is such a delicate, tricky process.

Adam Collins4 said:Or should I start bringing up all those times you were being offensive with that attitude of yours?

Come on,

Bryan Rogers87 said:So, basically, I’m posting in the designated thread, providing actual examples to back up my points about your personal attacks, insults, and blatant lies, and you just brush it all off by calling it "trolling"...

It honestly feels like you struggle to follow what's actually being said every once in a while.

I am talking specifically about the debate we are currently referencing.

I made it very clear that I won't be handing out penalties for simple trolling.
However, if someone starts hurling insults at others, I will step in.
We're having a conversation about moderation here, right?

There is a massive difference between how I moderate a live chat versus how I handle deep-dive topical discussions.

Bryan Rogers87 said:Can we please get a head moderator to step in and actually start handing out penalties for these ad hominem attacks and insults? Look at the moderator Sam Green73—if anyone tries to call him out, he just follows his own little playbook of banning people. Honestly, if he were following his own rules, he’d be handing out red cards to himself, considering how much more he was insulting folks during those debates than the people he was arguing with.

I've decided I'm not going to penalize trolling anymore.
If the shoe fits, I might as well dance, right?

BTW, you're doing a great job with this thread 👍

Amanda Hughes37 said:you don't see showing interest in that position as being complicit

Well, you pretty much just pointed out exactly where the issue lies yourself.

I'm really hoping we can finally put this whole topic to bed now.

Amanda Hughes37 said:agreed to serve as a cabinet minister under Newt Gingrich's administration

Does anyone actually have proof for this claim?

https://bigthink.com/ned-dymoke/can-...ggests-you-can
I was just reading about this fascinating study out of Norway where more than half of the thirty young people involved actually recovered from schizophrenia.
One of the lead researchers is really pushing the idea that early detection is absolutely everything here.

To me, though, what really jumps out isn't just the clinical side—it’s the social environment. In my experience, a huge part of true recovery comes down to how well someone can reintegrate into society and actually find steady work.

Laura Castillo6 said:You really can't just deny that psychosis is a real medical condition. Once someone starts coming back to reality after an episode, they usually have a pretty clear idea of what went down. Plus, even the psychiatrists—the ones who actually know their stuff—can tell when something is fundamentally off based on how a person communicates, their body language, and all those little nuances in conversation. We might not have a machine that can point to a screen and say, "There it is," but you don't need one. A proper psychological evaluation through actual, deep conversation is more than enough to prove it's happening.

Just wanted to add:
When I was last in the hospital—I think it was about a year ago at a facility over in Seattle—I didn’t have a single blood test or a CT scan done, even though I was there for an entire month. There was this other guy staying in my room, someone who had never been hospitalized before, and he hadn't gone through any scans or blood work either. He actually brought it up during one of our chats; we ended up getting along pretty well. It really makes you think, though. When you look at how things work, most diagnoses aren't exactly backed by hard physical evidence. Usually, if you're dealing with medical issues, you go in for a CT scan or blood tests to check your dopamine or serotonin levels just to prove what's actually going on. That’s how almost everything in medicine works. But in this field? Apparently not. It feels like the only thing left is for a psychiatrist to sit you down, give you a diagnosis, and hand you some pills.

You don't actually need some high-tech medical device to diagnose a mental health condition. Take anxiety, for example—you don't exactly need to run blood tests or check chemical levels in the body just to prove someone is struggling with an anxiety disorder. It’s something you can observe and understand through conversation and experience, rather than just looking at data on a screen.
Look, we all know that brain chemicals like dopamine and all that stuff are absolutely vital for how our neurons actually talk to each other. It’s the engine under the hood, right? But at the end of the day, when you're looking at actual symptoms of an illness, there isn't really a magic number you can just point to. You can't exactly run a test to say, "Aha! This person is exactly 4.2 milligrams short on dopamine," and call it a formal diagnosis. It’s more about the way those symptoms manifest in a person's life rather than trying to nail down a precise chemical measurement.
Honestly, I don't think you should ever look at a diagnosis as some kind of final sentence. It’s more like a roadmap—a starting point that leads you toward the right therapy and eventually to a place of stability. As for tapering off medication, it’s definitely possible, but you really shouldn't try to go it alone. You need to work closely with a professional to do it safely. I actually know quite a few people who managed to successfully step away from their meds even after taking them for decades. It’s all about patience and seeing how things settle over time, provided there isn't a relapse. Just take it one step at a time.

That is such a solid perspective—honestly, it’s one of those points you really need to sit with and read a few times to let it sink in.

Joseph Bailey41 said:Honestly, they didn't "see" anything initially—they were basically experimenting with different substances on patients to see which ones helped curb certain behaviors (like keeping someone from acting out), and that's how the first generation of antipsychotics was born. (I can't recall the specific drug or what it was originally intended for, just that it was meant for something else entirely, but it would be worth looking up). Those explanations involving neurotransmitters came much later. Measuring their levels in living patients—rather than through an autopsy—is actually quite recent and isn't done very often. Something similar happened with antidepressants. When it comes to diagnosis, everything really boils down to how you act and what you tell the doctor; those are the only ways they can determine what's wrong, and naturally, that's where mistakes happen.

I don't know much about treating mental illness through diet, aside from a little I've read regarding Ayurvedic medicine (basically combining specific foods with herbal remedies from India). I also read somewhere that India has a relatively low rate of psychotic relapse compared to the West, though there are plenty of different theories as to why that is. The Finns also see great results; in about 85 percent of cases, people make a full recovery after their first psychotic episode. There are other ways to treat schizophrenia too, like the methods R. D. Laing practiced back in the seventies, or even newer psychotherapeutic approaches like this kind of thing. I haven't studied any of this in depth, but looking at the big picture, it really feels to me like this illness is curable. You just have to find the right technique, put in a lot of work, and have a therapist who offers more than just a prescription. It’s all pretty complex.

Modern medicine—or at least what most people consider the "official" consensus these days—tends to act like it isn't actually capable of providing a true cure. It’s a pretty heavy sentiment to swallow, isn't it?
I was reading this article the other day that made some pretty bold claims about how it can actually be healing. I've been scouring the internet for it ever since, but I just can't seem to track it down again!

To me, the most fascinating technique they used to treat her was... I’ve been spending a lot of time lately diving deep into the concept of Reparenting, and honestly, it’s been such a game-changer for my own mental headspace. It sounds a little intense when you first hear the term, doesn't it? But once you peel back the layers, it’s really just about learning how to give yourself the kind of steady, nurturing guidance that maybe you didn't quite get growing up. It’s like becoming your own advocate. You know those moments where you're being incredibly hard on yourself—maybe after a mistake at work or just a bad day—where that inner critic starts shouting? Reparenting is about stepping in and saying, "Hey, take it easy. We're okay. Let's try again." It’s treating that younger, more vulnerable version of yourself with the patience and compassion a good parent would have shown. I started practicing this a few months ago during a particularly rough patch. I used to be my own worst enemy, constantly pushing myself toward burnout. Now, I try to check in with myself like I would with a close friend or even a child. If I’m exhausted, instead of forcing myself to power through, I listen to that need for rest. It feels a bit strange at first, almost like you're playing a role, but it becomes so much more natural the more you do it. It’s about building that internal foundation of safety and self-worth from the ground up..
The founders ended up getting a bad rap, mostly because of some controversy that cropped up when they were already older and a bit more set in their ways. It’s a shame, really, because they actually delivered—they made some genuinely groundbreaking discoveries in the field of psychotherapy that still hold weight today.

Angela Stewart6 said:I’ve been thinking lately—and I really do believe this—that for those of us struggling with illness, the mind can be an incredible servant, but it makes for a truly terrible master. Joseph Bailey41, I absolutely love the way you frame your thoughts on this subject! Anyway, I'm signing off now because I am absolutely exhausted. I'm heading straight to bed. 🥱

Honestly, that goes for pretty much everyone.
The real question is: does your ego actually work for you, or have you become its servant?
What Buddhism and Freud say about self-slavery