Posts by rustymaker5

blueheron62 said:It’s way easier to pull the strings on people who are frustrated and unhappy.
But my take (and I'm not claiming this as fact, just my opinion🙂) is that people aren't born good or evil. It all depends on their environment, how they were raised, the influences they face, manipulation, and all sorts of other factors.
You'll find it much easier to manipulate a group of people who feel dissatisfied, lack education, and act as a monolith, rather than a community made up of individuals who value their independence and avoid getting swept up in things like religious, national, or racial identities.

High birth rates are often linked to lower education levels and a heavy emphasis on tradition and "community." That's where I see the connection to potential war... it's not a rule, obviously, but there's a higher chance of conflict breaking out between two groups like that.

You're right that we're talking about manipulation, and that's exactly my point. But then again, there are certain people you simply cannot goad into participating in violence or killing others, which basically disproves the idea that aggression and warfare are some kind of "natural" human state...

When it comes to the relationship between birth rates and education, there are plenty of ways to address those issues constructively, but the thing is, the warmongers don't care about that. In fact, they actively weaponize these issues to serve their own destructive, selfish agendas, which never actually align with the interests of the general public who end up paying the price for the wars they start...

blueheron62 said:I’d say wars are just part of being human—it’s that aggressive streak that tends to flare up when you cram too many people into one tight space. It’s interesting how areas with high birth rates often overlap with those volatile regions where conflict keeps popping up; that’s definitely a factor. Then there’s the other point already mentioned: the whole cycle of history repeating itself.
I wouldn't go as far as saying war is necessary, but it feels "natural" once things reach a breaking point through overextension or deep-seated frustration—and let's be honest, those two usually go hand in hand.

Personally, I’m convinced that wars are fought strictly to grab economic control and social dominance—it's all about power plays orchestrated by sociopaths and bad actors at the top, and honestly, I don't see any connection to balancing population numbers whatsoever. So, I'd argue they aren't "natural" events at all, nor are they required, especially since only a tiny fraction of people actually profit from them while the vast majority are left dealing with nothing but suffering, misery, and a deep sense of disillusionment regardless of whether the conflict ends in a win or a loss...
At our core, humans are fundamentally good, not evil, which makes the state of war something completely unnatural, a condition forced upon us by malicious forces...

swiftdriver11 said:So, I’ve been chewing on this idea for a bit, and I think I’ve landed on a specific conclusion. It seems to me that nature—which is constantly being squeezed by the relentless expansion of the human population—has essentially found a way to check our species' monopoly over the planet.
Given that modern medical breakthroughs are constantly extending human lifespans, which places massive pressure on the entire ecosystem, it feels like warfare has evolved to take the place that diseases used to occupy.
Do you all think that wars are just another mechanism through which nature manages us? In other words, we're just animals, and we're the ones most threatening the balance.
If that logic holds up, then it follows that war isn't necessarily an absolute evil.🤷

Look, I know, I know—don't go labeling me some kind of heartless monster or start throwing examples from the American Civil War in my face. But if you really step back and think about it, this is just nature playing its hand against us.
I can already hear people saying that war has always existed, but let's be honest: we have never seen weaponry this devastating, and we have certainly never seen death tolls on this scale.
I'm curious to hear what you guys think.

But seriously, how exactly does nature trigger people to go to war? 😕 Does it just echo from a mountain peak somewhere: "Get out there and fight!"...🤔

Paul Wright18 said:It’s unfortunate, but I’ve grown so accustomed to this state that I can’t even remember what happiness actually feels like.
If that sensation—like one of the posts mentioned earlier—is just the cozy, satisfied feeling you get after a massive Thanksgiving dinner, then I’ll honestly admit my analysis was a bit off 😛
. Mostly, I’ve realized I’ve hit a ceiling. It isn't about studying harder, working more, or building up my self-confidence—it’s not even about things within my control anymore. That whole cliché, "If you want something bad enough, the universe will conspire to help you," turned out to be absolute nonsense, and I’m slowly being forced to face reality. I tend to look for fulfillment in grand gestures, and I struggle to change my nature. So, I remain unhappy. It’s a closed loop. 🤣

Closed, sure. But you can crack it open at any moment if you actually feel like it. 😉

Not much happens in terms of "big life events," and if you're just sitting there waiting for luck to strike from those moments while simultaneously deciding you're incapable of changing, then it's no wonder you're miserable. 🙂

Everyone builds their own happiness, and honestly, they build their own misery too. It's a free choice, you know...😉

Good vibes all around... honestly feeling pretty great right now, just kicked back with a drink in hand, feeling nice and warm, and just waiting on the crew to show up so we can get a poker game going. 👍

😕 What exactly are we talking about when people mention the "remnants of an missed anal stage" in human development?... 🤷

No, no ladies! Let’s not let this whole conversation about needing help navigating relationships turn into some kind of petty catfight between us women... because honestly, if we aren't careful, the guys might actually end up getting their theories validated by our bickering...😍

Chloe Barnes8 said:Anyway, Jane, while I totally get where you're coming from regarding crowd psychology—especially how people tend to act around here—I feel like you're being a little less than tolerant this time around...

So, I was just sitting here thinking... if someone is an atheist, does that actually make them a better person morally? Or maybe just smarter than someone who believes in God? Just a random thought crossing my mind.

Is it really necessary to assume that someone who just follows the herd like a mindless sheep—you know, those folks who lack any real conviction—is automatically an enlightened intellectual just because they claim to be an atheist? It’s funny how people label things these days... anyway, just a thought.
I mean, I’m just sitting here thinking... maybe we could all try a little more tolerance around here? Like, if nobody is out for blood against the atheists, then let's not go after the folks who actually have faith, either. It just doesn't feel right. It feels a bit unhuman, honestly. And definitely doesn't sit well with democratic values or even just basic American politeness. Just a thought.

Who are we actually to judge someone else's core beliefs? Honestly, I was just sitting here thinking about it... like, who am I to play judge and jury over what makes someone tick? It's kind of wild when you really stop to consider it. Everyone's got their own thing going on, right? Just a random thought that popped into my head while I was grabbing coffee earlier. Anyway, just wondering.

Not judging anyone—honestly, that really should be the bedrock of any decent conversation. I am totally on board with that. 👍 And it needs to be a two-way street, you know? It has to apply to everyone involved in the dialogue, without exception.

But there is this one thing we can't just gloss over, because more often than not (if not always), it’s actually the religious folks who are the ones aggressively defending their dogma and coming after anyone who doesn't fit the mold, sometimes even going as far as practically cursing them out. To me, personally, that seems like a pretty telling pattern...

We have such a massive variety of worldviews and belief systems here in America, and frankly, that doesn't bother me at all, as long as nobody decides they need to force their views on me or insist I'm wrong by sheer willpower (in those cases, I just stop talking to them entirely), or if they start getting insulting or condescending (then I just ignore those posts)... but I still want to feel free to express what's on my mind, because who knows, maybe there is someone out there who finds my perspective interesting and actually wants to have a normal, sane conversation with me. And I really wouldn't want to miss out on that possibility. 🙂

Yeah, true. Except in the real world, things never actually wrap up like that... It usually ends up being more like what I was saying about that whole "modern fairy tale" mess... 😛

Maybe I’m just having some kind of communication breakdown here, because I can’t for the life of me bridge the gap between what we call the soul and what we call the psyche. 😛
The way I see it, a soul can’t actually get "sick" since it’s non-material and carries this divine origin... whereas the psyche is tied directly to the mind, which is inherently linked to the physical world and therefore subject to all sorts of deviations.
So, in my view, psychology—and psychiatry, for that matter—only really deals with the material, relative side of being human, but the real headache is that this physical aspect is constantly being influenced by the non-material, spiritual side, an existence that so many people simply refuse to acknowledge or accept. Because of that, it feels to me like psychology might be okay at describing the dynamics of men and women, but it lacks the tools to actually provide real, effective healing...

He was a guest on Oprah's show, just this chubby, bald guy who came off as totally unlikable.

Who’s actually making a fool of themselves here?
Of course the soul exists... it's just common sense, really.
What on earth could have possibly convinced you otherwise?

I think I’ve gotten a little lost in all these fairy tales you guys are spinning here, though maybe that’s just because my own memory of them has faded so much... they only really mattered back when I was some little kid, and since my daughter never cared for them, I never really had the chance to brush up on them or anything.
But there is one particular fairy tale that people still cling to today, especially when it comes to how men and women interact... it goes something like this: "What we have is different, and if I just love him enough, I can change him." Unfortunately, that story never, ever has a happy ending...

Jerry Martinez5 said:Well, I think there was some news a few months back about the first group of American psychiatrists—or whatever they call them—starting training to become sex therapists. So, honestly, any real experience with this probably comes from people living abroad.

I guess it’s all connected. That’s just my opinion, though: if you have a healthy relationship with sex and your own body, you probably won't find yourself without a partner for years on end. It’s about instinct. Something has to be fundamentally broken if we can't satisfy our basic natural drives.

EDIT: Building a stable, high-quality relationship is more of an add-on. It involves meeting hundreds of other needs that are just as real, even if they aren't quite as primal as pure instinct.

The whole thing starts with an upbringing built on traditional, ultra-dogmatic religious teachings about original sin, the sinfulness of sexuality, and the supposed sin of seeking any kind of pleasure that doesn't strictly follow Church doctrine... those are the foundational ideas that hit people hard from early childhood, and honestly, they are incredibly difficult to unlearn once you're an adult. (And look, people don't even have to be religious themselves, but these dogmas are baked right into the fabric of American society, making them nearly impossible to escape.)
That’s where all the stress comes from regarding our sexual drive—which, let's be clear, is a perfectly natural, God-given instinct—and it leads directly to things like frigidity, nymphomania, or even various deviant sexual behaviors.
I really wonder how much psychologists and psychiatrists can actually do to counter this, or even help, because many of them are still caught up in worldviews shaped by those same heavy concepts of "sin," so they end up just treating the symptoms while completely ignoring the root cause...
A truly healthy relationship with one's body and sexuality can only be achieved by people who manage to make a positive break from that entire dogmatic mindset.

nimblepilot29 said:I’m genuinely curious about what this AI thinks—is it actually possible to interpret all this behavior through the lens of so-called genetics?

In my view, things aren't quite that straightforward.

Take what you all were just debating regarding literacy... if being literate is a major deciding factor for you when choosing a future father for your children, then that has absolutely nothing to do with genes.

And honestly, how much does knowing how to spell correctly actually matter when it comes to sexual (instinctive) attraction? I mean, who knows. Personally, I don't think it matters at all. Perhaps you're all just kidding yourselves...😉

Which bot? 😕

nimblepilot29 said:I’m genuinely curious about what this AI thinks—is it actually possible to interpret all this behavior through the lens of so-called genetics?

In my view, things aren't quite that straightforward.

Take what you all were just debating regarding literacy... if being literate is a major deciding factor for you when choosing a future father for your children, then that has absolutely nothing to do with genes.

And honestly, how much does knowing how to spell correctly actually matter when it comes to sexual (instinctive) attraction? I mean, who knows. Personally, I don't think it matters at all. Perhaps you're all just kidding yourselves...😉

Are you sure about that? I mean, saying it has nothing to do with genes... 🥳

nimblepilot29 said:I’m genuinely curious about what this AI thinks—is it actually possible to interpret all this behavior through the lens of so-called genetics?

In my view, things aren't quite that straightforward.

Take what you all were just debating regarding literacy... if being literate is a major deciding factor for you when choosing a future father for your children, then that has absolutely nothing to do with genes.

And honestly, how much does knowing how to spell correctly actually matter when it comes to sexual (instinctive) attraction? I mean, who knows. Personally, I don't think it matters at all. Perhaps you're all just kidding yourselves...😉

Or are you just trying to comfort yourself? 😉

Keith Lee2 said:Oops, my bad—fixing that now.
What I actually meant was how you guys are all just coddling each other's helplessness.
Hopefully that keeps the crazies away. 😁

P.S. A guy doesn't exactly need to be a scholar for women to adore him.😬

It’s just such a rare gift when they actually are... 😍

😉

Chloe Barnes8 said:but then you could raise her to reject all those old-fashioned patriarchal myths and those social roles that basically try to keep women enslaved, right?🙂

Well, obviously! 👍

mistyharbor15 said:Wait, if moms are the ones raising men, then women are basically the reason those traditional views exist in the first place, right?🙂 The fix is easy: once today's modern, independent women become mothers, they just need to raise their kids with these new perspectives. 😉

Oh, obviously! 👍
I mean, I’m certainly not one to dodge responsibility... though maybe I just used my daughter as an excuse to make my own life a little easier. 😉 😍

I honestly feel like men and women are, you know, from two completely different planets... 😍 I can't quite put my finger on whether it’s hardwired into our DNA or just how we're raised by society, but we are so fundamentally different that sometimes I genuinely wonder how we manage to coexist at all, especially when you look at the long term... 😁
Actually, it feels like more and more women are starting to notice this gap, which is why you see them opting for casual flings instead, or gravitating toward those deep, intimate female friendships where they actually feel understood across every aspect of life... and maybe it's because technology has advanced so much that even those primal maternal instincts—which are, let's face it, a core part of being a woman—can be fulfilled quite beautifully without needing constant input from the opposite sex, or at least with very limited interaction... 😁 Having actual financial independence certainly makes that easier to pull off, too.
Maybe it’s finally time for men to wake up to these shifts and ditch those dusty, outdated ideas about "man roles" and "woman roles" (regardless of whatever nonsense their mothers drilled into them), if they actually want to build something meaningful with women. Women don't really need to shift their ground that much, since they've always been incredibly good at adapting anyway... 😛

Chloe Barnes8 said:So, we’ve been chatting about the internet quite a bit lately... but let's set that aside for a second...

Do you guys actually think marriage counseling can make a real difference for couples going through a rough patch?
Have any of you personally tried it, or maybe know someone who has?

I was reading "The DNA of Success" by Jacko Zufelt recently, and he makes this pretty interesting argument regarding romantic partnerships... He suggests that men and women process love in fundamentally different ways (well, obviously we know that part). According to him, the primary way a woman shows love to a man—and helps him actually connect with his own emotions—is by showing appreciation for what he does. It’s about sending that message that his actions matter, that they are valued, and being quick to forgive when he slips up, while accepting him exactly as he is. This, according to Zufelt, is crucial for a man to establish an emotional connection and tap into those internal compasses needed to guide his own behavior.
If he feels criticized or if there's constant pressure to change, a man will naturally resist... and when that resistance finally breaks, he might spiral, turning to things like alcoholism, for example...

Women, on the other hand, tend to need to manage their own feelings... A woman's soul needs to feel supported so she can freely express her emotions, her desires, and her needs without hesitation.
A man shouldn't try to manipulate a woman's feelings or push her toward feeling something else entirely. If she's feeling down, scared, or angry, he shouldn't be critiquing those reactions.

According to Zufelt, following this would basically be the blueprint for a successful marriage.
When I sit back and really think about it, there might be some truth to that... maybe if people actually tried it, marriage counseling wouldn't even be necessary in the first place... 🤷