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What If “It” Doesn’t End With a Bang But With a Whimper? Mind Games - Chapter One of Two
What If “It” Doesn’t End With a Bang But With a Whimper? Mind Games - Chapter One of Two “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” – Mark Twain Chapter Two of Two can be found here. One new trick this old dog has learned is elegantly simple. The more certain I am that I’m right, the greater the probability I’m wrong. Before we dismiss this concept as simplistic or nonsensical (because we’re absolutely certain we’re right) why don’t we take a closer look at the underlying supposition and then apply what we learn to “The Crash” meme that’s widely held among a clear majority of Zero Hedge posters, contributors and commentators, including myself. It never hurts to check our math, right? For those readers looking for an in-depth analysis of the current sociopolitical and economic climate, stop right here because this isn’t what you’re looking for. Other people can, and have, covered that ground better than I could. This is a collective self examination of how we arrive at our beliefs using denial and how this can lead us astray, especially when something’s “obvious”. I wish to swim a bit upstream of the contrary waters, which is not the same thing as taking a dip in the consensus reality pool. When talking to family and friends about the greater probability of being wrong when we’re absolutely certain we’re right, the initial reaction I get is usually an assumption on their part that I’m applying a high probability of being incorrect. This isn’t the case. For something to be greater, all it needs to be is a bit more than the baseline measure. Often our biggest mistakes materialize when we assume something (because it’s obvious, right?) when more often than we care to admit, our assumptions couldn’t be further from the truth. Mispricing Risk and Reality For the sake of this discussion, let’s say there’s normally a 10% chance I’m wrong and a greater chance is defined as 15%. While we might brush this away as minor and immaterial, if you knew the next time you got behind the wheel of your car you had a 10% chance of getting into an accident, would you call that minor? I don’t think so. More to the point, we all have a tendency to minimize risks we’re familiar with and maximize risks we don’t understand or that push our buttons. Since we’re intimately familiar with our own thinking, it stands to reason we don’t recognize the real risk of being wrong. I suspect we’ve all seen articles or news stories that highlight the public’s misperception of risk in our daily lives. For example, many people consider the risk of being attacked by a shark while swimming to be greater (there’s that term again) than of being hit by a bus or lightening. Of course, none of these risks are even a tiny fraction of 1%. But try telling that to someone after watching the movie Jaws, walking across a bus filled street or playing golf during a lightening storm. Proximity has a lot to do with our perception of risk. For this reason and more, we “misprice” risk in all facets of our lives, especially when developing and maintaining our worldview. When it comes to our own decision making thought process, our so called inner dialogue, we rarely recognize this variable nor do we properly incorporate it into the conclusions we reach. And I deliberately use the term “inner dialogue” here because when we’re thinking or contemplating, the vast majority of us believe we’re all alone and “talking” to ourselves. Even when we’re conversing with others, either in real time by phone or in person or with a delay via letters, email or blogging, for the most part we believe it’s “us” that’s doing the talking and writing. Why wouldn’t we think this? Who else could it be? For those who’ve been reading me for awhile, this is an old theme that I’d like to freshen up a bit. Our ego is always present and often front and center. Most people consider their ego to be an inseparable part of themselves and give little thought to what’s really going on in the background. Much of our day to day activity, be it physical, intellectual or emotional, is either ego driven or on “ego” auto pilot. I call it that because when we’re not consciously engaged, it’s still the same body being flown by someone or something other than our conscious awareness. If you think about it, that something’s the ego, though we think of it more like instinct or training. Our Ego Maniac Our ego is quite insecure and overly sensitive to being ignored or rejected. It’s assumed that the primary purpose of our ego is to take command of the ship of state during times of stress or emergency and to do whatever it takes to pull our butt out of harm’s way. What’s tragically misunderstood by most is that the ego considers itself to be a separate and sovereign entity and not a part of the “self”, thus not answerable to or affected by “our” decisions or (in) actions in the same way you or I perceive “being affected”. It helps if we view our ego as a parasite or virus rather than a friend or companion because the ego considers you and me to be nothing more than the host. For all intents and purposes, we’re living the life of someone with a dual personality. But we’ve been seduced into believing there’s only one person, the “self” or “I” we refer to when speaking about our personal being. The ego doesn’t share this perception, which means there’s an entity involved in our day to day affairs that doesn’t have “our” best interest in “mind”. Consider this concept carefully for a moment because its eye opening. A potentially malicious stranger is permanently living within my house. Do I leave him unattended or ignore his motives and actions? Our ego is an ego maniac (no pun intended) that possesses (or should I say is) a severe sociopathic personality disorder. It seems our ego will go so far as to create disaster in our lives, in effect sabotage us in order to be needed, wanted and paid attention to. That’s the very definition of an ego maniac and the sociopathic personality. While this self destructive impulse varies from person to person, it’s there in everyone and must be recognized in order to deal with it. The world’s most disturbed human beings aren’t dropped off on Earth by visiting space aliens nor do they grow on trees. They spring from within and the potential seed of their insanity can be found in all of us. This is why I endlessly repeat that in order to understand why people do certain things, one must look inside oneself. It can be shocking to realize that the raw material of these personality types resides in us all. Our ego is seamlessly integrated into our lives and society, to the point where its influence is rarely understood by the vast majority of us. The more direct control we cede to our ego, something our narcissistic naval gazing entertain-me-now consumer culture tells us is desirable (which in turn feeds the ego) the more out of control our lives become. A severe side effect of this ego centric life is how it turns us into walking talking intellectual and emotional trip wires that can be, and often are, triggered for a variety of reasons. And this triggering almost always occurs without us being consciously aware of what’s going on or why. Trip Wires and Mine Fields Let’s examine a small but commonly shared example of egoic response to outside stimuli. How many times have we read a (Zero Hedge) article or comment and before we’re even finished, we’ve hit the reply button and are pounding away at the keyboard. We leave a caustic or snide reply, or even a heartfelt opinion, and then we move down to the next comment. Ten minutes later, we check back and the next response below ours doesn’t make any sense or isn’t what we expected. “What the hell’s wrong with that idiot? That’s not what I’m talking about.” When we go back and re-read what we originally responded to, we find that somehow we completely missed what the person was saying. We’ve all had those “I don’t remember reading that” moments where it feels as if we’re absorbing something for the first time, not the second or third. This foolish “error” of ours is sometimes so obvious that we thank God no one knows who the hell we really are. And this happens more often than we care to admit. It’s almost as if we didn’t read that particular comment but an entirely different one instead. What the hell just happened? You see it all the time in the comment section, to the point where you really don’t pay much attention since it all blends into the back ground noise and shouting. You really only notice when it happens to you. And even then, you might deny it and blame it on the other person. Then there are times when the comment section degenerates into nothing but shouting and ego responses, where no one listens and everyone’s right. If we pursue some quiet reflection on the matter we discover that somehow we missed nearly everything except a word or phrase that’s a hot button or trigger for us. Once we’re triggered, it’s usually game over and nothing else is making its way into our central processing unit except how to crush that fool who just triggered us. This is why I talk about reading everything twice, once to feed the egoic trip wires and the second to absorb the information into our conscious awareness. And maybe even a third time just for the joy of it. While on the surface it might appear that it was “me” who responded, in fact it was most likely my ego. And as I said before, they aren’t the same thing. In today’s fast paced world, it’s our ego that’s often interacting with everything in our personal universe. Only we don’t recognize it because we see little or no difference between our conscious mind and the ego. A careful reading of centuries of history shows us that while our ego has always been a major influence in our daily lives, our present day ADD need for constant stimuli and entertainment has mostly blurred the dividing line between our inner consciousness, our inner “spirituality” (to use a trigger word) and our ego. In a world where our collective and individual ego has run riot and the ego is nearly always front and center, is it really that surprising we live in an insane world? Contemplation and Reflection It’s only during quiet reflective times (some call this meditation, others deep thought) where we deliberately box off and isolate outside distractions and diversions while also restraining the constant chatter of our inner voice (our ego) can we begin to find, and then reinforce, that dividing line. Most of us believe that the inner voice we “hear” is “us” when in fact it’s most often our ego. This misidentification of who and what we are, along with being manipulated by our own ego and the control system, is in my opinion the primary source of many of our personal and social woes. We’ve been separated for so long from our genuine inner self, our true consciousness, that for many in today’s world being reacquainted is a frightening experience to be avoided at all costs. The control system feeds this fear in order to maintain order and control and we go along because we’ve been told it’s all a part of modern life. The average person flips on the radio or TV as soon as they enter their home or get in their car. It’s all just the back ground noise of the control system and for most people; it’s a shock when it’s gone. At first I thought this accelerating fusion of the ego and our consciousness appeared only to be affecting the younger generation, mostly I assumed because they quickly assimilated the newest entertainment technology. But over the past decade its spread and I’ve noticed in the general population that there’s almost a quiet desperation never to be alone for long with one’s thoughts. I’ve written in depth about “why” in other essays so I won’t dwell on it here. A few years ago, while riding my motorcycle solo along a popular mountain ridge with spectacular views and exhilarating switch backs, I pulled into a rest area for a break. In the back corner of the parking lot was a large group of fellow riders. While their ages varied from what looked like the early 20’s to the late 60’s, everyone was riding two up. Most of the riders had communication devices that allowed them to talk to each other or at a minimum MP3 players plugged into their helmets or ears. Here they were, in the heart of Mother Nature, and still they required distraction and communication within the collective. After exchanging pleasantries and while surrounded by those who came over to look at my bike, one middle aged lady asked me the most remarkable question. She observed I was riding alone and then asked “How can you ride alone? Aren’t you lonely? Don’t you get bored?” I could tell it was a sincere question and she was genuinely perplexed. Immediately the small talk within the group hushed as everyone waited for my response. It kind of surprised me that they would care to hear what I had to say. I soon understood why. Without thinking I quickly said “No, not at all. In fact, I consider myself quite good company. I love riding alone because it gives me time to think. I’m never bored.” The group just stared at this strange man from another world and then quickly broke up and remounted. I remember seeing combinations of surprise, confusion and even fear in people’s faces and eyes. From their point of view they were trying to avoid exactly what I was trying to achieve, communication with the inner sanctum. For many years I’d thought the growing lack of quiet reflection among the general population was just distractions and busy lives, but now I see it as overt avoidance and even fear. People are running from themselves and the control system is encouraging this with its constant “me me” consumer meme. We’re becoming passive beginning with ourselves. It’s All About the Drugs When examining information for the purpose of forming opinions, we often overlook our own unavoidable but correctable confirmation bias. Ironically our confirmation bias gains considerable strength in part from making “correct” choices in our day to day decision making process. Remember that proximity affects our perception and often being correct in the small daily tasks of life seduces us into believing we’re extremely capable in our decision making process. During our waking hours, we make hundreds of small decisions that are immediately confirmed as “correct”, at least in our minds. This, along with other influences, encourages us to believe our analytical process is efficient and nearly foolproof, particularly if we’re already influenced by emotional confirmation bias and ego triggers. We, or more accurately our ego, positively love to be correct. And each time our brilliance is confirmed, even if only in our imagination, our brain floods our body with powerful endorphins such as dopamine, a natural drug that’s dozens of times more powerful and much more subtle than crack or heroin. This biological process has evolved over millions of years and was, and still is to some extent, essential to our survival. But modern society, or should I say society’s control systems, have distorted this natural mechanism. One only need study psychological warfare techniques or even the advertising, entertainment and official (government) and unofficial (corporate news) propaganda industry to see how our own natural biological responses are being used against us on a daily basis. Because we’re totally immersed within our own world, for those who don’t or won’t pay attention, it’s nearly impossible to see these influences for what they are. After a while, few wish to wake from wonderland, especially when it morphs into hell. Biologically speaking if we’re doing something “right” it might be in our best interest to continue to be “right” if we wish to survive a while longer. But we need proper incentive beyond just survival to ensure we replicate the survival behavior. Cue that wonderfully delicious feeling we get when we’re “right” on the money. In fact, that natural high we feel is the dopamine drug rush. It’s only a matter of time before we find a way to induce that high on command. And confirmation bias and denial are sure fire ways to that Rocky Mountain high. (Biased) Junkies Are Us In effect we’ve become evolutionary dopamine junkies, craving the natural high we get when we’re rewarded for being right, even if it’s all in our mind. It’s better than sex, lasts longer and is infinitely repeatable. Jesus, talk about being biased. Does a super high quality drug factory located inside our brains count as biased when we control the dopamine dispenser? Is it any wonder we accept transparent lies from those we love or those who lead? We shouldn’t be surprised when we practice deep denial and self deception in order to keep ourselves drugged with dopamine. Not only are we getting off on the (self) love endorphins (which are also triggered by nationalist or patriotic feelings) but we get the confirmation bias endorphins as well in the ultimate two-for-one drug deal from Mother Nature. No wonder we call her Mother since we suckle on her drugs all the time. It’s amazing we get anything done during the day considering we’re all walking around stoned to the eye balls. What a way to go. This brings to mind old YouTube videos of monkeys or other animals pushing a lever or pecking at a button to solve problems for bits of food or sweets. Or how about those lab rats solving a complicated task for food or a quiet evening of wine and necking with the opposite sex? Does it sound a little like our own rat race? Of course, even as those images flash in our brains, our ego takes over and tells us “But we’re intelligent human beings who possess reason and logic.” Who exactly are we trying to convince with that little ditty? Just take a look around at the utter insanity we’re currently immersed in and tell me again about the human intellect and logic. Ticks run their lives better than we do. They just lack running water and DirecTV. Driving to Denial For a more subtle example of denial, let’s look at my own personal decision making process and the intellectual denial it spawned. While driving to my office I make dozens of decisions that if in error could affect life and limb, particularly mine. Yet I’ve not had an accident in over 16 years and I quite naturally consider myself a good driver. In fact, I’m a great driver. Yet as I’ve aged, I’ve noticed that for some strange reason I drift left and right a bit more and the close calls seem to be occurring with increasing frequency. So despite the fact that I’m an excellent driver and without ever acknowledging otherwise, I’ve compensated for my aging by slowing down, looking more carefully before changing direction and so on. In other words, at some level I’ve recognized the increasing error rate and I’m compensating, even though I consider myself a superior driver. Or maybe I should say I’m compensating despite being an expert driver that ostensibly would have no need to compensate what-so-ever. Like walking through a hall of mirrors, we’re never quite sure exactly what we’re seeing. But this doesn’t slow us down one bit. In fact, when facing a conflict, our ego takes over and just barrels on through, pushing aside uncomfortable cognitive dissonances as immaterial, unimportant or just plain silly with little to no conscious thought involved. Actually, the only reason I’ve slowed down is because it makes sense to be careful, especially considering all the crazy distracted drivers on the road these days. I most certainly didn’t slow down because I needed to change my behavior. It’s them, not me. And even if it were possible that I might have something to do with this, my age has nothing to do with it. At least that’s the cover story I tell myself. The above illustration might seem ridiculous to some and there’s no doubt I used exaggeration to push the point home. But we’ve all been there and to say otherwise isn’t true. Some might even say that at worst all I engaged in was a simple “white lie” or a harmless self deception to make me feel better about getting older. What’s the big deal? Or maybe I was just playing with “semantics” and it’s all of little consequence. But in fact it’s a wide open window into the mechanism of denial and well worth our time to explore precisely because it’s so insidious and seductive. The Slippery Slope Consider that on the physical level I’m compensating for an obvious degradation of my driving skills in order to live a little longer, thus fulfilling my basic survival instincts. Of course I acted this way. Why wouldn’t any sane and prudent person do the same? However, at the same time I’m maintaining the mental and emotional illusion that few driving skills have degraded or been lost. In fact I use the continuing streak of accident free driving, accomplished in great part because I’ve slowed down and I’m more careful, to support the illusion that I’m still an excellent driver. I’m engaging in a self deception in order to soothe and placate an ego I don’t consciously recognize as material. Why am I stroking my ego to begin with? Isn’t it enough just to survive longer? As with all lying and self deception, the key to continuing is to rationalize and justify past deceptions in order to continue in the future. To do this successfully, first we deny there’s a problem (even if we fix it) then we deny we ever denied there was a problem in the first place. Then, in the ultimate intellectual coup, we forget we ever indulged in denial what-so-ever. In the closed loop isolated environment of our mind, we create our own reality along with the proofs needed to affirm that reality. We’re masters of our own universe and we make the rules where we rule. We should recognize that we can still be engaged in denial even if we agree with or recognize some facts or information. It’s how we deal with it that matters, not if we deal with it. We bargain with ourselves all the time to avoid what we don’t wish to see. There’s a great deal of subtlety and subterfuge employed in day to day denial. When juggling reality and fantasy while avoiding the ugly monsters, we determine what’s important and what’s not. So we can play games of all kinds to bury what bothers us. If denial and self deception is present in such a mundane task as driving to work, wouldn’t it be an act of denial itself to claim that denial doesn’t affect our thought process when considering items of much greater importance, such as the end of the economic world as we know it? From a survival point of view, might we need to concede the possibility that we’re not considering all pieces of information at our disposal when coming to conclusions as to what’s going to happen as well as when where and why? Tricks of the Denial Trade One of the tricks we employ when trading in denial is to dismiss (deny) contrary information as quickly as it comes in the front door. This way we rarely experience an uncomfortable cognitive backup that might nag us for attention and create an emotional crisis if left unattended. If one is to self deceive on any scale, out of necessity one must become efficient self deceivers if we’re to live comfortably with ourselves in our insane world. I’ve often thought that the job of the professional therapist is to untangle the dissonant log jams and get them moving towards the saw mill, not to actually deal with the dissonant logs themselves. Or maybe I should say they deal with just enough of them to get things moving again so the patient can happily remount their hamster wheel. After all, in our society, the measure of sanity is how well we’re coping with our insane world, not how “sane” we are. In fact, people who in my opinion are declaring their sanity by unplugging and walking away from financially lucrative but morally or emotionally stressful jobs are considered by society to be crazy. When the only goal offered and rewarded by society is to ascend the ladder of “success”, how else would society treat those who chose to descend that very ladder but with disdain? Society tells us “Here is the only reality that exists, now fit in, shut up and be happy” rather than “Here is the raw material, now go forth and create your own happiness and self worth.” Faced with no real substantial choice other than to fit in and confronted by a society, aka the control system, that shuns and ostracizes those who go against the flow and think and act too far outside the small box, is it really surprising we engage in massive self deception in order to kill the pain and go with the flow? And wouldn’t the control system encourage this self deception in order to keep the hamsters on the wheel? God forbid you think for yourself because left to your own devices, who would remain to fleece investors with another helping of CDO on rye or serve up coffee and cardboard muffins at McSlop’s? To remain emotionally safe and “happy” on the hamster wheel, we increase our denial efficiency by creating mental rules of judgment, sometimes called rules of thumb or the smell test or ideology or simply assumptions. There are dozens of names and terms to describe this process. The beauty of this intellectual shorthand is that we don’t need to participate in the complicated process of outright denial each time. Once we’ve denied something for whatever reason, we give ourselves permission to do the same with every other piece that’s similar or that we wish to believe is similar. And we don’t process denial in big pieces but in tiny little bites. We remove the more easily refutable parts and discard the rest. Then we wall these parts off and isolate them from corroborating evidence and context that would disturb the denial process. We use a form of “a priori” to make sweeping generalizations that key off other denials, half truths and outright lies we keep ready for instant deployment and presto, the problem is gone In the world of denial, all we need is reasonable doubt to deny and we determine what reasonable doubt is. But we demand rock solid proof when defending our denial and any proof offered can always be refuted because we determine what’s valid and what’s not. We can’t lose using these rules of evidence and we never do unless we chose to. In the ultimate twist, we then use these subsequent denials as further proof that our initial denial was correct. Faulty handling and processing of information (aka denial) is used to deny something as incorrect. Then additional denials are used to buttress the initial denial, thus strengthening our resolve to deny similar future information. We come to the denial party with guns load. That my friend is a closed loop circular logic positive reinforcement mind game taken to the nth degree and it’s the staple of basic long term denial. And it all happens in seconds and it’s almost exclusively handled by our ego auto pilot. In Chapter Two, we shall continue down the rabbit hole and see what Alice has to say about “The Crash”. 08/31/2010 Cognitive Dissonance
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Atta boy, CD. What do you think was the main thoughts behind the cancer, and what did you change them to?
I never found a specific thought behind my illness. But one day while thinking about my terrible physical and mental condition, I realized that I was victimizing myself. I was surrendering myself to others. That I was handing over total responsibility for myself to others.
And at that moment I remembered something I discovered many many years before, during a huge snafu with regard to some lost paychecks. After I had gone 5 weeks without a paycheck because of problems multiplied by problems with payroll and supervisors, I suddenly realized that my paycheck (which is a representation of my life, my reality) is never as important to others as it is to me personally. In other words, no one desires or can or will be able to affect my reality as much as I could or would or will or can.
So I made the decision at that very moment to assume total and complete responsibility for my health or lack of heath then and there. That I would no longer sub contract out my best interest to anyone else other than myself. That the buck would stop here. And from that moment on, my mind and how I perceive "reality" began to change. My health soon followed.
Yes, accepting personal responsibility for one's condition is a big idea towards improving it. It's a key to making real change happen. More people need to catch on to this.
I have to say I really appreciate the article CD, as always. I am a mil, so I have much less life experience than most. I often feel like a kindergartner among doctorate candidates here at ZH, although the ego doesn't let that get in the way of spouting off my useless opinions.
(so here it goes..)
I do value any and all reintroduction to 'old' ideas, because many times I am hearing it for the first time. Every unknown word is another deer path for me to follow, which in turn leads me to 100 others. It is so much fun to learn and explore, and I feel that ZH has facilitated that in my life. I've only been on for like 23 weeks or something, but I've recognized a profound change in myself. Thanks again for the article, I'll be looking for part II.
Hey, this is not a useless opinion. This is a testimony of what you *know* about yourself, that it is limited and you want more. You are way ahead of the average person, my friend.
<snide remark>
For someone whose ego is such good company for himself, you really feel this need to explain yourself to the rest of us.
</snide remark>
<sigh>
Unmasked by The Alarmist. There's always the danger when indulging in masturbation that you'll be discovered doing the dirty deed. You have done so to my utter embarrassment.
</sigh>
If you are correct, then what you say applies to everyone who has ever written, spoken, drawn, painted, sculpted and sung anything. Including yourself and that ego of yours that compelled you to write your <snide> remark. The rabbit hole is endless. See you at the end.
nice one CD...
I love it when Psychobabble pretends to be insight.
Then again there are always rubes to be fooled by their perception of artificial depth. Just ask Deepak Chopra.
Pretty good one there, GF. I've read Chopra and found him to be sincere, if misguided in some areas. There is an inconsistency in his work in that a lot of it was done to take advantage of his cachet and ride the wave of popularity. That produced some smarmy crap to be sure. His earlier work is his best. I'd say there is one redeeming value in his writing. Some people who never thought at all at least now have a thought in their head.
"I'd say there is one redeeming value in his writing. Some people who never thought at all at least now have a thought in their head. "
nice one!
:)
What if it doesn't end with a bang OR a whimper, but instead a moonshot?
antidisestablis...
Or a Rim shot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6Q-gR8bW40
Smelling like a brewery,
looking like a tramp
I ain't got a quarter
got a postage stamp
Been five o'clock shadow boxing
all around the town
Talking with the old men
sleeping on the ground
Bazanti bootin
al zootin al hoot
and Al Cohn
sharin this apartment
with a telephone pole
and it's a fish-net stockings
spike-heel shoes
Strip tease, prick tease
car kease blues
and the porno floor show
live nude girls
dreamy and creamy
and the brunette curls
Chesty Morgan and a
Watermelon Rose
raise my rent and take off
all your clothes
with the trench coats
magazines bottle full of rum
she's so good, it make
a dead man cum, with
pasties and a g-string
beer and a shot
Portland through a shot glass
and a Buffalo squeeze
wrinkles and cherry
and twinky and pinky
and FeFe live from Gay Paree
fanfares rim shots
back stage who cares
all this hot burlesque for me
cleavage, cleavage thighs and hips
from the nape of her neck
to the lip stick lips
chopped and channeled
and lowered and louvered
and a cheater slicks
and baby moons
she's hot and ready
and creamy and sugared
and the band is awful
and so are the tunes
crawlin on her belly shakin like jelly
and I'm getting harder than
Chinese algebraziers and cheers
from the compendium here
hey sweet heart they're yellin for more
squashing out your cigarette butts
on the floor
and I like Shelly
you like Jane
what was the girl with the snake skins name
it's an early bird matinee
come back any day
getcha little sompin
that cha can't get at home
getcha little sompin
that cha can't get at home
pasties and a g-string
beer and a shot
Portland through a shot glass
and a Buffalo squeeze
popcorn, front row
higher than a kite
and I'll be back tomorrow night
and I'll be back tomorrow night
On first take, I was certain it was Charles Burkowski; no doubt Waits is influenced by him. A shot of Jameson to all three of you.
I've always enjoyed being alone in moderation because I can turn off that annoying internal conversation and stop thinking for a change. I love it when I wander across the tundra alone. It's humbling. Any shred of self importance will get blown away because out there no one gives a crap about what you think or believe. The polar bear sure doesn't. Separate yourself from the tribe for long and watch how you lose yourself which is quite different than focusing on one's self. When there is no one else to bounce your thoughts off of, no one else to impress, no one else to entertain, no one else to confirm or argue, the mind silences and you disappear.
That was absolutely beautiful!! I feel the same when I backpack, which is why I backpack...
Thanks!!
I enjoyed your post. Cold purifies, sterilizes, and burns every bit as much as fire, so it would seem.
Best article I've read in awhile! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, CD.
CD has picked the lent from his navel and made it into a sweater! Well done. Can't wait for the encore.
When plugging into the background noise of media -all media- we are all subject to the intended propaganda of the artist. I believe it is ok to watch and listen to the propaganda though it is of the utmost importance to scrutinize the desired end state that the artist intends for the recipient of the propaganda. I am only able to absorb a small amount of general media before I go on overload though and have to quit watching/listening. I make great effort to "unprogram" myself to try and be a clean slate in order to facilitate a greater understanding of the propaganda I absorb (we all know complete unprogramming is not possible though). Information is not the correct term by any means, propaganda is. The best I have been able to do is to question everything. When people call me a "conspiracy theorist" I say "are'nt we all conspiracy theorists then? What more is the "truth" than someone else's conspiracy? You have chosen to buy into their conspiracy." If this does not start to wake them up, it certainly seems to be a bit dis-arming. Fight propaganda with propaganda-and get a dopamine burst too.
I went to school
but did not learn the ways of my brothers
but entertained them
with my fear of stupidity and desire for acceptance
Now i have learned the ways of my brothers
are the teachings of god.
But to learn its teachings i cannot go the way of my brothers
but must go my own
trusting life to be my teacher
leading me, guiding me to itself, Here now.
beautiful
What can i say to you
but comment on your act
And, if you listened
another would begin
For who could hear my heart
but another heart
The mind can only hear the words
and try to understand the echo of a truth
harry k /1976
Point is i found the greatest truth of my life in the sublety of a moment . it wasnt obvious, yet always here. Words seem pointless anymore. Most everyone prefers illusion over reality in the spiritual and economic worlds
Thank you Mr. D, for another golden gift.
Everywhere I look it seems that people are alone, praying to their little hand icons while wearing earplugs.
Do they think they are connected to the present moment?
Is the now really that frightening or that boring?
Maybe so for them.
Thank you for the reading and time to reflect.
Expand on that solitude point, CD. Someone who doesn't want to be alone with himself needs to ask why, and then dissect the trivial arguments put forth by the ego, rejecting them steadily until we finally get down to the real nitty gritty. You only have to win one argument with the ego to put it in its place for the rest of your life, and the silence is golden.
In India, when a person reaches 50 or 60 years of age, it's acceptable and expected that they will abandon their life in society and become a hermit/holy man and engage in quiet contemplation.
I would agree with everything you said, but I don't know any better.
Fine article, CD. What strikes me most on a personal level is the role of ego as it interferes with successful trading. Someone mentioned the Uncertainty Principle in connection with the insane quest to be always right. Well, Heisenberg's theory often gets tossed into the metaphysical hopper. But I've got to ask: what has the Uncertainty Principle ever yielded for humanity, apart from a Babel Tower of Ph.D. dissertations, a kind of scientistic bukkake? Is there a cult of the quest for uncertainty? A quest to be always wrong? It's got to be the flip side of the first one. Certain groups benefit - to say the least - from this in spades, so probably yes. But I'm not sure.
Like I said...when you abstract a physics concept into the realm of behavior, it's best done in small, careful doses. What I like about it is not the idea of clinging to some level of uncertainty as a backstop for every stupid decision that I might make, but rather the idea that it's a scientific concept that illustrates the boundaries of our best methodoloy, yet still produces accurate results in experimental settings. A little humility goes a long way...
The Uncertainty brought back sanity to physics first and it is now spreading to sciences in general.
Classical mechanics is based on false, made up premises, that lead to the thought the perfect mathematical models *are* the reality instead of just a model. Perfect sphere in a vacuum? Frictionless surface? Yes, it helped for a while but it was sold as an exact, perfect solution, while being nothing but a bogus claim, setting back progress of human techniques a few centuries. Re-read CogDis article above with this in mind...
I agree. Science, or more accurately the scientific method, is simply a description of our "world". We are told by the control system that science "is" reality, thus it must be believed as not only "real" but the only way "reality" can be viewed. This just isn't the case.
I'm not saying that science doesn't help improve my standard of living and that it doesn't do a good job explaining the surface machinations of our "world". But it is only a description, not the holy grail we are led to believe.
From what you have written, I really don't perceive that you understand the value of the scientific process. It's not so much that science can answer all of our questions, but rather that it provides a more unbiased basis from which to ask them.
I think I do understand the process. And I don't blame "science" so much as some ego driven scientist and a reckless mainstream media that's using "science" to further the control systems goals of a controlled and distracted population.
On the other hand, science by definition is a bias. Any point of view is inherently biased and some things just can't be measured or reproduced by science, at least today's science. Since these things can't be measured, science rates them as zero credibility until it can be measured or reproduced. That is an inherent bias against something it can't see/measure. Science may say it respects the unknown/unmeasurable but in practice it dismisses it out-of-hand.
Science's conclusions are derived from repeatable experiment and the principles of deductive/inductive argument (empirical process). Its universal language is mathematics. If science has any bias at all, it is of the quaecumque vera variety, which sounds like a decent place to start when describing reality.
If you think science is lacking in spirit, I recommend you read "The Dancing Wu Li Masters". While dated, the book may give you a leg up in perceiving that higher physics, the absolute base of all the sciences IMO, is in fact rich with spiritual metaphor and existential irony. And that without negating any of its empirical validity.
"And I don't blame "science" so much as some ego driven scientist and a reckless mainstream media that's using "science" to further the control systems goals of a controlled and distracted population" egs please. 'Cuz that don't sound like 'science' to me.
"Since these things can't be measured, science rates them as zero credibility until it can be measured or reproduced..." again: egs please. Preferably at least one that would illustrate a supposition's credibility without measurement or repeatability.
Regards
+++ Awesome and indeed! I believe a lot of the trouble we find ourselves in now has come from our ardent faith in math and science. I agree that both are tools to help make our world a better place but cannot answer ALL of the questions.
I also believe that part of our problem is pulling away from a, for lack of a better word, "spiritual" connection. Founders knew the spiritual connection was necessary for a fully functioning free society. I think we now try to replace this with legislation, but it is a poor substitute. (And one that leaves people always wanting to game the system)
CD, I think you love Erich Fromm. Kind of "The Insane Society".
The abnormals are the sane.
Great post.
there's also an echo of Alan Watts ringing through the 'ego' discourse - one of my favorite concepts from his "The Book".
if you've ever seen the "Men In Black" movie, there's a scene where a tiny dude is 'driving' the old guy (with the cat) from a cockpit in his face. i'm certain this motif was inspired by AW (CD's) ego imagery.
another great submission/comments (except for Katherine) CD, tnx.
i'm curious where the whole greed vs fear theme comes in with respect to the ego vs the 'shell'
cheers
it's kathleen thank you so much you all are like queer for each other.
"Crazy"
I remember when, I remember, I remember when I lost my mind
There was something so pleasant about that place.
Even your emotions had an echo
In so much space
And when you're out there
Without care,
Yeah, I was out of touch
But it wasn't because I didn't know enough
I just knew too much
Does that make me crazy?
Does that make me crazy?
Does that make me crazy?
Possibly [radio version]
probably [album version]
And I hope that you are having the time of your life
But think twice, that's my only advice
Come on now, who do you, who do you, who do you, who do you think you are,
Ha ha ha bless your soul
You really think you're in control
Well, I think you're crazy
I think you're crazy
I think you're crazy
Just like me
My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on a limb
And all I remember is thinking, I want to be like them
Ever since I was little, ever since I was little it looked like fun
And it's no coincidence I've come
And I can die when I'm done
Maybe I'm crazy
Maybe you're crazy
Maybe we're crazy
Probably
Uh, uh
Thanks CD, thought provoking writing. Perhaps you are a brilliant driver for recognizing and adjusting to changes in reaction times, etc.
I have considered many of Freud's insights (those that I have understood) to be quite amazing, but I have taken to heart his conclusion that we are all basically nuts, living in our little worlds of projections and fantasy. Over years of investing, I've been right and lost money and wrong and made money. Some from luck, some from analysis. When the herd moves you can go with it or get crushed, or slowly work to the edge and then head in your own direction. Understanding the forces that shape and direct the herd's movements is important, for the sake of freedom and more.
A wonderful read. Can't wait for part 2
whoa....there are so many parts of this that resonate...being alone, and...okay with that...but tonight this really struck home:
"In fact, people who in my opinion are declaring their sanity by unplugging and walking away from financially lucrative but morally or emotionally stressful jobs are considered by society to be crazy. When the only goal offered and rewarded by society is to ascend the ladder of “success”, how else would society treat those who chose to descend that very ladder but with disdain? Society tells us “Here is the only reality that exists, now fit in, shut up and be happy” rather than “Here is the raw material, now go forth and create your own happiness and self worth.”"
I guess my everpresent self-doubt, reinforced by peers and parents and siblings (parents and siblings very successful in the current paradigm), always has me questioning my desicions, which, "feel" correct, and may be logically correct given set parameters (assumptions), but I always seem to question (in the end, I do choose to continue along my present path) if what deep inside me I know is "probably" the correct desicion, but I get tired of having to justify/argue/explain it, and self-doubt creeps in, maybe it would be easier to "play along" (though I know it IS a game, and not real).
My walking away and discarding that "life" threatens/discredits their own egos' decisions, in some cases, their whole life (e.g., my parents especially, given their generation (the "Silent"). Always they try to reel me back in, to make themselves feel better, disregarding my "peace" with my desicions.
Those are my 1st read triggers, will read again tomorrow and see what bubbles up from within...
Damn CogDis, always a great read and self-examination....:)
Love it, just what I needed tonight with the obligatory family contacts this coming weekend...no sarcasm intended at all.
Can't wait for ch.2...:)
After a while, if you are successful, you will stop feeling the need to explain yourself. Not knowing your age, I'll assume that you are under 40. It is now interesting to have people criticize my decisions and simply look at them quizzically. Makes them wonder about their own decisions. Get the hang of that and you'll be on the road to personal tranquility.
I'm in the mid-forties. I am getting very close to the point of not needing to explain myself, especially with peers/outside world. My weak spot is still the family.
Ah! Family. The bastards. They push your buttons so well because they installed them.
Break free! Tell 'em to eff off.... now.
hahaha! Yup, they installed some good ones. i will try the quizzical look technique of yours, or when asked "why would you?", reply "why wouldn't I..."
:)
No! Don't ask them anything! You're asking only for trouble. They know just what to tell you to whip you back into submission. Let 'em wonder.
If you really want to get your mind
blown, check out "The Ego Tunnel"
by Thomas Metzinger.
Thanks CD
Great, great, great stuff. Thank you sir!
Thanks for another "hit" CD! And (if it exists), can you please post a link that will take me (or us) to previous articles that you have written? Thanks,
SB