sholomar

The body's alkalinity is maintained through breathing and carbon dioxide levels in the body. Diet has little to nothing to do with it. I would say follow a balanced diet that isn't extreme and doesn't make you overthink or fuel your ego too much thinking you must overly micromanage your diet which isn't really necessary, and use common sense. There's no one size fits all diet...everyone's body prefers slightly different food groups. I'd say a Mediterranean diet is probably best. The single most important things to do for a healthy body are address stress levels, toxic thinking, and lose weight if you are overweight. Also, coffee is generally good for you, so no need to give it up. Get a V60, burr grinder, a gooseneck kettle, scale, and learn what excellent freshly ground coffee tastes like.

I never used skin products or even washed my face with soap until I discovered retinoids (tretinoin) ... I would argue less is more when it comes to skin care. Just use sunblock and don't go out of your way to tan or burn your face with UV rays. If you don't have any major problems like acne or dry skin, don't introduce genetic cleaners or moisturizers you don't really need. If you must, retinoids combined with a basic moisturizer are by far the most effective.

I wouldn't eat highly processed, charcoal grilled, or heavily smoked meats on a daily basis. I would argue eating beef once a week is perfectly healthy. The main damage from meats come from how they are cooked combined with what they are eaten with. Lots of carbs and fat in the same meal can cause problems long term. Basically use common sense. Everyone reacts optimally to different diets based on genetics and blood type.

Bar none the best thing for facial skin is a combination of tretinoin, moisturizer such as cerave, and a sunscreen in the summer months such as P20 kids cream. You can order genetic tretinoin pretty cheap from online pharmacies. For best value get the .05% or .1% and dilute it with cerave when applying. You don't want to start out with .1% undiluted. Do your DD. You apply once every 2-3 days before bed at first and don't overdo it. You build up gradually over time. See reddit's skincareaddiction subreddit for more details or google. Basically we're talking about retinoids here. Apply sunblock to your face, for life. Tanning and burning age skin more than any other activity. It might make you look good when young but you will suffer the affects of increasing aging as you get older. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trucker-accumulates-skin-damage-on-left-side-of-his-face-after-28-years-on-the-road/

The main cause of inflation globally is the excessive quantitative easing and subsequent issuance of debt by major governments during the covid pandemic. Basically we temporarily shut down parts of society and paid people to not work. Quantitative easing is where central banks buy government debt to artificially lower interest rates by sucking up excess supply of government bonds. It really only became a thing after 2008 as a way to manage the economy, also known as "modern monetary theory." https://www.yardeni.com/pub/peacockfedecbassets.pdf Combine this with the fact that supply chains were disrupted during the pandemic, and still are thanks to Xi's "covid zero" policy, and it means more money chasing less goods. Any form of shortages such as chip shortages or real estate shortages can drastically drive up prices since in many cases even slight shortages can create major spikes due to supply in-elasticity. The supply chain is quite fragile and even a slight disruption in certain inputs can cause production to cease. More money chases fewer goods, basically. If everyone got wage raises to $20/hour they'd all ratchet up their spending and you'd see inflation in everything. Most people live paycheck to paycheck and spend up to their incomes. I buck the trend here preferring to work less and live a more minimalist life.

I voted republican because I see the democrats having too much power over the institutions that has made them potentially dangerous when combined with their lock step collectivist mentality where none of them are willing to question their own. I see some of their policy choices as quite questionable, from unchecked immigration to minor gender transitioning to lax on crime policies. That said, I congratulate them for their holding their own this election. I'm not particularly emotionally invested in any of the political parties or candidates. I prefer gridlock so little gets done, and I'm fine with everything being so split neither side can accomplish much of anything at the national level. Human nature and our genetic makeup means that this sort of political polarization is likely to be around awhile. We are likely to see more wars, countries rise and fall, new generations want to experiment with new ways of doing things, while the older generations reminisce about the past and resist change, and we will continue to go through growing pains as a species. Same crap, different generation. 20 years flies by, and before you know it a new generation of youngins is taking over society. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, keep positive, and lead by example.

For me conservatism's best points are encouraging people to be responsible and self sufficient. In general, it promotes hard work, delaying gratification, and pursuing eudimonic endeavors. It encourages having a good attitude, not being a victim, developing skills to excel, being fiscally responsible, not overdoing it on drugs or committing crimes, and punishing offenders properly for crimes so they learn their lesson. When I see lefties I tend to see the "reddit" lefties, the types who frequent subreddits like "antiwork" ... they think that a society that pays people to not work and ensures they have a basic comfortable life without having to contribute would actually work, when it would not. They are pining, depressed, always trying to change things "out there" to fix their lives when the real work occurs internally and mentally. Giving these people handouts won't help them grow. They need to be educated, guided, mentored... Things I like about the left... being environmentally responsible, wanting basic universal healthcare, promoting equality and non-discrimination. In general I support abortion rights and I'm mixed on the war on drugs... drug use destroys cultures. It just does. However, I tend to not want to take away people's rights either. There's a lot to respect in both political parties.. though the republicans would be a better party of they were more fiscally conservative and socially moderate. I don't understand their abortion obsession. I mean I do, but it's an issue they need to drop. The average republican voter doesn't care if abortion is banned or not. I personally don't care what people do with their bodies once they hit 18.

There's no easy fix to eliminate the cravings... you just need to sit there and let them be, without acting on them. Present moment awareness really helps with any craving or sensation.

What are they going to do that is so bad?

I finally listened to part 1 today and I have to say I agree with 95+% of what he said. He's definitely a tier 2 thinker. Props to making this video. I understand where he is coming from much better now. I would argue it's not his job to try to win over any particular audience. If you find yourself offended at what he has to say, maybe ask yourself why that is.... for what it's worth a lot of what might be dubbed as "spiritual masters" have had this abrasive approach. It's about breaking down ego barriers... I mean if you really get triggered that easily by someone's words... the path to mastery is not one of being coddled and told what you want to hear.

When does politics turn into a religion? When are one's beliefs so strong that one feels the need to go to war over them? To oppress the opposition for them? Kill for them? Seems to me religion does the same thing politics does, tries to control the populace while making them think they are free. They do the best job they can managing our evolutionary nature, depending on who happens to be running things at any given time. Someone has to be in charge. Our species wouldn't do well with no dominance hierarchy. That's why Gods were created in the first place. Religions themselves are only as good as the people running them. They have lofty ideals, that humans can't quite meet.

https://nypost.com/2022/04/29/elon-musks-right-the-left-has-gone-insane/ People get stuck in their echo chambers. I make it a point to actively listen to both sides, and I can tell you, the right is not so evil as the left makes them out to be. Most people are fairly moderate, just trying to pick from the lessor of two evils at the polling booth, and the democrats aren't making it very easy right now. It doesn't bother me. People are entitled to their beliefs. In the end it's just ego anyways. People with strong emotional positions either way are ego dominated, left or right. I've come to see that as I've had these increasing levels of peace of mind lately. I love the sense of liberation that comes with doing this deprogramming process. "Most people in this country don’t intensely hate anyone who mildly disagrees with them. We generally don’t demand ideological fealty as a prerequisite for friendship (or simple co-existence). We tend to care about the same things: jobs, safety and our kids. And we do believe in equality and forbearance. As Musk tweeted Friday: “The far left hates everyone, themselves included!” He followed up with “But I’m no fan of the far right either. Let’s have less hate and more love.”

I have yet to watch the video but my answer as to why the left has become dangerous comes down to this... they have so much power over our institutions, particularly the mainstream media and college campuses. Any group in power is apt to become dangerous if they amass too much power. It doesn't matter who they are. A good government has checks and balances to protect us from our own nature, our herd mentality, however that doesn't protect many of our institutions. Cancel culture, suppression of speech, ostracization of those with differing viewpoints, along with an inability to admit one is wrong, are all part of it. As a centrist, I don't see the right as demonic. I think they are seen as demonic from the perspective of the leftist echo chamber that spoon-feeds democrats these narratives. The same echo chamber feeds the right wing conspiracy theories. I think many of these people need to spend less time on forums (including myself haha) and turn off social media. What we should do... both sides make a list of what the other thinks goes too far and list it, like Leo said below, and then compare. For me the big one is gender changes in adolescents. Similarly to how we have laws about drinking age and consensual sex, I think it's irresponsible to do chemical castration and other surgeries on people who are barely out of puberty, or encouraging them from birth to be something other than what science would call their birth sex/gender. To me that's grooming, and I think there's a lot of money to be made by hospital administrators from these procedures. Kids go through phases throughout their youth where they don't know what they want and go with what's trendy, and it's dangerous to say just go change your gender, at 11 years old. Another one... unchecked immigration. The right are not radical racist nationalists, at least the ones I know. They believe in letting in the best and brightest who they know will better our society, letting in people who prove they can work, who prove they have no criminal record, as opposed to letting in anyone with a pulse. There's only so much aid you can give to people before you start to get housing shortages and other problems. Most of these Nordic nations are being forced to take in immigrants by the globalists also. I don't even see immigration as a left/right issue. There are plenty of more "left" leaning nations that have strict immigration policy. There are capitalists that want any immigration for cheap labor also. Make them legal citizens, you have to pay them more money, and not off the table. Too much what is basically slave labor goes into making lots of the items we take for granted. On the other hand, you can't save everyone. I believe in teaching people to fish, not giving them fish, and letting in people who can contribute to society, not be a burden or parasite on it. I know plenty of whites I would consider "welfare parasites" and immigrants often work far harder than their American counterparts since they are used to less, so it's not like I'm racist on this issue. On the other hand, I will acknowledge the wages suck compared to the cost of living and real estate prices these days. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/11/business/sweden-economy-immigration.html Another... this lax enforcement of crime, eliminating cash bail, and in general not enforcing laws. This is pure pavlonian conditioning here. If you don't put people in jail for less serious crimes, it encourages more serious crimes to occur, and more people to commit them. There are epidemics of high speed chases, car thefts ("kia boys") and increases in crime because liberal prosecutors and police chiefs don't want to enforce laws, largely in blue cities. Felons caught with firearms and people on probation aren't even losing their probation when they commit new crimes, and court cases are backlogged for 2-3 years also. Juveniles also never seem to be punished at all unless they murder someone. The increase in cancel culture... the left used to be the party that believed in free speech over all, but they've turned into the party where if you say the wrong thing, you can get expelled from college, fired or worse. I'm not saying people should go around saying the N word everywhere they go, but simple scientific statements like "there are two genders" should not get you the kind of backlash it now does.... or wearing a "white lives matter" or "all lives matter" t-shirt. The worst thing I ever see the left being called by the right are "Let's go Brandon" signs... whereas I see the left calling the right nazis, bigots, etc on a daily basis. To me the left seem like bullies. One area I really dislike what both parties are doing... we should be banning sale of R1 residential real estate to investors or people who don't "owner occupy" the homes. This notion that corporations and investors bought 1/4 of all homes the last year... this is going to lead to massive problems going forward, and neither party will do anything about it. There is a wealth disparity that is growing, and it's going to become a huge problem. There is a small group of people who have huge amounts of liquidity in society and their share continues to increase dramatically. There's no easy fixes, only hard choices. In my case, acceptance of what is would be the best option.. there's some things that are simply outside my control... it is what it is. There are other things I could criticize the right (and left) about, but my post is long enough. I apologize if I hit and run. I tend to do that or I'd be on the internet all day. I tend to be a habitual post editor and when I'm finally done with my 10 edits and long drawn out diatribes, I'm ready to shut the computer off.

Finding that woman that I just click with, one who is introverted, deep, esoteric, not absorbed into pop culture, or worldly drama. That's my ego talking though. In reality, my life is perfect as it is... I know what I have to do, it's just a matter of doing it. It helps that everything else in my life is in order... I don't want for money, health, etc, so that frees extra time and resources to focus on other aspects of self development.

Some health problems will never go away no matter how much "wishful thinking" you have. It's just part of incarnating into this universe, on this planet, as this species. The rules that govern it make life challenging. At best you can try to cultivate your parasympathetic to heal the body through present moment awareness and cultivation of love, gratitude, and appreciation, but in some cases there's only so much good that will do. A type 1 diabetic won't wishful think a cure to their genetic condition, as an example. Same thing with any number of other congenial conditions. My bicuspid aortic valve won't fix itself. Leo's Thyroid issues won't magically disappear. Yes I still subscribe to my "science" frame. Sometimes it comes in handy. I'm trying to become more meta, though. Old habits die hard, that's the big thing. My ego loves it's candy.

I was watching Leo's video on Infinity of Gods, I believe that's the one where he gets around to talking about life being a game to challenge us? What he was saying reminded me of speedrunners who get really good at mastering a single game, such as this guy who can do 120 stars in Super Mario 64 blindfolded. On the one hand you can use quieting the mind and present moment awareness to increase one's sense of awakening, on the other hand intellectual mastery can produce similar results. Use the ego to transcend the ego? I think of master pianists and guitar players, or anyone who is master in their field or line of work. It would be interesting to take brain scans of people who are masters at something versus the general population. That part in the matrix where Leo is amazed at how his brain just got injected with all this information instantly. I often wondered what it would be like if we could evolve to a state where we could do that, bypassing traditional limitations of learning.

Heavy metals really aren't as big a thing as is made out to be unless you eat a ton of fish. I would be careful not to get caught up playing "Doctor Google" like I did and spending too much time in health forums. Most people's chronic health problems are actually stress related. I know mine were. I manifested all sorts of phantom symptoms caused by stress. Gastroparesis caused by stress. GERD. Phantom heart attack symptoms. Headaches and migraines. If you are young you probably don't need any bloodwork done for any particular items, especially if you are not overweight. If you are older, you can test kidney and liver function, check your cholesterol, check your A1C levels for signs of pre-diabetes, thyroid function, and check your bloodwork for signs of anemia.

That would be protein powder, whether it's whey or plant based. I have a costco membership specifically to get the Orgain Plant Based protein as it's the only protein I enjoy mixed only with water. Compared to the price of a typical item at work from the vending machines, paying $1.25 for a delicious nice sized protein drink isn't bad. Whey protein is easily digested by most people also. I'll mix it into oatmeal or berry smoothies with ground flaxseed and other items.

I find the American left, not necessarily the ones abroad, are rather low consciousness. When I watched Leo's video on socialization making you stupid, the first thing that came to mind are the left, because they are collectivists and too much trust so called "experts" to tell them what to think rather than coming to their own conclusions. They tend to go along with whatever their leadership tells them to think. I don't even think they are necessarily much higher in consciousness than the right. I see way too much identity politics and division promoted among them. Why the need to divide people up into a million different groups and tell some of them they are victims and get them fired up? Why all the reverse racism of punishing whites and asians for being "too successful?" I see both the extreme left and extreme right as being low consciousness. The only people approaching sane are moderates. Go on reddit and look at the typical leftists there. They are like whiny children. I really wish the left would improve and grow past this stage, for the good of society... this victimhood, hating the haters type of mentality. This undeserved sense of moral superiority they have. They need to be more tolerant, to lead by example. They act like their cult political party is the answer to all of the world's problems. They act like they are never wrong. Hopefully with time we can evolve. In the meantime I basically have to flip a coin at the polling booth when I go and vote... I can't stomach either political party. All I know is that I'm voting yes in 27 to legalize marijuana, and yes on medicaid expansion (South Dakota)

I would legalize prostitution and encourage the setup of regulated places to rent women for sex that are tested to be clean. It would really help the problem of thirsty incels in society or socially awkward people who can't get their biological cravings met. I think this is going to be a growing problem going forward, I really do, as men are becoming more feminine in their demeanor and women's biology still craves the dominant male. More and more men are being simply left out of the loop, and it's going to cause problems. It's just a matter of time. I believe it contributes to the labor shortages we are seeing. If a man doesn't have a family to work for, what's the point of working? For many of them there is no point. Of course the piss pour wages relative to the price of housing would be the other major component. Porn can lead to unrealistic expectations in relationships, but so do Hollywood movies. Content in general I believe is poisoning people's minds. We are a generation of dopamine addicts, always looking for our next fix. How many hours does the average person spend on a screen these days? I've found that to be toxic. I so enjoy my time I sit in present moment meditating, it makes me want to buy a cabin in Northern Wisconsin and live the simple life sitting in the back yard, or along the beach, just being... this hamster wheel chase for more and more "things" or even more and more "experiences" ... eventually it just becomes taxing...

I think there's going to be a major problem funding social programs in all western nations in the future. We have low birth rates, high levels of aging population, and labor shortages in the medical field basically everywhere. It's going to take major inflation and central bank QE to fund all these social programs and has been seen post pandemic, wages don't keep up with the inflation squeezing the working class majorly. If you continue to spend more money than you produce, you will keep having inflation. Central bank quantitative easing has been the new magic trick post 2008 to keep the system solvent and liquid. Central banks control interest rates and buy surplus government bonds in all major countries now. It's the new normal... basically a form of debt monetization, as these bonds will never be wound down or paid off. We also have a housing affordability problem. Too many investors buying homes like stocks, and renting them out or turning them into AirBNBs. The good old days of baby boomers being able to pay 2.5X their annual income for a home are gone, and probably not coming back. A good start would be to have a higher top end income tax... we survived for 75 years in the early part of the 20th century with a top tax bracket of well over 50% and this nation did just fine. CEO pay is now at 400 times the amount of the typical worker, a new record. I also believe people should be banned form owning more than 3 homes, and that corporations should not be allowed to own single family residential real estate, nor should non US citizens. That said, aren't taxes in Europe more regressive than progressive? Does it vary by country? If I was president I'd peg the capital gains tax rate to the income tax rate, meaning no discounts on long term capital gains or dividends. I'd also lower the 22% tax bracket to 18%, raise the 35% bracket to 38%, the 35% bracket to 42%, and create a 50% tax bracket for all income over $2 million, and a 65% tax bracket on income over $5 million. I'd eliminate itemizing. Business deductions create too many opportunities to abuse the system. People want to brag about writing off their new boat as a business expense? Eliminate that loophole. It's also way too easy to use LLCs, trusts, and other vehicles to shield and hide assets. I'd largely eliminate these loopholes.

I see this forum isn't immune to long videos posted in threads that have no synopsis and give you no clue as to their subject matter in the topic or post. Here's a couple of good ones. The Changing World Order... talks about looking at the past to predict the future, that the things that surprised the author the most are things that did not happen during his lifetime, and that by looking at history, you can predict the future. He basically predicts the fall of the US Empire as the global superpower and the rise of China. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xguam0TKMw8 and The Century of the Self ... a great BBC documentary on how the masses are manipulated by the people in charge, focusing on the early 20th century.

Becoming Supernatural is literally a how-to guide of how to both reprogram your ego and transcend it for the science minded person. It talks about the why of our behaviors using brain chemistry and brainwaves and how to reprogram the ego using a combination of getting into the present moment combined with visualization. I find it incredibly useful, just like The Power of Now. When I read about the author's enlightenment experience in his "Becoming Supernatural" book it reminded me of Leo's newer videos on the topic such as "An Advanced Explanation of God Realization" where he talks about multiple levels of enlightenment that can literally go to an infinite level. Just like Leo, the author said his enlightenment became so strong it was almost painful... he described it as "electric." It's often said that you need to build up your lower needs on Maslov's hierarchy before trying to achieve enlightenment, which means basic ego needs and ego reprogramming. Though it's possible to achieve enlightenment through ego death during a "dark night of the soul" experience, it's often spontaneous and won't occur if you try to force it. If you'd rather not hit rock bottom, reprogramming the ego with positive habits, emotions, etc. is what this book covers. Meditation combined with creative visualization and mental rehearsal. It's necessary to free up all that energy that is used on "past, future" baggage in order to achieve that creative flow state where change is possible. Activity plus repetition equals habit. A lot of people are stuck in their thought/emotional addictive loops, and this is the easiest way to break those and reprogram. I was going to make my own thread, but I searched for one I could bump.

Seems to me believing in soul mates could turn into infatuation, unhealthy obsession, or a co-dependent situation that is not healthy. The brain tends to get addicted to it's own thoughts and emotional states and pining over a person can literally turn into an addiction, particularly crushes and fantasies.

I guess I enjoy being a contrarian and getting a person to open up their minds and think about another person's perspective rather than getting stuck in their own echo chamber. It doesn't matter what cult they subscribe to. It's good to have an open mind. I chuckle sometimes at the smug self-righteousness of the modern left. It reminds me of the religious right of 40 years ago who always thought they had the moral high ground on everything. They are so convinced they are right on everything and they want you to be assimilated into their collective. I find in the United States both political parties rather low-consciousness.