Odysseus

I'm ashamed for Europe and the western world too. They should stop the turkish offensive. But sadly they won't.

I always wonder how it's even possible that Trump is president in the first place. When I read his vita I was baffled. He's a toxic pathological liar who stands for nothing but profit and power. His methods are shady since he started working for his father. He's a narcissistic opportunist. Everything he does is about him. All he wants is to gain money, fame and power. In this way he's a perfect representative of our individualistic culture. Do people who vote for him think that he's a successful person and his way of life desirable? I probably don't get the whole picture why people want him in office. Can someone help me out?

@EternalForest Reading your statement I immediately thought of Warhol's pop-art Marilyn Diptych. Is it linked to American culture? Yes, obviously it depicts Marilyn Monroe, one of the major American pop-icons of our time. It's painted and massively reproduced by Warhol (and others) and I guess, probably a huge number of people around the globe have stumbled upon some of his work at least once. If I would call my (german) parents now they could probably tell me something about movies with Marilyn Monroe and the Warhol coffee mugs they bought in the past. I would argue it's globalized art. Regardless of the setting (Hollywood of the 50/60's, upcoming religion around celebrities, mass media etc.) and the (arguably) aesthetically pleasing appearance of the diptych it has a variety of meanings IMO. If I look at it and try to blend out the context I know about Monroe's life, I always wonder about her facial expression. Her gaze is seductive and tired at the same time, her mouth is something between snarling and smiling. Although images of Monroe were everywhere, she wasn't graspable through the images. She is an American pop-icon, but the diptych isn't bond to tell an American story. It can tell a variety of stories about beauty, confidence, vulnerability or just being human. What I want to ask is, what makes art homogenized in your opinion? It's appeal to everyone? I guess pop-art e.g. appeals to a lot of people. Is it bad or empty? I don't think so. I think especially the art that touches you in your core of being, art that needs no context and no history, is the 'best' art. If we perceive an object all cultural boundaries attached to it break down as soon as we realize its interconnectedness to our very existence. Therefore we have to learn to see (again?) :-)

@Ibn Sina No, like I said, I don't know the answers to these questions. And like I said, I don't know the implications of 'being enlightened'. I just asked for your opinion and I still do.

@Ibn Sina These aren't statements or answers but questions. You didn't answer.

Thinking about what an enlightened person would do won't help us in anyway. More so, it would add more sand to our conceptual sandcastle of what enlightenment is. But I'm curious for your attempt. I don't think you understand my questions. I repeated common concepts that are told by teachers - e.g. the expierience of oneness realized through enlightenment - and applied their message (how I understand it) to your example of the enlightened stock broker. I don't say enlightened people wouldn't become stock brokers. I don't know that. I don't know what the adjective 'enlightened' contains. I know guys like Sadhguru, Tolle, Adya etc. who talk about it and guys from the history books whose actions and thoughts are written down. If there was an egyptian fishermen who was enlightened but just kept fishing, I probably won't know about him. So I can't say if there is a trend for enlightened people to teach. I don't know.

@Ibn Sina First Jesus was a carpenter then he became a healer, public speaker and politician. But I'm curious now, why would an enlightened person trade stocks? Doesn't enlightenment come with the responsibility to raise the overall consciousness? Don't you realize that you're not seperated from anything else, so trading stocks would hurt yourself, because the stock market is build on speculation and exploitation, a game where more people lose than win? I'm stoked to participate in this mental masturbation session But realize that this concepts of what enlightenment is, how an enlightened person acts etc. are traps.

The dissatisfaction with the existential meaninglessness of her life(style), expierienced through suffering will activate her. Your judging, shoulds and formulars of 'how to be better' (whatever that means) won't change anything. Let her be, be a rolemodel and help her if she asks you for help.

@flowboy I think the discussion isn't a complete waste of time. What we can talk about here is if there is a link between spirituality and veganism. I think if there is the possibility to expierience/realize oneness, veganism might be a consequence of the realization of this interconnectedness. But you're right, the starting point of this thread is based on wrong assumptions.

@Yog Your comparison lacks nuance. Hitler burned books that represented modern thought. Books that pleaded for open-mindedness, against race theory, against oppression, for humanity and so on (like works of Thomas Mann, Sigmund Freud etc.). Hitler tried to stop progression. Here we're talking about idiologies that advocate regressive and oppressive solutions to modern problems. That doesn't mean one should silence or censor them though.

There is no incongruence as long as you avoid the cultural traps of toxic PUA content (objectifying women, manipulation etc.). Do conscious pick-up. I think it's authentic to you to pursue it. You'll learn much about yourself and others.

I think you should get professional help to learn dealing with your obsessive thought patterns. Right now can start with Leo's video 'How to stop caring...'.

@MsNobody thanks for the memes Thats the same logic many trump supporters work with

Seligman wants to make the point that you shouldn't cling to the past too much, so you don't get attached to a blame-game about past traumatic events. Therefore he interprets studies in his biased direction, away from common sense IMO. The problem is that the studies are shit. How do you masure happiness, success, personality etc. Studies in both directions exist. Finally we have to see this on a collective and individual level. Individually it can be helpful to let go of your past, to see your past as something that isn't important in the moment/anymore. Genes determine my personality anyway, so why digging for childhood traumas? Collectivley Seligman's implications aren't helpful at all IMO. Biological factors are more crucial than social, is how I interpret his words. How your parents raise you, well not that important. The belief in this biological determinism can cause huge damage on a collective level IMO. As someone who gained very much self-awareness through looking into my past, I won't take Seligman's half-assed interpretations of studies seriously. I rather follow Gabor Mate's work, because it overlaps with my expierience. Mate also provides lots of studies which backup his claims. I think what one can take away about this topic is that it's important learn to accept their past and not to fall into the trap of blame-game.

Blaming her for being too dominant sounds not right to me. You started this relationship, as far as I read, without ANY boundaries. You accepted anything just to get her. You're at least as much responsible for the dynamics in your relationships as the other person is. Start establishing boundaries, then a healthier relationship will be around the corner.