Arthur

Yes, that is how I feel sometimes. Nothing really changes but the perspective. Yet that change is extremely significant. Like realizing you are adopted, that your life was a lie, that you don't really know who you are, that you are in a dream. It feels just as significant as witnessing a supernatural phenomenon in real life. Like seeing a superman flying by in real life. Sometimes I laugh and talk to myself like a crazy person. When I start to inquire deep into my own self, my body starts to tremble. My mind immediately goes - "Wow.. what are you doing? this is way too deep... this is impossible... You are not supposed to know this... Everything is ok, let's go do something else". I have mixed feeling about those insights. A dissociative state of awe and shock is probably close to defining it. I can't really describe it in positive or negative terms.

That's a phenomenon I see happening more and more in modern societies. I might be sidelined here, but will try to look at it from a bigger perspective. The way I see it, there a cultural need to go to study at a university. Pressure from society and family pushes us to go pursue "higher" education. It almost became a phase in life where you go spend a couple of years in college, then go out to find employment. The problem is, when you go to college just out of going to college, you don't really think twice about your actual career path. You end up taking whatever program they offer, which results in a non-practical education. I'm not advocating against college education. I think it is wonderful, it opens up new perspectives and expands personal points of view. The difference is that you have to decide on a practical career path first, and only then (if you need to) pursue a university degree. This decision needs to be solid, you have to go out there and become familiar with the field of your choice first. For example, get an entry-level position related to finance and management, before getting an MBA. Getting a degree just to put on your resume is really a waste of resources. What I discovered more and more by entering the workforce, is that practical skills and experience outway education every time. You have to decide on how you want to provide value in society. This decision has to be extremely practical. Just picking "economics and finance" is very general and broad. You have to be very specific, for example, I will do book-keeping, I will consult companies with their taxes, I will work with people in Human Resouces. What I'm trying to say is practical value first, education and salary second. I won't even go to much into starting a business. Here again, I see the same problem. People think about starting a business just because they think it's cool (for financial freedom etc.) and they do NOT think about the value their business is going to provide. When the idea and hype of a business become primary, while the value secondary... you can imagine what type of business it will produce. My practical advice, if it's only a matter of a couple of months, go on and finish the MBA to not upset your parents. But in the long-term, start imagining yourself producing something tangible in society. Not thinking about some business idea, but acquiring a useful skill first. And maybe then, after a decade of practical experience, you can build a business based of your profession.

After my breakthrough I didn't touch it for two weeks. Now i'm more tolerant to it (i mean how often can you die?). 5-MeO have transformed my life beyond any way I can describe. It feels like physical changes in the brain. Thats the only way i can explain my shift in perspective after I started using it. I will probably document my process and post at some point. For now, i have my time with God through 5-meo. It's totally worth getting, no matter the lengths you have to go to.

@zambize I'm in Canada. 5-meo is not as easy to get even here. I found most of the labs our of stock. it's still a scheduled 3 substance. I got really lucky and found it fairly easily. Sorry I can't really help with getting it in the US.

You can't really develop addiction to pschycodelics. Unless it's a general unhealthy addiction to personal development, which can happen. You can always tell an addiction if the need to use the substance comes as a quick spontaneous urge, like an itch you need to scratch. Also, you feel that you are pushing yourself to use them forcefully, than you have that unhealthy neurotic personal development goal. I'd say one a month is fine for start. When you get use to pschycodelic trips and insights you can try every two weeks. I'm at a period where i'm using 5-meo almost every week.

Yes I did, they were excellent. I'm not very familiar with Peterson's work. I've actually got my first exposure to JP on this forum. So I really loved the way this podcast summarizes the bulk of JP's values and philosophy. He is a very interesting person. As mentioned in the podcast, he exhibits traits from all of the top tier 1 category. Although the core of his values seems very Blueish. How ironical that he is from Canada, one of the most liberal countries.

If people are wondering what's under the hood of AI, here is the best non-technical explanation I found:

The topic of AI is very interesting. I believe we will definitely see some form of, what we would call "Artificial Intelligence". When it arises, it will be no longer in any way distinct from humans. If a system expresses consciousness, how is it different from a human being? Regardless of the underlining material, if there is an expression consciousness, that's the only real thing. Even if we look strictly and a composition an Electronic and a human brain, both communicate through low voltage signals and both made out of atoms. With that said, we are very very far from the existence of such systems (thousands of years far). The current tech-hype has over exaggerated AI. Fundamentally, AI is built upon Neural Network technology which is based on math from the '70s. Modern AI is only one step past the traditional linear approach. It is learning mechanically, through iteration of problem-solution combinations. You have to feed an AI model billion of answers in order for it to predict one small step. AI is not able to apply intelligence in its own learning process. I don't think we are even remotely close to AI exhibiting complex facets such as intelligence, love, creativity, self-awareness etc. For such a system to be made, first our foundation of computing has to change fist. I just don't see even the largest computers in a datacenter facilitate an emergence of such a complex system. Maybe once humanity mastered quantum computing, we will start to see the first resemblance. Or maybe we will see a merger electronics with biology to create a biological machine. Actually, I think genetic-engineering if much more prominent and relevant topic of discussion than AI. Gene modification can already be done today on many species and not been performed on human only from ethical reasons. I see a scenario depicted in the movie Blade Runner unfolding much quicker than self-aware electronic machines.

Great podcast, thanks for sharing!

As I am going through the process of immigration, I started having various thoughts on this topic. It's interesting to observe the process of immigration, of which most residents aren't aware. Basically, there are hundred thousand people who want to relocate to Canada, U.S. or Australia. However, policymakers aren't fools, they don't just open their borders to anybody. They either pick people based on their occupation and the country's needs. Or they select the "cream of the crop" to immigrate, which means, the most educations people with strong professional skills (Engineers, Doctors, Researcher etc.). Interestingly, the intelligent people themselves prefer to live in a higher consciousness society ( Relatively speaking ). SD stage Orange or Green individual provided the opportunity will go to great lengths to escape his or her stage Red or Blue environment. So what's the problem? everybody wants what's best for themselves. Well, it's sort of a catch 22. What ends up happening is that we have few countries that are centered higher up the spiral, while others can be two or even three stages below. This immigration tendency further perpetuates this gap and delays the development of some countries. Image if some of the great philosophers, scientists and engineers put their efforts into raising awareness of their local communities. I am well aware of my own hypocrisy with regards to this situation. I am not a great intellectual of course. But, I do feel that following Actualized.org opened my mind beyond the bulk of the people from the country I was born. If I was to stay, maybe I could have some minor contributions to the awakening of others? But then I wouldn't evolve further myself... How do you reconcile the desire of developed people to leave their community to pursue their own growth, with the need the global awareness and evolution?

Wow... I haven't studied Adam Smith, but this is a profoundly Orange statement. It really goes to the core of our capitalist society. He was definitely a wise man and ahead of its time. He probably had an excellent understanding of what drives his fellow countryman. He is right, by caring for your own interest, U.S. became a super-power while Socialism crumbles. With that being said, people's psyche slowly starts to expand and include others more and more. By going full into selfishness and excesses of individuality, people starting to wake up to "the community" and the "others". I'm mainly describing SD stage Green. From that stage and beyond, people transcend (to some extent) their personal interest and are able to act from a higher source of motivation (Maslow's hierarchy). So in the future, maybe it will be true that "from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner". (we are talking hundreds of years from now, not with our current systems).

Just finished re-watching the movie - American History X (1998). If you haven't watched it yet, or need a refresher, I highly recommend this movie. If you've never seen it before, be warned, it is a very hard one to watch. Not a family movie or a something you watch with friends. It's an emotional ride that takes you through human struggles with ideologies, groupthink and brainwashes. It is also a movie about evolutions and liberation from the chains of beliefs. Characters: Derek (Edward Norton) - stage Red/Blue individual who is pushed to drop his ideology through suffering. Danny - a young undeveloped mind that is receptive to dogma. Bob Sweeney - stage Yellow professor who is just at the right place and at the right time to guide their progression up the spiral. There is so much that can be said about this movie. Please experience it for yourself (you can rent on google/youtube), and come to share your opinion.

@Leo Gura I agree. I do remember you mentioned that society does have a tendency to pull one back to it's base level. But at the end, it's my own responsibility to prevent it.

@Equanimitize Indeed, this is a complicated issue. I completely agree that the internet and accessible transportation made our world much more interconnected. Progress and changes are coming, and they are coming fast. I think a great resolution to this problem, is to combine one's personal growth with a contribution to the larger whole. Actualized.org is a good example. Leo can have an impact on hundreds of people all over the world being right where he is. But this is one in a million case (unfortunately). Can you image if Leo stayed in Russia?

JP is not a necessarily a bad guy, but you got to be careful with non-inclusive ideologies. A good illustration of one is depicted in the movie - American History X (1998). This movie is an extreme example of toxic ideology, but I think it teaches something.

Great report! very articulate Gotta be careful using psychedelics as recreational party drugs. If you're not humble with the substance it will punish you badly. Psychedelics should be used by people 25 and older who have their life together and are deeply into spirituality.

I think the topic of wealth distribution is not discussed enough in society. It is relevant for most first world countries but especially prominent in the US. I think the situation is pretty bad, but, with an increase in consciousness and evolution up the Spiral, changes are on the horizon. What is Money? I love Leo's simple equation of Money = Value. Basically, the amount of money person makes is translated to the goods and services he provides to society. In return, a person can use money to purchase goods and services from other members of the community. A car mechanic might not know how to fix his teeth and need the services of a dentist, and when the dentist's car breaks, he takes it to the mechanic. So the amount of purchasing power one has should be proportional to a one's contribution, right? I think to a certain extent that is true, yet, our systems are structured in a way that creates an enormous gap between the wealthy and the rest of society. What's worst, money has a snowballing effect, where having money makes it easier to acquire more money. That notion redefines the original statement to money = more money. The richest member of society can earn a thousand times the average salary of a hard-working individual, yet do they really provide that much value? I can't even name the top 10 richest people in the world (only one or two come to mind). They definitely did not provide any significant value to my life. Even if there is an outstanding company that sold millions of products, it is usually a team effort and not that of one CEO. I did not know that by trading stocks one can provide more value to society than fixing somebody's roof. Here is a small video that illustrates this issue: Do you think this dichotomy will change in the future? or maybe my notions of economics are silly. You are welcome to share your thought on this topic.

@aurum Thank you for the great advice. I'm definitely not trying to turn this into negative belief or an obstacle. I don't even hold it too much against society since I genuinely believe it is possible to acquire wealth by providing positive value. It has been proven by Leo and many others. I was just pointing out an observation. @Leo Gura Do you think we will see a swing towards socialism with the rise of Green politics? @Outer Obviously we are not talking about the traditional notion of socialism, but rather the transcended version. Socialism that goes beyond the crude Capitalism but includes it.

I think Python is a good start. You can also make simple games using Javascript in the web-browser. If you want to go deeper with game dev, you can try Unity engine/framework. You can work with the framework using C#, which is also a managed language that doesn't have pointers. Honestly though, game development is not what people think it is. Unless you are a designer doing 3D models or writing scenarios, you are actually doing plane programming. So, if you want to become a game developer, you should ask whether you like programming in general. Most of the stuff you will be doing is plane programming and not the flashy game stuff you might think. Working with a complicated game engine is a million lines of code with a complex hierarchy of classes and vector math. It's not really fun unless you into this sort of thing, in which case, you like doing hardcore programming in general.

Laughter occurs when there is a certain release of pressure. Like when a joke builds up to a punch line, and suddenly at the peak it resolves and everything becomes obvious. Without the build-up, there would be no emotional release and laughter. With Enlightenment, you realize that you are not your own self anymore. You see thought the giant trick that your mind pulled on you. You take off the mask and discover reality. It is the ultimate punchline of life. There is nothing left but sit and laugh after you realized that you were never responsible for anything in your life, that everything is just happening on its own and that you are a part of that happening.

@now is forever I think Spyral Dynamics and level of consciousness are two separate things. SD model is a psychological progression and evolution of society, whereas consciousness work is getting closer to the Truth and enlightenment. This explains why we can find enlighten people in all stages of development. Development of the psyche happens naturally, like evolution on Earth. Although a person can speed up the process of SD progression, for the most part, it happens independently and freely. Ken Wilber in his talks mentions a 10% tipping point, where if a small group of influential people increases their stage, the rest of society just follows and turns. I think every stage has something interesting to offer, there are benefits and strengths to every stage outlined in SD books. We shouldn't deny the lower stages and praise the uppers ones. It's like saying I hate the color orange because yellow is my favorite, they are both equally valid colors. We should enjoy the stage we are at, and know that change will be just around the corner. They way I see it, for people up the spiral, the need for change comes from genuine care and compassion. It is not motivated by deficiency needs like recognition, financial means and so forth. They might be perfectly happy where they are, and yet want to change certain things for the good of everybody.

@Bryan Lettner Why do you assume high conscious people care about money? Maybe they are perfectly happy with their current status in society.

Dude ... put some 5-meo up ur butt

Very good song! I just recently discovered Carbon-based lifeforms, but absolutely love their music. To me, it seems like the song describes the limits of Rationality and Logic. To us, it seems like the mind can find an answer to all questions. Everything is seen through the lens of time, cause and effect - "a straight line". Everything is highly logical - as a "structured code" of a computer program. The Mind's conclusions "supposed to be perfect, but really they are not". Fundamentally, logic cannot answer questions about its own existence, because it's just a small fragment of reality. Hence, you need to recognize the "hidden flaws" in rationality. You need to become "illogical (or alogical) and erratic" to find the Truth.