Leo's Blog Discussion Mega-Thread

[Leo Gura]

9 hours ago, Nemra said:

@Leo Gura, why does God want to be corrupt by lowering its consciousness?

Because God loves EVERYTHING.

The existence of evil just makes God's Love even deeper.

If evil didn't exist God's Love would be less than infinite.

Edited May 9 by Leo Gura

[Husseinisdoingfine]

https://www.actualized.org/insights/the-material-conditions-of-hierarchy

Seeing Leo post this video in his blog was quite surprising, given Leo's past statements about Marxism, the video above seemed very Marxist. As not only does the video directly talk about Marx's philosophy, but the video overall is about material conditions and touches gently on class conflicts, and how these forces move society, something Marx was very big on in his historical essay. Karl Marx was not just an economist, but a sociologists and historian. 

Typically, people who talk about material conditions tend to be Marxist Socialists, which is why Leo posting that video in his blog was surprising.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_materialism

Edited May 9 by Husseinisdoingfine

[Mannyb]

@Husseinisdoingfine

It is surprising—but also kind of fascinating.
It might show that Leo is evolving, or at least opening up to perspectives he once held at a distance. 🤗 

 

Marx’s lens on material conditions and class dynamics remains one of the more grounded frameworks for understanding societal shifts, even if one doesn’t fully subscribe to his entire worldview.
And Leo, being someone who values deep inquiry 🧐 , might be allowing the complexity of that lens to inform his broader understanding of consciousness /development. 

 

Sometimes, true growth means embracing nuance—even in ideologies we once rejected.

 

Edited May 9 by Mannyb

[Wilhelm44]

2 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

Because God loves EVERYTHING.

The existence of evil just makes God's Love even deeper.

If evil didn't exist God's Love would be less than infinite.

That exercise in your blog about just seeing all the evil things ive done, really helps to deepen self love, thank you.

[Leo Gura]

3 hours ago, Husseinisdoingfine said:

https://www.actualized.org/insights/the-material-conditions-of-hierarchy

Seeing Leo post this video in his blog was quite surprising, given Leo's past statements about Marxism, the video above seemed very Marxist.

It should not be surprising. Marxism and socialism are bad and unworkable ideologies. However, the notion that material conditions are central to human survival and social organization is of course profoundly true.

What Marxists call "material conditions" is already accounted for in my deeper and broader concept of SURVIVAL.

When a Marxist says "material conditions" he really means SURVIVAL. Which of course is fundamental to our work. However, SURVIVAL goes far beyond material things. So my concept of SURVIVAL includes and transcends materialism. Which is of course necessary because Marxists are atheists and we are God.

By the way, even though the author of that channel pushes socialists ideas, his videos are still very good in many respects, but his socialism is still wrong in the ultimate analysis.

Remember: just because I share a video with you does not mean I endorse all the ideas within it, nor the author's worldview at large. I share lots of various perspectives and most of them have some problematic parts that I disagree with. It is very rare that I find a speaker who I perfectly agree with. Hell, I even disagree with my past self. So be careful not to assume that I fully endorse the stuff I share. I usually add extra commentary to stuff I share to point out the limitations I see in it. But just because it is limited doesn't mean I won't share it. I share lots of limited stuff because finding perfect stuff to share is too high a bar.

1 hour ago, Mannyb said:

@Husseinisdoingfine

It is surprising—but also kind of fascinating.
It might show that Leo is evolving, or at least opening up to perspectives he once held at a distance. 🤗

I did not evolve on this topic.

Two things can be true:

1) Material conditions are fundamental to politics.

2) Marxism is an unworkable and fallacious ideology.

There are many facets to Marxism. Some of them are valid and some of them are not.

Consider science as an example. I criticize science a lot, but obviously there are many parts of science that I agree with. Likewise with Marxism. There are things I might agree with Hitler on. That doesn't mean I am Nazi.

Edited Friday at 06:23 PM by Leo Gura

[Rafael Thundercat]

@Leo Gura  already watching the new 8 proofs episode. Jesus FuckingnChrist this is getting better and better. 

Ah and about the remote viewing thing. Today I just found  an amazing book by Angela Thompson Smith title Remote Perceptions -Out of body experiences Remote viewing and other normal abilities. 

Lets find some old bones. 

[Mannyb]

@Leo Gura That’s a fair and nuanced position!

 

Recognizing the role of material conditions in shaping political dynamics means thinking carefully about causality, structure, and power.

 

Your analogy to science is apt: critique doesn’t mean rejection—it means a deeper refinement!

[Mannyb]

@Rafael Thundercat

Haha, love the energy—you’re clearly diving in headfirst!
That episode does feel like it’s cracking open layers most never even peek into.
There’s a real thrill when insight, mystery, and personal resonance collide like that.

 

Angela Thompson Smith’s work is a gem—she bridges the experiential and the empirical in a way that feels grounded yet expansive.
Remote viewing, out-of-body experiences… these aren’t fringe curiosities when you start realizing how vast consciousness really is.

 

Let’s go bone-hunting—past lives, buried truths, forgotten knowing.

This is where the real adventure begins.

 

[Husseinisdoingfine]

@Leo Gura

I disagree with socialism being unworkable and unfeasible for my reasonings, but hey, that is my opinion.

But if I may correct you a bit, I think what you went to write was that socialism and communism are fallacious ideologies. 

Marxism is not a political prescription per-say. Karl Marx himself was against an ~ism being attached his last name. Marxism is more of a school of through which encompasses many fields; sociology, history, philosophy, and economics. 

But it's an incredibly fascinating. I am currently reading Volume I of Das Kapital, and its incredibly profound. This one book took Marx 30 years to write, and it shows in itself. I've learned so much from this one book, including;

Chapter 1: The Commodity

Section 1 – The Two Factors of a Commodity: Use-Value and Exchange-Value

• Commodity = something produced for exchange that satisfies a human need.
• Has a dual nature:

                    Use-value: The utility or usefulness of the object.

                    Exchange-value: Its value in relation to other commodities (what it can trade for).

• Exchange-value is determined not by usefulness, but by labor time.

Section 2 – The Twofold Character of Labor

• Labor also has a dual character:

                   Concrete labor: Specific, useful activity (e.g., weaving, tailoring) → creates use-values.

                   Abstract labor: Human labor in the abstract, measured in socially necessary labor time → creates value.

• Value is the socially necessary labor time embodied in a commodity.
• Commodities are equal in exchange because they represent equal quantities of abstract labor.
• Implication: Real social labor relations are hidden in market exchange → leads to commodity fetishism.

Chapter 2: The Process of Exchange

• Commodities must be exchanged to realize their value.
• Exchange requires owners who recognize each other's goods as having value.
• Money emerges as a solution to the limits of barter.
• Through exchange, private labor becomes socially validated.
• Exchange is the social process that connects isolated producers.

 

Chapter 3: Money, or the Circulation of Commodities

Section 1 – Money as the Measure of Value

• Commodities express their value in terms of money (price).
• Money acts as a universal equivalent, allowing comparison of all commodities.
• Price is the money-form of value.
• This role of money is initially ideal/mental—we assign price before any actual exchange happens.
• Prices may deviate from actual labor-values due to market dynamics.

Section 2a – The Medium of Circulation: The Metamorphosis of Commodities

• The full exchange cycle is: C → M → C (commodity → money → another commodity).
• This process is called the metamorphosis of commodities.
• Money allows sale and purchase to be separated in time and space.
• Two separate acts:

1. Sale: Commodity becomes money (C → M).
2. Purchase: Money becomes another commodity (M → C).

• Value is only realized through successful exchange.
• This process introduces contradictions and dependencies:

               Sale and purchase can break apart (e.g. if someone sells but doesn’t buy).

               Circulation depends entirely on money’s presence and acceptance.

               Value realization becomes socially uncertain.

               Rational individual behavior (e.g. hoarding money) can cause systemic crisis.

 

 

I'm no where near done and yet I've learned so much and I love it.

https://www.intpubnyc.com/browse/collected-works-of-marx-and-engels-vol-35-vol-01-capital/

That is the link where I bought my copy, if you want to also read this book. The link I just posted is supposed to be the translation that's the most true to the original. 

 

[Husseinisdoingfine]

There also apparently exists a book about Marx's analysis of historical materialism, but I don't know if its authentic.

https://www.amazon.com/Historical-Materialism-Karl-Marx/dp/0717804119

 

There's also The German Ideology, which touches up on his ideas of historical materialism. 

"  It criticizes "ideology" as a form of "historical idealism", as opposed to Marx's historical materialism (the "materialist conception of history"). " -- Wikipedia

 

There is as well The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte, for which I have read. Its an essay which serves as a major historiographic application of Marx's theory of historical materialism.

 

Edited Friday at 07:53 PM by Husseinisdoingfine

[Leo Gura]

11 minutes ago, Husseinisdoingfine said:

But if I may correct you a bit, I think what you went to write was that socialism and communism are fallacious ideologies. 

Marxism is not a political prescription per-say. Karl Marx himself was against an ~ism being attached his last name.

But Marxism was turned into an ideology regardless of what Marx wanted, and it is Marxism that I criticize, not Marx.

I am less interested in Das Kapital or Marx and more interested in what today's self-labeled Marxists propose, such as Richard Wolff or Hassan Piker and other leftists like the DSA. Because it is they who will be implementing the policies, not the long dead Marx.

Edited Friday at 07:50 PM by Leo Gura

[Mannyb]

That’s a thoughtful distinction, and important. 

 

You’re right:

Marx was more analyst than ideologue, and much of his work was meant as critique, not blueprint.
The “ism” that followed often took on a life—and rigidity, himself might not have endorsed.
The problem arises when a nuanced critique of capitalism becomes dogma in itself, detached from evolving realities.

 

It’s fair to focus on today’s voices, like Wolff or Piker, because they’re the ones actively shaping discourse and influencing policy.
History matters, but the living ideas being acted upon now are what truly affect people’s lives.

 

[Mannyb]

@Husseinisdoingfine

You’re on solid ground with those, each of them plays a key role in tracing Marx’s thinking on historical materialism.

 

The German Ideology is foundational—it’s where Marx and Engels lay out the materialist conception of history clearly.
They argue that material conditions (like labor and economic structures) shape consciousness, not the other way around. It’s a direct challenge to idealist philosophy, particularly Hegel.

Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte is a brilliant and vivid application of that. It shows Marx doing what he’s best at: dissecting the social forces and class interests at play beneath political events.
It’s where his famous line appears: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce.”

The book linked, Historical Materialism, looks like a compilation or interpretation of Marxist ideas, likely aligned with Soviet era educational material.
It may not be “authentic Marx” in a pure sense, it likely reflects an attempt to distill his theory.

Edited Friday at 08:28 PM by Mannyb

[Leo Gura]

In order to implement Marx you're going to need a devilish Lenin-like character to ram it through. And that's where the real problems arise. Marxist don't appreciate this point enough because they are Utopians.

Bakunin foresaw this problem 150 years ago. Bakunin predicted that the implemention of socialism/Marxism would turn into great evil. Read some Bakunin while you're at it.

Edited Friday at 08:38 PM by Leo Gura

[Mannyb]

Absolutely, vital and often overlooked critique!

 

Bakunin was prophetic in warning that any attempt to impose Marxist ideals through centralized power would lead not to liberation, but to a new form of domination.
He understood that even the most well-intentioned revolution, if orchestrated by a vanguard, risks becoming authoritarian in nature.

Power, once concentrated—even in the name of the people—rarely lets go. Like that one ring.

 

Forged with the promise of order and justice, but corrupting even those who seek to use it for good.
The tragedy isn’t just in Sauron’s malice—it’s in how easily even the well-meaning Frodo can be tempted to wield it.

 

Marxism may dream of liberation, but once someone tries to enforce that dream through centralized control, the Ring slips onto their finger.

And from there, history tends to rhyme.

 

The real revolution might be the one that resists it entirely.

If anything Hail J.R.R. Tolkien, the myth-weaver of the West!

Without his deep roots in language, lore, and moral imagination, the entire fantasy genre might still be wandering in the woods.

 

No Elder Scrolls, no Witcher, no Dark Souls in the same way.
He showed us that myth isn’t escape—it’s memory of something older, truer, whispered from beyond the veil.

Edited Friday at 08:47 PM by Mannyb

[Yimpa]

You are Bakunin...

Edited Friday at 08:46 PM by Yimpa

[Jannes]

After watching the video I am contemplating the hunter gatherer lifestyle. I didnt even know that I could like that. Even though it seems a bit ideolized there really are great things about it like a short work week, healthy social integration, nature, rest, peace, equality. Its even pretty ethical, carnivores are needed to keep herbivores in check so humans could fill that role and do cleaner less painful kills. The calories coming from hunting were only 20-40% anyway.

A lot of kids died but when they survived until 15 appearently many became 60 to 70 years old so it was a pretty healthy lifestyle. If modern modicine just helped out in a few key ways people could live just as long or longer then we do today.

We could do so much cool shit on earth..

 

Edited Friday at 11:37 PM by Jannes

[Mannyb]

@Jannes

We could do so much cool shit on Earth.

We just have to remember we belong to it.

And build a world that makes our ancestors proud and our descendants free.

 

[Ulax]

3 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

In order to implement Marx you're going to need a devilish Lenin-like character to ram it through. And that's where the real problems arise. Marxist don't appreciate this point enough because they are Utopians.

Bakunin foresaw this problem 150 years ago. Bakunin predicted that the implemention of socialism/Marxism would turn into great evil. Read some Bakunin while you're at it.

I’m confused though, Marxism is just a theory of historical progress. Marx argued that a communist state was inevitable, to my understanding, but did not make a value judgment on it

[Yimpa]

10 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

Because God loves EVERYTHING.

The existence of evil just makes God's Love even deeper.

If evil didn't exist God's Love would be less than infinite.

SPOILER ALERT 

 

GOD

Edited Saturday at 12:27 AM by Yimpa
is doing YOU!!! w00t w00t :D