White Power

 Despite our Republic's short history, our extremely  high levels of ability and achievement are second to none. However, there’s more to our  economic , political, social , and religious  story.-power ,control and domination regardless of moral principles  A recent  and related examplie was illustrated with the slogan "Make America Great Again “ which was  simply a dog whistle for White Power. From a psychological perspective , this essay applies to a few of Henry A Murray's ego needs .

In  Dr. Murray's portrayal  of personality theory. He  employed many constructs such as  a description of motivational force with his construct of ego needs .It's motivational , a force within the person occurring in an environment based on human and human to human interactions. Further , In his model, the id represents both good and evil, while the  ego and its needs are hypothetical forces that are motivational  and that are accompanied by feelings, emotions, and are effective in providing desired ends..He hypothesized that the Superego was made up of the Ego Ideal  which represents personal ambitions and identifies with  the power ,ambition and story  of mythological and historical giants .These figures could range from Mother Teresa to Dillinger types  and a Conscience  that incorporates the rights-wrongs ,values, norms and  ethics of society. 

According to Murray, the existence of a need is based on the end result of behavior; a particular pattern or mode of behavior; selective attention to particular classes, stimulus objects resulting in the expression of a particular emotional effect; and it’s the expression of satisfaction when one particular effect is achieved or disappointment when that effect is not achieved.

His primary needs  are linked to physical satisfactions such as air , water ,sex or  urination and his  secondary needs occur and are derived from primary needs and can have physical satisfactions such as with  achievement ,exhibition ,aggression  and dominance .  There are overt needs expressed in mood and behavior, and covert needs which express themselves in fantasy and  dreams.  Some needs are limited to specific objects while some are more diffuse and generalized in various settings.  Some needs are proactive based upon what happens within the individual  while other needs are reactive and  are activated in response to some interaction, such as when one person. attacks another with a revenge response.  Other needs are  modal needs and are based on  performing certain activities for the sake of achieving excellence and rewarding.

Also, there’s  both a hierarchy and interaction of needs . Multiple needs may be gratified by a single cause of action and aggressive needs  can facilitate and gratify other needs.

With the concept of ego needs, results in a more complete understanding  of white  economic , political, religious and social power  A few of Murray's  needs  illustrate man’s  personal and interactive tendencies for survival and mastery over others which is associated and necessary for the accomplishment of white economic and political power. .To illustrate : 1.  Achievement is defined as accomplishing something difficult, being able to master, manipulate or organize physical objects, human beings or ideas while obtaining and overcoming obstacles in attaining a high standard.  Its ability to excel ,rival and surpass others.  2. Dominance is defined as controlling one's human environment by influencing or directing the behavior of others by suggestion, seduction, persuasion, command ;it's to restrain or prohibit 3. Aggression  is to overcome opposition forcefully, to fight for revenge and injury, to attack, injure or kill another , to oppose forcefully or punish another 4. Exhibition is to make an impression ,to be seen and heard ; to excite,fascinate, shock, intrigue, amuse or  entice others.

 Our Republic's  economic, politicaland social history is represented, in many ways ,in part, by the following occurrences symbolizing white power and the ego needs met  Power is defined as the ability to do something or act in a particular way, especially in safe faculty or quality; capacity or ability to directly influence the behavior of others.  The following  few are illustrations of our  history of white economic , political and social power 1.The  policy and justification of Slavery - Achievement ,dominance  and aggression 2. Salem Witch Trials - Achievement, dominance and aggression  3. Being victorious in the Revolutionary War ,1812 War  and  both WW’s -  Achievement ,aggression , dominance and  exhibition 4.  Massacring Native Americans - Achievement ,aggression and dominance  5 .Jacksonian democracy- Widening  suffrage and restructuring federal institutions.-  Achievement ,dominance  and exhibition 6. Manifest Destiny ,god given permission - Aggression, achievement, dominance and exhibition 7..  Don't Tread on Me as an expression of defiance and resistance - Aggression , dominance exhibition 8.  Civil War - achievement, aggression, dominance, and  exhibition  9.  KKK -achievement, aggression, dominance,and exhibition 10.  Curtailment of Ivy League  admissions  - Aggressive, dominance and exhibition 11.Voting suppression - Aggression, dominance and exhibition 12.. Restrictive  Immigration  quotas on  immigrants from eastern and southern Europe- Aggression  and dominance  13.  Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki  -Achievement, aggression, dominance and  exhibition 14.  Charles Wilson, "what was good for our country was good for General Motors and vice versa. -Aggression,  achievement , dominance and exhibition  15.  University of Texas, University of Arkansas and Penn State. Football teams were undefeated in 1969. Only  Penn State had black football players . Richard Nixon had Texas and Arkansas play for the national football college championship.  It was the last time that only all white players participated-  Achievement, aggression, dominance,and  exhibition.

It's clear that the meeting of man's ego needs is good and beneficial for his survival but can have unintended negative consequences for others.. With that being said, the government in our Republic is dominated by  a white power Supreme Court;  a white power, Congress; a  proposed white power cabinet of 11  whites out of  12 ; white power billionaires and the greediness  of  a white power felonl as president. The next four years will result in the meeting of ego needs of  achievement, aggression , dominance and exhibition for the benefit of some and prejudice, discrimination  and control against others. Rember, the meeting of ego needs for survival has both positive and negative consequences.

Reference

Murray, H.  A.  Explorations in Personality.

PS

My father, as a union president  for 20 years, fought discrimination .I also have a picture of him and others with the governor of Michigan signing into law a bill protecting postal workers from dog attacks.

An Evil Force

 

An article in the November 24, 2024 edition of The New York Times provided the background for this essay.  A set of dynamics occurred in another Christian country that's familiar to all of us. The individual and social psychology of Homo sapiens are similarly apparent irrespective of his community .

This country has a largely Christian  population ,and in fact, was  recently visited by the Pope.  An elementary school teacher said that she hoped the pope's presence would help the community fight against the evil that's plaguing her life. Is his supernatural messaging  superior ? This country, with its profitable multinational firms ; increased infrastructure and technological improvements has brought  significant economic fortunes to a very few and/or economic disparities .The majority of the population is plagued with economic uncertainty and limited access to education and healthcare resulting in fear ,anxiety and anger ..

Some envious, anxious and hateful others have scapegoated, spread lies, employed misinformation,and  rumors, on a minority, based on supernatural archaic and the irrational. beliefs  The perpetrators rationalized and seeked "revenge" on those they blamed for their misfortune . These alienated fearful perpetrators acted out hate and employed prejudice for their  ills. These individuals aggressively and  sadistically subjected employed power,domination and cruelty against their neighbors.

Unfortunately, the  media, some religious leaders and pastors and even the court system have reinforced  and perpetuated the craziness.  In other words, individuals with  prestige , power and possession, with  the traditional institutions assisted in reinforcing these  irrational and crazy beliefs. Lying comes easy to man, while finding truth remains problematic . Man has ego needs or instincts that are associated with man exploiting man  irrespective of religious, political or economics . It’s Homo sapien history..

The title of the article "When  a Medieval Scourge, Sorcery, Is Blamed in a Tragedy."  In Papua.  New Guinea individuals were tied and burned with hot metals over various parts of their body.  They were accused ,blamed for being sorcerers and participating in black magic.  Women sat naked and blindfolded on a sheet of metal with a fire burning below . Explanations for this cruelty given included a death , illness or some other tragic event. One message was :”all the sorcerers must repent and stop “.  

Violence increases along with fear, stress and tension . Also, black magic and witchcraft have origins in ancient civilizations for the benefit of some .  Don’t forget our  Salem Witch Trials occurred in  the late 17th century .Sadism , hate and exploitation are forces that have a multitude of dynamics and vehicles for expression .in any part of the world ,in any time, where there’s discontent in the society. .Psychodynamically speaking ,when  the impulsive ,aggressive and destructive  Id dominates along with the irrationality, archaic ,religious  beliefs within  the Ego as well as when there exists  sinister ego ideals or role models ( Hitler types ) and an ineffective conscience within the Super Ego  spells insanity for that community.

Supreme Court

 

Government pertains to the system of control for a country in which people are governed.  Supposedly, although not specifically stated in the Constitution, we have  a philosophy of the separation of powers between the church and state . Separation means removing the government's ability to give preferential treatment to one religion and also to support a plurality of religions and religious beliefs.. Yet, with the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe versus Wade, banning  abortions, punitive legal penalties to healthcare providers and individuals assisting with abortion , we have no separation, but a morally and psychologically punitive based law  decision that is harmful to prospective parents and their siblings.. This disquisition addresses this immorality and wickedness.

Turning to the origins of Judaism  5785 years ago, although little  was known about the physical world, man's behavior was most accurately depicted in how he behaves toward his parents and others with the 10 Commandments.  However, there were no significant external consequences administered for swearing, lying, cheating, stealing, adultery and  killing for these actions .  

About 2000 years ago man created the immaculate conception, soul, son of God , dying for your sins,   angels, Satan and " abortion” with additional ideas and provided " answers" to this life and the life hereafter  with no scientific evidence, but use of the word faith. Jeremiah  stated, "before I formed you in the womb, I knew you."  Wow, what an idea and  God’s in the bedroom too?  How did Jeremiah know so much ?.  In any event, it's been  said that an abortion is attacking a human being with a human destiny ,being prepared by God to receive an immortal soul and eternal life with grace .Questions like is an abortion of sin and what type of sin; does an embryo have a soul at conception  and is an abortion, equivalent to murder are questions pertinent  to some ..

Individuals believe many things  including  the use of magical thinking based on their psychology of identifications, ego need structures and wanting to be part of the group.  Not everyone has the same religious or non-religious beliefs. To have a  federal law based on a particular religious belief which discriminates against others is one reason why the Puritans left England.  Further , a number of states with abortion on the ballot voted to legalize abortions.  During this past presidential election, 8/10 states voted for Trump and the legalization of abortion.How’s that for inconsistency . Anyway, put Roe versus Wade on a national ballot. 

To enact a law which prohibits the individual to seek medical treatment for a certain condition is not in accord with public health , a concern for the health and welfare while living , punitive, exploitative, sadistic and controlling . It’s a right to pursue happiness according to Jefferson. It's illogical to think that a religious view , based on the supernatural ,supersedes  medical based science.  Further, and to threaten fines and imprisonment on medical providers is both cruel and sadistic.  Morality is based on distinguishing between right and wrong, good and bad. The overturning was immoral  .Moreover,, there is a psychological component  regarding this decision with many unintended consequences as well.

Turning to psychology, it has been well established that child-rearing is both extremely difficult and challenging.  Successful  emotional maturity, socioeconomic factors and child-rearing  practices can lead to positive mental health or set the stage for mental illness precursors.  With that being said, it's very important for the prospective parent or parents to have made this important decision based on their maturity and knowledge about developmental lines and child-rearing practices.  A few questions pertinent  to be addressed include the following: 1.  When should a mother substitute be introduced?  2.  When should she leave her child for work?  Because of maturation differences, it's not necessarily based on age 3.  Breast or bottle feeding based on the clock or demand.  4. When and how should toilet training be introduced  5.  Family medical issues requiring surgery of parent or child 6.  The birth arrival or adoption of another child..  The focus of these questions pertains to the concern and importance about how the child experiences them  These events pertain to, and turn into psychic realities, affects  anxieties and fantasies with  their consequences

Being knowledgeable  about developmental or egocentricity is also important.  In this first phase of object constancy,  the mother or mothering person are perceived as existence of her own This means that whatever happens in the interaction is understood from the aspect of  satisfaction or frustration from the wishes .For instance, It's the every preoccupation with  the mother, her concerns or involvement with other family members ,,with work,outside interests , her mental or physical illness  In other words, her absences are built and transformed into experiences of potential rejection and /or desertion .In other words, developing a sense of trust is problematic.

Erik H.  Erikson developed eight psychosocial crises in "Childhood And Society."  These crises follow along developmental lines and either successful resolution or unsuccessful resolution affects each succeeding phase. His first psychological crisis is  being able to develop a sense of trust versus  developing a sense of mistrust.  The importance of understanding the child's experience in this first cris phase is paramount.  Of course there are degrees of trust and mistrust.  Needless to say, the importance of developing trust pertains to oneself and to the world at large cannot be understated.  Being able to trust has positive implications for being able to deal more effectively with psychic crises that follow . Without trust there cannot be well-being.  Without trust there can't be a successful ego executive functioning.  Without trust there cannot be a  well developed moral conscience.

Mistrust is associated with anxiety, alienation,  suspiciousness, paranoia, and being susceptible to outlandish, irrational, threatening ideas. These individuals have difficulty taking responsibility and become victims in which they blame their woes on external forces they scapegoat hate with the negative and pessimistic mindset of the overall are looking to the future and focus on the past misfortunes. It's obvious when there's mistrust between family members, spouses ,with the community and with the politicians,  government, its institutions, a corrupt system with  the rich getting richer and the rest poorer .They certainly can’t trust the immigrants  and people that believe differently or their future .Mistrust does not bring happiness, satisfaction  but anxiety ,dread ,doom ,gloom and worry.

To force a female to give birth , against her right, irrespective of her physical or psychological condition is  cruel, punitive  and sadistic.  Females have many reasons regarding making the difficult decision of abortion. And yet the implications of her being emotionally able to provide the most reasonable and proper child-rearing becomes questionable with  the backdrop  of additional stress of this law. Who would want to be the embryo in an unwanted pregnancy?  I do not see any psychological advantage for the embryo.  We already have more than enough of these anxious, mental health aggrieved crazies in our Republic and we don't need  this inhumane ruling to perpetuate  and make things worse .  The well-being of that embryo is at stake and needs to be addressed despite all the negative odds. I don't know what happens , other than death  in the afterlife, but I do know about life in the here and now. Those Supreme Court justices that took away a women's right to choose medical treatment exhibited a harsh,  cruel and punishing conscience with that ruling.

Failing Morality

An article  "Policy of Untruth"  published on November 3, 2024 in  The New York Times is the topic of today's essay.  The writer  reviewed  a book written by a political reporter from the St.Petersburg Times.  That book was published in 2007 and titled " Beyond  the Big Lie .” This essay provides a personality, cognitive and moral explanation for lying .  

Bill Adair founded PolitiFact. He hoped that public fact checking could serve as a bulwark against widespread deceit.  However, not so as the number of fact checkers has ,in fact ,soared in the past decade, According to Bill, “ as the digital age created a wellspring of decreasingly reliable sources while simultaneously eliminating the friction that prevents falsehoods and conspiracy theories from spreading."  From 2016 to 2021 , Adairr found that the Republicans lied 55% of the time , while Democrats  31% of the time. Further, the Washington Post counted 30,573 false or misleading claims during Trump's presidency, an average of 21 per day.

Sigmund Freud's theory of personality maintains that there are 2 main categories of instincts or drives .They are the Life instinct of which sex was  just one and the Death instinct of which aggression and self-destruction are included. These life-and-death instincts can neutralize or replace one another.  For example, love, a derivative of the sex instinct, can neutralize hate,which is a derivative of the death instinct or love can replace hate and / or hate can replace love.

Psychic energy  was an energy system  concept and  a major factor in how personality operates, and involved in resolving conflicts ,frustrations and other issues during personality development . The id, ego, and superego uses psychic  energy during functioning. For instance, the id uses energy for  a wish fulfillment and this is  the pleasure principle which means that the instincts are  gratified or  tension reduced.

The ego with identification forces the person to differentiate between an instinct in the mind and the  reality of the outer world. In other words, with  the hunger instinct ,a mental image of a steak  does not satisfy that need. Identification is the matching of a mental representation with the physical reality like actually eating the steak;  Individuals when able to reduce the tension  have succeeded with the pleasure principle. The goal is to seek pleasure and reduce the tension.  

The dynamics of identification begins very early in life.  It's when that youngster takes over the features of another person, and makes use of their behavioral strategies . The result of identification allows the infant,child  to learn how to reduce that tension by modeling that behavior of someone else. The  features of the other are incorporated and  become part of their personality.  Of course the parental models are the  first identifications, And  with development, the individual  then identifies with objects more in line with his wishes which will help him achieve his desired goals  The identification  models provide the strategies for learning how to reduce tensions from the instincts or drives . Identification models  can  be animal imagery, fictional, historical  or real individuals, institutions, and even abstract ideas.

The Superego is essentially influenced by the internalization of the early identification  of parents, especially fathers. The Superego reflects the ethics, morals and values of the culture  that’s interpreted by the parents by their  use of rewards and punishments. Moreover, In the superego  there’s  the ego ideal which are simply the values for which rewards are obtained . Individual behaviors when approved and rewarded result in self-respect, and pride. Secondly, the conscience is also formed as it it’s related to unresolved tensions, punishments,  and forbidden areas of activity. A severe conscience with its  punitive punishments is associated with  self-hate.Behaviors that are punished. results in guilt, shame, and the dread of losing  a parents' love.  In essence, the superego is not only a model of parental behaviors, but also the result of  their ethics, family , economic and political traditions, other identifications include  teachers, coaches, public officials,and abstract social ideals . The conscience of the Superego becomes the  moralistic side of personality  and  is often  in conflict with the id or ego. The  parents' ideals of good or bad become the individual's ego ideals and their prohibitions or not  become his conscience.

Note, the Superego can be corrupted by the id and if the id retains control over a large share of the psychic energy that behavior of the person tends to be impulsive , primitive  and  anti-social .

According to Kohlberg, cognition and morality in adolescence are both  developmental.as demonstrated experimentally.  With age and maturity, adolescents become more aware of the values and beliefs of other opinions , and become more autonomous than from their  initial learning of morality based  on the authoritarian values of their parents.  In other words, adolescents become more aware that there are differences and they no longer have to adopt or obey their parents' beliefs. They become more able to question various social, religious , philosophical  and political beliefs and learn to think about moral behavior in terms of rights, standards  and wrongs . Some adolescents can go beyond this stage and be guided by more abstract principles that appeal to logic, truth, reality, universality and consistency.  In other words, there are levels and differences of cognitive and moralistic thinking based on development.  Some are more intelligent and able to grasp the complex issues of morality better than others.

A few examples of higher order thinking and reasoning : 1.Are those lies and are they going to benefit certain  individuals  or groups ?   2. Are the lies  wrong or bad for society at large? 3. To what degree do  those lies represent society's and god’s laws, standards, ethics, morality, and outcomes or not  ?4. Are those lies associated with freedom , democracy, rule of law, and humanism or with facism ,totalitarianism or authoritarianism? 5. Does authoritarianism benefit capitalism ? 6 .Why is the current law  of the overturning of Roe vs. Wade immoral?

 Factually, Trump's moral character has been atrocious  and toxic as he  has committed acts contrary to God's and society's rules ,ethics and laws.  Commandments 10 and 7 -he assaulted E.  Jean Carol, was found guilty and ordered to pay her monetary damages, he had sex with a porn star Stormy  and Playboy model Karen , and parted with Jeffrey Epstein  a sex offender.  Commandment 9-he lied daily during and after his presidency and he fraudulently claimed, without evidence, that the 2020 election was stolen.  Commandment 8-Trump’s University and his foundation was found fraudulent, as were his  business schemes in New York as he steals by inflating and deflating the value of his properties to avoid paying taxes.  Commandment 6-individuals were killed as a result of his involvement in the January 6 attack on the capital.

 In conclusion, 1. Some Individuals are both cognitively and morally inept and limited as they cannot comprehend, synthesize, and evaluate complex moralistic principles and ideas .  2. Some Individuals  have the cognitive and moral capacity to know right from wrong, but ignore  them because they don't want to lose the love, support of their identified leader.  Trump told his congressional followers that if they don't support his policies., he will have Musk economically support  and fund their opponents in the primaries 3.  Some Individuals have the cognitive and moral capacity to know right from wrong, but ignore or suppress Trump's moral character flaws.  4. Some Individuals may or may not have the cognitive and moral capacity to know right from wrong, but  are sociopathic, id dominated   with damaged, irrelevant or nonexistent Superego controls. Importantly, the message to our young  and to  the world, suggests that the United States leader  and his many followers are morally damaged  . .

Youthfulness or Old Age

 

I am happily turning 85  next week because ,in part,  I do not have to run 85 miles for that  week as a result of Tony's absence.  In the past, I ran the number of miles of my upcoming birthday and if I forgo , Tony would delightfully remind me.  This is an illustration of  his sadism.  Instead, Linda and I are  breaking bread with Mike and Pat, Dave and Joyce, Pat and Diane.  This essay pertains to two articles and a  full-page advertisement  in the New York Times.  The October 27, 2024 article" The World's Fountain of Youth Spouted Some Questionable Data “ and the October 20, 2024 article "Health Halo" and the full page   "Lifelong Smoking Extreme Obesity  Shortens Life Expectancy up to 14 Years  with his & hers ‘ at the bottom of the page.  This essay pertains to  the above.

Dan  Buettner, a National Geographic reporter, 20 years ago.  marketed  Blue Zones.  Blue Zones is trademarked and has spawned eight books ,a Netflix series, product partnerships-iced teas, canned bean soups and has become a multimillion dollar program for other cities to become like Blue Zones . It's pitched to assist people in attaining their longevity goals by mimicking lifestyle habits of individuals living in each region.

Blue Zones are locations on our planet. Initially, centenarians in Sardinia, Italy, attributed nutrition , and lifestyle alignment  in  their becoming centenarians or supercentenarians. Other regions were included -Okinawa, Japan,Loma Linda, California  etc.. It was reported that longevity and vitality related to healthy behaviors  and they were more likely to consume  a nutritionist diet, lots of fruit and vegetables , plenty of physical activity while prioritizing family ,and community , not smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol in moderation , not eating too much, managing stress,and having purpose in life.  Dedication to religion and good genes were other factors mentioned.

It was mentioned that people in Blue  Zones were not on diets, CrossFit's, on Instagram , getting supplements or  running to Tulum for stem cells.  Yet , they lived about 10 years longer.  Dan suggested that health comes from being in the right environment.. Dan also  sold Blue  Zones in 2022 to Adventist  Health, a healthcare provider system founded on the Seventh-day Adventist heritage and values.  Loma Linda has one of the highest concentrations of Seventh-day Adventist in the country. Dan has done well financially .

Now, a senior research fellow , Saul Justin  Newman ,at the Center for Longitudinal Studies at the University of College London , analyzed the databases.  He concluded that all these areas were in poor areas that generally had terrible outcomes for old age and had some of the worst life expectancies of the countries. He also thought that the high density of supercentenarians were  fraud . He attributed much of the misinformation to low literacy rates and poor record-keeping .There was an  absence of birth certificates and people really didn't know how old they were. 

 Incidentally, Dan said that the  original Blue Zones in  Okinawa and Nicoya no longer qualify  because the traditional ways have been replaced by modern diets such as convenience stores,and  fast food restaurants.  Dan also said that he expects all these BlueZones are going to be extinct within a generation or half a generation. Civilization brings what ?

The second article  pertains to  the perception that a food product is generally healthy based on a single claim subliminally influencing our diets in dollars.  Single claims, like low-calorie,organic or nutritious sounding ingredients in large font works wonders marketing but that doesn't necessarily mean the product is healthy.  There are a variety of North American protein bars, which, according to one estimate, could grow to over 11,000,000,000 by 2030.  A study in 2016 found that people were more likely to think that a bag of chips were healthier and buy them when they were vitamin fortified.  if it's got vitamins, no GMO's ,organic , artificial sweeteners,and no sugar added, that’s the cat's meow.  Last year PepsiCo argued that it had created  a protein bar - with tools to help muscles rebuild.  Time will tell as a federal lawsuit still to come. 

Linda's ankle wound required  protein to assist in mending.  I purchased the 240 cal Balanced Nutritional Drink Boost to help her heal.  It has 10 g of protein, 27 minerals, vitamins, key ingredients for immune support, and helps you get more out of life today and tomorrow .  Oh yes, it has 30% of the daily allowance of sugar as well.  They also say their balanced nutritional drink to help you be your best in capital letters , gluten free with natural flavors. How about those claims ?

Briefly, this is my take.  Blue Zones are  potentially within  each of us and the Halo Effect is just one more of the challenges and barriers to health created by our capitalistic economic system.  Successful aging , becoming a centenarian, longevity , Fountain of Youth , staying young forever, Blue Zones etc.  can be reframed and called  lifestyle choices. Life pertains to growth  and functional activity . 

The lifestyle choices in the 65 years of age plus athletes that I interviewed in “It Has Nothing To Do With Age “ had  significant and necessary elements in common: 1 Their physical activities were competitive, inspiring, gave meaning and purpose to their life, enriched their emotional well being life, participated in outdoor activities and resulted in happy experiences and motivation.  As a result, they had a full and growth directed life and fulfilled  the prescriptions  in my book.  2.  They succeeded in dealing successfully with prior and current barriers and accomplished their goals.  3.  All of them had terrific  interpersonal skills  and were a pleasure and delight  4.  They were terrific people ..

Lifestyle  includes incorporating nutritious foods , nutrients, supplements for medicinal purposes thanks to functional medicine  doctors Klatz, Goldman ,Hyman and Ashley. In fact, I saw Dr. Ashley because I wanted to improve my running speed.  After testing, she referred me to a nutritional supplement designed specifically for me.  I didn't change my training but took the necessary supplements. My  running speed. Did not improve  Perhaps, if I wanted to minimize or slow the decrease in speed , I might've continued the  designed supplement.  She did suggest soy protein and I  have continued that in  my  morning's smoothies.  I continue to run, although not 50 mile weeks . My  current weight is very close to when I ran Western States.

My mom ,Tony and Dave's moms all in their 90’s were cognitively intact although their physical health declined.  I grow cognitively based on reading, writing, critiquing and applying my training  and experience as an educational and clinical psychologist.  Since 2016, I have been the caretaker to Linda based on her physical and cognitive conditions.  For the past nine weeks ,she has been wheelchair-bound and I lift her in the wheelchair navigating  the various steps in and out of our home. Since the  past  election results , I have  worked  harder in order to  reduce the additional  stress.

PS

Hooray for Linda’s, out of the wheelchair and walking ;Dave purchases vitamins and supplements from  regulated companies  outside the US and I’m thinking about seeing Dr. Ashley ,

2024

 During  my youth, I remember the hero of our Republic, and the GOP's support for Gen. Eisenhower. This man was the leader of the free world. He stood  for decency,humanity, the Constitution, democracy and so forth. His character was associated with integrity as he fought against the Nazis and fascism.  This year's presidential GOP does not have Eisenhower's qualities.  In this essay , I will incorporate my take on an article published in the October 20, 2024 The New York Times.  The arti cle is titled "In a Pennsylvania Swing County,  I Learned The Truth About American Politics in 2024 ."  The writer interviewed a number of individuals in a small Pennsylvania town about an hour and 1/2  drive from New York City.

Much has been written about  the family history of Trump, his grandfather and father regarding their attitude towards military service and in the pursuit of power, irrespective of the law. Further, Trump's six bankruptcies , sexual encounters  and his association with Jeffrey Epstein have been well documented. Also,  TV producer Mark Burnett, created a mythical portrayal of a billionaire businessman that captivated the public for many years.

During Trump’s presidency ,he was credited with being successful with his lies; tax cuts for the top 1%; packing the Supreme Court in order to overturn Roe versus Wade; and promoting tariffs  with China. He sucked up to Putin , the North Korean dictator and other  authoritarians.  He was impeached twice and told his followers that he was going to build a wall , Mexico was going to pay for it and he would clean up the border. He did neither,but  separated families in the process.  At the end of his presidency, he initiated an attack on the capital on January 6.

During this presidential campaign, he picked an authoritarian  bigot VP as running mate.  They lied about Haitians eating dogs and cats , he was going to deport millions, enact more tariffs with China , end the wars in the Middle East and between Russia and Ukraine ,save the economy,  punish his political enemies, reduce crime and be the great protector.

Numerous political Republicans warned that Trump is a threat to democracy and unfit to hold office.  John Kelly, a former Chief of Staff, went on record about Trump’s character and his being a threat to the Republic.  Many military generals also called him an unfit , threat to democracy and a fascist.  A couple of his family members , former attorney , co-authors and others have added the same. His numerous associates  involved in his January 6  are either serving time and/ or have been indicted for their criminal acts that he intends to pardon. 

With this being said, Trump  won the election with his lies, misinformation and  fearful hateful rhetoric . Homo sapiens . employ many ways to deal with  their anxiety, fear and threats to their ego.  For example, Anna Freud brilliantly.in”  The  Ego  And  The Mechanisms Of Defense “ described ,in detail, the manner in which individuals  attempt to protect themselves from various threats and distort reality  . 

 Individuals hold on to  cognitive  beliefs, attitudes and ideas that  they hold dear and form their sense of self . These dynamics  are significantly influenced by and  with models of  identification . Dissonant , contrary information and/or stimuli is a  threat to the ego resulting in fear, anxiety and tension that must be reduced and avoided because of its unpleasantness and irritation . This can occur both in thinking and action regardless of reality, illusion or fantasy. Note these are referred to as defense mechanisms. They have two characteristics in common. 1. They deny, falsify or distort reality. 2.They operate unconsciously so that the person is not aware of what is taking place.

Leon Festinger, one of Kurt Lewin.s students in this Field Theory   perspective , utilized tension as a motivating force.  In this model, epistemic behaviors that augment knowledge suggest that the seeking of knowledge  is important although  conceptual conflicts or incongruities can occur . It ‘s known that Individuals are motivated to seek agreement with others in terms of   attitude, opinions, and beliefs, within  their search for certainty .However,  when comparing or interacting  with another , a condition of discrepancy arises when information is not similar or the same resulting in a state of tension . The  tension state becomes motivational . The individual has a tendency to ignore and/ or seek information that is congruent and and reduces the tension 

 Festinger’s experiments suggest that one way to reduce the dissident state is to seek information that is consonant with their beliefs and to avoid information that is discrepant with their sense of self or their beliefs .In essence, Cognitive Dissonance gives rise to activity or activities  oriented in reducing or eliminating that unpleasantness.  Successful reduction of dissonance is rewarding and the individual is motivated to seek the reward.

Trump supporters have identified with him as their protector..  The responses from these individuals suggest that they have identified with Trump.  Identification ,psychologically, occurs  very early in human  development and associated within the  superego .Anxiety propels the young in the direction of searching for security, safety and well-being.- identification .  Throughout life, the identification process dynamics becomes repeated.  When one significantly identifies with that " protector" the individual takes on characteristics modeled.  These characteristics include believing in that protector  regardless of reality as well as agreeing  with  the words and actions despite inconsistencies, irrationality, lies and distortions of truth and reason. 

A few examples of defense mechanisms  from these individuals include projection, denial, rationalization,and reaction formation as well as cognitive dissonance in order to combat the lies, misinformation, and hateful rhetoric presented to them by Trump. Truth ,rationality, moral judgment was held in abeyance as it was dissonant with their leader.  His words became their words and actions .. 

1.  Marvin, age 84 said  "He's a shyster but I take him over her."  A projection Is emotionally unacceptable  to himself, and is rejected and attributed to others.”He'll block off the border."  2 . Natalie, age 37, stated "I detest him as a person, but he's the lesser of two evils."  A denial is  an emotional conflict that allays  anxiety by disavowing thoughts, feelings, wishes , needs or external reality factors that are consciously intolerable “ Politicians are easily bought. Trump has less motivation to do things for money because of his wealth." 3. The reporter stated that for those in defense of Trump, his serial lying , misogyny and romantic direction were irrelevant . They gave a range of explanations and rationalizations that do not align with any known reality.  4.  Gary, age 72, said, "I think it was a crowd that just got out of hand regarding January 6  and some of it was set up.  There were feds and the crowd was whipped up into a frenzy . Denial and a rationalization  In  which  the individual attempts to justify or make consciously tolerable by plausible means feelings, behavior motives that would otherwise be intolerable. He also said he viewed January 6, not as a national tragedy but as a partisan event.  It was a political show, a distraction from the whole Hunter Biden scandal. He gets his talking points from Fox News-cognitive dissonance .  5 John ,age 62 added.  How was it different from the police headquarters that burned down during the BLM protest."  5. The  reporter wrote that his followers were  not bothered by his constant denigration of women , immigrants and political opponents. And if he loses, it will be the fault of the Jews not having proper gratitude for much of what he's done.  The  reporter  also wrote  that the individuals were not concerned about the Covid-19 epidemic.  They wanted him to lower gas  and grocery prices and to close the southern border . The reporter went on to say that Trump supporters were not sick of him and that his character was not an issue at all. 6. Jon, age 62 -When Trump was president., gas was $ 2. 25 a gallon and now it's four dollars for midgrade . When Trump says drill baby drill, I'm okay with that." His wife said that Trump has a history of using language that degenerates women . She has no concern about his rhetoric.  She said I'm a big believer in getting treatment you allow people to give you.  I know what men mean when they get together.  They speak like men . 7. John, age 72 said that Harris clearly spent more time preparing and rehearsing for that  debate event, but it's not a quality you want for president.  She practiced and  Trump didn't.  And you could tell that the moderators were out to get him."  He also said that he accepts the fact that the rich play by different rules, and every rich businessman goes bankrupt. Reaction formation  are attitudes and behavior adopted  that are the opposite of impulses the individual harbors, either consciously or unconsciously    8.  Another individual who did not give his name said that Trump wants to curb big business and that's because it's good for all of us. 9. Several of his supporters said that former Pres. Bill Clinton sexual encounters with the 21-year-old intern in the Oval Office may have caused more damage to the institution of the presidency than the Democrats are willing to acknowledge.

In sum, mechanisms of defense, per A Psychiatric Glossary associated with anxiety and  protection, as in the denial of reality , rationalizing , projecting and  reaction  formation  were apparent as well as cognitive dissonance. These dynamics play a  significant part and assists in combating and creating the distortion ,  misinformation, mythology and illusion surrounding their leader. In other words, not “ wanting”  all the facts ,distorting  the facts cognitively and supporting the ill treatment of others is ok even if these behaviors are associated with moral, ethical and legal failings of the leader .It's not a matter of truth, reason, rationality, but instead being like the children in the  Pied Piper fable. One goes along and becomes a good follower.The truth becomes irrelevant and non applicable . And, Donald is no Ike.

PS

Linda and I just celebrated with Pat and Mike on his 89 th.

The Malicious GOP

 

Healthcare in the United States is both pertinent and personal  based on the following: 1.  Recently, Linda was s een in the emergency room  hospital in Auburn.  Then , a private ambulance transported her to a critical care unit hospital in Modesto. The bill was $ 332 over Medicare and 0 dollars paid by the supplement . After a number of  hospital days, she was admitted to a rehab hospital in Sacramento. The grand total of that bill totaled $49,178 for eight days.She was also seen by an orthopedic surgeon. She did not require surgery but wound care. Upon returning home, she is being seen by the nurse and physical therapist.  2.  I received a letter from Anthem Blue Cross, my Medicare supplement.  They wanted to know if I like the plan that I have.  The rates are outrageous,  more than my Medicare payment and  only minimally cover what Medicare covers. There is a plethora of TV  advertising regarding so-called Medicare supplement Advantage plans.  However, the only advantage is to the insurance companies.  3. The New York Times article dated October 13, 2024 titled "Resistance to Public Health, No Longer Fringe, Gains Foothold in GOP Politics.  This disposition pertains to US healthcare.

Over  many years there has been negative publicity and propaganda against universal healthcare.  It ‘s stated that there are long waiting lines , it takes too long for certain procedures and that our healthcare system is superb.  Recent statistics regarding the ranking of healthcare in countries present a different picture. In the 2024 ranking of countries ,  the US healthcare system was not included in the top 20 healthiest  in the world.  Americans ,no matter what state they live  in, die younger than people in the 29 top  countries.  The cost of not receiving  health care ,insurance disputes,  and affordability of healthcare services  affect outcomes.  The US healthcare system from a global perspective has accelerating spending and worsening outcomes. 

A study by the Commonwealth Fund evaluated the healthcare of 10 countries that included Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the US.  The researchers looked at the following five intervening variables: 1.  Care process - the acquisition of primary care practices , health systems and private equity investors 2 Access to Care -  affordability, availability of health services 3 .  Administration Efficiency -doctors dealing with insurance, medical claim issues, reporting to, government agencies, patient time resolving medical bill discrepancies.  4.  Equity - people above and below average incomes , access to healthcare and healthcare experience 5.  Health outcomes -  life expectancy, behavioral choices related to health,  preventability of excess deaths.

The findings from this study found that the percentage of the healthcare spending of the US ranked number one and we had the worst overall performance from 1980 to 2023.  The US had the shortest life expectancy with the most avoidable deaths.  The US underperforms in the healthcare sector as nine other countries have found a way to provide  better  health care while meeting the most basic healthcare needs  with  universal coverage.

Linda has received many EOBs  from  Medicare for healthcare services.  They are complicated, seem arbitrary with medical costs based on some actuarial statistics.  Linda also received a letter from one  party wanting to know if she was involved in an automobile accident.  Numerous calls,waiting for someone to answer  resulted in no  response at all.  Finally, an email resulted in a phone conversation.  The person on the other end said to ignore the letter since they've updated.  According to the home healthcare nurse, “ wound care expertise is not in the orthopedic surgeons wheel house. “  Linda's wound requires her to put no weight bearing on her left leg.  She forgets and that interferes with the healing process. I asked the  ortho doctor if the boot that she initially wore would help with healing.  He agreed and she's wearing the boot again.

The New York Times article was about resistance to Public Health and crazy ideas such as vaccinations are bad and the possibility that the Kennedy Jr. nut case is going to have an  important position in Trump's administration.  The idea that's taking hold is that individuals  should be able to make health decisions regarding their kids, Irrespective of medical advice. 

I remember the Covid-  19 debacle under Trump.  He and his cronies silenced Anthony Fauci and the  CDC regarding  disease prevention.  These idiots did not want to mask up nor receive vaccinations.  A whole host of nonsensical products were promoted by  Trump and his lunatics.  Yes,  a million people died from the disease and the hospital system was pushed to its limits.  If you're alone on a desert island, and don't want to receive medical treatment, that's okay. However, In a society, one's  behavior affects others.  Another example of the craziness is parents not wanting to vaccinate their young children,while sending them to school anyway.  You have permission to be crazy, self defeating  and harm yourself but don't tread on me .

Health in the United States is  not influenced primarily by genetics but by behavioral choices.  There are health care issues that are compromised with unintended consequences  that are related to driving practices, alcohol, drug, work-related, all types of sporting behaviors, eating abuse, nonexercise, gun deaths,  not following medical advice and person-to-person interaction.

Who  benefits from mental and physical illness and health in  our country ?  There is a  profit correlation. In our capitalistic system it is about profits.  Healthcare is being taken over by Wall Street private equity investors .  The investors are concerned and place  profits above everything else within  the complexity of the healthcare complex . Controlling nonmedical oriented individuals are  driven by profit.  The GOP supports capitalism, corporations with private equity as its mission.  It's no wonder that many billionaires support the GOP policies.  Just think of all the benefactors such as the food industry, drug and supplement industry , insurance companies, physical fitness establishments, clothing, healthcare equipment , medical devices, products and accessories , number of people employed credentialed and not  that benefit from this enormous health- illness industry. 

 According to the 2024  federal budget, health accounts for 14% ,Medicare  13%  and veterans benefits are at 5%.  On the other hand, what if we looked at profits from all related systems associated with health, illness and death? Ill health is important to our economy, says the GOP. They still do not support Obama's Affordable Care plan, are against lower drug costs , reducing Medicare age eligibility,increasing minimum  age, overturning Roe vs Wade - not allowing women medical treatment  , promoting crazy health ideas, polluting the environment, and  especially  clean water . The malicious GOP is hazardous to your health.