Thursday, September 28, 2023

Jesus, Albert and Donald

 


Rosh Hashanah began at sundown on September 15 and continued through nightfall to September 17.  Rosh Hashanah , the birthday of the universe, the day God created Adam and Eve,  celebrates  the Jewish year 5784.  The most holy day of the Jewish year , Yom Kippur, begins on Sunday, September 24 and ends Monday, September 25 . This holy day  is about fasting and prayer  and to physically and morally cleanse oneself of  sins so that God can forgive. Also, in this year, we have upcoming trials of a  former president;  debt crisis; natural disasters; political divide;  and an increase in hate crimes against Jews and other minorities  Morality  pertaining to Jesus Christ and Albert Camus is today’s focus .


A  psychological viewpoint related to morality behavior found in Exodus is as follows . The 10 Commandments provided a moral standard of behavior relating to how man should treat fellow man. Starting with the 10th commandment, "Thou shall not covet your neighbor's house; Thou shall not covet your neighbor's wife...... nor anything that is your neighbor's." Covet is related to envy, jealousy, possessiveness, green with envy, to  want something very much especially something that belongs to someone else.  It's an emotion , a positive valence desire ,impulse , positive or negative action associated with anxiety and an underlying ego needs such as loneliness, affiliation,  sex , dominance, status, wealth, exploitation, submission, exhibition,  or deference  In other words, it's psychological , related to character that can be a conscious or unconscious  and a deficit. that one attempts to fulfill. Humans have many ego  needs that require fulfillment.  And with capitalism and advertising  taking advantage of man's ego needs, humans wind up with the accumulation of objects, things, people etc..  One has to keep up with the Joneses, one has to win the championship ,one has to have that special partner, articles  of clothing, boats, residences and the list goes on.  Capitalism would fail miserably without the desire to possess and this desire does not have to be rational or beneficial.  To call a significant  human emotion  fantasy , or imagination that occurs in dreams  a sin is a threat to capitalism and to man's pursuit of "happiness."  In fact, Albert Einstein stated, "imagination is more important than knowledge." 


Thou shall not kill is another commandment based on emotions and actions toward fellow man. Our republic has the most powerful military in the world and spends an enormous amount of our budget although we are unable to  properly audit it.  Our police force has the most updated armory and within their arsenal includes  state of the art military issued killing weapons.  Our police kill many and are even given permission by the Supreme Court to continue to engage in that behavior.  In fact, the former president said he could kill in New York City and not be arrested.  If killing is a sin, then our Republic exhibits evil behavior, but has not yet  been charged with a war crime.  Our republic was founded by, and the “father of our country is whom ?  We experience  many themes of killing found in novels , video games , movies, TV shows and witness frequent killings of helpless victims with the news .


Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor  and Thou shall not steal are other  commandments.  In fact, frequent disturbances of social conduct may reflect psychological problems especially during early middle childhood such as lying and stealing . Sometimes , lying is related to fear of failure in meeting parental or social expectations.  Adults  have permission  to lie based on the freedom of speech amendment.  And Trump's lying behavior is related to his  inadequacy ,disregard for the truth and pathology .On the other hand, this genius may not be aware and knowledgeable of all his lies.  If lying is a sin, Trump is the devil and associated with pure evil . 


 Stealing too may vary in the motivation it expresses. It may simply indicate a rather thoughtless giving in to an impulse of the moment or something more serious. However, it may indicate a serious psychological disturbance .Stealing may be a symbolic substitute for perceived lack of love and attention  and/or as a means of expressing hostility towards parents for violating their standards . By getting caught ,stealing  may serve as an unconscious way to  punish oneself.


Coveting, killing, lying and stealing are frequent behaviors in our society and  are  called sinful by some . Irrespective , they are clearly amoral, hurtful and deadly when applied to other human beings.  These aggressive behaviors require consequences like indictments, and incarceration.  Notably, there are 27 states in our republic that have the death penalty.  Revenge, retribution, an eye for an eye still prevails in this republic .  


 Albert Camus, the brilliant author, existential philosopher described  absurdism , revolt ,murder, suicide , morality and other topics . He might have told Donald something like  the following : it's obvious that you reject all forms of religious , moral , democratic, and scientific principles.  Your inauthentic existence with emphasis on egotistical  lies  , with oppression, injustice , the malady of absurdity regarding a rebellion against democracy for the submission of others will only lead to a justification of  your desire for domination which is your  committed crime. This rebellion will lead to more slavery. And your use of propaganda to manipulate others works  because of their despair and existential anxiety .Your  push for rebellion, like others before you,  could lead to corruption and a totalitarian dictatorship .


 In essence, Donald, your rebellion is not about freedom but really  about the nonexistence of any kind of morality within your terrestrial kingdom with your narcissistic principles of power and desire could result in the apocalypse of the republic. Your universe is insane with your false promises which is actually your desire for immortality and/or is your protest against your death. Yours, is not a rebellion , but a hatred of the creator and you will die simply because you prefer injustice to mutilated justice.


Jesus Christ might have said to Donald, it’s clear that you reject my moral teachings : Blessed are the poor, love thy neighbor,  the Golden Rule and the 10 Commandments, Wealth is not a sign of virtue "And I say again unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God,"  and righteousness has nothing to do with those without need.  In spite of your hypocritical  lie  that you're a believer , you are amoral, treat others abominably, disregard laws, mores, humanistic values and a threat to your Republic, I say to you "Father, forgive him for he knows not what he does."  


Psychologically, Donald's malignant narcissistic and masochistic character tendencies within  his sociopathic personality disturbances require  consequences for his actions. He exhibits insane criminal behavior , He is not competent to stand trial , unable to testify at any of  his trials and not able to fully assist  his attorneys in understanding and fully participating in his defense.  Further, he is not a candidate to be able to benefit from  psychotherapy because of the severity of his mental illness.  


In closing, morality is defined as the distinction between right and wrong, or good and bad behavior as related to that society.  Donald, so far, has earned a failing letter grade for moral behavior.  When I was in school, we received a letter grade for citizenship which is related to moral behavior.  Our laws are well represented by the moral standards  found in the 10 Commandments.  With that being said, our Republic's morality will be exhibited during Donald's trials.  Will the jurors in those trials find  his  amoral behaviors  guilty or not guilty?  Their verdict will provide additional  data as to the importance, existence and degree of morality in our Republic.


Reference


Camus, Albert.  The  Rebel.


Thursday, September 21, 2023

White Male Power

 Throughout  history, has been characterized as winners and losers; sadists and  masochists; wolf and  sheep, lovers and haters, dominators and submitters  etc. This essay has to do with white male power, possession ,status , the collective unconscious and an authoritarian conscience.


Historical authoritarian  conscience  figures come to mind that include but are not limited to, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar;, Borgias Popes,  King Arthur , Napoleon;Henry VIII; Stalin ; Hitler , Putin and so forth.  These men were sadistic, dominant, exploitative,  arbitrary possessed  and had enormous  unequaled power , possession  and status.  Their position of influence was over many and they had loyal followers that gave up their life  for them irrespective of  consequences.  These historical figures operated according to their own morals , ethics and values.  They created right versus wrong, good versus bad and legal versus illegal .  In essence, their word was law as they were the law.


Take for example ,  King Arthur and his Holy War Crusades.  Money, arms and followers marched across Europe into the Holy Land.  There, they waged war exploitatively , savagely and sadistically killed, murdered women and children for ?  Yes, the 10 Commandments was established in the Holy Land and thou shalt not kill is one  of the 10 .  That commandment did not apply neither  to King Arthur nor his followers.  Another example was the thirty-year religious war between Catholics and Protestants.  These two  shared “religious” ideas , agreed on the same God, Jesus Christ, and the same Bible yet they didn't adhere to the shall not kill commandment . They sadistically brutalized and murdered each other in the name of ?  Henry VIII had many wives that he murdered regardless of the Pope .  There are so many examples of hypocrisy, contradictions, rationalizations of man's inhumanity to man and two sets of morals , ethics, values and rules as in  one for the rulers and the other for the masses.   The  10 Commandments , laws, standards,values and ethics didn't apply to the rulers. 


With the above  being said, Carl Jung, in his analytic theory of personality, postulated the inheritance of biological instincts along with ancestral experiences that he referred to as archetypes within the collective unconscious.  Briefly, according to Jung these concepts are the most powerful influential system of the psyche and in pathological cases overshadow the ego . It's a storehouse of latent memory traces inherited from man's ancestral past that includes not only the racial history of man, but his animal ancestry as well . It’s a residue of evolutionary development that accumulates as a consequence of repeated experiences over generations.  For instance, in our republic ,we have a history of white male  dominance , prejudice, slavery, and minority rule . They were either  chosen  by God or by accident of birth. And ,they acquired and implemented their own set of rules and values of conscience.  In so doing, these individuals exhibited power, prestige and status in which  followers identified. Psychoanalytically speaking, with identification, a followers conscience can become like an authoritarian conscience .


500 years ago our history , in 1619, started on this continent with slavery and the dominance of some over others. 150 years later, a group of white males had "permission" for a rebellion.  They had no trouble getting followers and employed an array of slogans such as, give me liberty or give me death in order  break submission and establish independence  from the dominant yoke of King George .That followed with the writing of the Constitution, primarily credited to the slaveholder Jefferson.  Jefferson's collective unconscious as well as his understanding of classical Greek and Roman history established a spectacular Declaration of Independence that pertained to white males.  Three branches of government, in a republic, were established and a  process of electing the executive  and minority power was put in place with the non democratic electoral college, having 2 senators per state (California ,the 4th largest economy in the world and North Dakota with ?), and lifetime appointments for the Supreme Court etc. Before them,  Aristotle, Socrates, Plato, Adam Smith all realized that democracy was dangerous because there were more  have knots and they would take from the haves. Government is control ,not submission. Submission is for the majority. 


There was a Civil War, emancipation and  executive declaration 100 years later. That did not stop the South from creating KKK's and all sorts of rules and regulations to enslave Blacks as well as  making it very difficult  for them to vote with  poll taxes, etc. There was separation , discrimination , prejudice ,and  exploitation between the whites and blacks ,between the haves and have-nots, and again there were two sets of rules, ethics and values regardless of the 10 Commandments , the same Bible, and  teachings of Christ.  Blessed are the poor ?  Really !


Then within the next 100 years, women were allowed to vote.  Martin Luther's nonviolent movement,  Kennedy and Johnson's Great Society legislation continued  the movement. For the have-nots/   Although the Republicans, the party of white males, were still in control, we had acceleration of income inequality  and the power of minority  rule for  white male Republicans preaching conservative  racist principles.  The fact that the  Democrats have won the  presidential popular vote  often and that has terrified white male power.  Republican states have been able to manipulate their control and power with creative redistricting in order to ensure Republicans being elected along with putting voting obstacles in place.  Once again ,it's not about democracy but about retaining white power and control regardless.


Moving to the present, we've witnessed  a criminal authoritarian in the White House.  He was able to procure that position because of the nondemocratic electoral college.  Then, with his authoritarian conscience on exhibition, he disparaged people of color, told lies, criminal acts etc.  His authoritarian  conscience also exhibited itself with his Make America Great ( meant to make him great) ; lying about a” fraudulent” election; stating he could kill someone on Fifth Avenue and not get arrested; making perfect phone calls to the Ukraine government and to state officials in Georgia. etc.  These calls were perfect.  He was impeached  twice and has  91 charges  against him which are all part of the witch hunt “lies.”  All the state and federal prosecutors are out  to get him so the liar says.. 


 Once again, with an authoritarian conscience, there exists two sets of values , ethics, rules and standards  as one for Trump and one for others . It's as if the vector's  behavioral force becomes non-impeded irrespective of the probability of negative consequences . He is  right and entitled.  He held the most powerful position in the world, He  acted as if he were king and his rules and behavior were sanctioned from “above.”  Just remember the  amoral history of other authoritarian rulers.  He's doing nothing irregular but continuing in their place  as the means always justify the ends.  If he was found  guilty,  it would be a travesty of justice in his mind .  US presidents have never been convicted by jury  and found guilty. They have a God-given right , in this white man’s  rule , to be all powerful over his subjects . With his superior knowledge, he knows what's best .


Trump's mind is imbued with absurdity and apparent sterility within his own world.  Anything he experiences , so do  his others.  His own aristocratic morality is entrenched far  above the rest which include his loyal sycophants.  His narcissistic morality  which incorporates his power, prestige, and  possessions , puts him above all the slaves that have to submit to his  unimpeded actions  according to his own implacable or unrelenting rules.  Essentially, because of his authoritarian moral conscience, his behavior tendencies  become subservient to rationality, saneness ,and humanism.


As Trump lives in the world of mistrust , he has to have complete control and domination. Moreover, in his mind, his society is founded on desire and crime  according to his  rules. This ruthless system , this  rebellion , perpetuates non-democracy so that he can subjugate the majority.  In essence, he constructed a citadel of force and hatred and in the process destroyed freedom for everyone else. Even though; he evokes the pleasant  habit of crime, he cannot  thoroughly please  or become satisfied . He exhibits  more like a man's fury while being in shackles.  His enjoyment is temporary and short lived even with his possession and power over others Thus, his  abhorrent actions must  be repeated over and over again.  Moreover, he is governed by the law of power which tends to be unique but solitary within his emotional stoicism  that's derived from vice.  He is unable to live in the world of love and compassion and  is headed for an apocalyptic destruction of self .


In essence, In Trump's “inherited” mind . He logically criminalizes , becomes God and refuses to recognize any other law but his own.  With that being said, the poet Boudelaire wrote "Everything in this world exudes crime and It is man's law of nature.” Furthermore, Trump's moral philosophy consists  of domination and not submission with  powers of defiance, opposition and refusal.  This brings to mind the biblical story of Cain and Abel.  It's obvious that Trump, in his mind, is jealous and envious and  attempts to destroy Democracy and is blasphemous towards our Christian Republic of God.  In doing so, our Legal  Justice system symbolizes God , and does not permit Trump to be killed, but to continue his life in exile with the enduring pain of banishment ,loss of prestige without martyrdom. Or, according to Greek mythology, rebelled like Prometheus  and was  punished by Zeus with eternal torment. 


Reference


Camus, Albert.  The Rebel.

Jung, C.C. Psychology of the Unconscious.


PS


Marcus Aurelius "Your mind will take the shape of what you frequently hold in thought."


Thursday, September 14, 2023

Linda"s 90th

 


Last week, Linda, the birthday girl, celebrated her 90th. We voyaged to the Berkeley Hills for  celebration.  This essay is about the ,one and only, birthday girl.


After my morning run, we were ready to leave for  our Berkeley destination when Linda received a birthday call greeting from Tony and Debbie.  After her chat, we left home.  We got on Highway 80, but didn't look for Paul  this time because he was in Greece.  After a leisurely  2 + hour drive , we reached Berkeley. We climbed and climbed and finally reached our abode, which was very close  to Grizzly Peak Boulevard. We had a spectacular view of the San Francisco Bay with the Golden Gate insight.


We unpacked and then headed for the golf links in Tilden Park.  We arrived and headed for the pro shop and talked with the young man at the desk.  He didn't recognize female golf legends from yesteryear.  I had him Google Patty Berg to enlighten him .  As a teenager, Linda was a member of a golf club in Kansas City.  She was a fabulous golfer and joined Babe Didrikson  Zaharias in exhibition. Babe was impressed with Linda's skill on the links.  She even talked about Linda joining her on tour.  That did not happen.  


Babe was a professional golfer and joined the LPGA at the beginning.  She had 48 professional wins ,10 major championships and was a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.  She  set world records, winning two gold medals and one silver medal  in track and field at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics.  She competed in basketball and pool as well.  She even pitched a total of four innings in three major league spring training exhibition games.  She gave up one walk and no hits pitching for the Philadelphia Athletics against the Brooklyn Dodgers..


 At the golf shop, Linda grabbed the seven iron and headed to the practice tee where she felt comfortable and familiar.  She made some terrific shots straight down the fairway and talked about hitting golf balls again. 


 Linda is also a water person.  We headed for the Bay for dinner and wound up at Skates on the Bay which was situated in the bay with, once again, a marvelous view.  We ate dinner that included a trio of shrimp, scallops and salmon.  We informed the waiter  that we wanted to share that meal and it arrived with two separate plates equally divided.  The food was terrific as Linda made the right choice.  We both agreed it was one of the best meals we've had in quite some time.  The setting, food, view , service  and company were excellent. 


After dinner we headed for Dreyer’s ice cream parlor in Berkeley.  However, it was  nowhere to be found.  The next stop was Fenton's on Piedmont Avenue.  There, we shared a huge hot fudge sundae to end the evening.  On our way back, the Grizzly Peak Drive was spectacular as we witnessed the gigantic fog headed inland.  It was simply breathtaking.


Next day Linda wanted to visit the Oakland zoo.  We spent the morning and afternoon at this facility . It had  the Wild Australia ,Tropical Rainforest ,African Savanna and California Trail System  locations . At each station, there was a description of animal habitat and specifics regarding extinction, balloon and plastic hazards , lifespan and social structure.  Animals are often found in herds ,packs or groups.  Some like a lion ,sleep a lot and then hunt at night.  In fact, I did not see the lion.  It was sad to see the Tiger playing with a large ball.  The elephant was just standing in one spot throwing dirt on his body.  Yes, the animals live longer  in zoos. But, they are caged and  their nature is being interfered with as they are captives.


Later that evening we headed back to the Bay and had dinner at The Berkeley Boathouse.  That restaurant was located in the  Doubletree Hilton Hotel.  The mahi-mahi  meal was tasty but not as spectacular as the evening before.  We talked with our San Leandro waitress regarding ice cream places . Humphrey's on College Avenue was recommended .  We headed for Humphrey's and found that little hole in the wall and to our surprise, we were delighted by their wide array of  exotic flavors . We enjoyed another   delicious  Sundae .  Humphrey's is now on our  do  it again list.


The next morning we headed home and stopped at her favorite gourmet eating place near The Monster of Massage in Newcastle for a pastrami sandwich.  We arrived home and retrieved Teddy.  


All in all, visiting the Bay Area's special with another memory being Linda's 90th.  Further,  I had forgotten that we had given Linda's golf equipment to Dave.  We retrieved them after putting on  Dave’ s putting green . And  the following day  headed for the links at ALT .  It was wonderful to see my beautiful young looking wife enthusiastically engage again  in the sport that she  once excelled.  Look out Scheffler, McElroy and Tiger as it may not take long for Linda to regain her magic form.


Thursday, September 7, 2023

A Derisory Person

 


The 10 Commandments , found in Exodus and Deuteronomy, were the first moral and ethical principles for mankind . The majority , in our country, have a tendency not to commit murder or kill , while others have a tendency to ignore moral and ethical principles . Recently,  a white person murdered three black individuals. Also , I  viewed Dan Buettner's documentary titled Live to 100.  The Secrets of Longevity.  This essay incorporates the above ideas .


Sigmund Freud,  who witnessed World War 1, had to include an instinct of  death to more fully explain man's craziness.  Craziness occurred In Jacksonville , when that  21-year-old male murdered Angela, A.J. and Jerrald .We  heard more about guns  and the fact that he purchased them legally than we did  about  the moral and ethical problems facing this republic . Why does a Christian nation remain silent on  amorality  ?   Have we  become numb to murder and suicide because were living in the age of craziness ?  Perhaps , we are a Christian republic in name only ?


This white person followed Nazi propaganda and had a swastika mark on his gun.  Did his irrational and absurd beliefs and rationalizations  justify murder of self and others as did Hitler ?  Nazisim represented a  hateful dictatorial fascist political party that was intolerant, racist against Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and against  justice and the rule of law . 


 Did this white Nazi have a rational foundation for murder and suicide ?  If not, he was insane.  Why kill a black individual ?  Yes, in 1619 there were slaves brought to our shores ; yes, they have black pigmentation and a certain amount of melanin; yes, they are exceptional athletes; yes, we've had a black president and yes we  currently have a black female VP.  And the reason to kill a black is because ? If  there was no rational foundation for murder then he was insane. Moreover , those who accept the murder of others suggest that there is no higher value to guide behavior and that thou shall not kill is irrelevant.  If nothing is either true or false, good or bad,  just or unjust.  then we become slaves according to Camus in his book The Rebel . If  murder , in this case is justified , that means that  scruples , conscience  and guilt  are nonoperative and irrelevant   In other words, if murder and suicide are considered the same thing and accepted as such, then the justifications for murder and suicide  mean an indifference to life, which is the definition of nihilism .


This person had no grounds for murder and  his absurdist beliefs cannot defend the existence of acceptance and sacrifice  of the lives of others.  Others have a right  to live .  Was this resentful person rebelling ?      Scheler describes resentment as an evil secretion in a sealed vessel of prolonged impotence, passive, highly colored by envy of what one does not have, which turns into unscrupulous ambition or bitterness which is in wanting to be something other than what one is which means always a resentment against oneself. And, he was rebelling against the will , desire for survival, growth, life , humanism and  the respect  or value of self and for others. What irrational authority gave him permission for this violent crime  ? 


It was reported that he locked his bedroom door while living with his parents.  His identity was based on resentment, hatred and he alone was a lone wolf killer but had a shallow  attachment to “others” on social media, to those expressing malignant beliefs.  He was not developing skills , planning for a career , preparing for a  family,  teaching ,contributing, producing  or helping others . He had no future ,he was  a  narcissist with a necrophiliac attitude and character structure.


This individual with necrophilia  tendencies exhibited  indifference and a hating  of life and humanity with the tremendous capacity to destroy.  He was enamored by force, his power to kill those who lacked this power  as they were defenseless.  He was  in “control.”  Actually, he was fearful of life’s  uncertainty and  was willing to kill and die for some irrational and hateful idea of "justice."  Is he now a martyr ? An example of necrophiliac  was found in the biblical story.  It was a woman who wrongly claimed to be the mother of the child in the story of Solomon's judgment.  This woman would rather have a properly divided dead child than lose a living one . The true mother was willing to give up her child to live as opposed to having him cut in half.

 

Dan Buettner visited a number of countries interviewing many . In fact, one area was located in  Loma Linda, California.   Also, Michael Howard, PhD reviewed approximately two dozen centenarian studies across the world.  He came up with 16 healthy habits and lifestyle factors  that strongly predicted who would live  to 100 years old and  able to live independently.  A brief  review  of their research : 1.  All  centenarians were socially  and face to face connected, and  had reduced their  stress and distress with a purpose in life.  Some cooked healthy foods using appropriate vegan components; some tended their gardens; and some  were religiously connected. The Seventh-day Adventist's ,  from Loma Linda pursued health and  a healthy lifestyle.  2.  None of the centenarians devoted an enormous amount of time on social media.  Instead, they  interacted face to face  3.  They either lived independently , with a significant other or with family   4.  They had a positive humanistic attitude and  were concerned about others.  None exhibited malignant  narcissism and resentment , nor was the same found  in public or government forums   5.  All had a daily and resilient  work life with structure , repetition and meaning .  They all were focused on the present and future. None complained about being bored nor what to do today.  6.  All were physically active by either walking numerous steps in the city,  hills in the mountains; attending to wandering livestock; swimming, playing pickleball , volunteering,  or attending exercise class  7. They valued life and none had dementia, chronic depression , committed  suicide nor were drug  or alcohol dependent .


In summation, our republic appears to be headed in the direction toward an absence of religious ,ethical and moral principles ; excessive  negative physical and mental health  ; Intimacy with crime;  excessive criminal behavior with justice and the rule of law crumbling for some .  Murder has become repetitious and these acts of violence become numbing and more of the same .  Perhaps we need to spill more blood ?  We have excessive solitary loneliness, with plenty of noticeable tyrants on display .  With that being ,  it suggests the importance of how socioeconomic, political, and religious components affect biological and psychological health and longevity.  For instance, with the exception of one  Seventh-day Adventist community in Southern California, the majority of centenarians are found  elsewhere.  These communities are not represented by resentment, crime , murder, injustice, political divide, hate, destruction and discrimination.  However, they are represented by welcoming the aged; providing incentives for face-to-face interaction; self-motivation with  productivity; absence of  governmental and environmental distress; a positive future outlook.with congruent socioeconomic, political and environmental cooperation .  If we are going to have a rebellion, why not  against fascism, authoritarianism, racism, inequality , prejudice, discrimination, loneliness , murder, and suicide ?


PS


Jonathan Swift stated, "No wise man ever wished to be younger .”


Reference


Successful Aging in Men & Women . Institute for Natural Resources.


Thursday, August 31, 2023

Social Media

 Our country is no stranger to individuals that lie, exploit, discriminate with hateful prejudice that began in 1619 for the sake of power, possession and status , in 1692 there was the Salem witch trials; in the 18th-century there was violence against the Freemason; later  attacks on Catholics ignited by Protestant leaders who lied about their sexual depravity and infanticide ;  Henry Ford's publishing "The International Jew,"  the anti-semetic series reported in his Dearborn Independent newspaper; McCarthy’s communism witch hunt in the 1950’s ;  the CIA's clandestine  filming of encounters between sex workers and Americans unaware that the agency had given them LSD ; the 1980s when innocent people had their lives ruined when children reported "recovered memories" of ritual abuse inside suburban daycare centers;  young moms  first  entertained , briefly, the falsehood that the Sandy Hook elementary school shootings was just a hoax and was about gun control ; a Trump  man who believed that walling off the southern border might have prevented his son's death from opioid addiction;  and the current election fraud disinformation . This disquisition addresses the June 25, 2023 edition of The New York Times  article titled "Social Media Is Said to Harm Teens, but Proving It is Hard." Is there substantially  more craziness occurring  because of internet technology ?


 The article , in question , addressed some   research difficulties encountered in studying social media. One major problem included a lack of a definition for social media, its apps or features  and sites . Definitions are required for research. For this particular research  It's also important to identify variables being studied  .


Inconsistent findings, at this point  are expected without a clear  definition and as well as  the particular  variables  for the research . This suggests the possibility of a flawed  research design  . It's been reported that there was a small negative correlation between social media use and mental health but specifics have not been identified. Other research has shown that social media is not inherently beneficial or harmful and its effects depend on individuals .  It's  also been found that teenagers with certain vulnerabilities such as those with low self-esteem , poor body image or social struggles seem to be most at risk.  One experiment found that exposure to manipulated images directly led to worse body image, particularly for girls more prone to compare themselves with others.  Another study found that using social media to compare self to others and seek approval was associated with depressive symptoms, especially for teens who struggle socially.  One study found that social media often had positive and negative effects on the same person.  According to Project Awesome, that  study reported that teenage girls with symptoms of depression were more likely than girls without symptoms to say  that social media made other people’s lives better  and were more likely to say it enhanced their social connections . 


A few recommendations  found in the article included  were as follows: 1. Set limits, especially around bedtime.  2 .Don't give a young teenager a smartphone right away.  Start with a smartphone or a phone without Internet.  3.  Talk to you teenagers and have them show you what they're seeing and how it  makes them feel.  Discuss privacy and safety.  4.  Pick a family springtime plan that takes into account which activities increase stress versus providing long-term satisfaction.  5..  Model responsible Internet use .  Parents should engage with their kids. Just like parents who did pre-social media .Talk  about being good humans and citizens , talk about respect for others and themselves ,and talk about how their day was.



 In thinking about this article, my take as follows  for  a research  study 1.  A thorough review of existing social media research pertaining to the subject matter.  2. A research design that would  measure attitude change pertaining to antisemitism, based on social media. Teens; anti-Semitism; attitude change and psychological variables.  3.  Coordination with the Anti-Defamation League(ADL) .  This service  organization addresses itself to  education, anti-Semitism . racism , religious harassment, bigotry, xenophobia ,conspiracy theories and so forth.  They conduct research; track hateful attacks;  evaluate social media content ; assist the schools with programs relating to anti-Semitism  bullying and march for justice and equality. The ADL would be a terrific resource for information  research expertise regarding online tropes on You Tube ,Tick -Tock  and Snapchat.


A few variables for consideration would include the following: 1.  The study of anti-sematic attitudes using a Likert or Gutman scale survey  and/ or  other ideas after consultation with the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.  2.  Moral development scores employing either  Kohlberg's moral judgment scale and/or using The Defining Issues Test to assess level of moral reasoning   3.  GPA, intelligence  quotient and standard testing achievement scores   4.  Personality components such as conventionalism, superstition, cynicism, dependency, suggestibility, anxiety, impulse control, alienation, depression, denial, rationalization , projection, ethnocentrism, obedience are considerations 5.  Socioeconomic variables pertaining to parents.  6.  High school teenagers, preferably 10th or 11th graders.


.Briefly, the purpose of the research would be to evaluate  positive, negative or neutral effects  on moral and character development from a social media platform with high school students.  Moral and character development  within our socioeconomic culture is exhibited with attitudes with corresponding behaviors . Throughout history there are many examples of persons with anxiety, fears and flaws who become attracted to  authoritarian leaders . In essence, they identify and become loyal followers to the projective  power, possession and status of that person .They  become a part of a consensus irrespective of reason, objectivity or morality. Social media can be effective , with certain  moral and character types, for propagating  hate, prejudice , and disinformation  for those vulnerable types seeking  it.


Thursday, August 24, 2023

Longevity

  Last week's disquisition , including alienation. foreshadowed  the negative consequences pertaining to  physiological and psychological health .  Moreover , lifespans are  headed in the wrong direction.   This disquisition addresses additional factors interfering with  functional aging  employing  The longevity Test  which was based on  research from the Longevity Institute International. 

 

Alienation according to Marx  was related to socioeconomic factors in the work environment.  A few of these  socioeconomic variables  were measured , and suggest their importance affecting longevity . They are as follows : 1. Family income  up to $200,000  .2. Educational attainment had a higher score for postgraduate or a professional degree compared to some highschool or less  3.  Professionals and self-employed workers received higher scores than clerical, support, shift work or being unemployed.  4. Being in contact ,in the work environment with pollutants, toxic waste chemicals, radiation, or carrying a firearm to work. 5. Commuting time to and from work  6. Comprehensive medical insurance  and being able to use  physicians of your choice  compared to having  a limit for physician choices and/or having no insurance  7,Therapeutic measures such as comprehensive physical exams, blood tests, gynecological exams. Pap smears ,monthly breast exams , mammograms., genital self exams,  prostate exams, menstrual status, hysterectomy scores, postmenopausal , estrogen supplements, bowel movements, constipation, irritable bowel disorder ,sigmoidoscopy and skin lesions  .Other additional measures evaluated were blood pressure  with numbers ranging from normal ,borderline or high; cholesterol  being low, moderate, high; HDL-cholesterol 30 to 45, over 45;  and family member having diabetes.


Alienation also has to do with  having a negative  attitude and  making poor choices regarding self. This test identified many  of these behaviors that pertain  to  physiological, psychological and functional aging. The following variables  correlate and have to do with smart  or poor behavioral health choices.  For example: 1.  Tobacco use, ranging from one pipe or two cigarettes to the number of packs smoked daily  2. The number of years smoked compared to never smoking was also heavily weighted. 3.Alcohol  consumption was measured ,ranging from no alcohol consumption to the number of ounces of alcohol consumed on a daily basis.4..  Exercise ranged from 20 minutes or more of moderate aerobic exercise five or more times a week to no regular aerobic activity. 5. The number of flights of stairs  walked  6. Physical exercise at work  -from at least 2 miles of walking per day or   sedentary work without  much walking or climbing. 7. After taking a brisk walk or slow jog were symptoms of racing heart, irregular heartbeat or chest pain experienced  8.  Weight was evaluated for being  ideal or underweight  9.Measuring waist to hip ratio for both men and women . 


Accident Control  behavior was  assessed. 1. Wearing a seatbelt  2 . Drinking and driving including number of arrests 3. Weight of vehicle , subcompact or motorcycle.I would  have added contact sport activities , auto accidents and/or CTE diagnosis .


 Nutrition was important and some choices included :1.Eating a well-balanced diet or not eating a well-balanced diet 2. Eating regular meals at a consistent time  or not eating regular meals at a consistent time  3. Eating a balanced breakfast or not 4. Consuming fish, or poultry as primary protein sources  or not ;5.Eating at least five servings of green leafy vegetables daily or not 6. Eating at least five servings of fresh fruit or juice a day  or not 7. Avoiding fats or not avoiding  8. 50% meals consisting of fries, take-out foods, prepackaged or pre-cooked foods,or not 9. Eating some food each day that has a high fiber diet or not 10.Taking a daily multivitamin or mineral supplement that includes vitamins A ,C ,B complex, zinc, selenium .


.Changeable psychological factors were measured such as: 1. Being married or in a long term committed relationship or not 2. Satisfying sex life twice a week or more or not 3. Having close friends or not  4. Having a  regular daily routine or not  5.Hours of good sleep. or not  6. Yearly vacations or  not  7. Participation in stress management, yoga, meditation, music or not .I would have added psychotherapy treatment.


 Factors related to psychological  health called Changeable Emotional Stress factors  were measured , with a Likert Scale  . It  ranged from never, rarely ,sometimes ,to always.  The categories included : 1. Being generally happy  2. Having enjoyed time with family and friends 3 . Feeling in  control of personal life and career  4. Living within financial means  5. Set goals and look for new challenges  6. Participate in  a creative outlet or hobby 7. Having and enjoying leisure time 8. Express feelings easily 9. Laugh easily  10. Expect good things to happen 11. Anger easily  12.  Critical of self  13. Critical of others  14. Lonely even with others  15.Worry about things out of your control  16. Regret sacrifices made in life.


 Although I did not present the entire test, the topics Identified provide an indication of the number of choices pertaining to diet, lifestyle, environment,  mental attitude that relate to aging  that can be modified or changed..  I would have added  test  questions related to leisure activities such as equestrian , motorcycle, contact sports , accidents   along with pandemic vaccinations ,  mask wearing , climate change  stressors , CDC , prescription medication and physician guidelines,  dental care and participation in psychotherapy .


The importance of stress cannot be understated.   Dr. Hans Selye, postulated the alarm reaction caused by prolonged stress, which he called distress. Selye identified 4 stages:  !. Alarm Reaction. 2. Resistance  3. Exhaustion .4.Organ failure ,disease and death in his model.  There are many factors that affect the physical or emotional disequilibrium resulting from stress or prolonged distress.. Change in temperature , having a conversation , watching TV, playing a sport, planning an event, reading a novel, running a hill , driving a car. being late to an event, working , being in an uncontrollable situation etc..  Any activity can result in a change in homeostasis or disequilibrium resulting in  hazardous. Health consequences 


Negative  stresses are not pleasurable, but result in anxiety that affects mind and body such as a headache, stomachache ,allergies, ulcers, heart disease, cancer as well as affecting one's immune system, blood pressure, increased serum cholesterol levels, and lowered lymphocyte count.  In fact, one study found evidence of a heart attack four days after the individual experienced angry episodes with the risk doubling only  two hours after the outburst.  Specifically, the hormone cortisol is released with a cascading effect of production of free radicals . The hypothalamus ,neuropeptides , pituitary and adrenal glands become activated during stress.


In conclusion, healthy living is influenced by heredity , environmental circumstances, luck , values, perseverance,  commitment , being astute and well read with a myriad of choices and their unintended consequences. Psychological and functional age has to do with lifestyle.  Individuals in "It Has Nothing To Do With Age,"  pursued  healthy lifestyles that were indicative of their youthfulness, competitiveness and excellence.  Russ Kiernan  passed at 84; Jim Steere at 85 and Jack Sholl at 85.  Lew Hollander remains active in his 90s.  I'm nearing 84 and fit . I was told , as a teenager, by my dear Aunt Eva that there was nothing more valuable than health .Aunt Eva was a wise Lieberman .


Reference


Klatz, Ronald and Goldman, Robert.  Stopping The Clock.  Keats Publishing Inc.


PS


Some people try to achieve immortality through their offspring or their works.  I prefer to achieve immortality by not dying.-Woody Allen


Thursday, August 17, 2023

Karl Marx

 Income inequality and alienation leads us to Karl Marx’s philosophy of man.  His propositions unfortunately  ,especially in the West , have often been misunderstood and  misrepresented. Today's disquisition reflects the implications of Marx's philosophy . 


Karl Marx was a humanistic existentialist born in 1818 and died in 1883. Briefly, his philosophy of man was actually a  protest against man's alienation. He  meant that man has lost himself and has been transformed into a thing based on the socioeconomics of the West. Marx was against man being transformed into a thing and  the dehumanization and automatization taking place in  corporate  production. He opposed this highly technological mass production with its emphasis on an abundance of  erroneous  communication , propaganda and conformity . He believed that socio economic conditions were contrary to developing  an authentic and genuine  existence.  This existentialist was rooted in the humanistic Western tradition and influenced by Spinoza, French and German Enlightenment philosophers  and with the writings of Goethe and Hegel.  This existentialist movement foreshadowed the humanistic psychology  of  Fromm ,  Maslow , May , Allport , Rogers and others . Marx believed that man had the capacity to liberate himself, and realize his potential . With emancipation or self-actualization , justice, equality and universality would flourish, not at all like the totalitarianism , communism in Russia ,China and elsewhere.


Marx's conception of socialism was not related to equality of income  nor that people would be well fed, well dressed with many possessions.  Also, socialism , in his conception, was that  the production of goods and services should not be subordinated to  the state, corporations or powerful individuals.  The aim of socialism was for man to achieve his potential in order to overcome the alienation that's evolved as a result of the socioeconomic conditions ithat has infected the development of  negativity with self, with others -loneliness, suicide, estrangement ,separation, and nature. Man can develop his own powers and become one with the world, 


Alienation was found in the Old Testament's story of  idolatry.  Alienation is the process by which  man creates idols by  his own hands;  bows down , faithfully follows , obeys and worships this thing.  In doing so, he associates himself with this thing or object and therefore  becomes estranged  from himself.  This alienation is an experience in which he becomes passive , receptive and becomes separated from self .


In other words, according to Marx ,the process of alienation is expressed in man's work behavior , and in the division of labor.  When  his work is active, as in the creation of intellectual or artistic forms, man begins to create the powers of  himself. However, when  his labor becomes alienated  that process , behavior  or work does not fulfill his being.  As a result , man experiences a feeling of misery, resentment, and  frustration rather than well-being . And his labor  or work becomes physically exhausting or mentally debasing without joy and satisfaction .  Marx states "labor exists for the process of production and not the process of production for the laborer."  He adds, "consciousness which man has from a species is transformed through alienation so that the species life becomes only a means for him."


Marx was not concerned primarily with the equalization of income, but with the liberation of man from a kind of work which destroys his individuality , transforms him into a thing which makes him into a slave of things.  The worker having no part in the direction of the work, being employed as part of the machines he serves, is transformed into a thing and is dependent on capital.  Marx referred to this as the "fetishism of commodities."  Marx adds, "it cannot be otherwise.  In a mode of production in which the laborer exists to satisfy the need of self-expression of existing values, instead of on the contrary, material wealth exists to satisfy the needs of development on the part of the laborer.  As in religion man is governed by the products of his own brain, so in capitalistic production he is governed by the products of his own hands."  "Machinery is adapted to the weakness of the human being, in order to turn the weak human being into a machine."


 Further , production should be under common control.  This means that individuals should not be exclusively associated with being in a  competitive , dog eat dog atmosphere , being second as in being a loser with its primary aim as profit and loss. Production being under his control means that he is actively participating in the planning and execution of all plans related to  that process.


Marxists socialism  was about living ,  actualizing or reaching his potential . His attitude of likes , dislikes  should be his main business rather than producing the means for  a living.  In other words, life aims should  not focus on wages to buy things, but to actually evolve,  create , live , like and love self and fellow man.  Competition can lead to rivalry,  destructiveness, hostility , getting ahead, stepping on others and greed for non-useful or irrelevant  things.  Once again socialism developed by Marx was meant for tman’s fulfillment  but was never the fulfillment of life, but only the condition of fulfillment.  The goal  of life  is  to be able to create a self for its own end, freedom for producing and  being  creative. .


In a hazardous environment  or with stress , a fear response is activated in the amygdala  section of the mammalian or old brain within the limbic system .With fear is the activation  of  the stress hormones cortisol epinephrine and norepinephrine . These  deleterious  emotional effects result in significant interference in higher ordered  or executive ego functioning cognition in the cerebral cortex in the human or new brain . And  cortisol is associated with degenerative diseases of aging , ulcers, myocardial  infarction, diabetes, cerebral vascular accidents, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, alcoholism, and obesity.  In other words, a warlike or stressful environment does not  result in more intelligent thinking and actions , but in  primitive emotions , less intelligent thinking and behavior with physiological and psychological  disease .


A recent article titled "We're in the Era of the "Top Gun" CEO" in The July 30, 2023 edition of The New York Times supports Marx's definition of alienation  in addition to  a May 11, 2022 report by Gallup. They stated that many employees are drifting from their organizations - even when they are not actually leaving.  Only one in four employees strongly agree they feel connected to their culture and only one in three strongly believe that they belong in their organization. In the New York Times article, CEOs are undergoing combat like training because :1.  Work is war 2.  Their stress related  problems are  the competitive  market , shareholder pressure and  significant  employee  turnover 3.Typical corporate office environments  are riddled with passive aggressiveness that includes shouting, cursing and pacing the floor with lacrosse sticks. These overpaid , passive aggressive Walter Mitty types represent the aggressive  exploitative nature  of our time.  In war, there’s an enemy, friendly fire and civilian deaths.  When CEOs are at war , then they should be held accountable for their hostility. It’s not surprising , with alienation and hostility,  that there's a high employee turnover in the corporate environment. The current state of the capitalistic system with its  shortsightedness and greed contribute to decrease in physiological and psychological health with increased probability of a Doomsday Clock occurrence. And do not forget to review Edwin Starr’s “War” lyrics.


A few words about friends , associates and  retirement . Their fields of employment consist of a counselor  and teacher in public school ; teaching in a  state prison ; state employee with law enforcement; teamster; employee in a   corporation. Are  these  individuals  alienated ?  That question  can be debated.  However, there are some common themes that pertain to  these individuals : 1.  All were concerned about income and the best time to retire.  2.  All were looking forward to retirement and were counting the days.  3.  All expressed , a form of happiness,  when not working or on vacation.  4.  All  expressed various forms of frustration, disappointment and discouragement regarding interacting with supervisors, fellow workers, or rules and regulations. 5.  All received good earnings with benefits.


For me, these last 24 years of  retirement have been a blessing and have resulted in well-being . Chasing the mighty dollar was compulsive  and stressful behavior .  Retirement  resulted in freedom, additional options for personal decisions and the ability for furthering the development of physical and mental health.  Equine activities were fun, joyous, personal and facilitated important interpersonal relationships  irrespective of the competition.  Running also has been super , satisfying and enjoyable while pursuing and meeting all the difficult challenges with many friendships ..  Reading and writing has become necessary, fulfilling, educational and intellectually satisfying . 


There are many problems within income inequality. Many employed individuals  appear alienated , lonely and not happy while at work. It’s likely related to  wages,  health, family, education , skill level , character issues etc.. Capitalism works best for those with the right inheritance ,  ZIP Code , educational opportunities , intellectual capacity  and character in a limited supply and high demand field.  Fortunately, too many don't have the right variables and become  isolated, left out , resentful and make  too many self-defeating  victim-like decisions.  Marx identified one major socio economic  problem  that affects physiological and psychological aging along with disease .. Alienation plays a major part and  makes significant contributions to our  political, personal and economic dysfunction.


PS


A special word of gratitude to T.B. Bottomore for his translation of Marx's Economic And Philosophical Manuscripts.