This issue is personal for me, as I guess it must be for you. My daughters won't talk to me about anything political or medical. I lost my meditation sangha in 2021. Last month, my girlfriend finally gave up on me after telling me for years my views were evil and she was embarrassed to be with me.
If only we could talk...but she has been unwilling to discuss the topics where we differ. I think part of the "disinformation" meme is about keeping the tribe pure and denigrating anyone who doesn't take the vax as (paradoxically) both selfish and stupid.
It's indeed personal for most of us, Josh. Of my two brothers, I have half lost the one in India because he has a serious case of the Indian equivalent of TDS when it comes to Modi. Not that I am a Modi fan, far from it. But I find it difficult to get fixated on any politician. Waste of time. I have lost everyone on my wife's side of the family. All are pure woke.
My once sprawling circle of friends has shrunk to a small nucleus. Even they maintain a studious silence when I express myself on controversial topics. Since I can't come up with any non-controversial topics, not even (perhaps especially!) the weather these days, we are reduced to trading silly stuff from the internet to keep a slender thread of connection intact.
We all want to get along with our family and friends, be able to give and take without fear of losing the relationship. We also want to be able to look into the mirror each day and live with what we see. Seems we can't do both. Like it or not.
Sorry to hear about all the ways this is personal for you.
For me, in a very immediate sense, things have worked out. I met my current lady friend in April, 2020 and we bonded over being on the less popular side of the covid narrative. We have a few friends and family seeing things that way, but mostly we feel like an island. It's a nice little island, but looking out at that sea... Oi vey. I know there are good people out there, like you, but on the whole I find it difficult to function with this much disdain for the human race. I worry for the toll this will take on my soul. From another perspective though, I haven't lost very much. I've always known people would be like this. I've feared a pandemic for decades - meaning, I've feared people, not microbes. Post-covid, it's just that I can no longer pretend.
This series of short videos by Susan may be the best instruction in the shortest time, crossing to the Wikipedia for quick-reference. Watch the first 3 videos for the concept. The rest of the videos are type explanations. https://openheartproject.com/introduction-to-the-enneagram-2/
What is your type? What is your ex-girlfriend's type?
Also, about 70% of people test-reality by seeking group consensus. We are not that way. That narrows down our type possibilities, for starters.
I am a "Social seven", gluttonous until I learned better; now quite sober.
My wife and I are joined by Love, but constantly have to negotiate and discuss our intellectual differences. Twas ever thus for us.
The Love is beyond the intellect. Our values are the same.
I agree that love is beyond intellect, and our political differences never troubled me. I understood and sympathized with her. She is loyal to her tribe, and I know how her tribe has been manipulated. I value that loyalty in her. But she sees my views as dangerous, bordering on immoral. Her story is that I have a need to distinguish myself as different, and so I'm opposing sound scientific consensus for the sake of being different. The problem was not that she had such ideas about me, but that she was unwilling to discuss the differences. Eventually, she claimed I was bullying her every time I would ask what she thought about an issue and why she thought that way.
It sounds like she is not an intellectual type, so demanding intellectual reasoning for independent analysis feels like bullying.
My Mom says the same things about me, that I always wanted to be different, as if for its own sake, that I always wanted to feel superior... I think that is how she communicated it. Mom was good at explaining things when I was little, but rote explanations, whereas her father explained how things worked, which I loved, as did my dad's mother. I gained a lot from them.
You might like the Enneagram model. I find it very useful. Susan Piver's short videos are a good introduction if you have not gone there before, though many have.
I have heard of the enneagram system but never tried to do anything with it. When I look at the descriptions, #1, #4, and #5 could apply to me. For my ex, #2, #3, and #9.
I just saw this. I took a couple of online type tests, but they weren't quite right. My work role had influenced my answers. 5, 6 & 7 are the intellectual types, not that others are not intellectual. 5 watches and learns, and is very reticent to engage socially. There are variations on every theme.
Type 1 is rigorous for right and wrong, which my Grandmother Day clearly was, and she had intellectual rigor, and experience in the wide world.
I wonder what influences whether someone tests reality by looking to group consensus vs. doing so more directly. While Josh knows a ton about science, he has admitted to being at a loss regarding to how to make political change. I'm at a loss too, but maybe we could lay a foundation for such if there were a way to bring that 70% figure down. I could live in a world with a few such people, but that 70% figure is terrifying.
I presume that 70% of people being primarily consensus-driven keeps our groups together, which seems more important for survival than being right.
Once in a long while social groups may seek a new consensus. Some outliers may be heard. I think we are going through that. I am not particularly audible, but, like Josh, I'm doing the homework.
I took your survey but ran into more No Aswer choices than I had anticipated. Some choices complemented one another (e.g., free markets vs. capitalism) or they were equally plausible (e.g., the body's decay due to age vs. self-programmed destruction tailored to ecology – whatever that means!). Indeed, the two introductory stories themselves could be made to segue into one another with some light editing.
Maybe you should have another go with more clearly discernible alternatives.
There were numerous pairs where both answers were somewhat right or wrong, and/or had flaws, or even both seemed right, so I did not choose one. You know where I am, but there are some things I can't really be certain of without better information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLxpNiF0YKs
Yes, I agree -- in this format, just choose "no answer". Maybe I'll follow up with open-ended surveys to ask what people about individual topics. In the meantime, John, I invite you to pick one or two of these topics and arrange a zoom call to discuss our perspectives, what we agree on, and maybe what we're mystified by.
Thanks Josh. I chose the "Man on the Moon" song because I have seen both cases, but don't feel that it is clear what actually went down on those many missions.
Spiritual absolutes and certainties about alien life forms, extraterrestrials, are other areas where I hold things in abeyance, which is natural for me. Many people have to decide, even if wrong. I am not plagued by that trait.
I do keep seeking information, but we delve through haystacks of needles daily, don't we?
Josh's troubles with his family and spiritual community are hardly unique to him. America is currently a topsy-turvy environment where terminology must be carefully stabilized before even the closest companions can enjoy an intelligent conversation about current events. "Facts" and "science" are now bludgeons curated to fit beliefs. Even when agreement on current events appears to have been accomplished, one often awakens the next day to a rerun battle over the same half-truths. Worst of all, my complaints are not complemented by solutions that go beyond banalities!
"Human societies are knit together by stories. When authoritative sources propagate lies, the effect is to rent the fabric of an entire culture."
Who gave the Luciferian Brotherhood their authority? Hidden Hand says that YHVH imprisoned the Luciferians in the 4th density because of their wickedness. Lucifer appealed to a high council, which didn't order YHVH to free them but did offer them freedom if they abandoned their mission on Terra. They decided to fulfill their mission, and as compensation the council gave them the authority to rule over mankind.
If this is true, the Luciferians had legitimate authority to rule over us and to lie to us.
That authority ended with the last harvest.
The last harvest was of unevolved souls, who were sent to a replica of Terra for additional 1,000 years of trials and tribulations, again according to Hidden Hand. In other words, they were held back.
My theory is that the people who don't seem to be here, who lack intelligence, are, in fact, not here.
It certainly seems that there are powerful people gathering for Satanic rituals. We read about it in Bohemian Grove and in basements where children disappear. I'm still on the fence whether these rituals actually accomplish anything magical in return for the silly incantations and unspeakable atrocities.
Had to leave about half of the questions without answer because either both answers were insufficient or misleading, both answers were true to a degree, or I simply had no way of knowing, although that last option may not be accurate (example: the moon landing).
Yes -- I agree that for a lot of us it's hard to know whether mainstream story is actually true. "No answer" isn't no answer, but an acknowledgment of what we don't know, and maybe we can't know.
I compiled this list with questions about which I am personally very curious, so I'm aware that there are problems with the mainstream story, but I'm far from sure that the opposition story is accurate.
Your description of the internet strikes as pollyanna. Didn't TikTok get shut down (with what, a click of a mouse)? I hear about similar shutdowns from time to time, people in China and Iran being unable to see some things on a content basis... Admittedly though, I don't really know what the internet IS. I've been very curious, but can't seem to get any answer beyond vague "a network of computers" type stuff. If it's so decentralized and democratic, why do you have to pay to access it? How is Comcast (e.g.) able to rake in tons of money as an internet service provider, but I'm not?
Fred, I don't know the answer to some of your questions. My impression is that you can set up a server and be an internet hub if you have the money to invest, but that most people don't do that and instead rely on an ISP and then connect indirectly through them.
I don't understand how TikTok was shut down. It's my understanding that a country can block access to any site from computers originating in that country, but that it's easy to get around such bans with a VPN. A VPN lets you connect to the Web indirectly, through a server located anywhere in the world that you choose. When I was in China, people used VPNs all the time to get news or services that are not available in China. Why can't Americans use VPNs to get around the TikTok ban?
I've asked Grok about how to connect to the Internet without going through an ISP. Grok talked about Internet Exchange Points, or IXPs. I gather that if you have one of these, you are a node in the global network, and traffic can be routed through your server. If you own an IXP, you can use it yourself, or you can rent access to your IXP and become an ISP for others.
This issue is personal for me, as I guess it must be for you. My daughters won't talk to me about anything political or medical. I lost my meditation sangha in 2021. Last month, my girlfriend finally gave up on me after telling me for years my views were evil and she was embarrassed to be with me.
If only we could talk...but she has been unwilling to discuss the topics where we differ. I think part of the "disinformation" meme is about keeping the tribe pure and denigrating anyone who doesn't take the vax as (paradoxically) both selfish and stupid.
It's indeed personal for most of us, Josh. Of my two brothers, I have half lost the one in India because he has a serious case of the Indian equivalent of TDS when it comes to Modi. Not that I am a Modi fan, far from it. But I find it difficult to get fixated on any politician. Waste of time. I have lost everyone on my wife's side of the family. All are pure woke.
My once sprawling circle of friends has shrunk to a small nucleus. Even they maintain a studious silence when I express myself on controversial topics. Since I can't come up with any non-controversial topics, not even (perhaps especially!) the weather these days, we are reduced to trading silly stuff from the internet to keep a slender thread of connection intact.
We all want to get along with our family and friends, be able to give and take without fear of losing the relationship. We also want to be able to look into the mirror each day and live with what we see. Seems we can't do both. Like it or not.
Sorry to hear about all the ways this is personal for you.
For me, in a very immediate sense, things have worked out. I met my current lady friend in April, 2020 and we bonded over being on the less popular side of the covid narrative. We have a few friends and family seeing things that way, but mostly we feel like an island. It's a nice little island, but looking out at that sea... Oi vey. I know there are good people out there, like you, but on the whole I find it difficult to function with this much disdain for the human race. I worry for the toll this will take on my soul. From another perspective though, I haven't lost very much. I've always known people would be like this. I've feared a pandemic for decades - meaning, I've feared people, not microbes. Post-covid, it's just that I can no longer pretend.
Thank You, Josh. Are you familiar with the Enneagram? (Wikipedia's not bad here)
https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/type-descriptions/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enneagram_of_Personality
Helen Palmer's original book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enneagram_of_Personality
Susan Piver's "Buddhist Enneagram", shorter and clearer, and not about Buddhism. She was maybe born to see and teach this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enneagram_of_Personality
This series of short videos by Susan may be the best instruction in the shortest time, crossing to the Wikipedia for quick-reference. Watch the first 3 videos for the concept. The rest of the videos are type explanations. https://openheartproject.com/introduction-to-the-enneagram-2/
What is your type? What is your ex-girlfriend's type?
Also, about 70% of people test-reality by seeking group consensus. We are not that way. That narrows down our type possibilities, for starters.
I am a "Social seven", gluttonous until I learned better; now quite sober.
My wife and I are joined by Love, but constantly have to negotiate and discuss our intellectual differences. Twas ever thus for us.
The Love is beyond the intellect. Our values are the same.
I agree that love is beyond intellect, and our political differences never troubled me. I understood and sympathized with her. She is loyal to her tribe, and I know how her tribe has been manipulated. I value that loyalty in her. But she sees my views as dangerous, bordering on immoral. Her story is that I have a need to distinguish myself as different, and so I'm opposing sound scientific consensus for the sake of being different. The problem was not that she had such ideas about me, but that she was unwilling to discuss the differences. Eventually, she claimed I was bullying her every time I would ask what she thought about an issue and why she thought that way.
It sounds like she is not an intellectual type, so demanding intellectual reasoning for independent analysis feels like bullying.
My Mom says the same things about me, that I always wanted to be different, as if for its own sake, that I always wanted to feel superior... I think that is how she communicated it. Mom was good at explaining things when I was little, but rote explanations, whereas her father explained how things worked, which I loved, as did my dad's mother. I gained a lot from them.
You might like the Enneagram model. I find it very useful. Susan Piver's short videos are a good introduction if you have not gone there before, though many have.
I have heard of the enneagram system but never tried to do anything with it. When I look at the descriptions, #1, #4, and #5 could apply to me. For my ex, #2, #3, and #9.
I just saw this. I took a couple of online type tests, but they weren't quite right. My work role had influenced my answers. 5, 6 & 7 are the intellectual types, not that others are not intellectual. 5 watches and learns, and is very reticent to engage socially. There are variations on every theme.
Type 1 is rigorous for right and wrong, which my Grandmother Day clearly was, and she had intellectual rigor, and experience in the wide world.
I wonder what influences whether someone tests reality by looking to group consensus vs. doing so more directly. While Josh knows a ton about science, he has admitted to being at a loss regarding to how to make political change. I'm at a loss too, but maybe we could lay a foundation for such if there were a way to bring that 70% figure down. I could live in a world with a few such people, but that 70% figure is terrifying.
Hi Fred,
I presume that 70% of people being primarily consensus-driven keeps our groups together, which seems more important for survival than being right.
Once in a long while social groups may seek a new consensus. Some outliers may be heard. I think we are going through that. I am not particularly audible, but, like Josh, I'm doing the homework.
;-)
I took your survey but ran into more No Aswer choices than I had anticipated. Some choices complemented one another (e.g., free markets vs. capitalism) or they were equally plausible (e.g., the body's decay due to age vs. self-programmed destruction tailored to ecology – whatever that means!). Indeed, the two introductory stories themselves could be made to segue into one another with some light editing.
Maybe you should have another go with more clearly discernible alternatives.
I agree. A lot of the choices were two extreme positions, and I expect that thinking people will choose "none of the above".
Great piece, Josh! There is hope on the political horizon: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/restoring-freedom-of-speech-and-ending-federal-censorship/
There were numerous pairs where both answers were somewhat right or wrong, and/or had flaws, or even both seemed right, so I did not choose one. You know where I am, but there are some things I can't really be certain of without better information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLxpNiF0YKs
Yes, I agree -- in this format, just choose "no answer". Maybe I'll follow up with open-ended surveys to ask what people about individual topics. In the meantime, John, I invite you to pick one or two of these topics and arrange a zoom call to discuss our perspectives, what we agree on, and maybe what we're mystified by.
Thanks Josh. I chose the "Man on the Moon" song because I have seen both cases, but don't feel that it is clear what actually went down on those many missions.
Spiritual absolutes and certainties about alien life forms, extraterrestrials, are other areas where I hold things in abeyance, which is natural for me. Many people have to decide, even if wrong. I am not plagued by that trait.
I do keep seeking information, but we delve through haystacks of needles daily, don't we?
Josh's troubles with his family and spiritual community are hardly unique to him. America is currently a topsy-turvy environment where terminology must be carefully stabilized before even the closest companions can enjoy an intelligent conversation about current events. "Facts" and "science" are now bludgeons curated to fit beliefs. Even when agreement on current events appears to have been accomplished, one often awakens the next day to a rerun battle over the same half-truths. Worst of all, my complaints are not complemented by solutions that go beyond banalities!
Hey Josh, you're terrific. I bought your book on aging and enjoy your conversations with the guy in Morocco.
PS: It's "rends", not "rents".
Thank you, rg. I've fixed the diction error.
"Human societies are knit together by stories. When authoritative sources propagate lies, the effect is to rent the fabric of an entire culture."
Who gave the Luciferian Brotherhood their authority? Hidden Hand says that YHVH imprisoned the Luciferians in the 4th density because of their wickedness. Lucifer appealed to a high council, which didn't order YHVH to free them but did offer them freedom if they abandoned their mission on Terra. They decided to fulfill their mission, and as compensation the council gave them the authority to rule over mankind.
If this is true, the Luciferians had legitimate authority to rule over us and to lie to us.
That authority ended with the last harvest.
The last harvest was of unevolved souls, who were sent to a replica of Terra for additional 1,000 years of trials and tribulations, again according to Hidden Hand. In other words, they were held back.
My theory is that the people who don't seem to be here, who lack intelligence, are, in fact, not here.
It certainly seems that there are powerful people gathering for Satanic rituals. We read about it in Bohemian Grove and in basements where children disappear. I'm still on the fence whether these rituals actually accomplish anything magical in return for the silly incantations and unspeakable atrocities.
Had to leave about half of the questions without answer because either both answers were insufficient or misleading, both answers were true to a degree, or I simply had no way of knowing, although that last option may not be accurate (example: the moon landing).
Yes -- I agree that for a lot of us it's hard to know whether mainstream story is actually true. "No answer" isn't no answer, but an acknowledgment of what we don't know, and maybe we can't know.
I compiled this list with questions about which I am personally very curious, so I'm aware that there are problems with the mainstream story, but I'm far from sure that the opposition story is accurate.
Your description of the internet strikes as pollyanna. Didn't TikTok get shut down (with what, a click of a mouse)? I hear about similar shutdowns from time to time, people in China and Iran being unable to see some things on a content basis... Admittedly though, I don't really know what the internet IS. I've been very curious, but can't seem to get any answer beyond vague "a network of computers" type stuff. If it's so decentralized and democratic, why do you have to pay to access it? How is Comcast (e.g.) able to rake in tons of money as an internet service provider, but I'm not?
Fred, I don't know the answer to some of your questions. My impression is that you can set up a server and be an internet hub if you have the money to invest, but that most people don't do that and instead rely on an ISP and then connect indirectly through them.
I don't understand how TikTok was shut down. It's my understanding that a country can block access to any site from computers originating in that country, but that it's easy to get around such bans with a VPN. A VPN lets you connect to the Web indirectly, through a server located anywhere in the world that you choose. When I was in China, people used VPNs all the time to get news or services that are not available in China. Why can't Americans use VPNs to get around the TikTok ban?
I've asked Grok about how to connect to the Internet without going through an ISP. Grok talked about Internet Exchange Points, or IXPs. I gather that if you have one of these, you are a node in the global network, and traffic can be routed through your server. If you own an IXP, you can use it yourself, or you can rent access to your IXP and become an ISP for others.