Phi for All

I think Trump's baloney brain is being used. Putin is using him to destabilize those countries allied against Russia. The GOP is using him to cherry-pick their agenda from his craziness. And those who benefit from moving the economy towards more capitalism, aka extremist capitalists, are using him to rob riches they aren't really entitled to. None of these folks are known for integrity. It's not even on their radar, except to claim they have it and their opponents don't.

Add climate change deniers, creationists, and perpetual skeptics to that list. Most cranks haven't fully explored the theories they seek to overturn.

OMG, you're on a science forum. Expect to have small mistakes/misconceptions corrected. When you're trying to persuade people, your argument is a path that should be kept clean. If someone takes the time to pick up a bit of litter, perhaps thanks is in order. Personally, I think misuse of quick labels by the media has kept many important issues muddled in the minds of many Americans. They allow people to generalize a topic that's increasingly complex and frustrating. Gun control isn't helped at all with this kind of treatment. We need to stop thinking in terms of black/white, red/blue, lib/con, right/left, because it seems to reduce us all to alive/dead.

Then you need to stop using the word "proof", because that's exactly what it means. There is no evidence that does more than support an explanation, and science looks for the preponderance of evidence rather than "proof". Also, the 4th choice should be "... is something science isn't designed to explain." The existence of god(s) is outside of natural examination. Science needs observation and predictability, both of which god(s) lack.

Interesting that Giuliani released a statement: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/14/trump-legal-team-takes-back-paul-manafort-will-tell-the-truth.html And minutes later, the WH legal team went in and removed the last seven words. Look for them to call him a liar if he does tell the truth.

Seeing as how unicorns date back to the Bronze Age, I don't think I'll have many problems. They may have had a causal effect on Christianity, predating it by a millenium.

Arkangel Daniel has been cast out permanently for preaching the crazy.

This is really true of all emotions. When you need to make decisions, it's often harder to use your intelligence before you let your feelings cloud your judgement. Another flaw in the NO FEAR approach is that it's often exploited by extremists to justify extreme behavior. Some of these people hope we'll simply not be afraid enough to do anything. Some embrace a lack of fear along with a lack of sympathy for those they abuse mentally, or financially, or socially. Perhaps we need to better delineate between fears and valid concerns. Is there a difference between fear of loss, fear of taking a chance, fear for your family's safety, fear of dying? Can I be afraid to walk in some of the most crime-ridden neighborhoods but have "no fear" of what will happen if I defend someone from discrimination? We mostly acknowledge that fear can help, but we mostly want to avoid fears that seem cowardly, or that hold us back unnecessarily.

This is the approach to take when fear has been weaponized and used against us, such as in social media attack campaigns, or political partisanism. Fear still keeps us looking for safer ways to do what we need to do, and as long as it isn't being exploited it's not a completely bad thing. It's getting to be a tougher call. Are seatbelts in cars a good reaction to fear? What about when fear is used to suggest small, foreign cars are dangerous?

It still sounds no different to me than saying unicorns are real because of the causal effects they've had on so many young girls growing up. If you use the most common definitions of god(s), as well as the scientific definition of evidence, this is nonsense.

He should be happy then. Let him know you've figured out how to be more positive, and you'll be working on figuring it out even better.

Even if you think it would do no good, if anybody in your family makes you feel negatively, you should let them know that's not how you want to be anymore. "I'm working on a more positive perspective, and I'd love to have your help." If you can learn to say that with a smile, they'll be more likely to believe you.

Excellent! Good choice. Now that you have well-defined parameters of what negative looks like, you need to learn what to do when it shows up unwanted, because it will and that's life. Don't be afraid to tell people you're trying to be more positive, and you'd appreciate their help, especially if you find yourself in a situation that falls back into bad old patterns.

Changing your emotions is like starting with a clean slate, or escaping from your problems. It can't be done. But you can change the way you think of them. Negative is relative. It's negative to tell lies, but when a child learns to lie it's a signal to behavioral experts that the kid is thinking ahead to make its future better. Fear can be viewed as negative, but it also keeps us sharp and makes us cautious. Even hate often helps us define love. I'm willing to bet that your perspective, focusing on negative feelings, has also helped you define what you think is fair and good and just. You know what the positive should be because you know the negative. It's not a matter of changing your emotion, but in using it positively.

Except it isn't. This is just something people say. You aren't escaping from anything. You're using your current skills and life experiences to express yourself creatively. You focus on what you're doing like anyone else, and try to block out distractions. This is what the vast majority of people do in life. Perceiving it as escape probably isn't as positive an image as you think it is, especially if you view your family life as some sort of prison. You aren't escaping, you're already living your life, gaining experience, developing opinions, exploring emotions. You aren't running away either, so that's good news. You haven't mentioned this yet, I don't think, but banish the idea of "starting over with a clean slate". It's just another thing people say. Your slate could only ever be clean if you forgot everything you ever learned or did. You'll ALWAYS be much more interesting than a clean slate. If this has all been directed at yourself in the past, has anything changed now that you have an 11-month plan? After all, there's light at the end of the tunnel, and you'll be free soon to pursue life on your own terms. That should help with negativity towards yourself, and it's your choice whether or not you want to take your disdain with you when you leave home (I would leave it under the floor in your bedroom, which your folks will probably turn into a weightlifting room, or a shrine to Mickey Gilley). Do you think there's any way you can start practicing being disdain-free over the next 11 months? The stimuli that you react negatively to will still be there, but since you know when it will end, can you start with those blocks and build a positive perception of yourself?

In the US, it's pronounced miz-OOR-ee , or miz-OOR-ah. Very humid and intolerant. It's more Dolly Parton than Lil Wayne.

You have to know that Putin knows how to corrupt an extreme present hedonist like Trump, but do you think Kim understands how to exploit the personality type also?

Myopia is definitely biasing the content of many posts lately. I'll also throw in that any discussion suffers when any of the participants adopts a must-win-the-debate attitude that precludes them from recognizing competing points and good arguments. Kafei, your style suffers from this a lot, and while you think it makes you victorious, it just frustrates others that they continually have to keep pointing to what they said two minutes ago, which you ignored in favor of waving your hands and repeating your same refuted arguments. It's difficult to know if you choose to do this consciously or not. The results are the same, so what does it matter? You're ignoring points that don't agree with you, which amounts to soapboxing, which is just one of the rules you broke.

That's what I was missing. I didn't know you could join the military while you're still in high school. So what's your 11 month plan on how you're going to prepare for when this new positive phase in your life begins? Anything you can do to set yourself up nicer when the time comes will be time well spent. Besides the military, are you going to be taking any college courses? If you're moving out, can you live cheaper on a base, or would it be better to have some roommates to share expenses?

There's obviously something else as well, since you belong to the military now, and your father's influence should be drastically diminished. Why not just let the military show you how valuable you are? Someone once told me you come out of boot camp knowing that part of confidence is having others rely on you for their lives. Fellow soldiers and being part of a team is great experience, and should be, as you said, the family experience you've been lacking. Not everyone has good relationships with one or more of their parents. Not everyone who becomes a parent is likeable. How difficult would it be to simply cut ties now that you're legally on your own, and in the military as well? If your dad makes your life harder, why do you allow him to be part of it? What is keeping his negativity in your life?

You feel this way about others, or about yourself?

This distance you describe as "far" is actually so near it appears obtuse.

put a hand on my groin...

It was Will Smith.

The effects of misspelling, or pure affectation?