Chis Shelton, Social Science Blind Spot Regarding Cults? |444|

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No. I don't feel better. I'm locked in my castle because some nit wanted bat soup on the other side of the globe. AND it has shot to hell my dinner arrangements~

However, that said, you made a very interesting (although oddly worded) point to consider (maybe). My take away was that you are saying at some points in history some things were considered normal or expected or acceptable. Like having slaves.

Then BOOM comes a new age & people who cooked people in ovens were frowned upon. Hence, you didn't do "bad" karma when you burned them cause you thought it was a great idea. Now that you are reborn (if we go with that theory) it's kind of frowned upon.

Well, I think you're not (on purpose) suppose to hurt others. Should you choose to be such a rascal then you'll get bad karma (to be paid now or when you come back/cause you were too stupid to know not to do that).

Do you remember the good old days before the internet? When arguments were only entered into by the physically or intellectually able.

Happy Easter.
Super!
 
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Exactly what did you do? Somebody sounds kind of nervous...
If I knew, I wouldn't be so nervous.
But I forgot.

Or don't realize what I'm doing wrong with myself... what really do I not internally agree with about me.
But this aspect of it would a present time lie (not as such a karma thing).

A present time lie like, I don't like her - but I do but won't agree with me about it SO MUCH SO that unless another person correctly points it out to me, I won't discover it to myself as true.

Another such present time lie, "I try to be a nice guy."
If you were very guaranteed NO repercussions, you wouldn't even consider to say such a thing.
Power corrupts... absolutely... well, power allows you to fully express intentions. That's all it does.

Most people are good and do not want to rule. They may want rules, but they don't want to rule.
The guy that is trying to rule might say such a thing as, "I try to be a nice guy."
The guy who is a nice guy, is a nice guy. He isn't putting a precursor to something he's about to do that's probably not nice.
Well.... in my opinion.
: )

Oh. No accusations to you. Purely an example.
Thanks.
 
If I knew, I wouldn't be so nervous.
But I forgot.

Or don't realize what I'm doing wrong with myself... what really do I not internally agree with about me.
But this aspect of it would a present time lie (not as such a karma thing).

A present time lie like, I don't like her - but I do but won't agree with me about it SO MUCH SO that unless another person correctly points it out to me, I won't discover it to myself as true.

Another such present time lie, "I try to be a nice guy."
If you were very guaranteed NO repercussions, you wouldn't even consider to say such a thing.
Power corrupts... absolutely... well, power allows you to fully express intentions. That's all it does.

Most people are good and do not want to rule. They may want rules, but they don't want to rule.
The guy that is trying to rule might say such a thing as, "I try to be a nice guy."
The guy who is a nice guy, is a nice guy. He isn't putting a precursor to something he's about to do that's probably not nice.
Well.... in my opinion.
: )

Oh. No accusations to you. Purely an example.
Thanks.
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Super. I'll alert the media.
 
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The last guy that looked me dead in the eye & said that was Bill Clinton. But, he didn't laugh (at least in print). Just one question. Why do you live in Thailand? I don't mean for the scenery, I mean actually why?

Man, thank you for the musical association!
Great tune.

Ahhhh sorry. I prefer at this time to keep "why" I am in Thailand under my hat. But it is not as exciting as secrets seem to be.
 
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EGADS! I can't "like" this cause it would be terrifying to have that happen! Dreaming or hallucinating while awake might be like having Alzheimers. hum, maybe not, at least w/ this hallucinating you would still know who you are. This sounds like a tumor in the brain or something. Do you know what is more interesting? Idiot savants. Hate the part "idiot".
But, can you imagine people who hear a complicated piano rendition once, then they can just play it perfectly with no piano lessons? Or the artist that does the work of Rembrant THEN proceeds on to paint in the progress Rembrant would have painted if he continued!? That is so remarkable. The brain.
 
Man, thank you for the musical association!
Great tune.

Ahhhh sorry. I prefer at this time to keep "why" I am in Thailand under my hat. But it is not as exciting as secrets seem to be.
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That's just it, your reason is not at all "exciting" to normal people. My musical association didn't actually touch on why you are there; more to just let you know that it's obvious why you "took the long way home". Why in some places you could be arrested. But, you already knew that. Your dull question now is; HOW... was it so obvious? Where? How?

Sorry pal, some people are not as stupid as you'd like to believe.
 
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That's just it, your reason is not at all "exciting" to normal people. My musical association didn't actually touch on why you are there; more to just let you know that it's obvious why you "took the long way home". Why in some places you could be arrested. But, you already knew that. Your dull question now is; HOW... was it so obvious? Where? How?

Sorry pal, some people are not as stupid as you'd like to believe.
Kind of interesting, but not so engaging.
Maybe you have me mistaken for someone not me?

This is about all the engaging I care to do... and probably shouldn't engage that much into your delusion, whatever it is.
Much engagement into it could be like sharing the same cup of poison.
I might not be as immune as you to your monsters who thrive on such poison.

Oh. I see. Maybe that's the old, "Did you murder someone" trick. Accuse something most tragic so the person "releases" the smaller thing.

ha ha ha ha.... good thing I know you are just trying to be a nice guy.
 
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EGADS! I can't "like" this cause it would be terrifying to have that happen! Dreaming or hallucinating while awake might be like having Alzheimers. hum, maybe not, at least w/ this hallucinating you would still know who you are. This sounds like a tumor in the brain or something. Do you know what is more interesting? Idiot savants. Hate the part "idiot".
But, can you imagine people who hear a complicated piano rendition once, then they can just play it perfectly with no piano lessons? Or the artist that does the work of Rembrant THEN proceeds on to paint in the progress Rembrant would have painted if he continued!? That is so remarkable. The brain.
It's actually really common supposedly I had it happen before. The scientific explanation is different parts of your brain go to sleep at different times. So while your body is relaxing or sleeping parts of your mind are awake and you have these "hallucinations" a bunch of my friends family and random people I've talked to have it. The brain is remarkable, apparently Tesla and other great scientists used this method of hypnagogic states to get ideas and answers. This state is really known in hypnosis its the state they get you in when your hypnotized. So you're still awake but in a trance to say some parts of your brain are more active and they ask you what you see or hear or smell. I seen my friend do this to a lady, he had her close her eyes for less then a minute and got her in to the hypnagogic state and asked her what she seen and when she spoke it sounded like her subconscious was coming through, something about giant people lavender etc. It was interesting. It's the state before sleeping. I read a study that people get it during wakeful rest meaning when they are laying down for a few minutes with their eyes closed but not sleeping
 
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EGADS! I can't "like" this cause it would be terrifying to have that happen! Dreaming or hallucinating while awake might be like having Alzheimers. hum, maybe not, at least w/ this hallucinating you would still know who you are. This sounds like a tumor in the brain or something. Do you know what is more interesting? Idiot savants. Hate the part "idiot".
But, can you imagine people who hear a complicated piano rendition once, then they can just play it perfectly with no piano lessons? Or the artist that does the work of Rembrant THEN proceeds on to paint in the progress Rembrant would have painted if he continued!? That is so remarkable. The brain.
https://dreamstudies.org/2010/12/10/hypnagogic-dreams-and-imagery/
 
Thank you, for the excellent discussion and for asking so many tough questions, Alex. Apologies I could only begin this "trilogy" of Skeptikos today (#444, #445 and #446).

Rare that I decide the toxicity level (of the guest) reaches the point I stop watching - but this happened for me at 36:00 ish. Alex, you are a better, stronger man than me to have continued.

On to #445!
 
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Thank you, for the excellent discussion and for asking so many tough questions, Alex. Apologies I could only begin this "trilogy" of Skeptikos today (#444, #445 and #446).

Rare that I decide the toxicity level (of the guest) reaches the point I stop watching - but this happened for me at 36:00 ish. Alex, you are a better, stronger man than me to have continued.

On to #445!
thx, Sam. been busy with projects so just checking forum.
 
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EGADS! I can't "like" this cause it would be terrifying to have that happen! Dreaming or hallucinating while awake might be like having Alzheimers. hum, maybe not, at least w/ this hallucinating you would still know who you are. This sounds like a tumor in the brain or something. Do you know what is more interesting? Idiot savants. Hate the part "idiot".
But, can you imagine people who hear a complicated piano rendition once, then they can just play it perfectly with no piano lessons? Or the artist that does the work of Rembrant THEN proceeds on to paint in the progress Rembrant would have painted if he continued!? That is so remarkable. The brain.
I totally agree - the 'idiot' savants are ignored because they are so toxic to materialism. Clearly they plug into something that Jung would call the collective subconscious.

David
 
I totally agree - the 'idiot' savants are ignored because they are so toxic to materialism. Clearly they plug into something that Jung would call the collective subconscious.

David
It's amazing isn't it David... I have seen a little boy play piano like a highly trained professional. He heard it once & THEN went on to play the entire piece. When asked to play on... what he believed what would be the continuation. HE PLAYED ON! It is unworldly. Or maybe we don't understand the brain.

I'm thinking more (maybe) we are just receivers. Consciousness is as they say "non-local".
 
I just watched this interview with Chris Shelton, and being a former cult member myself, have followed his youtube channel from the very beginning. I love Chris, he is moving along in life just the way he is supposed to. I however, have more in common with the typical follower of Alex's work in terms of NOT bouncing along under the "trance of materialism".
For awhile, Chris presented a series in which he interviewed "small town skeptics" that were active in the "debunking field"... Most of them were NOT impressive at all... they seemed very dogmatic and shockingly simple minded in their purely materialistic view on life. Even Chris appeared to NOT be impressed. One guy was preaching the AMA gospel that acupuncture was a fraud, as well as chiropractic... constantly asserting ..."there is no proof... blah blah". All seemed to feed from the same information trough that hadn't been updated since the mid 80's.
BUT one PERSON stood out.... this is why I'm posting. She was a retiree, with plenty of free time...and part of a larger group. She was fiercely devoted to James Randy, and his mission to keep the internet "quackery" free. Her job, along with a crew, was to closely monitor Wikipedia using automatic alerts. Any time someone tries to update any entry on an "alternative thinker/scientist" that conflicts with Randy's standards for "non quackery", the change that was attempted, automatically rolls back. There is some function in the Wiki that allows that to happen whenever there's a challenge. She proudly believes that she is doing "God's work" metaphorically as a materialist would think.
If you wonder why Wiki entries about outside thinkers such as Dean Radin, or Rupert Sheldrake are so wacky or non flattering, this is most likely why. I saw this interview a couple of years ago, so I don't know for sure if it is still the case, but Chris is sincere as much as he is able to be, his wife is much more open minded about these things.
 
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I just watched this interview with Chris Shelton, and being a former cult member myself, have followed his youtube channel from the very beginning. I love Chris, he is moving along in life just the way he is supposed to. I however, have more in common with the typical follower of Alex's work in terms of NOT bouncing along under the "trance of materialism".
For awhile, Chris presented a series in which he interviewed "small town skeptics" that were active in the "debunking field"... Most of them were NOT impressive at all... they seemed very dogmatic and shockingly simple minded in their purely materialistic view on life. Even Chris appeared to NOT be impressed. One guy was preaching the AMA gospel that acupuncture was a fraud, as well as chiropractic... constantly asserting ..."there is no proof... blah blah". All seemed to feed from the same information trough that hadn't been updated since the mid 80's.
BUT one PERSON stood out.... this is why I'm posting. She was a retiree, with plenty of free time...and part of a larger group. She was fiercely devoted to James Randy, and his mission to keep the internet "quackery" free. Her job, along with a crew, was to closely monitor Wikipedia using automatic alerts. Any time someone tries to update any entry on an "alternative thinker/scientist" that conflicts with Randy's standards for "non quackery", the change that was attempted, automatically rolls back. There is some function in the Wiki that allows that to happen whenever there's a challenge. She proudly believes that she is doing "God's work" metaphorically as a materialist would think.
If you wonder why Wiki entries about outside thinkers such as Dean Radin, or Rupert Sheldrake are so wacky or non flattering, this is most likely why. I saw this interview a couple of years ago, so I don't know for sure if it is still the case, but Chris is sincere as much as he is able to be, his wife is much more open minded about these things.
thx for this. looking back at this history it appears that skeptics were pioneers in this online stalking thing. I remember when the skeptiko podcast received more than 200 1 star ratings on iTunes within a week. this is back when really big shows had less than 100 total reviews.
 
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