Cynicism as an approach to life

[The Good Reverend Roger]

The last time I acquired pleasure, I also acquired the knowledge that Speyside 21-year scotch is fucking awesome. I also acquired the knowledge that drag superstar Sharon Needles smells good.

Okay, I give up.

Dalek, spend all your time banging mystery pills into every exit wound.  You'll be the next Einstien in NO time.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Boy, is MY face red.  Here I spent my whole life trying to figure out how machinery works, and how people's heads work, and ALL I HAD TO DO WAS TAKE DRUGS, and I would have learned all that shit by mahdjgickque.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Drugs can be fun. They can even be useful. But a common pitfall is that because they put your mind in an altered state, they can very convincingly lead you to believe that you have gained incredible knowledge and wisdom about the world that, actually, is just you being real fuckin' high.

People who fall into that pitfall are usually very threatened by people who have gained knowledge about the world the traditional way, through studying and experience, because it may contradict what they think they've learned from their drug experience and force them to acknowledge that they were actually just tripping.

Which is why they call it "tripping" when someone is way the fuck off base and talking out their ass.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Drugs can be fun. They can even be useful. But a common pitfall is that because they put your mind in an altered state, they can very convincingly lead you to believe that you have gained incredible knowledge and wisdom about the world that, actually, is just you being real fuckin' high.

People who fall into that pitfall are usually very threatened by people who have gained knowledge about the world the traditional way, through studying and experience, because it may contradict what they think they've learned from their drug experience and force them to acknowledge that they were actually just tripping.

Which is why they call it "tripping" when someone is way the fuck off base and talking out their ass.

All of the above.  They CAN be useful for certain things.

But another thing is that they tend, in large (or in the case of the OP, UNKNOWN) doses or types, to fuck your head up.  Depression-fueled cynicism, dementia, and general lassitude towards accomplishing anything in your short existence on this planet.

So, yeah.  Like television.

[LMNO]

Rog, I was just being snarky at chimes. When I'm fucked up, I learn things about being fucked up. None of it translates into IRL stuff.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Rog, I was just being snarky at chimes. When I'm fucked up, I learn things about being fucked up. None of it translates into IRL stuff.

And that's about the short & skinny of it.

As I said earlier:

Everyone is their own fucking Slack.  But there's Slack and there's False Slack.

Okay, so you have a brain.  You have a few choices:

1.  You can stuff it full of amazing, like Kai, who grew up to be a entemologist.  Or Nigel, who grew up to be an artist and then a social scientist (in training, anyway).  Or LMNO, whose head is full of quantums, so you can't tell what he's thinking unless you crack his skull open (but then the cat dies).

2.  You can fill your head full of make-believe bullshit, because you want to give yourself or others the impression that you did the above, without having to work at it, or

3.  You can stuff it full of drugs and/or bad teevee, which is essentially the same as eating 2 Big Macs at every meal.  You can even tell yourself that you're EXPANDING YOUR MIND.  Fuck off, you're just getting fucked up.  And there's nothing WRONG with that, but don't pretend to some kind of mystic bullshit.  Be honest about it.  You're doing what every po'bucker does with cheap beer, only with shitty drugs.

[Epimetheus]

there's not such a thick boundary between acquiring Pleasure and acquiring Knowledge like you're pretending there is. plenty of activities achieve both.

Yeah?  Sitting around taking anonymous pills, as described, and then doing some yoga?

I call 169% bullshit.  Absolute rubbish.

Well, for example for me, studying geology does both. Most hobbies build your knowledge about that hobby.
Let's look at another perspective-changing activity - for example, once when I posted a piece, Nigel reminded me to look at it as the audience is seeing it, not as I'm seeing it. That's a technique that helps me learn every time I do it. It's not automatically/directly bringing me knowledge, but it's changing how I look at things so that I might pick up some new knowledge based on how effectively I use the technique. Usually that is a pleasurable experience, too.
There's no reason the experience of learning can't be accompanied by pleasure or vice versa.

But another thing is that they tend, in large (or in the case of the OP, UNKNOWN) doses or types, to fuck your head up.  Depression-fueled cynicism, dementia, and general lassitude towards accomplishing anything in your short existence on this planet.

And what if a dose did the opposite? Clarified things and inspired someone to get off their ass and accomplish, well past the duration of the high?

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

Tripping is something everybody should experience, and it can blow a little bullshit out of the tubes. I'd love to see Pat Robertson on shrooms, though most of that would be for my OWN entertainment. 

But aside from that, I'm in agreement with Roger, LMNO and Nigel. Don't think it's anything but tripping. Oh, and if you decide to disregad this and head for Rainbow Gathering tardism by doing it on a regular basis and thinking it MEANS anything, at least cut the mystery/faux mdma out and try sticking with stuff that grows out of the ground.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

there's not such a thick boundary between acquiring Pleasure and acquiring Knowledge like you're pretending there is. plenty of activities achieve both.

Yeah?  Sitting around taking anonymous pills, as described, and then doing some yoga?

I call 169% bullshit.  Absolute rubbish.

Well, for example for me, studying geology does both. Most hobbies build your knowledge about that hobby.
Let's look at another perspective-changing activity - for example, once when I posted a piece, Nigel reminded me to look at it as the audience is seeing it, not as I'm seeing it. That's a technique that helps me learn every time I do it. It's not automatically/directly bringing me knowledge, but it's changing how I look at things so that I might pick up some new knowledge based on how effectively I use the technique. Usually that is a pleasurable experience, too.
There's no reason the experience of learning can't be accompanied by pleasure or vice versa.

But another thing is that they tend, in large (or in the case of the OP, UNKNOWN) doses or types, to fuck your head up.  Depression-fueled cynicism, dementia, and general lassitude towards accomplishing anything in your short existence on this planet.

And what if a dose did the opposite? Clarified things and inspired someone to get off their ass and accomplish, well past the duration of the high?

That can happen, for sure, but it's not how you typically wanna bet. "Hey, maybe eating this unknown substance will somehow spontaneously inspire me get me off my ass and stop me being a fuckup!"

Ummm yeah.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Even the known substances which are supposed to accomplish that are kind of a crapshoot.

[LMNO]

Well, for example for me, studying geology does both. Most hobbies build your knowledge about that hobby.

Oh, my goodness!  How did the goalposts get all the way over there!?

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Well, for example for me, studying geology does both. Most hobbies build your knowledge about that hobby.

Oh, my goodness!  How did the goalposts get all the way over there!?

[LMNO]

I'll say one thing about being at PD for the last *cough* years: I can spot one of the more basic fallacies a mile off.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

there's not such a thick boundary between acquiring Pleasure and acquiring Knowledge like you're pretending there is. plenty of activities achieve both.

Yeah?  Sitting around taking anonymous pills, as described, and then doing some yoga?

I call 169% bullshit.  Absolute rubbish.

Well, for example for me, studying geology does both. Most hobbies build your knowledge about that hobby.
Let's look at another perspective-changing activity - for example, once when I posted a piece, Nigel reminded me to look at it as the audience is seeing it, not as I'm seeing it. That's a technique that helps me learn every time I do it. It's not automatically/directly bringing me knowledge, but it's changing how I look at things so that I might pick up some new knowledge based on how effectively I use the technique. Usually that is a pleasurable experience, too.
There's no reason the experience of learning can't be accompanied by pleasure or vice versa.

But another thing is that they tend, in large (or in the case of the OP, UNKNOWN) doses or types, to fuck your head up.  Depression-fueled cynicism, dementia, and general lassitude towards accomplishing anything in your short existence on this planet.

And what if a dose did the opposite? Clarified things and inspired someone to get off their ass and accomplish, well past the duration of the high?

Observational data indicates that they mostly stay on their asses.  Eating Cheetohs.

[LMNO]

The only lasting effect I've had from drugs was an idea that people should be nicer to each other.  Which lasted about three days, or the next time I had to drive in traffic, whichever came first.