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What is mental health and how can we achieve it? Is it only to be found in a trip to the psychiatrist’s office and a prescription for a Big Pharma medication, or do alternative mental care structures exist for those who need it? And what does all of this have to do with Baruch Spinoza, anyway? Joining us to answer these questions on this week’s in-depth edition of #SolutionsWatch is Dr. Bruce Levine, author of A Profession Without Reason.
Watch on Archive / BitChute / Odysee / Rokfin / Rumble / Substack / Download the mp4
SHOW NOTES
BruceLevine.net
Interview 474 – The Anti-Authoritarian Mind with Dr. Bruce Levine
Interview 786 – Bruce Levine Dissects the DSM-5
Interview 1421 – Bruce Levine on Resisting Illegitimate Authority
A Profession Without Reason by Bruce Levine
Psychiatry’s Manufacture of Consent: The Chemical Imbalance Theory and the Antidepressant Explosion
The Chemical Imbalance Theory of Depression: still promoted but still unfounded
Antidepressants Don’t Work the Way Many People Think
Dissent Into Madness Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3
International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry (ISEPP)
National Association for Rights Protection and Advocacy (NARPA)
I’m not sure where to begin on this guy … I’m being tolerant because his other titles sound really interesting and because anyone Corbett recommends I’m going to give very wide latitude, but this guy? First, building a book around Spinoza seems like a bad idea … at least a bad idea if one is writing for a general audience. Second, the guy is clearly an atheist. I can live with that but he certainly doesn’t understand people of faith. He said religions don’t make truth claims — well, excuse me, but they most certainly do. One may disagree with those claims, but Christins do in fact claim the tenets of their faith (Jesus rose from the dead, for example) are true. James, I’m a huge fan. I’m a producer for a Catholic news media website (ChurchMilitant.com) so I watch your content all the time for story ideas but this one is a big miss for me. However, I’m VERY interested Resisting Illegitimate Authority. There are lots of Catholics who believe their leaders are illegitimate. So I haven’t totally written off Mr. Levine … just this book. Keep up the great work. Blessings, Kristine Christlieb
Bravo, well said and likewise! I stopped watching and came down the page to see who else felt the way I do about this guy. He not only does not understand people of faith he his also very disrespectful toward them as well.
If the Marxist woke only knew what Christianity as given the Western World, AKA Christendom, they would be crying in their beer whilst performing mental gymnastics to try and deny it!
“It was the best of religions: it was the worst of religions. It brought life, love, and compassion to a dark and cruel world. It also brought torture, repression, ignorance, slavery and death to an innocent world. It burned with Light and Truth. It also burned the Bible and those who believed it.
“Those who adhered to it built universities, hospitals, and orphanages. They also justified poverty, exploitation, war, and conquest. They brought food to the hungry, medicine to the
sick, work to the destitute, and hope to the hopeless. They filled the earth with contempt for man, contempt for God’s creation, and contempt for God.
“What is this thing called ‘Christianity’? The Bible does not tell us. The Bible talks about something else.“
– Copernicus and the Jews: The Separation of Church and Faith by Daniel Gruber page 186
It is nice to see you back on here again 🙂
We may not have the same perspective with regards to religion and God but I value your presence here as a genuine and honest person.
Thanks, Gavin. That’s very kind.
My internet connection is really bad here at home and I have limited data (3 gigabytes per month). I only have a chance to listen to podcasts, etc., one day every other week (while cleaning someone’s house, where I can use their internet connection), so there’s a backlog of stuff to catch up on that day. Plus, I was feeling pretty bogged down from some troubling online interactions so my motivation to participate in this crazy, virtual world dissipated. Besides, it’s very time-consuming and a pretty difficult way to communicate on deep topics…
Anyway, I don’t expect to be around much, but I’ll pop in once in a while if I feel I have something useful to offer. 🙂
You can get AntennaPod or a similar application and add RSS feeds for corbettreport and other sites to it.
Then, when you have a connection available you can download podcasts for later perusal.
You can probably get some nearly free bandwith in coffee shops, malls and libraries.
Thanks so much lilac dragonfly for quoting Daniel Gruber, Jewish apologist and Christian critic. Got any thoughts of your own that you feel would be helpful to share?
I can add a couple things…
In the mid-late 90s, I realized that “Christian” meant so many things that it essentially meant nothing. The vast array of people who call themselves “Christians” is exceedingly broad and most of them think they are the real/true Christians and all the others are not. It would be interesting to make a list of all the groups that call themselves “Christians” and compare their teachings. Using such a vague, undefined term to describe people or groups of people isn’t helpful in identifying what they think/believe about anything.
But it’s worse than that, which Dan describes in Copernicus and the Jews. Although the word “Christian” may be in English translations of the Bible (and similar words in other languages), textual evidence indicates the word is not in the originals – even according to respected Christian scholars.
I grew up in Bolivia, and interestingly, the Catholics there (in the 70s and 80s) denied that they were cristianos. They were católicos. The Protestants were more likely to use the term creyente (believer), but they did use cristiano too.
The situation with Christianity is similar to what happened to me politically in 1993 when I found out that being a Republican actually wasn’t a clear-cut description of political ideology, and I decided I wasn’t one after all.
I guess I would add that Dan is also a critic of rabbinic Judaism. His book on that topic is Rabbi Akiba’s Messiah: The Origins of Rabbinic Authority. Dan sticks to the text of Tanach and the messianic writings and doesn’t appreciate distortions of the text or distorted interpretations of the text.
Dan’s latest book, which I also highly recommend, is Law Without Authority or Limits: Kelsen’s Dilemma. (I also mentioned this book in a comment below.)
kriatinec
“…Second, the guy is clearly an atheist….”
I rather think he is an (((atheist))) and thus brings some brings cultural baggage to how he sees things.
No surprise those that have “faith” in magical beings are so offended by what Levine said. “well excuse me”…kristinec says. Maybe you are so upset because believing in “God” is simply a farce and is delusional. You are free to believe in anything you want, and I am free to see truth as it actually is. Religious people behave like any other cult to me. I can only imagine how much what I am saying here is offending you right now.
You sound pretty unwilling to question your religion, and I believe that shows how weak your faith is.
If you had faith in God, you would not need a Bible full of lies, nor a clergy and vatican full of genocidal pedophiles.
https://youtu.be/pVEeXjPiw54
https://www.lewrockwell.com/2023/03/bionic-mosquito/fine-wine/
Conclusion
“It is the doctrine of objective value, the belief that certain attitudes are really true, and others really false, to the kind of things the universe is and the kind of things we are.
You can read this and wonder: did Rand write this, or did Lewis? Of course, it could be either (it is Lewis). So, then you are left with wondering, what, exactly, is Rand’s beef? Tradition, Christianity, values that are objective but not of her choosing. She is just another wanna-be superman, convinced she can invent values from whole cloth.
Lewis, of course, sees things differently:
Either we are a rational spirit obliged for ever to obey the absolute values of the Tao, or else we are mere nature to be kneaded and cut into any new shapes for the pleasures of masters who must, by hypothesis, have no motive but their own ‘natural’ impulses. Only the Tao provides a common human law of action which can over-arch rulers and ruled alike. A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
Inherently, Rand’s philosophy, like all philosophies that abandon natural law, leads to slavery and tyranny. It leads to the world we find ourselves in today.
“Men are like wine – some turn to vinegar, but the best improve with age.”
– Pope John XXIII
Lewis has aged infinitely better than Rand. Having abandoned traditional values, we have gained the selfish virtue of creating ourselves in our own image. Rand would say that the problem is we haven’t embraced her values. But that never was going to happen; humans aren’t designed for her version of objectivism. It is, after all these years, little more than a bottle of vinegar.“
I have a lot of success with my “therapies”.
Usually I work by talking and a walk in nature.
I think it is how every therapy should start:
A walk with a friend and talk about the problems.
That helps already.
And even doing basic physical work and some talking can help.
Simple structure of the mind:
The human mind experiences thoughts, emotions, physical body.
So if you get stuck in thoughts you need to feel your real emotions.
If you are stuck in emotions, you need to breath well.
You can also move with your body and/or get in nature.
And you need to sleep.
Everyone can do this.
I also have a personal approach, by using my talents.
I can help to point out things that are stuck in a person.
Sometimes even hidden (subconscious) things.
And split-off parts of the mind.
Or things that people picked up from others.
This means that things like life-long depressions
can be gone in half an hour.
These are things that one can also find out in a meditation.
Meditation also gives you direct access to healing.
My ultimate goal is to help people
find their personal source of healing.
Click on my name to contact me (@zyxzevn) if you want some assistance.
How do I not know of Spinoza and his God?
Sounds like a fascinating philosophy of awareness; melding an appreciation/ understanding of nature, with an outlook of freedom, while seeing God as life itself (not some entity in the sky).
I vibe with this. Will be diving deeper.
I vibe with it too and that is kind of how I understand sacredness primarily through nature. Looking up at the stars and sky and hearing birds and the wind and putting my bare feet in the earth grounds me to something eternal. It’s hard to put into words and it’s beyond my comprehension.
I also was drawn in by this discussion. I do not know anything about Spinoza but now want to learn about him. It just so happens I bought “Resisting Illegitimate Authority” and received it yesterday.
Eliz Anti-Panic
If your into that kind of thing you might like the Stoics better- my personal recommendation is “letters from a Stoic” because its very accessible.
https://archive.org/details/adluciliumepistu01seneuoft/page/n25/mode/2up?view=theater
cu.h.j
“…Looking up at the stars and sky and hearing birds and the wind and putting my bare feet in the earth grounds me to something eternal….”
The earth is NOT eternal, nor is it unchanging…. even in the view of a 100% materialist evolutionist the eco systems your walking thru are always transitioning from one to another as animals and plants colonize and replace each other.
When you see a forest your seeing a phase that replaced what was there before will itself pass away at some time.
The stars themselves are dying, they may have already been snuffed out before the light from them hits the back of your eyes. According to the materialist worldview they will one day all be gone and only the dark will be left.
While I’m being a Debbie Downer…. are those native birds of some imported pest species? 😉
While I doubt you will accept this as a source of authority Romans 1:18-25 does warn about the dangers of worshiping the CreatION rather then the CreatOR.
Duck
I find it odd that you would recant materialist theory and the Bible in the same post. This aside.
At least for me, (as a newcomer to this philosophy) it is Spinozas view of God , but not the Biblical God, that vibe so well with me. As expresses by cu.h.j above.
Life, nature, reality, ARE God. God is Creation itself. Life is God’s blissful expression. One cannot separate the creation from the creator, and we can freely choose to recognize or ignore the loving connection we have to this creative/natural/divine force.
Thank you for elucidating what I was trying to convey, God being the creative force and creation itself. And “life is gods blissful expression” is another phrase that resonates with me.
Torus
“..I find it odd that you would recant materialist theory and the Bible in the same post….”
I was just laying out two worldviews.
“….Life, nature, reality, ARE God. God is Creation itself. Life is God’s blissful expression…..”
You are thinking of all the things you LIKE when you say God is everything, but are you considering the things you DONT LIKE?
So God is a rooster raping a chicken? Its a spider killing a fly? A turd you step in? Adolph Hitler and Stalin and Ted Bundy?
If God IS ALL THINGS then why do you assume that its loving? Or that it considers it bad if you get tortured to death? Nature is red in tooth and claw….
The 80`s SynthWave playing KGB agent raging against funko pops has brainwashed me successfully over the years to understand the very valid argument you are presenting.
Silent Cricket
“…The 80`s SynthWave playing KGB agent raging against funko pops has brainwashed me successfully over the years to understand the very valid argument you are presenting….”
Me to!
However I was trying to pretend I was smart and thought it up on my own, 🙁 Busted. LOL
Thanks for the perspective, Duck. Honestly hadn’t considered God being the things I don’t like. And I’d like to find out how Spinoza’s philosophy accounts for this.
However, my rebuttal is simple, I’m fine with that. Fine with God being all expressions life be it “good” or “evil” (turds and all).
If this God is creative and playful enough to give and be life, why wouldn’t this God express all shades of being? It seems that Spinoza’s God allows for Choice and Freedom of Choice, to live our own expression of Life, (or anti-life perhaps).
Again, I’m only just being introduced to this theory, so these are my own views and opinions.
Also just to clarify, I do not say/assume that this God is loving, but rather that we can choose a loving-relationship with the Creation/Creator, as opposed to a destructive one.
Torus
“…Also just to clarify, I do not say/assume that this God is loving, but rather that we can choose a loving-relationship with the Creation/Creator, as opposed to a destructive one….”
How can you have a loving relationship with someone who does not love YOU?
Duck,
…” How can you have a loving relationship with someone who does not love YOU?”
Really? First, Spinoza’s God is not a “Someone”. (Hence why I vibe with this philosophy)
Second, emotions do not have to be reciprocal to have a relationship. (It helps, but is not a prerequisite).
As a part of life/creation, I am by default related to (in a relationship with) God/Creator because all of life is an expression of This. Now, to be sure, I’m not saying that makes me a God myself. But that the relationship is built in. So I can choose to express that through love, respect, appreciation, empathy, and my own creative action. Or like Bundy or Gates, choose to hate, mock, ridicule, pervert, and destroy. Different relationships with Creation/Life/God. But simultaneously (controversially) all expressions of that same Divine, Life Giving, Life Being Force.
Perhaps there is a contradiction here that needs exploration, but I enjoy these types of philosophical conundrums.
Torus
Duck,
“…Second, emotions do not have to be reciprocal to have a relationship. (It helps, but is not a prerequisite)…..”
Uhm… Sorry, but thats kinda like saying a Stalker has a relationship with the person they are stalking is it not?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardo_L%C3%B3pez_(stalker)
“…As a part of life/creation, I am by default related to (in a relationship with) God/Creator because all of life is an expression of This….”
THAT kind of ‘relationship’ is on the level of two rocks on the beach, or two cogs in the machine, or two people who live in the same city.
It has no meaning on a human level.
“…. So I can choose to express that through love, respect, appreciation, empathy, and my own creative action. Or like Bundy or Gates, choose to hate, mock, ridicule, pervert, and destroy. Different relationships with Creation/Life/God. But simultaneously (controversially) all expressions of that same Divine, Life Giving, Life Being Force…..”
Then you are saying that it is morally the SAME THING to give your life for others as to murder others for fun…?
Whats the difference between a destructive and a creative relationship with the creator then? Is one better then the other, and WHY?
Duck, out of sheer curiosity, what is YOUR “God” philosophy/theory? You’re picking apart others views, but haven’t concretely shared your own.
Torus
“…You’re picking apart others views, but haven’t concretely shared your own….”
Thats because its easier to see the flaws in others POV then your own 🙂
“..what is YOUR “God” philosophy/theory?…”
Short answer:
The Bible is True.
Science is a useful tool but is ultimately controlled by people who push a materialist agenda.
Long Answer:
Basically I started out as a kid reading Greek philosophy and science. I always had pretensions that I was smart and so read as much as I could about that stuff.
Had contact with some religious people (Jehovah witnesses) who (even if their theology is sickly) deserve lots of credit for putting up with someone who LITERALLY just wanted to argue with them.
They were VERY UN-convincing to me! However I did read some Bible back then so I could argue.
As we hit the internet era of New Atheists I got to see online all the same arguments I used to make to JW’s and was struck at how retarded they were.
Also struck by poor philosophical reasoning of people like Dawkins and Harris.
They were BAD arguments and I read more and started going to church. The more I read the Bible and compare it (mormonism and islamic books) the more I see that at least the Bible is INTERNALLY CONSISTENT.
Then,as I see all the inconsistencies of the Pop Science I kinda look into it more and become more convinced that the Bible is True….. a slow trip but now I kinda think Evolution is utter BS.
Most Churches are occupied territory run by people who draw authority from the Bible BUT DO NOT BELIEVE IT.
🙂 Hope thats a decent explanation
Oh, also read some CS Lewis books.
LewisDoddle Rocks!
https://www.youtube.com/@CSLewisDoodle
You gotta read it as a compliment Duck 🙂 truely!
You learnt from the best and without knowing him, I am sure he`d be glad to see people, as yourself, using the tools he teaches to help shine light into the fake&gray 😉
If the big bang theory is true, new stars and planets are still emerging as the old fades away. But the generative force is eternal and that can be felt (by me) when I am in a natural setting where I can feel the elements. Sometimes when I’m in a new amazing natural setting I’m amazed by it.
cu.h.j
“..If the big bang theory is true, new stars and planets are still emerging as the old fades away….”
No, that would be a variation of the “Steady State” theory… if I recall right Fred Hoyle pushed that idea with ‘white holes’ pumping out new matter…..its not widely accepted by science types as far as I know. I think he wrote ‘the holographic universe’ (or maybe it was “the intelligent universe’ ???) about it.
Big Bang leads to cold dead universe or possible reversal of expansion and “the big crunch” at the end. No new Matter being created in the middle bit.
Yes, that’s accurate. The theory is that matter emerged from a single point (if I remember). All the theories are still only theories but there is some evidence that our universe is expanding. Then there is the big crunch theory, where everything contracts again that supposedly expands again.
Why and what presumable existed before etc. is probably not something that can be answered by physics.
Back to the original topic though, spirituality and religious belief systems are all based on things that can’t be proven with science. There’s no proof for or against the existence of any ones definition of god. To me whatever gives the person fulfillment and a sense of joy and connection in order to live their best lives is what they should do. If an organized religion does this for them that’s great and if someone gets it from a tribal Shaman or some other form of spirituality or religion that’s good too.
I get the point of disagreement with Spinoza’s god that god can’t also be the bad things in life if god is good. It’s a good point and I just don’t know. There is no single idea or book or belief system that describes what I believe god is and even then I can’t be sure. I just don’t know. This is why I am probably more of an agnostic although I do believe in a soul that there is something unique about living beings, something eternal that does not die and that this force leaves the body at the time of death.
I have seen a lot of people die in my line of work and also taken care of people who were brain dead. There’s a difference in both cases compared to a living person. But it’s not just chemical or the entire process of chemicals and energy, but something indescribable and mysterious that inhabits or animates living beings. It’s really weird and also really cool.
This is one of the reasons I wanted to go into health care, to possibly learn more about this mysterious force. But I can only view as an observer. I’ve never got the opportunity to ask one of the patients who I’ve helped bring back to life what they saw or experienced because they don’t stay in my department. And even if they told me, it’s still subjective and not proof of anything.
“There’s no proof for or against the existence of any ones definition of god.”
That simply is not true. There is ample proof of the existence of God if one is willing to look.
The prophecies of Yeshua the Messiah written centuries before His birth is convincing evidence to anyone who has an objective understanding.
There is also extra biblical evidence that confirms the historical accuracy of biblical prophecies concerning the Messiah that are at least as powerful and convincing as that which exists for many other people and events in history that nobody argues about.
https://testingtruth.com/extra-biblical-historical-evidence-proves-that-jesus-christ-existed/
There is a god of this world whose main goal is to blind people to the truth of God and His Word. And tragically he is very effective in that job.
Steve:
I respectfully disagree that this proves this definition of god, i.e. that this definition is better or more authentic. But I did mean to qualify that there is no scientific proof and I stand by it. He said and she said or eye witness accounts and story telling (myths) are not proof.
What you post may point to the possible existence of a person, not of who this person was.
“possible existence of a person”
Possible?
“ No serious historian doubts that Tiberius Caesar was the second emperor of the Roman Empire, ruling for 23 years, spanning the period of 14 A.D. to 37 A.D., after succeeding his stepfather, Caesar Augustus. But how much historical evidence is there for the life of Tiberius, compared to that of his ultimately most famous and influential contemporary, Jesus of Nazareth?
It may surprise you but there are profound differences. And the emperor comes out on the short end of the comparison.
Dr. Sean McDowell of Biola University notes that what is known about Tiberius comes primarily from four secular sources, Tacitus, Seutonius, Velleius Paterculus, and Cassius Dio.
These four conflict with each other on major points about the life and acts of Tiberius, and they spanned several centuries. Nevertheless, historians agree that there was in fact an individual named Tiberius who was the emperor during that time period.
“This is exactly what we would expect for a person of [Tiberius’] influence and stature. Yet how does this compare to the sources for Jesus,” McDowell asks.
“Remember, unlike Tiberius, Jesus had no political position, military power, or governmental authority. He was an itinerant preacher who was largely rejected by his own people. His public ministry was 2-3 years long and he only traveled within Judea,” McDowell continues.
In fact, the evidence for Jesus includes the four Gospels, each written between three and seven decades after His death. There were many individuals still alive during that period who claimed to have seen the resurrected Jesus or to have heard Him speak before His death.”
https://www.hillfaith.org/history/theres-more-historical-evidence-for-jesus-than-for-tiberius-caesar/
cu.h.j., The miraculous Word of God is proof!
Eyewitnesses have been relied upon throughout history to convict people of crimes and to establish the veracity of accounts of events. Especially when there are multiple witnesses testifying to the same facts. You can disregard that standard just as you can disregard the evidence of your own eyes. To wit the miracle of creation. But you are then left with little but your own understanding.
I’m aware that nothing I post will convince someone of the reality that God is who He claims to be in the Bible as long as that person is convinced that their own human reasoning is sufficient for understanding the God of all creation.
Nevertheless I am called to try.
Please don’t take offense.
cu.h.j
“…all based on things that can’t be proven with science…. There’s no proof for or against the existence of any ones definition of god….”
What do you call ‘proof’ ?
Do you mean mathematical proof? Logic? Do you mean physical proof? Do you mean legal proof, say a witness telling you?
I am not playing word games (: but asking you WHAT KIND of proof you are looking for. It is my experience that people who choose to believe find PLENTY of proof for God, and people who choose NOT to believe find none. They look at the SAME evidence, so the difference is in WHAT they expect to find.
“… To me whatever gives the person fulfillment and a sense of joy and connection in order to live their best lives is what they should do…..”
So if Bill Gates is ‘living his best life’ what he is doing is the right thing for him to do? Ted Bundy was having a WONDERFUL time until the cops spoiled his fun.
“… if someone gets it from…. some other form of spirituality or religion that’s good too……”
The thing HERE is that you are seeing spirituality/religion as THERAPEUTIC rather then True or False.
Cu.h.j
I value your objectivity as we explore this philosophy. And I wholeheartedly agree that this a theory, (like all religious/spiritual ideas) unlikely to be proven here or in any other treatise.
What is most important is our own Personal experience and relationship with whatever expression of “God” we connect with. There is Something beyond, yet within, all of life.
I enjoy hearing your perspective and anecdotes.
Cu.h.j
Ahh… here it is.
I read it so long ago, I recall being super impressed at the time but its ultimately inferior as an explanation of reality to the Bible
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/1408288.The_Intelligent_Universe
Denying the existence of God is not an intellectual position, it’s a moral one. Simply put, the majority of people don’t like the idea of being accountable for the choices they make. The notion that they are sinners in need of a Savior is offensive to them. It’s not a question of having enough “proof”. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day witnessed the miracles that He performed but were so convinced of their own moral superiority and incensed by His indictment of them, that they concluded He was empowered by Satan and had Him put to death.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man, and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” Romans 1:18-23 (NASB)
There have been some interesting critical analyses from scholars like Bart Ehrman, Richard Carrier and Robert Price who have far more expertise in these topics than I do. I’m sure there have been rebuttals as well from biblical scholars who are much more well versed in this topic than I am.
I don’t know much about the politics of these scholars so can’t speak to everything they say on all matters, but their critique of the historical evidence for biblical Jesus is interesting.
It would take me far more time than I have at the moment to research these areas and it is not compelling at the moment because I view organized religion as a bit authoritarian and dogmatic which repels my interest.
But for people who are curious about other views, I would encourage them to research some of the critiques and rebuttals. It’s good to challenge ones views from time to time for balance.
By nature I’m a skeptic and try to keep an open mind. It is impossible to have an effective discussion with people with a closed mind, so I’ll leave it at that.
@cu.h.j
“Looking up at the stars and sky and hearing birds and the wind and putting my bare feet in the earth grounds me to something eternal.”
That is really beautiful, thank you for sharing that.
@Torus
Based on the way James described Spinoza’s views on “God” it sounds like he was into some form of Pantheism.
I admire the themes of such belief systems that acknowledge the inherent oneness and interconnectedness of all beings (and matter) but based on my own observations of the nature of that which exists beyond the scope of our brain and five senses I have come to the conclusion that the Creator of all things, is not the universe itself, but rather is a distinct being that exists independently of the time, space and matter we are currently experiencing on Earth. Separate in the sense that a dandelion flower is separate from the seeds that it produced and let go onto the wind, but yet intrinsically connected to those seeds (aka souls) in many ways at the same time.
I would value hearing what you think after diving deeper into Spinoza’s worldviews.
I also vibe with the God of Spinoza. I used to follow organized religion until I objectively looked at it. When I dropped the childlike faith I became aware of the stupidity and outright foolish teachings I had embraced.
I am no longer a Cannibal in training who consumes Gods Son every Sunday. No longer believe that Virgins give birth, also don’t follow murderers(Moses) It is so strange that so many people call it Good Friday remembering a person who was tortured and murdered. What good is created by any evil act? Wow the sickness is deep! That should be called Bloody Friday! Hey all you haters I will not respond to your sickness! GOOD DAY!
Valued Customer
“….It is so strange that so many people call it Good Friday remembering a person who was tortured and murdered….”
Dude, I really wonder if you ever actually got any understanding of Christianity if you do not understand THAT…even if your not a Christian the reason its called that is pretty easy to understand.
Plenty of flat out materialist atheist types could explain it to you in a few min.
All religion is a brainwashing scam.
HyperSimmian
“…All religion is a brainwashing scam…..”
A Funny meme I saw once… fat gut with a PornHub T-shirt watching netflix and eating KFC and drinking a sugary beverage saying just that.
Question being…. IF there is nothing after death and then there is no real ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ , only preferences.
Are you saying the Globalist Oligarchs are doing the most sensible thing grabbing everything they can enjoy for themselves and their kids?
There are protected pedophile priests and pedophile globalists. That’s enough evidence for me that religion and government is a scam.
hypersimmian
‘..There are protected pedophile priests and pedophile globalists. That’s enough evidence for me that religion and government is a scam….”
Who is “they”?
EVERY religion protects pedophiles???
Were there NO pedophiles before we had governments?
Yes, Moses did kill a man. He intervened when a man, a slave, was being beaten.
You may find some of my other just-added comments above and below interesting and pertinent to your comment…
I know your question is rhetorical, but I believe you know nothing about Spinoza because you were most likely born and raised in a religious state, where the so-called separation between church and state is total bs. Your supreme court still uses the Bible as a constitutional reference when the constitution is lacking, and everybody still swears on the book in courts and also probably has some version of “In God We Trust” motto on every damn penny, dime, quarter and bill.
So here’s a brief history of Spinoza.
https://youtu.be/pVEeXjPiw54
Thanks for this solutions watch episode. I found it helpful and I think it can help other people in your audience who may be looking into other ways to manage depression, anxiety and other mental health related issues especially related to the scamdemic. That has been a huge traumatic experience for many people especially those who were depressed and struggling to begin with.
I appreciate someone in the psychiatric profession coming out against the falsity of this approach to helping people who are deeply in need of healing and understanding. I am a therapist/psychotherapist. I became one because I received profound help from psychotherapists. Therapy changed my life, and for the past 40 years I have been helping other people heal and change. Psychiatry has caused much harm. However there are psychotherapists like myself who are helping people, just as I was halped and I am helping others to change their own lives by understanding themselves, and deep exploration of thoughts, feelings, and their history to uncover and process through what they need to to heal and change and recover. This is not what psychiatry does. In fact it denies any connection to childhood, and past trauma, family of origin etc. Psychiatry was built on a lie, when Freud was forced into retracting his theory, or what he found in working with his women clients who were suffering from what was called hysteria. He originally published that the hysteria that these women suffered from was caused by incest…father/daughter incest. Read Jeffery Masson’s book “The Assault on Truth: Freud’s Suppression of the Seduction Theory. It tells the truth about this, that he found in the archives of the Psychiatric Association.
Even though psychiatry is false and most often harmful does not mean that all psychotherapy, or therapists operate from the same foundation nor should they be painted with the same brush.
I have suffered much harm by the psychiatric profession.I had anxiety issues and over about ten years was treated with drugs that led to depression, apathy, immense weight gain and almost total lack of being able to function. One day I just decided I had enough and went cold turkey off all medication. I slowly changed my diet ( now I eat almost all organic) and started exercising. It’s been a few years now and I have experienced a complete turn around in my mental and physical condition.
I would highly recommend that anyone experiencing normal reactions to life (IE anxiety and depression) look into what they are ingesting into their bodies before seeking any help from the 99.9% quackery psychiatric profession.
I had similar experience with some anti depressants that caused weight gain and complete emotional numbness, like I had zero feelings. It was very creepy and I stopped taking it. It’s good to note that some of these drugs can cause serious withdrawal symptoms and should be reduced slowly though. Glad you were able to overcome you depression with life style modifications.
I agree. I would not recommend going off these medications abruptly for most people, however I was desperate and had been pleading with GOD and I do believe He led me down that path.
It’s great that you managed to pull yourself by the shoulders and turn things around.
But I would never advise anyone to go cold turkey on anything. Tapering off is crucial, for both ensuring and keeping success and for health considerations.
That is excellent advice and I couldn’t agree more. Even though psychiatric drugs in particular might not have actual benefit besides placebo or a type of numbing effect any drug taken on a consistent basis has the potential to cause withdrawal.
Before ingesting anything it is also good to thoroughly research what it does and find out what others have experienced with it prior to taking it.
Some times doctors know very little about the meds they write scripts for and won’t know what all the side effects are so it’s up to the individual to learn more.
xier
“..what they are ingesting into their bodies before seeking any help from the 99.9% quackery psychiatric profession….”
Yes!
And also move around more, the human body is designed to move and do things and the lack of exercise plays havoc on the hormones which shape our mood and health.
@zier
I admire your courage in taking decisive action to follow your heart and take better care of your body.
Do you grow any of your own food at home?
Amazing! Thank you for sharing zier and hat tip to you for taking responsibility for your own well-being and Life. Identifying ones own dysfunctional habits which are contributing or causing the experienced suffering and changing them succsessfully, as you did, is truely marvelous. I hope your story will inspire many people who are experiencing a similar kind of suffering, because you defenitly have the potetial of doing so.
PART 1
What seems to have been forgotten is the influence of Skull&Bones, the New World Order. I addressed this issue of their power in medicine, education and more in my book The Urban Shaman back in 1995…
This German secret society has been positioning themselves into the framework of the United States for almost two hundred years.
In their own words:
“The great strength of The Order is in its concealment. Let it never appear in any place in its own name, but always covered by another name and another occupation…”
“The power of The Order must surely be turned to the advantage of its members. All must be assisted. They must be preferred to all persons otherwise of equal merit.”
Of all the millions of American college/university graduates, only 15 men a year (now women also) (about 2500 since 1833, with 500-600 alive at one time) have been able to out-position all other graduates and take the reins of our government.
In the game since the U.S. started up, they were able to affect change in their best interest and agenda very rapidly. Many key founders of our medical and educational institutions attended school in Germany for part of their “education.”
This is where they acquired the philosophy of world domination, based on the writings of Georg William Hegel, 1770-1831, as presented by various teachers in a variety of fields.
With the Machiavellian approach “The end justifies the means” they were able to select, groom, and place non-members who had similar activist philosophies, traits.
PART 2
For instance: Academic associations function to condition/police academics who are very susceptible to peer group pressure. Without peer group approval few can receive tenure. So what has been taught for the past one hundred years at our American universities passes a gauntlet creating a condition of faculty conformity.
Modern institutions now use tenure and publications committees, rather than school presidents making the decisions. The committees naturally still receive the guiding hands of The Orders agenda, eliminating independents, “free thinkers,” and non-team-players whenever possible.
Another instance: By establishing the American Historical Association, order member Andrew P. White was able to influence the constitution and direction of the AHA. This generated an “official” history source, ensuring that the existence of The Order doesn’t even get whispered about in history books, let alone in school text books.
The American Psychological Association and the American Economics Association also trace back to The Order, scripting what are legitimate behavior and beliefs and what are not, in just about every aspect of American life they can reach.
Order members today and have been in the past: POTUS; cabinet members; ambassadors; heads of industry; professors of—political economics, law, mathematics, English literature, history, and philosophy; chancellors and presidents of major universities, as well as members of state boards of education; presidents of banks, and much, much, more.
WHO WANTS US TO DIE (song)
https://www.bitchute.com/video/8CKubpwla5Lr/
What’s your proof?
Of what??
I presented facts from a book I wrote 17 years ago without any Internet research, just old fashion reading of books, etc. And all you can mumble from your cave is that?
The lack of intelligent, articulate social intercourse these days is so very sad.
You are on the most complex research tool ever made, just put any of what I said in a search engine…
IE:
New World Order; Skull&Bones; Georg William Hegel; etc. Geeez!
THEY GOT YOU GOOD (song)
https://www.bitchute.com/video/Hpm24888Hud2/
You didn’t state any sources just hearsay and conjecture from your self published book. It is a simple question.
-Hypsersimian (from his cave)
Stop acting like a fool. This is a comment box. If you want more information use the web.
Ignore you, got it. Thanks for your time.
The sources are probably referenced in his book, along with a lot more information and references for that too. If you read the book, you’ll be able to ask some more specific and pointed questions if you have them, after getting the larger picture.
Opps. My book was written 27 years ago. Time flies.
Why does this type of info still shock me and send chills down my spine? CCP is collecting Americans’ DNA in order to create bioweapons:
https://rumble.com/v2f0nue-who-has-access-to-your-dna.html
The Myth of Low-Serotonin & Antidepressants – Dr. Mark Horowitz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5cT-2BLWk0
This after skool video will jive well the latest solutions watch instalment.
I asked to see a psychiatrist because of exhaustion that was grinding me down. He said I was ‘elated’ and I said ‘no I’m not’. This idiot was trying to bully me into taking anti psychotic drugs. My brother is a high powered doctor, I have a post graduate degree so I laughed at him (and everyone else involved).
This cured me of all concerns about my mental health. I would have been treated better by a gang of strung out junkies. These people are evil.
Full story
http://www.ihtt.uk/
I followed the show notes for more, starting with interview 474. This is an excellent example of James’ journalistic talent and interview skills. He guides the deep conversation nicely. Levine gives such a balanced perspective, being careful to articulate that being a healthy anti-authoritarian, involves respecting real, LEGITIMATE authority. We just have to discern for ourselves whose authority is valid and defer to them when I their particular expertise is needed. Not blindly following anyone claiming to be an expert. Worth a flashback!
I’ve never been to a psychiatrist, so I don’t have a personal reference point, but I like this guy. On to the next Levine interview.
While listening to this interview yesterday, various parts of the discussion brought the following things to mind:
1.) “ ‘Religion’ and ‘politics’ are different names for essentially the same thing. They cover the same territory: the determination of values and standards, permitted and prohibited behavior, justice and injustice, individual and community welfare, the proper and improper use of authority and power, the rights and responsibilities of wealth and property, and the proper training of future generations. In sum, they are about the correct purpose and course of human society. (2) For ancient Romans, Jews, and Christians, religion and politics were inseparable.“ Rabbi Akiba’s Messiah: The Origins of Rabbinic Authority page 4 by Daniel Gruber
2.) David Crowe’s interview with Jim Gottstein on The Infectious Myth podcast on June 9, 2020. On archive.org it is 255, followed by the original episode number 258 (I’m not sure why the discrepancy) “The Zyprexa Papers.” Jim, a talented man, including being a pilot and a political candidate in Alaska, ended up in a psych ward after a weird experience. He has an interesting perspective on this topic. https://archive.org/details/TheInfectiousMyth/258+%E2%80%93+The+Zyprexa+Papers+%E2%80%93+Jim+Gottstein+%E2%80%93+The+Infectious+Myth+(09.06.20).mp3
3.) A book I recommend – Law Without Authority or Limits: Kelsen’s Dilemma by Daniel Gruber
I had to look up Baruch Spinoza. Funny how when you are not under the spell of religious belief or Christian dogma and are willing to actually pursue truth over security, one can actually explore and learn rather than be “offended”. People that feel offended should seriously take a look at themselves and ask if they are acting any differently than the woke mob snowflakes. Do you want to find scary truth or reaffirm your safe and secure established belief systems?
As someone who tends to turn all of James’s forums into Sunday School, I’ll skip the Bible talk today.
I wonder if these drugs – no offense to anyone on them – is going to be one of the things that will be used against humanity to make them love their servitude. I do think that they can blunt reality much like alcohol or illicit drugs do as a form of escapism.
The only way we can own nothing and be happy is if we are drugged out of our gourds IMHO.
I would definitely say that some drugs are better than others and some people do actually find some of them helpful in small doses. Humans taking drugs either plant or synthetic has been around for a very long time. Even herbal teas have psychoactive properties. Sugar also is sort of a drug and raises serotonin levels.
Like so many things, it’s not a black and white issue. But some of them can indeed blunt affect and feelings. Some of them are more anti anxiety and are like a crutch for people who find it difficult to function in the hellscape we’ve been living in for a while.
If people lived a more natural life, I’m sure people would be less medicated.
The meds I take are very subtle and definitely don’t blunt my awareness but rather act like a buffer for extreme lows. I’d be much more of a grumpy inpatient witch without them. I say witch because I don’t want to offend anyone with foul language. Some people who post here have sensitive “ears”
Drugs aren’t the only way people escape though. I think it’s good to do real world activities to try to make things better. I’m trying to do more real world stuff too, planting a garden, getting to know neighbors and going to check out some of the agorist market places to support people who are actually trying to make the world a better place.