All your fake positivity are belong to us.

Times are tough. Like, really tough. Look around you. Unemployment, war, famine, health care debate, climate change, infomercials, Beyonce' videos, Snuggie blankets...
Times are grim, very grim.

As times get harder, people are often told to "look at the bright side!", or "cheer up", or the worst of all of them " turn that frown upside down".

At least you have your health!
You could be starving in Africa!
You could be vivisecting marmosets for Oil of Olay!
You could be kidnapped and forced to read all of Sylvia Plath's work!

But is looking on the bright side, just because the options are limited, or because the grass on the other side of the fence is dead, creating a false sense of positivity? Are you fooling yourself?

Barbara Ehrenreich's new study: Bright Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America, discusses how religion, psychology, economics, and annoying "self help" media might be a load of potential fertilizer.

One of the most memorable passages in the book is a call center worker who describes having to simulate happiness as "the kind of feeling you might get from getting a sexual favor when your soul is dying."

Is it fundamentally unhealthy not to grieve in an incidence of tradgedy? Like say, when a family member dies? Religion teaches you to rejoice, because they have gone to a better place (a 24 hour Disneyworld, or according to some religions; a place with trampolines, slurpees, and puppies) but is this healthy?

According to a Dr. John Sharp (nickname: The Cheese), there should be a process that accompanies heartache.

Dr. John Sharp, a neuropsychiatrist who teaches at Harvard and UCLA and whose forthcoming book, The Emotional Calendar is due out next year, says that while being positive has value, "you can't deny the stress you're under or the reality and think you're doing yourself a favor." Real change starts with acceptance. Once that's taken place Dr. Sharp recommends a technique called PERL, an acronym that stands for Partnership, Empathy, Respect and Legitimization

The steps are essential, he says.
Automatically jumping immediately to positvity is not only really annoying, but unhealthy. You deny acceptance, which is the first step. leaving you with unresolved stress and issues. Its like filtering your emotions. Next thing you know, you filter everything. You filter your opnions and preferences, even morals. This is dangerous, because filtering can lead to bad decisions.
Like thinking you can dance like Justin Timberlake, or thinking that "Ishtar" shouldve won an oscar.

Be thoughtful next time you shrug off an unfortunate event.

Full article, courtesy of Alternet and Liz Langley

I agree! Things have gotten really bad because we let it happen, mostly from ignorance and a little apathy. Mainstream media, the fourth estate, has sold humanity out for profit, at the hands of the "elite".

You can't fix something unless you know what is wrong with it in the first place. They won't tell us whats wrong about anything because they want to maintain control over the masses. Its always us vs. them and unfortunately they are winning.

I hate when people tell me "cheer up man, things could be worse" because that is really a cop-out when (1)they have nothing useful to say but (2)feel the need to say something none-the-less. I have also been guilty of doing this and later feeling like a hypocrite but to some extent the message is true. Everything is of a relative nature!

Great Post.
The information provided is resonates with me totally. If you cover up negativity with thinking positive thoughts without accpting the fact that it is happened and it is negative to your opinion, experience etc. than for sure the cover up is unhealthy.
S and F

Not to mention, it's also the easy way out.
You conquer nothing unless you face it.
And your friends think your a wussy.

Be careful what you wish for, and all that.

Originally posted by andy1033
Be careful what you wish for, and all that.

Especially when involving the law of attraction.
I keep wishing that I win the "giant french fry" suit off of ebay, so I can run into a grocery store and buy a bottle of ketchup wearing it.

But do i really want that?
You should be careful.

Agreed, sort of. Watch for the pitfalls, prepare for them, but don't become emotionally vested in them or you will attract them to you. Don't become paranoid. Negativity will do you no good in your spiritual developement. Isn't that what we are here for? (Spiritual developement) You have more power than you can imagine. Don't let them convince you that you don't. Don't get sucked into the Matrix.

PEACE

Originally posted by Klaatumagnum
Isn't that what we are here for? (Spiritual developement) You have more power than you can imagine. Don't let them convince you that you don't. Don't get sucked into the Matrix.

PEACE

IM here for the entertainment, and the cupcakes. I dont know about you, but reality shows and sweets are all i need to "develop".

Reflection over why something "unfortunate" has just happened to you never hurts anything.


However, being pessimistic and always looking to the negative does hurt. So you are walking a fine line.

Just don't get emotionally involved with your troubles at all. Or you are bound to be worrying unnecessarily. I have a friend who was so worried over legal problems, a DUI, that she literally gave herself a stomach ulcer. I have a female cousin who also worried herself up a stomach ulcer, but for different reasons.

Not to mention that when you focus too much on the negative, it prevents you from concentrating on reacting effectively, especially in confrontational situations or any situation where you have to "think fast," which is why fear is a big no-no in martial arts except to very lightly heighten the senses and make you more receptive to incoming information. If you are stunned, paralyzed by fear, even for a second, it could have disastrous results. So extrapolate this to other events that are not as immediately life-threatening and you have a good working model imo.




Btw nice thread title. It's good to see "All your base" is still alive. Long live internet memes! Bill Cosby and Chuck Norris approve. You're the man now, dog! Btw Conan stole my bike.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[edit on 9-12-2009 by bsbray11]

reply to post by bsbray11


I like you. Youre funny.

Seriously: I think that fine line is very important. I know it sounds impossible, but remaining balanced is the key to happiness. It has nothing to do with god, faith, belief, money, or lifestyle. You cannot ignore any aspect, positive or negative.
There seems to be an influx of this positive thinking rubbish, all over the place. I ifeel sad for people who are so empty that they have to fake happiness.

[edit on 10-12-2009 by juzchilln]

reply to post by juzchilln


I think youve missed the point here.
Big time.
Another shot?

[edit on 10-12-2009 by juzchilln]

Ehrenreich is a despair monger.

I havet read this new one but I read that Nickle and Dimed of hers.

Her whole thesis relies on you to never work toward anything better. To never invest in yourself. She needs you to take that first step in life and immediately stop right there. Though not stop everything. Just stop growing. You have to stand on that first step and have kids, buy a car, move to a city you cant afford, etc... all the while working that same part-time fry cook gig you got when you were 15. Then complain because you cant afford the life you're trying to live without being able to fund the life you're trying to live.

Exactly what happened with this mortgage mess. And it's never your fault. It's not your fault you dropped out of high school, had five kids, developed a drug problem and bought a thing you cant afford. It's everyone elses.

Ehrenreich is like the financial equivalent of Al Sharpton. Unless she's gone through some substantial growth I imagine her newest piece is more of the same worthless self-loathing despair-mongering crap.

Why do you want to be hostile? That, in itself, is the opposite of what this topic is about. Thats a negative way to deal with things.


Firstly, the obvious satire has offended you. The discussion is about taking the bad with the good, and how accepting and dealing with the negative things that happen in your life, is a positive reaction. Ignoring negative influences is mentally/spiritually unhealthy. being negative at a constant rate is also very unhealthy. Life is balance/finding balance.

Secondly, if you are looking for an arguement, you will not find it here.

Taking personal potshots at me about TV consumption and doom and gloom based on zero evidence is just plain rude, but you are more than welcome to believe what you wish to believe, JUZCHILLIN. I dont hold any contempt for the world, i think it's wonderful, with all of it's flaws.

Dont be one of those flaws, on my thread.

Originally posted by InertiaZero
Why do you want to be hostile? That, in itself, is the opposite of what this topic is about. Thats a negative way to deal with things.


Firstly, the obvious satire has offended you. The discussion is about taking the bad with the good, and how accepting and dealing with the negative things that happen in your life, is a positive reaction. Ignoring negative influences is mentally/spiritually unhealthy. being negative at a constant rate is also very unhealthy. Life is balance/finding balance.

Secondly, if you are looking for an arguement, you will not find it here.

Taking personal potshots at me about TV consumption and doom and gloom based on zero evidence is just plain rude, but you are more than welcome to believe what you wish to believe, JUZCHILLIN. I dont hold any contempt for the world, i think it's wonderful, with all of it's flaws.

Dont be one of those flaws, on my thread.

Your satire was not recieved. If I have misinterpreted the purpose of your thread than my apologies.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere

Exactly what happened with this mortgage mess. And it's never your fault. It's not your fault you dropped out of high school, had five kids, developed a drug problem and bought a thing you cant afford. It's everyone elses.

The crisis didn't start with the mortgage meltdown. It started with Bernanke dropping interest rates and flooding the financial industry with money, and as has been discussed in many threads, money creation includes debt creation. This has a lot to do with the "Bernanke Put" and the dollar carry trade.

In essence, thanks to the deregulation of the past 30 or so years, Wall Street was allowed to become a full-on casino. As the house lent out more chips, the stakes started to rise, and they needed to keep reaching one step lower on the pyramid to find a new sucker - a new host to feed off of.

People took mortgages they shouldn't have taken, but the entire nation was high on the sense of plenty that is aroused by an injection of credit. People were convinced to refinance - home equity suddenly became a good idea. Prices just kept going up, and the loans mushroomed. The government even pushed to have people put their retirement funds into the stock market.

A false sense of security and prosperity was engendered by convoluted statistics, misleading indicators, and again, the high that comes from an intravenous shot of paper smack.

The growth of the economy over the past 25 years or so has moved us sharply into the red as a people. We've gone from a nation of savers, to a nation of borrowers, and our debts and obligations far exceed our GDP (which is one of those funny numbers).

Investment houses are ruining us. They use layers of obfuscation to hide intricate networks of various scams - the business of speculation is run by rip off artists.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


I havent read it either. But generally, she is a downer.

I loathe that same song and dance that you mention, "it's not my fault".
Its not my fault I do drugs, Its my bad childhood.
It's not my fault Im uneducated, I got pregnant in 7th grade.

Taking responsibility is part of change, and repair.

If you like that check out the book, "The Joy Of Negative Thinking" by Donald G. Smith. Embrace the power that is the word no.

Cool story bro.

You could be starving in Africa!

And, you could, so be grateful there's people who have never seen a shower and eat roadkill for dinner. Be very grateful.

Doesn't mean you have to alienate yourself from reality, it's just a fact, you're lucky, and give back to the people who don't have as much as you, I've slept in the dirt because I didn't have a house, I've fought for what I have from ground up, and I'm going to tell you straight out you can't be optimistic until you've already tasted the dark side, then you'll appreciate what you have.