Why does people in the US seem so depressed? I just moved here from a LA country and the difference is so notorious. People here pop mood meds like candy and they never seem truly relaxed.
I am starting to think there is a conspiracy behind it. Some form of government control. Any info on the subject /x/?
We are taught that if we work hard, all our dreams will come true and we are taught to dream about having more and better shit than our neighbors.
>>17756232
The only "conspiracy" is that doctors are more than happy to peddle pills because they get all sorts of freebies and perks from pharmaceutical reps. It's kinda like how lobbyists give congressmen and senators free shit because they can't directly hand them a big paycheck.
People are depressed because our government is shit and nobody likes the direction this country is heading in. Plus everyone is overworked and most companies aren't exactly keen on giving out vacation days like a lot of European countries are.
>>17756241
Yeah i see what you mean. Back were i lived i meet people so poor that for them getting a 12 pack of beer was the equibalent of traveling thought the world.
They didnt had phones, internet or anything yet they seemed happier than most people here.
>>17756232
>the difference is so notorious
You obviously don't know what notorious means. You must be retarded.
>>17756299
Not OP but my swype keyboard deciding on "notorious" when I try to spell "noticeable" seems like something that would happen.
>>17756299
>notorious
Sorry for bad English, as anon stated >>17756313 i meant noticeable.
Noticeable= Notorio in spanish, hence why my mistake.
>>17756257
>LA
Just give them beer and soccer and they will be fine, an ugly hag a week to if you want
If you are a Nerd loser though, those countries are hell, is just TO MUCH SOCCER!!!
>>17756232
I don't know about the US in particular, though I wouldn't be surprised. It's horrible in germany also.
>>17756232
When you take a lion out of the wild and put him in a cage how does the lion act.
>>17756328
>TO MUCH SOCCER
Too much football*
>>17756241
The dream is dead.
>>17756362
the only cage you're in is the one inside your mind
free yourself
>>17756362
Best answer. The citizens = slaves.
A bird inside a cage doesn't sing.
Depends on where you live OP.
If you live in a libtard shithole like California, yes. Everyone is probably heavily medicated.
>>17756232
why indeed
>>17756232
For the average American, the great struggle is won. Odds are, you don't have to worry about whether or not you'll survive to see the next year. So in lieu of this stress, we place more focus on problems that have always existed, but weren't important compared to avoiding death by starvation, disease, or exposure.
>>17756232
y'all are so fricken dumb and heres why:
>oh no we're all slaaaaaves
>wait a minute, no we're not. we have free will and can do whatever we want and actually I'm not surrounded by armed cops at all and no one is following me!
>any bills i feel compelled to pay are things i signed up for myself! I'm not obligated to get a soul-crushing job to pay these off, I can just cancel them and sign up for something I can afford
>hold on, now that i've stopped being depressed for a few minutes, I'm thinking of ways all kinds of ways to make money that wont even crush my soul at all!
>now that we've realized it's not so bad to be happy productive citizens, let's go out and get girlfriends!
inb4 someone calls me a shill cause I want you guys to have happy lives instead of being shitty little future-goths forever
>>17756232
There's no conspiracy, it's just the American malaise. We're increasingly aware of how badly we're getting fucked from every angle with no recourse but to continue trudging along and distracting ourselves.
>>17756232
Everyone's under pressure to be this super human item of perfection. Bleach your asshole, no body hair, clean haircut, perfect shape, and all that.
The act of striving for perfection in an environment that is imperfect is what does it.
>>17756518
You are either a shill or a 13 year old who hasnt experienced reality or having to actually fight to live.
>>17756232
America has been pussified
>>17756518
>I'm not surrounded by armed cops at all and no one is following me!
You have obviously never been tailed at night after getting off work by suspicious cops thinking you're a drunk
>any bills i feel compelled to pay are things i signed up for myself! I'm not obligated to get a soul-crushing job to pay these off, I can just cancel them and sign up for something I can afford
You must live with your parents
>>17756518
>oh no we're all slaaaaaves
Well, we are. Just in a new way. Instead of physical labor we now have debt.
>wait a minute, no we're not. we have free will and can do whatever we want and actually I'm not surrounded by armed cops at all and no one is following me!
What? I don't even know what this means.
>any bills i feel compelled to pay are things i signed up for myself! I'm not obligated to get a soul-crushing job to pay these off, I can just cancel them and sign up for something I can afford
I'm having twins. I can't exactly opt out of being a dad. Not that I'd want to. Just wait until you have kids, son. Just wait.
>hold on, now that i've stopped being depressed for a few minutes, I'm thinking of ways all kinds of ways to make money that wont even crush my soul at all!
Who's depressed here? I'm pretty happy mane. I also don't think being happy, and making money are mutually exclusive.
>now that we've realized it's not so bad to be happy productive citizens, let's go out and get girlfriends!
Nigga...having a girlfriend usually ends up leading to the most depressing stuff in life. I'll just tell you that now. Especially if you actually love them. Watching her, watch her grandparents die...having to see her deadbeat dad ruin her life, even as an adult, helping her put her dog down...nigga that shit gets you thinking about going back to being single REAL quick because you acquire double the emotional strife.
Then on into marriage...holy shit.
>>17756518
This mind set it just how the government takes you.
You will think that working 70 hours a week ''its normal'' and be willing to give up most of your life time in order to be just one more of the bunch.
The truth is you will live your entire life worried of any slip that wont let you pay the next bill. Yet the rich keep getting richer because you have to pay that bill.
Dont get me wrong, America is the greatest country for a reason, but its still the symbol of the degeneracy of mankind.
>>17756232
In my opinion the thing is that in rich developed countries, the standard of living is so high that we literally don't know what to do with ourselves. Think about when we were actually part of the food chain -- millions of years of evolution programming the brain to think "life is hard, overcome shit to survive, eat fuck kill." Also, Americans are the most stimulated people on earth bar none. Life used to be a lot more fucking slow and boring than it is now. But now people can have TV or porn or sugar at a moments notice. It's a kind of surplus that our bodies and minds aren't adapted to yet. Basically, our quality of life changed faster than our physiology could keep up with and now we're out of our element. Evolution isn't biological anymore, it's technological.
>>17756518
"Most Americans also have personal experience of being a wage slave.
It means that a person has no way to make a living except by selling his labor into a glutted market. Thomas Jefferson hoped that most Americans could own their own farms and thereby profit from capital improvements that they made through their own efforts. Such Americans could be their own bosses and escape wage slavery. But today we live in an age of huge factory farms, and it is more difficult than ever to establish or run any small business. Thus wage slavery is the norm for Americans today."
Source: http://www.globalresearch.ca/tax-debt-wage-and-fiat-slavery-how-the-elites-extract-wealth-from-the-people/5383129
WAKE UP!
>>17756618
Exactly. Accepting and thinking it's perfectly normal those conditions we live in is absurd. Society's behavior, living conditions and every aspect of its life is being controlled since the beginning of human race.
>>17756684
>tfw we're going full fall of eldar and haven't even escaped our solar system yet
>>17756613
>Instead of physical labor we now have debt.
This is so fucking true but in almost the opposite way you mean
>>17756232
It's not all of the US that is like that. I used to live on the north east coast and people were so full of themselves and condescending as a base mood then I move south and everyone is more friendly, less on a mission, more hospitable. You live in the most devilish place in america LA. Get the fuck out of california and the west coast and see civilization.
>>17756457
>t. Flyover state trailer trash
>>17756613
>I'm having twins.
Congrats dude!
Materialism (the false premise of being wealth equals being happy) is the worst kind of illusion being forced on population. It makes you value unnecessary things and blurs your vision so you don't see what you really need to value in life to be truly happy.
Narcissism is going strong these days. It destroys empathy, love, values, morals and family bonding. This younger generation loves their "selfies" more than they love their families. And their parents seem to put money and materialism before their own children.
The society's/media's appearance/beauty goals destroys mental health and destroys population's body image. It makes them feel insecure, with extremely low self esteem and soon they start searching for some kind of "perfection" that doesn't even exist. It makes them unhappy and unsatisfied with what they have.
The media brainwashes you on a daily basis. The result is: you don't think for yourself anymore. You are being totally controlled and manipulated by them without even realizing. They control what you should see, hear, behave, accept and even what you are supposed to think about certain topics and areas in life in a social context and personally.
Greed destroys your soul. Destroys who you are. Destroys your life and the lives of everyone around you. And greed is FORCED on us everyday by the media, social levels and scholarship.
Government controls EVERYTHING. You never know what happens behind closed doors. Since you're a small child, you go to school and by doing it you are being told what you should and shouldn't know about their fake history books. They hide their corruption and horrendous mistakes. For example, they never talk about human experiments during WWII.
>>17756943
The CIA have done horrendous experiments with US citizens WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT some decades ago. Search it by yourself: project MK Ultra (Mind Control experiments). Do you think they have stopped doing it? I don't think so... There's a lot of money, power and control involved. They wouldn't just stop.
People are led to believe in government and politicians. Quoting Michael Jackson: "They don't really care about us". It's a illusion. False hope.
Churches and religious leaders many times use their followers for their own selfish purposes.
How could you be happy when all of this is being FORCED down your throat? US is probably the biggest example of mass dehumanization and mass slavery. You just can't be truly happy in those circunstances.
Answering your question, YES. There IS a conspiracy. A conspiracy against morals. A conspiracy against families. A conspiracy against every single citizen living under the oppressive government. A conspiracy against freedom and free will.
>>17756943
You seriously just changed my life. I'm so empty... this has happened to me. I want to run into the woods and get away from all the corruption
>>17756517
That really puts things in perspective. Most people throughout history spent their entire lives worrying about making it through one more day, and here I am in an air-conditioned room browsing through the world's accumulated knowledge on my magical, electronic rectangle feeling sad that I'm not good enough to get laid whenever I want.
>>17756826
How so?
>>17756924
Thanks! I'm horrified!
>>17756943
>>17756954
>Going full tinfoil hat.
Quality /x/ post.
Memes aside, i think there is indeed a higher purpose for turning man into machines. Not to sound cliche but there is a big hand pulling the strings.
Does this group does it for mankind or for selfish reasons? I dont know. But in order to survive humanity needs a new step on technology evolution. Colonizing space.
>>17756962
Or just do what I'm doing. Start a family, try getting a job you actually enjoy, and focus on your own individual spirituality and morality. And stick to it.
You can also go inna woods. But running away won't help anyone, even you. You'll just run off, live for a few years...or days. And die.
I knew you're an idiot, Orion, but I didn't know you were enough of an idiot to argue with a post you agree with.
>>17757004
I didn't really argue with anyone.
And at least I know how to >>17757004 people.
>>17756232
Industrialism.
>>17756985
>feeling sad that I'm not good enough to get laid whenever I want.
That's not unreasonable in concept, since wanting to get laid is something emblazoned in our DNA so it can spread it self.
It's unfortunate that such a basic need requires two.
And on an emotional level, wanting validation from being desired and loved is not unreasonable either. It's just matter of putting effort because we lacked the good fortune of being born to a wealthy family.
>>17756996
You don't believe a man can pitch a tent somewhere in the woods, come out for canned food every week or so, and focus on meditation and simple life?
>>17757017
Not him, but no. Being social is a valuable part of mental health.
>>17757023
What happens to people who actually opt to live as true hermits?
>>17757017
>canned food
>living off of the same corruption you tried to escape
Why not learn to shoot so you can hunt? Learn to fish? Learn to farm?
That's my point. You aren't...well you aren't man enough to go live in the woods AND benefit from it. The shit taht is in the food you eat is also part of the whole "conspiracy" (I see it as known fact that there is literal poison in our food.) And you want to rely on it.
>>17757023
Not really. It depends on the person. Humans are technically "social" creatures. But the society we live in today uses that against us to break our true ability to get along with others. We're meant to live in communities and be around eachother all day, errday forming bonds (or breaking then.) Not slinging hashtags and yolos from behind a keyboard on Twitter. Or Reddit. Or even 4chan. So in many respects, being a hermit can be better.I'd rather him NOT be a hermit, and just move to a small town somewhere and be forced to actually speak to other humans, as a human. But you know. Beggars can't be choosers.
>>17757025
See above. Then read...
Back in the old days Hermits had a stigma of being insane or what have you. But many of the greatest thinkers of all time were "Hermits". And in many societies being a Hermit temporarily (Tibetans, Native Americans,many African tribes, Greeks, etc.) was a rite of passage and was seen as a time to grow.
Are we meant to be solitary forever? No. But temporarily? It can be very good for us. Especially in this day and age.
>>17757025
They become hermits.
>>17756618
>>17756722
Both of these. This is why I don't equate someone's monetary worth to their worth as a person.
live in a fucking decent city maybe
>california
:^)
>>17756257
This. Watch the documentary "Living One On Dollar". People in Guatemala live in extreme poverty and the people and families living in those villages seemed happier than ever.
Why does everyone assumes that OP (me) live in california? I am not a mexican...
I live in Miami.
>>17756910
>he unironically thinks shitholes like Commiefornia are better than living in rural Montana/Texas/Kansas
>>17757136
Will do, however i doubt it will surprise me since i grew up in a rural part of Venezuela.
I meet people that used the same clothes every day. Showered on rivers and cooked on fires. I wouldn't say they were the happiest people in the world but they were happier than most people i know here.
Happier with ''less''
>>17757164
I don't think I could live in an environment that poor myself, but I would try and emulate it in the US by living in a rural area/community. Not necessarily poor but small and tightly knit.
Do you have any ideas? I'm considering some place in Texas or Wyoming.
>>17757156
>better environment
>more prosperous
>actually contributes money to the Federal govt rather than taking it to support their obese pop.
Stay mad trailer trash
>>17757214
>not knowing that flyover state trailer trash is what feeds your hipster ass
>>17757203
Work on a farm... Altough i think most American farms are now heavily industrialized.
Old school farms are a great way to live in peace. Even if they are small, You can produce your own food and still have some to sell for money.
>>17756232
I'm an educated professional in the uNited States and I'm happy As fuck!
>>17756252
Nobody else is responsible for your own happiness; not the doctors, not your employers and not the government. You are the only person that should make sure you are happy.
Quit making excuses and do what YOU need to do to be happy.
>>17757267
I've been studying in Geology, and I'm hoping that sometimes in the next few years there's an oil boom somewhere in Wyoming or similar. I'd be one of the first to get there if possible and seek career opportunities with an oil company there and live in a rural community nearby the oil fields.
>>17756839
FYI by LA OP meant Latin America, as in that's where he came from, not Los Angeles
>>17757416
They should all save up until it becomes necessary to spend. I think there's an effort to let people grow into individuals not under the boot heels of the sheep calling themselves the elite, there are just so many needs to meet with limited intervention and the easy thing to do is pretend the problem doesn't affect each other. Could happen anywhere resources aren't readily obtainable.
>>17756232
It is a conspiracy.
Americans are exposed to all kinds of negative messages for the purposes of control.
Most of these messages focus on convincing people they are not good enough (you're not smart, attractive, unique, creative, interesting, rich, trendy enough) so that they can sell us products that correct (plastic surgery, diet pills/foods, study aids, college tuition, self help books etc) these problems or allow us to compensate in other arenas (makeup, cars, apple products, designer clothing etc) OR bliss away our bad feelings with mindless instant gratification things that make our problems worse (video games, fast food, porn, internet shopping).
When these things fail to make us happy since we are still being fed the same negative messages anyway, people resort to drugs, alcohol, suicide or doctors' favorite-- anti-depressants. The pharmaceutical industry and psychiatric community would love to see every person in this country on "safe" and legal mood (and mind) altering drugs. They do not seek to cure. They seek neverending treatment to feed their moneymaking machine.
It's all a scheme to keep the rich being rich at the cost of the average citizen's quality of life and peace of mind.
It's on purpose and it's getting worse. Middle class whites are actually committing suicide and dying of drug addiction at a higher rate lately. I don't think they'll be able to keep this up forever though, thank god.
>>17757665
1. Create hole.
2. Market product that says it fills said hole.
>>17756943
I like you a lot, amigo.
>>17757095
>Why not learn to shoot so you can hunt? Learn to fish? Learn to farm?
This is what I want to do at this point. I think the system is too poisonous and out of balance to fix, so I'd like to form a self-sufficient community (as isolated as possible, though I know there's real limitations on how far that can go) where people can live as individuals who aren't constantly interfered with by the elites.
>>17757025
I basically did this for years. I can confirm that it's not good for your mental health, even if you really enjoy and prefer being alone. It allowed me to think for myself and deprogram a little bit but you need someone to keep your feet on the ground.
>>17757304
I've gotta answer this because it's really annoys me. Look I know this is canned am logic answer from shrink Academia that there's some truth but honestly happiness is dependent upon many things like our unique personality our environment and our actions. there can be outside sources that affect our happiness. It's stupid to believe otherwise. I doubt you'd be very happy if your family was bombed if you found out the sun was going to disappear next week will you learn that all your hopes and dreams have been crushed in a single moment that you've lived with for majority of your life. While the person can live on humans can only be wrung out so many times before they cease being themselves which includes the unique set of circumstances that made up their previous happiness. That's like saying I am happily enjoying this bad food because I choose to enjoy it. not everything is a motherfucking test of will, and how much does one have to go through before they cease Being Human at all along with their unique happiness? It's more about identity than will.
>>17757685
>happily enjoying this bad food because I choose to enjoy it
That's actually what that anon was trying to say. You can force yourself to not have a shitty mood if you really want to. The problem, as you note, is wanting to be happy regardless of, well, a truly horrifying life.
>>17756252
This. Wife is a physician assistant and drug reps are in her office all the time with free food and giving out things like concert tickets, gift cards, etc.
>>17757714
That's NOT what I was saying, though. Totally misquoted MY context, because I'm mocking it. If something tastes bad why fake it? It is when we try to cover up issues that real problems arise. Faking is never the answer. You are you for a reason, and not a machine. Will is one thing, but when you write off the persona, your tastes, it is no longer happiness. It's a lie as you become a bland robot.
>>17756232
I feel the same way OP, lived in japan for 4 years and everyone was happy, peaceful, zen, etc. Come back to the US and easily notice everyone's paranoia, nervousness, etc
my idea is its just the subconscious side effect of our "terrorism" witch hunt, force fed through propaganda
>>17756518
KYS
>>17756362
Sein Blick ist vom Vorübergehn der Stäbe
so müd geworden, dass er nichts mehr hält.
Ihm ist, als ob es tausend Stäbe gäbe
und hinter tausend Stäben keine Welt.
Der weiche Gang geschmeidig starker Schritte,
der sich im allerkleinsten Kreise dreht,
ist wie ein Tanz von Kraft um eine Mitte,
in der betäubt ein großer Wille steht.
Nur manchmal schiebt der Vorhang der Pupille
sich lautlos auf -. Dann geht ein Bild hinein,
geht durch der Glieder angespannte Stille -
und hört im Herzen auf zu sein.
>>17757741
It's our media. Keep in mind we had a huge influence from soviet era espionage infiltrating our society for demoralization during the 80's and earlier which still has lasting effects on our culture. Not to mention god knows what project paperclip did to us through social engineering, too. Anyways, the elites use both to their advantage like the shitty game of chess that people and events are to them. They get off on it, really.
Is Mexico really that great OP?
>>17757741
That sounds more like a bias from the places you hung out. Japan is notorious for career based depression and suicide rates.
>>17757755
It hurts, it hurts.
>>17756518
>Y'all
>fricken
Opinion discarded.
>>17757416
oops
>>17757768
This. An American in Japan has no conception of the intense social pressures that a Japanese in Japan has to deal with.
>>17757731
That's what I was saying. "that anon" was referring to >>17757304
That anon was literally advocating for delusion and destruction of identity. Being happy for no reason is equivalent to being angry for no reason, or even paranoid for no reason. When there's no reason to the emotion, it's a delusion, whether that delusion makes you happy or sad or dead inside.
>>17757770
Only if you are an istj or esfj which make up the majority of men and women. it is what our "heathcare" system is designed for. the real problem is those unhappy with being too busy with busy work that our society indulges in. it has the exact OPPOSITE effect to the daydreamers with their minds in the clouds. the xNTP's and xNFP's which sadly probably end up more in the clutches of such a system due to the natural differences, and mishandling of them by the masses. after all, those different are naturally ostracized, and majority rules.
>>17756232
Its a dying nation. other nations in the next few years will give almost or a better standard of living. The whole idea of college is needed for everything now is a joke. As the majority of the workloads heavy lifting in every sense of the word is done by machines. it doesn't help that people enforcing such degrees couldn't meet that standard themselves at their young age.
The sad part is nowadays people with masters degrees make less or equal to those who didn't even finish high school 30 years ago. That Harvard study a few months back was almost painful to read on the topic. Put remember with a war in the worst economic state its been in 50-70 years, a nonstop war, being a man or a women even is suspect to verbal and political attacks.
this can go on and on but ill stop
>>17757787
I see, and that is what I was addressing. Isn't it redundant to repeat what he said then? I felt I was quite clear in my addressing of it, and you didn't add any details about me or him, until just now, other than just parroting him. Curious.
>>17757741
You're suggesting that if 9/11 never happened, if "terrorism" was never cemented as a serious threat in the psyche of the average American, that we would be a happy, trusting, friendly population?
I got new for you, plenty of people "know" terrorism isn't a threat. Plenty of people think global warming is more of a threat than terrorism. The problem goes much deeper. I think the media's general tendency to bombard people with endless stories of rape, murder, kidnapping, and assault is a part of it.
But I also have no fucking idea what OP is talking about. I endlessly encounter people in the US who seem pathologically optimistic and friendly. Maybe the fact that he lived in a Latin American country, whose people are notoriously touchy, warm, and "compassionate", means he isn't able to appreciate the cultural differences of a country that is largely Anglo-Saxon. People are plenty friendly here, you just need to get to know them. And if you expect unfiltered intimacy from a stranger... well, what the hell is wrong with you? Don't you have a circle of friends? A family?
japan, by the way, is notoriously homogeneous. The US is a pluralistic country made up of various different ethnic groups and cultures. This will obviously have an effect on the culture as a whole. If OP is expecting to be treated as a life-long friend by every single person he ever meets, well then he obviously needs to re-calibrate his understanding of the country.
But oh, I guess a government conspiracy is a more logical answer. It's not like the hyper-consumerism of the country creates mental pathologies that are superficially treated with promiscuous pharmaceutical prescriptions. No, a government conspiracy is at play.
>>17757787
Hey, I misread the last part of your statement while in a rush. Your wording through me off, but I was wrong. Apologies.
>>17757811
>>17756252
Yeah, guess what. For most doctors, their only connection wit advancements in medicine is through pharmaceutical reps. Most doctors don't read medical studies, most don't keep up to date with the science.
>>17757811
My point was that you're exactly right; that anon is essentially advocating for egocide by parroting off the retarded feel-good idioms of American therapy. Terrible advice like that only prolongs the problem.
>>17757847
My point is I was rash in my reply to you, and misread your statement. My bad.
>>17757814
You are going back and forth between talking about friendliness and happiness in your response.
People in this country who are pathologically optimistic and friendly are not necessarily happy and could very well be extremely depressed. I doubt you know many of them well enough to know what they really feel. Many people in this country (southerners and mid westerners especially) are taught to project friendliness and to hide any failures or bad feelings that could be socially frowned upon.
People are dying inside with a smile on their face because god forbid that anyone find out they're not happy. There's plenty of proof that people in this country are unhappier than any time in the recent past.
>>17757770
>>17757770
If the dog said "The key to being happy isn't a disregard for any meaning. It's to keep yourself busy with what you love and eventually, you'll live a fulfilling life at the end." would you agree with this also?
Even the cartoons are nihilist nonsense. Nihilist dogs don't know shit. It might be funny, but it's a negative outlook.
It's interesting to compare Bojack Horseman to another cartoon that was produced in another country Polar Bear Cafe.
They're both similar in that they have animals working human professions but where Bojack is about washed up, cynical animals taking drugs and drinking themselves to death Polar Bear Cafe is a lighthearted take on animals working professions.
I'm not saying that Japan has their shit together when it comes to happiness, but this is just putting forth comparisons to a similar theme.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwzXtNnFWqY
>>17757814
Found the shill
>statusquostatusquobuythestorypleasebelieve
>>17757814
>I endlessly encounter people in the US who seem pathologically optimistic and friendly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5um8QWWRvo
A good lecture about this.
Hyper consumerism is a thing everywhere, Latin american countries have a culture of strong community ties, and the people take care of each other, I don't have to tell you that americans can be very rude to each other, just go to /pol/ for an hour.
In this board people are send to take their meds and kys all the time, I think it's safe to say, that you have a problem with social relantionships.
A lot of north americans have a pathological fear of minorities, and the the political parties ride that fear as the chariot of victory.
You can blame anglo-saxon idiosyncrasy for a problem that's wide spread among every one that lives in the country, it's a problem with america self image that translate into a lot of social pathologies.
>>17757814
Do you think the media and big business isn't directly affecting governmental policies? If our government officials didn't get their election funding from corporations, then they might be acting in the interests of the public instead, making laws that put limits on the growth/reach of businesses that would restrict their power and incentive to influence the identities and habits of average citizens.
Maybe it's not a JFK, flat earth type conspiracy but it's a bunch of people working together to screw the little guy for their own benefit. Some of those people are in the government, some are in corporate America and there is huge overlap between the two spheres. The government is part of the conspiracy to destroy the individual.
Well, you moved to LA. Seems pretty different.. Sure, some people in America are more.. discontent, but not all of us.
>>17756299
>>17757859
Are you OP, or the guy I was replying to? Just curious. How do you judge the happiness of a nation, vs the friendliness of a nation? Because the guy I was replying to seemed to be judging the former via the latter.
>>17757870
What are you talking about. I literally said hyper-consumerism is a problem, and that the government was brushing over it with the quick-fix of mass psychiatry. I'm not saying I want the status quo, I'm saying that we have enough "analysis" of the problem and need actual solutions.
>>17757900
> I don't have to tell you that americans can be very rude to each other
Yeah, I believe that. Most Americans think signalling niceness and friendliness is all that matters. But ask them to DO something for you, and then see how they respond. They'll look at you like you just asked them to eat a cockroach.
>>17757911
I strongly suggest you read the book "Trading Up". This isn't a result of a government conspiracy, it's a natural consequence of countless entrepreneurs exploiting emotional emptiness in order to sell some kind of product. The economic forces at work in this country recognize the mental problems of most Americans; but these forces are not fixing the problem, they are promising Americans that the solution is to buy a particular product. Consumption is no longer about the functional use of the good, it's about the emotional satisfaction the good provides.
I fear for the future of the Republic. But blaming it on a centralized government conspiracy is silly. It's a natural consequence of mass production and mass media.
>>17757214
>Better environment
Please... Have you ever even stepped foot in a city?
>>17757793
I would kill to have a different perception, personality, all of it. FUCK being an infp in America.
>>17758072
>I fear for the future of the Republic. But blaming it on a centralized government conspiracy is silly. It's a natural consequence of mass production and mass media.
I see your point but you act as though this is the only possible system. This is a direct consequence of the neoliberal system that's been put in place in the last 30 years or so. It has destroyed the middle class and increased the wealth of the elite class. The deregulation of business has allowed them to take complete control of the future of this country both economically and socially. The lack of restraint on corporate interference in government is deplorable.
What you don't seem to believe is that this is all on purpose. No, the government itself is not really behind this but no, it is not a "natural" development. The values and beliefs in this country were/are manipulated by the elite who want to make money off of us. Yes, these are natural consequences of the current system but most Americans can see (or at least sense) that the system is broken. HOWEVER, they no longer have the political power to reverse or affect policies that are fucking them. This is why I consider it a conspiracy. The influence of corporations is out of control and this perversion of democracy was brought about on purpose to allow the elite to remain elite. The government failed us and many of them are complicit in facilitating the current state of affairs by passing laws that favored their corporate supporters (and often, the business interests of their friends and families). They may not have foreseen every consequence, but they certainly aren't doing anything to change it so why not admit that they are part of this?
>>17757793
>>17758538
it's possible to be happy even if you're different from the majority. it just takes some time and effort to find the right people. people who naturally have more emotional sensitivity are always going to have a harder time socially because yes, the majority of people can be careless or cruel. try to adjust your expectations and accept people for who they are. you'd want to be treated that way, right?
it's a blessing to be someone who thinks, feels, cares and dreams even if it sets you apart. don't reject your own personality to try to fit in if you can help it. and understand that some people HAVE put on a social mask to get along so appearances can be deceiving. some of these people who seem at ease socially have struggled too at one point, and they are very likely to be sympathetic to your own difficulties. just give people a chance and don't give up on yourself.
>>17756381
>tfw the idea of the American Dream died in 1973
>>17760382
But the American Nightmare is about to begin.
>>17756457
You are completely wrong. Look at the map. The darkest ones have the highest rate of antidepressant use. You probably made your comment based off bullshit stereotypes you heard on TV but plenty of "conservative" states are popping pills at a high rate.
>>17760382
Why do you specify 1973?
>>17760406
That makes complete sense when you consider those are the people that think free healthcare, decent job conditions and such are for "commies". They'll work their asses off and still be thankful for their "freedom".
>>17760406
I'll also point out that those areas correlate with hight African American, and Native American populations.
I'll also point out that just because a lot of Medicare/caid users have prescriptions for Anti depressants, that is NOT indicative of how many users there are in each state exactly. Mainly because the areas shaded darkest also reflect the poorest states/areas of states that rely on government assistence.
In short...your chart proves little. Especially since Cali and New York have totally draconian laws when it comes to prescriptions/vaccinations.
>>17756232
If you worry about your own problems you can't worry about world problems
>>17756943
Regarding materialism:
Would consider something we do, for example, wrenching your car, or buying a sporty one because you truly enjoy everything around it (even with the hours of pain, or frustration that may come with it) as materialism?
Dunno if I make myself clear but
tl;dr, if $ provide us something that certainly makes our lives happier, i.e, a hobby, is that materialism?
>>17760433
The chart proves that 20-30% of medicare users are on antidepressants in many "conservative" states. So yeah, it proves that he's wrong about liberal places being the only over-medicated ones. Maybe it's true that the rich people who use antidepressants in blue states don't show up on this map but it's the poor who use them in red states and that proves his statement is untrue. Especially because so many people in these states are poor in the first place.
http://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/study-maps-mental-health-medication-use-us
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/07/opinion/sunday/talking-red-state-blues.html?_r=0
People in conservative states are more likely to pop pills than those in liberal states because the blue states go to therapy, apparently. Poor people just get medication because it's cheaper.
http://en.fairmormon.org/Utah/Statistical_claims/LDS_use_of_antidepressants
Utah has one of the highest rates of antidepressant use/depression in the country for over a decade.
http://www.stateoftheusa.org/content/states-people-with-highest-dep.php
The most depressed states line up with highest antidepressant use according to my first map, for the most part.
The "only liberals are pill-popping depressed people" thing is a myth.
>>17756232
Antidepressants have helped me. They are better than traditional bipolar meds (make you diabetic) for my type 2 bipolar disorder.
>>17760544
Ok dude.
>>17760555
Also bow before my trips.
>>17760560
You're welcome.
>>17760555
I am not saying antidepressants are bad but they are over prescribed here in the states. Or maybe they are not and people are JUST that stressed out. I dont know witch one is worst.
>>17760640
It's both. They are a quick fix for people who are depressed but don't want to go to therapy and doctors are dying to hand them out because they get perks from the drug reps.
And I do think they might be bad. They screwed with my head and there's not great research on the long term effects of many that are being widely prescribed.
>>17756232
Where are you living that will definitely play a factor into what the people around you are doing.
>>17756232
It's happening in Finland as well. How about Japan? Sometimes the world is just a fucking depressing place to be.
>>17757814
>promiscuous pharmaceutical prescriptions
put down the thesaurus kid
>>17756232
because human beings define their reality with misery and suffering.
>>17756457
You obviously don't know what you are talking about. People on the west coast lead way better lives than the inbred Bible Belt, Southeast and Gulf.
>>17760375
I do and honestly a lot of people don't, the majority write me off or are straight up rude and condescending but I take it because I have no social standing or charisma (or even the will to fight back) which is kind of a big thing here even outside of places like NYC or LA. It's just how it is, took me a long time to realize these kinds of things. It's okay to have twinkly dreamy vibrations and artistic feels (actually hate my emotions but they do have their purpose) but sometimes I desperately want to be the person that can have that iron clad social mask so I could get shit done and make some cash like everybody else. Or even just function normally, like full time work/school and an active life in general. But fuck it.
I'll try doing that anon, have recently been really, really wanting to just reject everything I hate about myself and try to be someone else but know that facade would fall apart quickly under real pressure. I'm going to try my best and not regress back into being NEET, finish my useless art degree, live modestly and wait for the real horrorshow to begin in this country. Thanks.
People are more miserable in first world countries than they are in third world countries.
Christ is it really that hard to understand?
The older people are finding that they can't retire because their funds got pilfered in the crash so they're unhappy because they're still working and they can't sit back and help their family.
Younger people are beaten down by the terrible job market and massive disillusionment; there was a trend that started in Japan which is beginning to rear its head in America where young people look ahead of them at a life of wage slavery and dating games and raising children as a "best case scenario" and say "fuck that shit I'm going to do nothing but devour media until I die at 40."
People in the US are depressed because if you have half a brain you can see that there's nothing to look forward to.
>>17756232
People in first world countries are more depressed because everything in modern society has become such a convoluted mess. We want good, fulfilling jobs but we have to deal with the mess of a constantly fluctuating job market, the fact that most colleges are frauds, and a massive uphill battle when it comes to starting our own businesses. We want wives, but we have to deal with the fallout from feminists who have taught women to hate men and turn against everything feminine. We have more freedom but we had to trade in happiness to get it. One of the most sobering statistics I've read recently is that the suicide rate among the Amish is only half that of the national average. Modern society is just a mess.
>>17763213
Do the Amish take converts?
>>17763519
Yes, but it's probably a hard life to get used to if you weren't born into it. Having 7 kids with an 18 year old and getting to work outside doesn't sound too bad though.
>>17756518
You fucking shill. I bet they pay you to disagree with me.
>>17756299
it COULD work meaning that the different attitude the usa has is infamous for how negative it it
>>17757787
>>17757847
>destruction of identity
>egocide
I see similar ideas put forth by some in the spiritual community, particularly those who draw influence from eastern spiritual practices like Buddhism. I don't buy it either. I don't think it's a coincidence that those traditions emerged in a culture that prioritizes the system over the individual. If you're at the top of that system and want to maintain it, a good way to make the masses compliant would be to tell them that they shouldn't fight against their circumstances and should instead try to adjust their mindset so they're happy with whatever shit the ruling class throws on them.
>>17763185
I can really relate to everything you said. you're not alone anon, keep on trucking
>>17763623
I'm in. Might take a few months to get used to but sounds like heaven.
>>17756518
This is correct.
>>17756534
You are obviously just projecting.
>>17756576
Sounds like you must still live with your parents if you don't understand that all your bills, including property taxes, are something which you signed a contract, voluntarily, to pay. You don't seem to really understand how bills work.
>>17756613
I am praying for your future children. An unintelligent, emotionally weak father figure is something no child should be cursed with.
>>17756988
They don't want space until we are hive-dwellers who can subsist on 95% sugars and have absolute obediance.
>>17763787
It's always good to know someone out there knows what you mean, same to you anon
>>17757304
How about you stop telling me what to do, you bitch?
>>17756328
But only faggots take handegg seriously. Not to mention something where you take a break after every play isn't a sport. No endurance lmao.
>>17757214
Commiefornia is one of the most overregulated states in the nation. Cost of living is sky high as well. Between cali and the middle of a field i'd take the field 1000x over. Both are shitty choices sure but holy shit man.
>california
>>17756518
is it summer already?
>>17757859
I believe that southerners and mid-westerners are the only groups of people in this country who are the closest to actual happiness and heres why. Earlier in the thread there was a correlation made between poverty and friendliness right? Well those two regions are the most impoverished in the nation. The whole "poison in our food" argument was brought up as well however out of all the regions in the US, its the easiest to supplement your diet with wild caught animals/fish and gardened veggies due to the climate and alot of people take advantage of this. The government doesn't get involved with things down there nearly as much as they do in other places since no one really cares about what goes on there. I can also say after having lived in the south for a few years that its alot more common for people to go out of their way to lend a helping hand than it was back home up north. Something they call "paying it forward"
>>17760421
>free healthcare
Nothing is free anon...
>>17761322
You obviously dont know what you're talking about. I'd take anywhere over the overregulated, expensive as fuck west coast.
>>17756232
Equilibrium is needed. Moderation is the key. Free things are EVERYWHERE, especially the HAPPINESS of the soul.
>Hint: find the opposite of the 7 sins. Good luck~
>>17763623
>>17763843
Sounds more like Hell to me. Teenage girls are annoying, I don't want kids, and I'm basically allergic to heat, so working outside wouldn't be good for me.
It's Californication.
>>17756232
>Why does people
Why do people
>>17767197
What are you good at?
>>17766052
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_virtues
>>17756232
America does have it's shit but there is no better alternative
>>17756232
>Why does people in the US seem so depressed?
Poor grammar
>>17756232
Anglo saxon cultures are fucking retarded. I'm from latin america as well, living in Europe, and it's also the case. English speaking cultures are incredibly neurotic in general, very repressed for some reason.
Plus americans are extra retarded. Don't envy you at all.
>>17769392
Writing, acting, and language, mostly.
>>17771981
Oh.
Good luck with that, anon.
>>17763206
>People in the US are depressed because if you have half a brain you can see that there's nothing to look forward to.
I agree with everything you said, especially this.
Do you think they would be willing to fight for a future though? What would motivate Americans to try to make things better?
I feel that people have given up completely. Maybe it isn't so bleak. Maybe there is hope?
I wish I had some idea of how things would look if America was actually "great". Then I'd know what I want to fight for. All I can really see are all the problems everywhere and it seems the only thing that would actually change anything is a complete overhaul of the government and laws, the economic and social systems and even the personal habits of individual Americans. Is a working system that doesn't screw the majority even possible at this point?
>>17756232
If you're genuinely interested OP, watch the documentary 'Status Anxiety' by Alain de Botton. It'll answer a lot of your questions
>>17770787
I would tend to agree with your assessment of anglo-saxon people as neurotic and repressed.
Glad to know that Latin people are assholes too, though.
>>17756839
Bullshit. The south is filled with some of the most idiotic, bigoted, assholes I have ever met. All of their politeness is a sham. You'll only be happier there if you have exceptionally low expectations.
>>17772253
I meant north carolina. It's the perfect balance of south and north.
>>17757685
Whether or not you like something has a lot to do with perspective and attitude. There will be things that you cannot like, appreciate or respect; of that I have no argument. However, we can put ourselves in an environment that provides us with mostly neutral or positive stimulus using our sphere of influence; opportunities to do so are vast in the USA.
>>17756232
It's a worldwide feeling , I promise. But growing up in the US, it's more of the "Empire syndrome", as I call it. We are the "greatest nation, the pinnacle of the world" but even here people aren't truly happy. Imagine living in the best place on earth and realizing that things are the same but a little prettier.
>>17772282
Opportunities for advancement and attaining a significantly better quality of life are not equal for all Americans.
Have you lived below the poverty line?
Being relatively poor in "the richest country on earth" is degrading, given the context that your self-identity and the perceptions of others are bought. People don't see the content of your character. They're unhappy because they're fundamentally alone. This is the price of unchecked individualism. Somehow harboring both insecurity and unwarranted self-importance.
I met a traveler from South America on a cross-country bus trip. He pleaded with me to eat with him, saying that he couldn't bring himself to eat alone, without sharing. He offered to buy lunch just to have that comfort. It wasn't until we were pulling food from each other's plates that a smile appeared on his face. That's what it means to be socially adjusted -- not according to a system imposed by men, but one inherent to us.
>>17756232
don't know.
I've never taken anti-depressants because I'm not an atheist who has lost all hope in the meaning of life.
>>17756613
You know what's up man. Good luck with the twins God bless you and your family.
>>17756232
>Work 40 to 60 hours a week doing the same job 6 days a week
>Taxed out the ass to pay for some old fucks Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, even though I'll probably only get maybe half of what I payed in, if I live long enough.
>Also taxed for shit public education so whiny millennials (people born post 1995) can have their proms and iPads.
>Can't even relax when I smoke weed because police are faggots who will literally shoot you for "perceived threat of violence", they also shoot your dog if it starts to bark at them.
>Can't even grow weed in my backyard because National Guard helicopters constantly fly around looking for weed plants
>City raises property taxes every year. Had to pay $950 in taxes for land I already own, or perhaps the correct term would be "government leased" land.
>Women my own age are dumb bitches who can't separate fantasy from reality and only have kids so they can cruise through life via child support and government aid. The poor kids are usually treated badly as a result.
>Even though people's persective of the US is that of a "super religious" nation, it's BS. Very few people read their Bibles, and the same pastors who cite Leviticus for tithes will turn around and say "JESUS NAILED DA LAW TO DA CROSS! YAY FREEDUMS!" even though Jesus came not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.
>Speaking of laws, do you know that most so-called "lawmakers" don't even make a conscious decision about the laws they vote for or against? Look up "Congressman X" for more details.
>Niggers flip their shit about racism and then loot, burn, shoot, and rape everything in sight and have the audacity to get welfare checks so they can buy booze and raise bastard children on tax money from people who actually work.
To be honest, I don't believe the US will last more than six or seven more years, at least I hope it doesn't. I've divorced myself from the "American Dream". The mummer's farce is almost done, I'm just waiting and watching.
>>17756257
That's because they're too stupid to know better and they don't have dreams because the best they could become is a kingpin or crooked government official. This America. Everyone wants to be Warren buffet and for you to go fuck yourself.
>>17756534
Found the fat neckbeard
>>17756232
Consider the following. Our country is going broke, half its working-age population isn’t even looking for work, faces the real threat of massive Islamic terrorist attack and has a government incapable of doing even basic functions. Meanwhile, conservatives act like cutting Planned Parenthood funding or stopping gays from getting marriage licenses are the great issues of the day and then have the gumption to call Donald Trump a clown. It would be downright funny if it wasn’t so sad and the situation so serious.
>>17757304
Oh, shut the fuck up.
>>17756232
life is too easy for Americans. ever been a NEET before? you don't have to work and you have everything you need to survive, it gets boring and sad real fast. US citizens have it too easy, so any meaning in their life is used up once they realize their day-to-day agendas. most of all they ever needed, they've already got it. so what the hell are they supposed to do for the next 50 years of their lives?
eventually Americans go on vacations to fill that void of accomplishment, after that whether they feel better or not can go either way.
>>17774555
>Blaming Republicans
>Democrats have been in central power for eight years
Your bias is showing.
>>17757214
I liked California as a kid but as I got older I tended to equate a lot of the state with doucheyness. Plus, places like the bay the got shit gentrified out of them and now have high crime rates and high costs of living.
>>17757226
A lot of the food is actually grown in norcal
>>17775216
not to start a political debate, but I think what the other guy is trying to say is that considering it is the losing party's job to criticize the faults of the winning party, its pretty shitty that since the democrats are fucking up, the main topics the republicans seem to be talking about is shit like gay marriage instead of actual issues.
>>17757859
If you are raised from parents born in the 50s or earlier. Their mentality is that you shouldn't show your sad to others. You don't ever bring up depression. In today's society I feel like everyone needs to cry and let it out.
I have a massive debt over my head and apply to 5-10 jobs a week. I've been on 3 interviews since graduating in the past 2 years. I'm qualified for a lot of jobs but I have no idea what employers want anymore. This has definitely made me want to blow my brains out. I noticed that the children from rich families had their rent and food paid after and during college. The white middle to lower class who didn't have govt. support or scholarships worked 2-3 jobs through college. This is definitely a fucked up thing to experience.
However, I have a routine. I don't watch the news other than Vice if I want to know what's going on in the world. I ditched the belief that I needed social media to be happy and have friends. I keep myself healthy and avoid foods that are killing americans. You can be happy broke but it takes mental training and a routine. A lot of ppl aren't equipped with these tools. I think having a partner with you can make you feel better. Sure, a gf/bf may bring other emotions you didn't sign up for. That's why ppl need to separate the life partner from the trash.
Video games, junk food, porn, and drugs are fillers. If you want happiness you should try living a non materialistic life. I don't mean to the extreme. I'm talking about every day things we think we nees but don't. I haven't bought new clothes in 2 years, shoes in 4. Wanting more than what you have will fuck u up mentally.
>>17777384
You graduated 2 years ago and have no job? Or just have no job that utilizes your degree?
What's your degree in?
>>17757726
Dude, that's any job that has vendors or manufacturers looking to curry favor.
I've received: dozens and dozens and dozens of free lunches, dozens of sports tickets including box seats to playoff games, and concert tickets. Shit, took my old lady to see Lady Gaga years ago just by calling a vendor and asking.
Businesses buy that shit and write them off. It's simply the cost of doing business. One company I do business with, Coke, actually has a full time employee (probably more but I only ever associate with one) that does nothing more than coordinate and host these events. Sweet gig I guess. He literally plays ambassador to about 15-20 people in their suite no matter the event.
>>17777434
I don't have a job right now other than work I can do under the table. I worked a non degree job and it gave me more health problems than I could ask for. After that I promised myself to not stick around if things were noticeably bad and ppl popped xanax like candy.
Doesn't mean that I'm not trying anymore for jobs outside the degree. There are just certain conditions no one should have to put up with but ppl do out of fear of bills and living. If I didn't have a safety net then I would be forced back into a min wage job. I was smart and saved my money in college and after but now the funds are dried up and I can't keep relying on my safety net. I have reflected on every fuck up I made career wise and should of ignored the pressure to overpay on loans early because I sacrificed my career options. It was a constant cycle of fucking myself over without knowing it. At the beginning I lacked the financial support to move to an area with available jobs in the degree. When I talk to my partner about it now, they would rather stay where we are and I keep applying for jobs.
This is just from an American perspective on how the pressure to pay loans fucked up my career timeline. It's obvious other ppl are forced into shit labor.
Because we all secretly hate ourselves. If we don't have any problems we make some up.
pic related
Social engineering?
>>17763206
>People in the US are depressed because if you have half a brain you can see that there's nothing to look forward to.
Yep, this entirely.
I think many people are just resigned to the fact that, even if global warming/war/famine/disease doesn't get them they're living a tedious and degrading life anyway.
Seriously, what the FUCK do we have to look forward to apart from base shit like video-games? Hell, even video-games have just become an endless succession of disappointments.
>>17777476
.....so what's your degree in?
>>17777588
Just because you're a miserable NEET doesn't mean everyone else is. I love my life. I have a house, 10/10 wife with great tits, and a job that pays me a fuck ton and let's me lurk 4chan. I look forward to raising my kid and retirement.
I spend my weekends doing projects around the house with the wife or visiting friends and family. On weekdays, we cook every night and hang out like bffles.
Life's good for me. I love every minute of it. Sucks to be you.
>>17777631
>just because you're a miserable NEET
Is "miserable NEET" your kind's "angry virgin" or something? I've got a job, a shit one but it pays well. Stop making assumptions.
>mean everyone else is
Hence why I said "many people."
>look forward to raising my kid and retirement
How old are you, anon?
>Life's good for me
This is like the opposite of that tired old "starving kids in Africa" argument.
>>17777588
I'm turning the inside of my apartment into a rainforest. Budgies, plants (including vines on trellis), I guess I'll get a turtle or two and a fishtank eventually.
I plan to install grower lights and cover all interior walls with vines. Hardy kiwi. It flowers and produces fruit.
Also dirtbiking/cycling is fun. And martial arts and gym.
>>17777648
So what's your problem? Why is your life so miserable (degrading, tedious)?
>>17777843
Enjoy your mold.
>>17777843
Dude...that sounds awesome.
>>17760406
>>17760433
though, poor white people love prescription drug use
>>17772333
What's your point? Whether or not these opportunities are all equal is inconsequential. My own personal history is also inconsequential and you likely bring it up to to attack me instead of my message; I have no such quarrel with you, I'm truly only interested in the discussion of these ideas and not of the participants.
The fact of the matter is that these opportunities (equal or unequal) have defined the American existence, but we have all been given a basic set of freedoms so that we can work towards the current opportunities available or create new opportunities. The important thing is that there are opportunities and I might add that those opportunities are quite plentiful. At the end of the day, one's own capabilities and imagination are the only true barriers to taking advantage of said opportunity; if that wasn't the case, then we would be in quite a dire situation. I would rather live in a world of high expectations, obstacles and barriers than a world of low expectations, mediocrity and staleness.
You're going to be hard pressed to convince me that the system is so fucked that people can't even be happy or find some kind of acceptable existence in America. The vast majority of people coming into the USA (born or moved) are put into an environment that enables them to pursue a happy, positive existence. That is reality. There may be people who are wholly incapable of experiencing happiness due to environmental or physiological factors, but they are most certainly the exception to the rule and it is likely that condition is temporary.
>>17778215
So yeah, you're a middle-class idealist who has never lived in poverty or you wouldn't have been so offended by me asking a simple question. I wanted to know whether you really don't get it or you honestly fell for the "land of opportunity" line they're selling.
Do you understand WHY there isn't the same kind of opportunity for a child born into a neighborhood riddled with violence and/or addiction that lead to all kinds of traumatic experiences, terrible education and healthcare that handicaps them from the start, parents who don't have time to guide them because they are working all the time for minimum wage to avoid eviction/hunger or parents who have given up (knowing they will never "make it") and stayed on welfare, entire communities of people with a sense of hopeless resignation that they will always be poor and never have respect? Do you have any insight into what a person who lives in an environment like this may feel or think?
And when they do attempt to go into the (upper) middle class world they are frequently ridiculed for their ignorance of "proper" behavior and speech, not having the clothes or cars or gadgets that are taken as indications of belonging, treated as though they are an inferior being for their life circumstances. A front row seat to true, real life "privilege," smugness and entitlement from people who've never had to work for anything and are almost guaranteed to have first pick at the best jobs because their parents and teachers and tutors and guidance counselors taught them the proper social/educational/vocational/networking skills to succeed from the earliest age. That can be a little bit demoralizing.
Yes, these experiences motivate part of the population to do better but it drives a lot more of them to self destruction through addiction, gangs, criminal lifestyles. A person can only take so much unfairness and struggle before they give up.
>>17757665
>>17757673
all of these.
corporations have been allowed to freely rape the human psyche and meddle in the government for what is now generations, and the sickness only compounds with each one as ill parents inadvertently mold their children into it.
>>17778879
*Tips Fedora*
>>17778628
Ok, now look at it from the perspective of a middle class worker going down into poverty with no home or income. Then being denied food stamps to feed your children because you don't fit a mold of "what poverty looks like"
>>17779216
why don't you go back to buying tumor burgers and exhausted summer blockbusters, faggot. humans are social animals, blank slates designed to learn from the group mentalities around us instead of instinct-based lower animals. pretending that our environmental cues can't hurt or heal on a fundamental level is a cancerous, enabling mentality and i wish you all would grow up or just fucking die already. you're holding the rest of us back.
>>17756232
OP one thing you should know as a latin American immigrant that in The USA if you have a boy and you do not want him circumcized you have to tell the hospital not to do it because the hospitals in the USA do routine male circumcision.
Latin AMerica on the other hand is the opposite. The hospitals do not circumcize the boys unless the parents request that thet hospital circumcise the boys.
>>17775216
>central power
>herp derp what's congress what's the senate what are checks and balances
My theory is pretty much a mixture of things. From non-solar lighting to a loss of community.
Here's a bunch of random thoughts.
Using the later and using LA as an example, since I live in this forsaken city. It could be that there are too many people around us, that subconsciously we have hit a point where we feel cramped up by the people around us. Interactions cost energy. So we get worn out.
Also, with this many people around, there's a loss of community. Before giant cities, we lived in town and villages. Communities were closely knit. And humans being social creatures, we feel the loss of this.
Another is the rise of technology. While it has improved our lives, it has also made us lazy, and spoiled. We take things for granted, and appreciate little. We look at many things as mundane, when they are actually pretty amazing. Essentially, we are progressing faster than our own humanity can adapt. So we are becoming more detached from ourselves.
Fuck knows. I'm just dealing with this shit as well.
>>17779967
No vacation = brain death
>>17779981
mexico also has free healthcare
nice country you got there america
>>17756232
>>17757900
>Latin American countries have such happy people
Yeah the sky high murder rates and gang violence of most of the continent must really bring everyone together. Ignorance is bliss.
>fear of foreigners
Because foreigners destroy those same communities you are raving about. And these appaerently starry eyed happy go lucky latin americans overwhelmingly the poor, violent, ghetto trash seeking the easiest welfare fueled exsitance. So please keep judging the shit out of Americans that dare put their countries people and interests first while refusing to trust leeches that attempt to subvert and destroy everything that we work for and believe in.
I'll treat anyone with almost anyone with respect on the first encounter, id evwn try to help you out if you ask but fuck you if you think I should treat you like my best friend because we said a couple sentences to each other
>>17779967
i get you 100%, guy. sorry you had a retard responding to you.
>>17781181
mexico is run by socipathic gangs of drug dealers and corrupt police/politicans who exploit and even outright murder their citizens on a regular basis. not to mention the widespread poverty and economic inequality that has driven thousands of mexicans to the US over the last few decades.
nice country you got. at least when a drug dealer kidnaps you and chops off your hand with a machete, you'll get your stump sewn up for free.
>>17781165
he's 100% right you memeshit faggot
>>17756613
This, really. So much this. Wise words .
>>17756388
That is very untrue. Source: Petsmart.
>>17756806
Lets hope hope we don't make Her.
>>17756943
>>17756613
>usually ends up leading to the most depressing stuff in life
can confirm. my fiancee and our daughter are dead.
>>17756613
..and I didn't see your trip until after I posted >>17783655 but if our child had ended up being a boy, we were going to name him Orion. so that's a bit weird I guess. anyway, the best of luck to you and your girl with the new kids.
>>17783542
No he's not you pathetic fuck.
>>17756232
It's a franchise of illusion. People are led to believe the medications they are prescribed for depression/anxiety/mood, etc, are there to help them;
in reality they are there to chain them. To force them to be reliant upon them so they can fill the pockets of the executives in the medicinal complex.
One of the most common side-effects of these drugs is depression and anxiety.
I can testify to this, having been prescribed them. You feel like you are chained to them, that you are reliant on them and there's no escaping it.
In turn this causes one to inevitably feel depressed when thinking about it.
Most of the medications don't go through enough thorough testing, only the surface of their effects become prevalent. Long-term effects are never considered.
One thing I must insist to someone in a similar position, NEVER agree to getting a needle for the medication. They can now last for months, and if you don't appear to
your next injection, shit will go down. IF you can convince your doctor to prescribe you pills, there's a slight chance that you can ween yourself off.
Eat healthy, exercise, be around people you love, reflect on your decisions and actions by meditating on them. Constantly try to improve your life for the better. Take up some form of hobby. This is the way to happiness. Don't be fooled into thinking otherwise.
>>17778879
>Molech
One of the many entities that I despise with a passion.
I know people who are this way, I'm rarely that way. maybe people who buy this bullshit, and it's about 99% bullshit.
>>17756232
You're prob just desperately trying to find something wrong with everyone outside of LA. You're just in culture shock because you can't comprehend how people could possibly think differently outside of that liberal hugbox of California.
>>17785137
>outside of that liberal hugbox of California.
What does California has to do with the thread? OP meant Latin America. Cultural shock might still be the case i suppose.
>>17785153
Ah read it wrong. Im a big asshole. Yet still true though.
Saying that, coming from a seperate country it could be culture shock. But it could also be how we're raised. I know LA countries put more on emphasis of family because most people don't have much. But coming to the US where everyone is materialistic as shit, it could seem we're miserable. Hell, that could be true.
This is how it is in most places, people are stressed because they want to build a perfect house and have all the toys. It's a social competition
>>17785298
My brother in law is like this. I guess he's my brother in law. He's my wife's sister's husband. We both started dating them at roughly the same time. They married 7-8 months before we did.
Anyways, from the start the dude tried to flex nuts on me. Tried outspending me on gifts, tried making himself seem more important than he was, etc.
Flash forward 3 years. He can't even buy a house, we've been in ours for a year. Turns out the engagement ring he bragged about buying was paid for by his relative. Apparently it cost something like $5-6k. I never bothered telling him the ring I bought my wife was far more.
But yeah, I don't get his deal. He tried so hard at the start to try to one up me. Now he's kind of quiet about it. Living paycheck to paycheck. People should just worry about themselves instead of the Joneses.
