The Pleasure Trap Can Make Us Apathetic
A central component to the topic of mind control is the pleasure principle. When we are still automatically and heavily conditioned by this unconscious and subconscious drive and motivation in life, we can come to think (uncritically, unthinkingly really) that the entire purpose for our being -- for our life -- is to have as much fun as we can, as much as is humanly possible while we are alive, and ignoring most (if not all) the suffering that is taking place in the world around us while we are doing that.
When you get down it, this is a pretty bad place to be in. Seeking pleasure, enjoyment and gratification of our senses is not a high goal to have in life. It's a default drive and motivation that doesn't require much thought or personal development. It comes from lower consciousness automated living, not higher consciousness self-examined analysis of what life is about.
Being focused mainly on pleasure, enjoyment and having fun, is like someone who watches a crime being committed in front of them and does absolutely nothing. This is worse than the bystander effect of not getting involved when someone needs help. Maybe you have seen that in your own life?
Those who lived in the 90s might remember the last episode of the show Seinfeld. The punchline was about the 4 main characters who were so unconcerned with others, who only thought about themselves, and ignored the rime being done right in front of them. An overweight person was being robbed, and they just laughed at him.
Worst yet, they even filmed him with a camera. This was before there were cellphones and cameras everywhere. As the episode went on, they were charged with a bystander crime. They were arrested on a duty to rescue violation, where one "party can be held liable for failing to come to the rescue of another party in peril." They went to prison in the end. That was the end of the Seinfeld series.
This show demonstrates an allegory about the pleasure trap and being self-concerned. They were having a laugh, having fun at someone else being robbed, and did nothing. Is this where our species is at? We should take a lesson from this episode and stop to think. Not being compassionate about the suffering of others is a psychopathic modality of living that seems to be pervading much of the history of humanity.
Look at society and see how much time, energy and attention people spend on just having fun and enjoying themselves. Meanwhile they continue to support or participate in perpetuating acts of suffering. This ranges from the wars that we all fund through government, as well the exploitation, enslavement, suffering, harm and violence being done to billions of non-human animals each year when we don't need to for our survival.
The pleasure trap has a hold on the consciousness of most people, while they ignore and deny the suffering in the world around them. Apathy has a hold on us, where we don't care about what is going on around us in the world, as long as we are happy or content in our little bubbles of reality and having fun, enjoying life, etc. We don't want to see. We don't want to know. We don't care because our personal lives are fine, what does it matter how our way of life is affecting others...
Thank you for your time and attention. Peace.
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There should be balance between seeking pleasure and gratification for one's ownself and being concerned for the betterment of others. Purely altruistic behavior or completely selfishness and thinking about oneself should not be the goal in this life. In the former case, people will exploit you, and in the latter case, you will exploit them.
Yeah I don't think pure altruism can happen, self is always present ;)
That episode of Seinfeld stuck with me for a long time - and not in a good way. It really was the capstone on a series that celebrated apathy, indifference, and casual cruelty. I wrote a post about this shift in our culture about a year ago, when I realized how media had gone from celebrating togetherness, relationships, and family values to the sort of bleak violence that seems to be the default today. At the beginning of the shift we had Friends, which had some positive emotion in it, and ended with a wedding, and at the end we had Seinfeld, which, as you pointed out, ended with a prison sentence.
Today, if you want to experience anything like family you have to play a violent video game like The Last of Us, which celebrates the last vestiges of trust and togetherness in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, or the new God of War, which looks to be a button-mashing slaughter-fest but at least explores the relationship between father and his son, who are going through this rampage to honor the last wishes of a late wife/mother.
But hoo-boy, my hat's off to anyone who's trying to raise a close and loving family these days. It's can't be easy with this media landscape.
Yeah, destruction of the family unit is popular int he post-modern, subjectivist, relativistic, solipsistic world we are conditioned into now...
The highest good you can do in this life is synonymous with seeking the highest joy.
Unfortunately, this true statement is easily corrupted into "seeking pleasure". We are so trapped by our world of slavery, that we look for any escape. The sins of the flesh are proffered on all media. The control is in.
But, to seriously seek out joy, one must find what it is that brings them joy. Must search inside and know themselves. They must uproot all blockages and programmings that do not allow them to fulfil their joy.
Joy does not come from doing any harm, in fact, it becomes far greater when you can be in sync with other people who are creating joy.
Interesting. What is joy itself?
I would best describe it as long lasting happiness.
But it includes feelings like being at peace with the world. Being open for new experiences.
Finding joy in everything you do. (of course i used the word to define the word)
It's a self centered world.People are just thinking about himself.While people in some part of the world dying in starvation at the same time some one it buying a yatch for billion dollar's.That amount of money could save thousands of people from dying.A lots of people is wasting a lot's of money for their pet and some where thousands of children have no food,education,shelter.But after doing all this is the person happy with his life,don't even think of that.Still there is unhappiness.If you want happiness help others,bring smile to others face i can guaranty that.That will be real happiness.
Yeah, and art... millions of dollars on art... for what... way better uses to spend your vast money on...
Did you ever know the name of that "fat guy"?
He was actually a pretty awesome comedian. Unfortunately, he passed away at a fairly young age. John Pinette. I saw him on a cruise in the late 90s or early 2000s. He was hysterical.
Another fun note: he was in a movie with Dennis Rodman: Simon Sez! And he was in the movie: The Punisher (2004).. such a great guy.
Anyway.. Seinfeld was brilliant. It only really fits the pre-9/11 mentality tho. Now it's all about "If you see something, say something" .. before, NYC was all about just keeping on moving and minding your own business.. it's still about keeping on moving, but at least now people are a little more aware... When they're not staring at their phones!
Hello :)
Need to work out on been less a-pathetic, focus on what is important, my username is to remember this but i tend to forgot he he
there is lots to do to help and be help :)
Thank you for the post, need to check you are on my witness list :)
keep it up, happy steemings :D
Yes, sublimate and transmutate one thing into another ;) You're welcome thanks for the support.
That's right- there's no more fence sitting- either you oppose and push for the arrest of the deepstate Luciferian pedophiles or you are complicit in their crimes against children and humanity via your willful ignorance.
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