Is it getting better or do you feel the same?
Does it make it easier on you now that you have got someone to blame?
You say one love, one life, it's one need in the night,
it's one love get to share in, it leaves you darling if you don't care for it......
Bono & and the Amazing Mary J. Blige

I'll thinking of stopping attempting to force sleep, and just getting up, cleaning the house, doing some yoga, and then having a hot bath.

Hot baths often make me really relaxed.

Good song, by the by. — Wosret

Sounds like a lovely way to end conclude a weekend~

I haven't slept for days... I even took sleeping medication, which generally works. — Wosret

Have you tried a cup of caffeinated coffee to get to sleep? It sometimes works when sleeping meds are not working.

Have a little faith in me
Mr. John Hiatt
Just give these loving arms a try baby and have a little faith in me....

@krishnamurti Welcome to The Philosophy Forum!

Tim Wood suggested a 40% rate. If I remember correctly, 30% to 40% of gross income is what I paid for all taxes when I was working, rolling up all taxes together, so 40% isn't bad as an upward starting figure. — Bitter Crank

Exactly what we are paying today. If they take away itemizations we will be screwed.

I've had in mind the suspension of all taxes or tax-like revenue sources, replaced by a single national sales tax. The sales tax could be tweaked very year or two or as necessary, and could reasonably have lots of qualifications, limits, and exemptions. . — tim wood

If we nominate you, will you run? If you win, will you serve?
<begging

It has been a long time since I have heard this question which is a very good question but each person forms their own answer. Whether you choose a path that leads in the humanitarian direction or the other which might be starting your own business, the path remains the same but it is you who chooses at the forks in the road. Robert Frost was famous for his writing of
The Road Less Traveled

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Your journey is yours alone but there are folks you will meet along the way that will help guide you as you explore you inner self. Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living. Maybe you are just looking around to see what might fit as an answer to your question but ultimately, it is the same amount of time whether you approach life in a positive way as opposed to a negative way. Just remember that none of us really know what is really going on, it is all about perceptions and with a little flexibility, you might find yourself moving in an unexpected direction on a prior position or conclusion that you had already identified.

Any news? Dang it! I just read your update in the shoutbox
{{{{{PostyMcPostface}}}} <<<< online hugg

Hello. My name is Banno, and I am a recovering philosopher... — Banno

That is the second time in two days that I have heard the term "recovering philosopher". Very interesting.

You are correct in that it would be good to be able to delete a post. Like you I just make a dot or ask for deletion but either way the moderators are usually on it fairly quick.

Since you believe your friend's observation that you have a loose grip on reality, there might be a reason that you do.
MDMA is not psychotropic in the way LSD or heroin is, however, but simply increases your empathy. I do not consider an increase in reality as a challenge to a conception of reality, but a emotional response to people around you. — charleton

To be genuine with you, I am by nature, a very empathetic person and maybe that is what is a factor in why I shouldn't participate.

I'm not going to recommend it to you if you think that about yourself, nonetheless, as I don't know you personally. — charleton

If I think that about myself....if I think that about myself.... hmmmm I am digesting what you have reflected back to me and I will have to think about it. If that is really what I think about myself in this regard.

But I still think the drug is relatively harmless against, say, valium, oxycodeine, or many other prescription drugs. The only other question is, since not regulated, would you actually be taking the real stuff, being cooked up by persons unknown? — charleton

Quality control will take over once under the umbrella of the FDA. Until then, I am fairly convinced with the test kits to test the purity of the MDMA found in the recreational arena.

What drugs do you take, and how do they affect you? — charleton

The list is long and the affects are many so I shall stick to my experience of illicit drugs tried and some that you mention for now.

First introduction of an Opiate was when I was 15 and had my tonsils removed. Mom administered, Mom controlled but check the box for first experience.
Second induction of an Opiate was at the Dentist following a root canal when I was prescribed 30 Percocet. The affect was a warm cottony feeling cushioning my brain and relieving all pain.

Second drug tried was Methamphetamine, never paid for it because of my friends, friends who were 20 years my senior. I loved Meth! I loved the sense of invincibility, I loved that I never had to eat or sleep, I loved it so much that I stayed awake for about a year straight. Then as it always does, shit came crashing down and I was left with a choice. Get myself off Meth (a gram a day just to function) by myself or lose the remaining family that loved me. Which also meant giving up ALL of my "friends" in order to get myself off the Meth because they were go fast friends and I was trying to re-enter my life I had carelessly left behind. I weaned myself down to a grain of rice a day before I stopped completely. It took me 5 days of living hell before I could even muster up an hour of awake time without any Meth.

Back to more days of Opiates when I would get stressed, my mouth would throb in one tooth or another so back to the dentist for some more Percocet's.
Followed by a severe gel candle fire that caused 2 and 3rd degree burns to my left hand which had to be debrided twice a day for 30 days. I had to numb up with 2 Percocet's with each debridement in order to tolerate the pain.

Finally I broke my back in a high speed, high impact horseback riding accident. I was at the hospital for 4 days with Morphine controlling my pain as surgery was not an option and it was just going to take time to heal, 6 months to heal. In order to go home I had to get off the Morphine which was easy as they converted me over to OxyContin. For the next 2.5 years I was addicted to OxyContin and the next 2.5 years was spent seeing an Addiction/Pain Management Specialist who saved my life by prescribing Suboxone which at that time, he was allowed to have 30 patients total on Suboxone at one time under his care. From my last microdose of Suboxone to the day of my first Dopamine Dump was 45 days. Fourty five days of functioning at 10% of regular life, laying in bed motionless to keep the pain under control. Once I made it though to the other side of Opiate addiction, I swore on my life not to ever be there again. Slaying the Opiate dragon is not an easy thing to do and so now I just say I am allergic to Opiates and all it's cousins. I have instructed those close to me, to not leave my side and check all medications in the event of an accident that leaves me unable to state my decision to not have any Opiates introduced.

Which leaves me with one form of pain control and that is Medical Cannabis. I have had to use it for oral surgery recovery and RSO is what works for me. I dread the day that I am at the mercy of the medical community respecting my choice to not use Opiates.

How about yourself?

Don't make no difference where you live in the world, you will always be just around the corner on the internet. — Sir2u

And that my friend is a beautiful and true thought~

Best of luck with the sale. — Sir2u

Thank you Sir~

@Uneducated Pleb @Jake Tarragon @BlueBanana @ProbablyTrue
Welcome to The Philosophy Forum!

No I have first hand experience, and testimonies from dozens of people of my acquaintance. Drop a tab and you will know immediately. This is a complete no brainer. — charleton

I had an inkling that you had first hand experience but I did not want to cite you doing something that maybe you, yourself had not. As far as "testimonies" from people of your acquaintance? I do not doubt what you say or what people you have talked to have reported. I have an appreciation for what people say, especially if they are being truthful, which I believe you are being.

Having said that, I find myself in an unfamiliar position because my reply to you was agreeing with what you had said and I was offering the citation for the assertions you were making, strengthening the idea that MDMA should be legalized and noting the fact that it is in the final stage of study, before being approved by the FDA, for prescribing to patients for the qualifying conditions.

But your blanket response that
"Drop a tab and you will know immediately. This is a complete no brainer" scares the living life out of me. And I am fully aware as to what the effects of MDMA can possibly have in the short term and what might be the possible long term effects, both from literary research as well as a mental library, overflowing with "testimonies" of "acquaintances.

Here is the difference and please make note of it: You have ingested MDMA and I have not. Before you are tempted to classify what I am saying as an: irrelevant conclusion, let me explain what scares me.

I have been told by what I consider the best of friends that I should never do MDMA or acid and when I asked why, my question was dismissed by saying they needed a sober person there in the event of an event. So I bought that logic in my early 20's since I was unable to drink as well, I had become accustomed to being the designated driver.

After giving birth to my second child, my Doctor said that I should probably stop at two children, as both pregnancies threw me into such a depression, he didn't want me to risk the drain that another pregnancy would put on my mental well being. I took his words as rule and stopped at two children.

Fast forward to about five years ago when MDMA surfaced as a topic again within my group of friends and I said what others had said some 20 years ago and it resonated with them, to the point that they said that maybe I shouldn't do it now. I asked why and my best guy friend said in the most genuine way possible that "Tiff you have a loose enough grip on reality that it is probably best to skip this drug." I was shocked not by what he had the courage to say but what others had been unwilling to say over my life. That my mental well being is fragile enough, that is what my Doctor was saying, that is what my friends were saying and now I have accepted that as fact, even though I am still tempted to try it.

And I have said all of that because the idea that anyone should ever suggest that "Drop a tab and you will know immediately. This is a complete no brainer" scares the living life out of me. Had I run into you on a forum and took your advice and went with the "complete no brainer" my guess is that I would not have had the same experience as you, with the possible, likely probable, negative experience in the short term and likely in the long term.

MDMA Xtasy really does that. After a course of E's I found myself more understanding of others emotional position months and years after I stopped taking it. — charleton

When you say that "MDMA really does that", you have plenty of back up to your assertion for MDMA is in it's final trial stage of controlled studies, on it's path to being made available by prescription by 2021.

Thank you for the invitation, but it might have to be next year. Looks fantastic. — Sir2u

You are quite welcome! I wish I could pull up a chair to the table in the picture but that is just an inspiration to my figuring out how to host 20+ here at the ranch. Enough In laws that we might need name tags, true story.
To share with you, this will likely be the Last Thanksgiving at the Ranch as we are getting it ready for sale in the Spring so we can move North in Arizona. We are attempting to reinvest the money from the sale of the ranch, into a place where we can have at least one rental unit and room for more expansion. The move will save us 10k a year for the next three years as our youngest is in college and we are looking to move to his town. Freshman year they are required to live on campus but after that, they can live off and hence our home.
So Cheers to you and your Mrs. and Thank you for being here thru the decades. 8-)

Something I have noticed about these mass shootings — WISDOMfromPO-MO

I was surprised as to what the definition of "mass shootings" is and wonder how often the definition is used accurately in firearm statistics.

No worries. 8-)
Now about who you are...

@Agustino
How about an introduction of who you are on this thread and leave the other 'stuff' for the shoutbox as there 'thwaps' are allowed. Here is where we are letting others know a bit about us.
Let me know if there is any confusion I can clear up for you.
Tiff

We had a couple of friends from the US that lived near by that used to invite us over to eat but they left the area. — Sir2u

Well you and the Mrs. are most welcome at our Thanksgiving table.

@Buxtebuddha
I am a Spiritual Warrior. Honesty is important to me, almost to a fault. I try really hard to never give my word if I cannot uphold it. I am a protector of animals and their environment both domestic and wild and have been known to be a Momma Bear with her cubs. My faith lays within the idea of Karma, in that I need not even scores, for Karma will take care of it for me. I think of life having a Karmic Banking account and the more positive deposits I can make and the less negative with drawls I can make the better.

I'm sorry, but this is silly. No one stating that "Donald Trump is threatening Democracy" is equating American Democracy with the Democracy of Ancient Greece. It is simply a shorthand way of stating that Donald Trump's presidency is tarnishing political institutions, and other institutions that are important within modern day democracies, e.g. media, which is true. It does not inherently imply that America is a literal Democracy any more than saying it is sunrise implies that the sun is literally rising and circling the Earth. — Maw

Well stated Maw.

@Sir2u What are your plans for Thanksgiving?

But would you believe them? — Banno

Yes, very possibly.

SO astrology is not bullshit - there are those who genuinely believe that it does work. — Banno

I am willing to read, listen and entertain astrology and those that believe in it.

In its ancient form, I believe that astrology was used to predict the changing seasons and these predictions were quite useful to farmers. It may not be the first form of calendar used by human beings, as the moon calendar or a day calendar may be even earlier. But in this sense, as a calendar, I believe astrology could work. The moon calendar gets out of sync because there are not 12 even moons in a year, and the day calendar gets out of sync because there is not an even 365 days in a year. Apparently the astrological calendar gets out of sync as well, but that takes thousands of years. — Metaphysician Undercover

I have wondered about the validity of Astrology when it comes to the birth of a child because even though current, modern thought is that a woman is pregnant 9 months, she is really pregnant 10 months, 10 lunar months. A lunar month being the four weeks (28 days, same as a procreation cycle of a woman) it takes for the moon to go from a new moon, to a full moon and back again, would make a pregnancy last for ten months.

@Banno Pisces here.

How could Astrology work? — Banno

Work in what sense?
Do you mean in allowing what we read about our sign to influence our behavior or our feelings about ourselves?
Do you mean working in the sense of how we might utilize the astrological knowledge we have of another person in the form of communication or 'packaging' how others will best receive what we are trying to convey?

@Hanover

I have to believe that Mr. Embry and Mr. Riddle along with the Wright brothers studied the mechanics of birds in order to figure out how to fly, right? — ArguingWAristotleTiff

I get a kick out of watching black and white films like this, watching humans try to simulate those things around us that we are "not" and try to make it so humans "can". It is almost like have always lacked being content with who we are and must try to be something we are not.

The States. :P — Lone Wolf

Well hello my fellow American! Happy Veterans Day!

As much as I hate blanket rules that restrict all degrees of a particular behavior, it would be a nightmare for HR departments to decide where the line is when it comes sexual joking/sexual harassment. — ProbablyTrue

Our best friend was a manager of a Medical Nuclear lab that draws and delivers doses of Nuclear medicine for prescribed medical testing on people.

The lab was mostly male with a few females and the jokes were often sexual in nature but never assigned to one person, females and males were fair game.

One morning a female employee called our best friend, the manager to let him know that she would be late coming in to work because one of her cats had been favoring a leg or hip but it had gotten worse though the night. Her manager said he absolutely understood and went to work. When the female employee arrived at work, the staff was curious as to how her cat was doing. And I am sure that many of them were genuine but it only takes one smart ass to make a sexist remark for the arena of remarks to open. She explained that the cat had broken it's leg, showed the x-ray and explained that the cat was at the vet till the end of the day having the leg casted. A guy who had arrived half way through her explanation as to what happened, asked her in front of the rest of the staff if the xray was of her broken pussy and she blushed and backed out gracefully and the next day filed a report with the Corporate office back east, going over his manger, of sexual harassment by a fellow employee and the manager who did nothing to intervene.

Lawsuit, court, Corporate lawyers, our best friend at the helm and shit went down. The employee was fired and the manger was put on two year probation, with no raises or advancement in the company and he could take it or leave it but they were done.

You never know what others are bringing to the experience they have at work and it is a place that has to be safe sexually, including but not limited to sexual banter. It can sour in a heart beat and no banter is worth ending your career over.

Like, I'm sorry cracking down on sexual harassment will deprive you of a bit of fun, but the actual harassment of workers on the job is more important than your occasional banter. — darthbarracuda

(Y)

Well, he was there and he did it and he says he did have power over them and what he did was wrong. I presume he knows more about the situation than you do. I don't consider it a sexual assault either by the way but he put them in one hell of a shitty position, and in the end humiliated them. And if he did that to a woman I cared about, I'd want to break his fucking neck. Of course, being the law abiding citizen I am I would do no such thing. O:) — Baden

Thank you for expressing how it would actually effect you and your way of handling what others might consider to be in bad taste but not sexual assault when it involved a WOMAN YOU CARED ABOUT. Yet your instinct to break his neck is tempered by the law, which means that the law should be the one to address it, no?

Not as of right now, just aiming for a Private Pilot. Maybe an instrument rating in the future, but not sure yet. :P — Lone Wolf

Keep on pushing yourself and you are going to rock that Private license. Where in the world are you located?

It still does not change my initial remarks against the practicality of using drug-tests, but please don't get me wrong, I support the use of them. This was arranged at the music festival and I remember watching that program for which the article is written and many figures on the show were against the use of them. For instance, our Ice epidemic is mostly in rural country settings, amongst friends in backyard parties and not at festivals and access to these kits are not readily available. It also provides a false security and that the purity of any drug does not suddenly change the danger factor, as said in the end of the article: — TimeLine

The problem with considering 'all illegal drugs dangerous' and have no 'benefit to society' is that does not address each drug, the reason it is being used or abused and the long term affects on the human body. In order to speak of addiction or drugs having a detrimental affect or a beneficial affect, it is necessary to break the drugs down into specific categories. The physical addiction to a drug called Ice (here in the states it is a pure form of Methamphetamine) is worlds away from the possible habitual addiction to marijuana or the use of MDMA. I strongly disagree with the idea that knowing the purity of a drug before taken doesn't change the danger factor as it isn't my experience with Methamphetamine, nor what I have observed in young adults using MDMA.

This is the problem and another diversion used to fuel your argument. The government will never endorse the kits despite what Palmer stated. And perhaps you should read between the lines, rather than speak about these isolated groups at music festivals — TimeLine

These are hardly isolated groups at music festivals and to think that our youth does not research a drug before taking it is the absolute opposite of what our youth is doing. Our youth not only use computers to research the chemical makeup, short term affect and long term affects, they have their own version of Terros who sends out alerts about bad 'batches' of various drugs on the street so those choosing to use, do so informed. This new generation has sites like DanceSafe that cover the risks of drugs and how to stay safe and are not promoting the use of drugs but rather embracing the reality and wanting those who want to engage in risky behavior, to do so with an educated approach.

"Drug use shows no sign of slowing down at festivals, along with its the deceptive marketing and sale to attendees. It's pretty clear as forms of oblivious consumption remain a plague... "I've seen so many terrible things happen to people at events; people die, people run their bodies and minds, and have years of lasting effects from using these substances... [festival-goers] just aren't aware what's going on most of the time." — TimeLine

The above quote can be applied to just about any drug, from long before Woodstock to today, alcohol to MDMA. The cliché of "Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll" is a cliché for a reason and that reason has a rich history, so to believe that there will be any separation of the two on the horizon is hopeful but not likely.

Haha, yeah, yesterday was the first time I actually panicked in the air. I'm not sure who was more surprised at my reaction, me or my instructor. lol. One way or another, I'm not going to allow myself to respond in that way again!! :-O But hey, after that, I almost perfected the cross-wind landing technique. 8-) — Lone Wolf

Ta da!!!!! Well done, well done! (Y)

Hmm, I don't think Missy or Mutty would much appreciate my flying capability yet. :P Well, actually, I have been up several times alone, but just around the airport and local areas. Haven't got to a longer trip yet, but that's coming up soon. — Lone Wolf

I guess the pups couldn't stick their heads out the windows like in the car so maybe they should stay on the ground, for now. ;)

Haha, no I didn't know that. :P At least he's not a crop duster. :-O Some of them are wicked wild, AND DON'T USE THEIR RADIOS!!! >:o Very annoying, lol.
Do you fly too? — Lone Wolf

Those crop dusters are annoying for the way they fly AND the pesticides they use!

No, I don't fly but my youngest son is a Freshman at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University studying Simulation Science and he doesn't fly either but we have planes in a LOT of aspects of our lives and my youngest has a HUGE interest in the study of birds. I have tried to get him to see the correlation in his interests and he just wont give on it yet. I have to believe that Mr. Embry and Mr. Riddle along with the Wright brothers studied the mechanics of birds in order to figure out how to fly, right?
Are you going for a commercial license?

Yaaaaaaaaaay!! You survived yesterday and I am sure you learned a lot while you lost control for a bit but you knew enough to have someone with you to give you a hand up when you spin out. It happens as we learn and if it didn't happen yesterday with your instructor with you, the day would have ended a lot differently. So take stock in yourself, for when we lose control AND gain it back, EVEN with help, we earn an internal merit badge as we have faced a fear that we probably knew we had but would never have faced without that fluke of circumstances.

Where are you going to fly on your first solo trip and are you taking Mutty or Missy with you? 8-)

Are you aware of my absolute crush on Tom Cruise as a result of Top Gun? OMGGGGGG!

How does your word matter to me without any practicality in what you say? In the real world, a drug-test kit is not practical, not for the millions of young people who access drugs from sources like friends or acquaintances. If you have some facts, why is it difficult for you to just show me? — TimeLine

The idea that "In the real world, a drug test kit is not practical" is promoting a falsehood.

Drug test kits for party going kids trying MDMA are supported by the Australian Federal Police "Drug testing isn’t perfect. Not only will some people take what they have anyway, some might be allergic to a substance in the drug and not know it. But senior figures including former Australian Federal Police commissioner Mick Palmer say they would support pill testing to reduce the danger for young people who choose to take ecstasy. “I have no problem with it at all, I think it makes absolute sense to try to test the quality of the drugs that people are taking,” Mr Palmer said.
Most experts agree the government’s “war on drugs” isn’t working."

The Bunk Police might be surprising to you since their sole intention is to make sure party goers know what they are taking before taking it with portable test kits and they are WIDELY distributed for FREE to party goers. Are they promoting the use of MDMA? Or are they facing the reality that people will do MDMA (which does have therapeutic uses) and is with most "stigma" drugs, on schedule to be medically legalized by the FDA by 2021.

Good luck!

I think it would be better to ask if we need a reason to be unhappy. Aristotle's Challenge on Anger taught us what would be a great discipline to follow when he says: to become angry is easy- but to be angry at the right person, at the right time, to the right degree for the right reason, that is not so easy.

So do you have a reason to be unhappy? And if you do have a reason, ask yourself what Aristotle asked and if you can say yes to all the aspects he suggests satisfying, in order to justly claim to be unhappy, then all the more power to you. But to be unhappy without reason is unfair to yourself so be satisfied and take happy wherever you can find it. (Y)

Co-Dependent No More
for the fourth time? Fifth time? Aww never mind, I should have it memorized by now.