Twega

I’ve done things which I am not proud of. I’ve cheated in relationships, i’ve lied to and manipulated women. I hate the feeling I get after I do these things. I can’t understand how one part of my brain recognizes the evil that I am doing but another reptilian part of my pain ultimately drives my behavior. It seems to have the upper hand. So many things I did wrong. But I also feel that what happened is a gift. I have delved so deep into the evil ways of the mind. I have lied to myself and others, broken hearts and selfishly perused my desires without consideration of future consequences. That is the gift: knowing you are evil. “By recognizing you are evil, you become good. By thinking you are good, you become evil.” Leo’s quote really got me thinking. I’ve improved a lot, and i’m much more honest than I was in the past. But I really want to resolve this issue once and for all. How do I develop and strengthen my integrity? What practices can I do internalize the pain from these experiences and force my brain to avoid them at all cost if not only for the pain they cause me and of course others? I need help ya’ll, thanks

I made a mistake and im not sure how to remove this post from the politics/society sub-topic. Moderators please remove this from here but keep mine in the personal development sub-topic

I’ve done things which I am not proud of. I’ve cheated in relationships, i’ve lied to and manipulated women. I hate the feeling I get after I do these things. I can’t understand how one part of my brain recognizes the evil that I am doing but another reptilian part of my pain ultimately drives my behavior. It seems to have the upper hand. So many things I did wrong. But I also feel that what happened is a gift. I have delved so deep into the evil ways of the mind. I have lied to myself and others, broken hearts and selfishly perused my desires without consideration of future consequences. That is the gift: knowing you are evil. “By recognizing you are evil, you become good. By thinking you are good, you become evil.” Leo’s quote really got me thinking. I’ve improved a lot, and i’m much more honest than I was in the past. But I really want to resolve this issue once and for all. How do I develop and strengthen my integrity? What practices can I do internalize the pain from these experiences and force my brain to avoid them at all cost if not only for the pain they cause me and of course others? I need help ya’ll, thanks

Leo has mentioned previously the allure of becoming a debunker. Something you see a lot on YouTube. I believe we all understand the dangers and limitations posed by becoming attached to being this personality; The debunker, the watchdog; the bullshit caller, the one who lays it out like it is and calls out those evil or stupid shit-talkers. However, I believe that as a society, we definitely need such a personality to permeate the noosphere. The Debunker serves a vital role, but it has been corrupted. Let's take a few real-life examples: Coffeezilla I believe what coffeezilla is doing, overall, is actually good. He serves a vital role, which anyone who watches him can recognize. But he still makes errors. A classic example of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, which he and his community fall into is by literally demonizing anyone who sells a course, without further analysis of value to price ratio. Just outright rejection and condemnation. Recently, he made a video on a company supposedly selling nitrous oxide for the purposes of using it in whipping cream but is clearly a cover for actually selling it to get high. The analysis is 100% true, but I found it weird when said something like "they're selling something that will kill your brain cells". Would he say the same for alcohol companies? I don't think so. His video presented no nuance or solution, just condemnation and a call for stopping this company. Professor Dave A lot has been said about professor dave. So I won't dig too deep. I know this community hates Prof Dave. I don't agree with his video on Leo at all. But his videos on creationist and the like is spot on. When compared to other debunker, I feel like professor dave offfers the most technical critiques. Leo posted a video on abiogenesis by james clear, and prof dave offered a sound critique. This community is quick to dissmiss prof dave (maybe rightly so), but is quick to accept james tour who is more deluded, technically incorrect, and biased more than prof dave. Prof dave, just like most debunkers has a lot problems, but I consider him still valuable. D'Angelo Wallace Perhaps the most useless of all the debunkers mentioned so far. His debunking (if we can even call it that) is vapid as fuck. It is really just drama content. Moral grandstanding, unnuanced, biased, and useless. I believe we need more Reformed Debunkers, not to do away with them entirely. So here's a fun thing we can contemplate: What makes for a good vs bad debunker?

Don't you think your content also offers criticisms (not on others, but on mental models, beliefs, behaviors, etc)? We need to make distinctions between types of criticism.

I agree. None of us disagree on scammy courses. But he dismisses anyone selling courses as a scam or, at the very best, as useless. For example, Spencer Cornelia, who himself is a debunker/exposer of scams and somewhat of a colleague of Coffeezilla, made a course on something related to real estate, and Coffeezilla and his community dismissed Spencer. He did not assess the fees or the value of the content. Coffeezilla is also the type of person who only thinks experts (academics or professionals) should speak on topics like health or psychology. He would call your heavy metal detox video as dangerous. I could go on. If Coffeezilla saw some of your videos, he would say you aren't a therapist and, therefore, shouldn't advise people on how to deal with their problems. You are precisely describing what I'm saying; he is correct often but also throws the baby out with the bathwater.

@Leo Gura so did you change your mind? Because in the past you made it clear the university isn't necessary to learn philosophy. What about this video? I understand the STEM argument, but this is a surprise for me coming from you. I even asked you a question about learning philosophy and if university is neccessary

A question for @Leo Gura, and others: If one seeks to become a philosopher and to meaningfully contribute to the field, must one study (from a historical perspective) the different philosophies across the ages? A quote from a book I'm reading: "Hegel demonstrated in very strong terms that studying the history of philosophy is a prerequisite for anyone who would make an original contribution to the discipline" Is Leo underestimating the benefit of studying Western philosophy? It reminds me of Tim Ferris's talks about living an un-optimized life now and how that has benefited him. But in my view, he is only able to reach that point after becoming and trancending being optimized. Is the same thing happening with Leo and "moving beyond" classical/western philosophy?

@Leo Gura,I'm not talking about being an academic philosopher. I'm saying if you seek to become a philosopher (as your LP), not necessarily an academic, how essential is it to study the philosophies of old? Is Hegel's view correct?

If you know that your life purpose is to be a communicator, you know that your gift is doing deep research/learning and communicating/articulating. Your value is sharing knowledge/insight. Then, the most lucrative place (in terms of reaching the most people and monetizing) is YouTube. I'm a seasoned hardcore YouTube user, but I don't understand the reality of making a living off YouTube, except for the obvious stuff like how monetization works, YouTube's partner program, etc. I recently bought a book titled: 'The Youtube Formula: How Anyone Can Unlock the Algorithm to Drive Views, Build an Audience, and Grow Revenue' by Derral Eves. Although the book is useful in explaining how the algorithm works, its history, etc. I found it so cliche; the author is a friend and business partner of MrBeast, and he simps on and on about him like he is someone worth emulating. If anything, it just disappointed me that I must reach MrBeast's brain-dead level of attention-seeking content to make it (I don't believe that). I also have no video editing skills or know how to record a video. I am at the newbie stage. I have good speaking skills and I already have a lot of topics I've researched and am ready to share my insight on. I know this process of making it on youtube will take literally years.. But I was hoping if anyone could share their thoughts, tips and tricks with me to help this process be smoother.

Why is philosophy so important? First lets discuss common misconceptions. Philosophy, like education has transformed into a bastardized version of what it truly is. When I was young, I was reading many books on philosophy, Bertrand Russell mostly, and others. While they were enjoyable and edifying, it was so far from the style of philosophy that I saw as important. When I first discovered actualized.org, I realized what I had been searching for. The seeker finally arrives to the place he was seeking. It felt like I stumbled on a gold mine that I always knew existed. I may have stumbled upon it, but I was no stranger to this land. The simple topics, such as "what is perception" "the counter-intuitive nature of life" "65 core principles to live the good life" is what constitutes as the core of philosophy for me. Current and modern philosophers alike, while their work was still impressive and interesting, they fell into the classic trap of not seeing the forest for the trees. Their work is dense, complicated, rambling, and in the end, leaves one with a feeling of being purely inside one's head. In other words, mental masturbation. After ejaculation, you kinda feel like "that was nice I guess". A funny story I read in a book was that a philosopher was looking into the sky and thinking deeply while walking, and someone tripped him to teach him the lesson not to let thinking distract him for being. Alain de Button, although he has problems, was the first to introduce to Michele de Montaigne, who unlike many other philosophers spoke of the relevant problems of what it means to be human. This is what I was looking for. The conception of what is a philosopher in our culture is the bearded old man, endlessly pontificating on questions which are irrelevant to the "real world". While some of this judgment is misplaced, I can totally understand why. It is somewhat true. Philosophy is not only relevant to the real world, I just don't see any other way you can even understand what the real world is without it. Let alone what isn't or is relevant to it. Philosophy is the antidote to so many of what ails us as a culture. To the most relevant problems of today. Such as not falling for misinformation, of understanding oneself, of living the good life, of what to value, how to find your life purpose, etc. Is it the only thing you need? Of course not. But it is a great foundation to have. In my own life, when I started thinking like a philosopher by questioning things like my religion and trying to understand what truth is, a radical transformation in my psychology ensued. Philosophy changed my psychology more than reading about psychology did. Powerful stuff. I got so many things wrong at first, but that only added to my understanding of what truth IS NOT, hence what truth IS. Not just theoretical understanding, but also experiential understanding of how I thought this was true when it was not. Like I said, it's not the only tool. Philosophy, psychology, self-help and spirituality synergize greatly. Add on top of that understanding health/nutrition, business, and sprinkle some basic understanding of general science, politics, history, etc. You have a potent formula for success. Your mind becomes multi-dimensional, you can feel how different your thought process is now compared to before you embarked on this journey. Night and day. Now it is not simply "philosophy", it is literally how your mind work. Its modus operandi. Philosophy isn't a subject matter but a way of being, thinking, and living.

I love Leo, and I will credit him as one of the most influential people in my life. He is the best teacher I ever encountered. I owe my success to him. But I don't care about meeting him. I have my own life, and he has his. I respect him as a great thinker, and I think it's better to have distance with people you professionally look up to.

Thanks!

What are you interested in learning about? Are you only interested in data science/programming? Do you have other interests like economics, writing, philosophy, spirituality, neuroscience, etc? If you're going to study CS / Data Sci in uni, If I were you I would focus my time on other areas of interest because I know university will not teach me those. But, if you don't other interests then yes I think this is a good plan. Good on you for using your time wisely. When I was your age I wasted this time just fucking around.

@enchanted I agree, MrBeast's business model works. It is undeniable. He is the biggest YT channel. But it is so unattractive and antithetical to what I want. Maybe I can learn from him a few things, but to actually live my LP, I need to find a way to succeed without MrBeast's business model. Success in spite of not being like MrBeast, not because of it, is the goal. But like I said, we can always learn a few things. I also acknowledge he works hard on his video. I'm not denying his work ethic; I just don't like the shallow material, jumpy, frantic editing, attention-seeking methods, etc. MrBeast's strategy is to create content that is designed to get views. Attention is the end-goal, content is the method. I fundementally disagree with that. However, I still want views. But there's distinction between that approach and mine, and even Leo's im sure.

I purposely chose 11-OH-THC because it lasts longer, and some THC is converted to it via inhalation anyway. You mistake half-life with psychoactive effects. Something can have a long half-life but will not produce any psychoactive effect after a certain threshold. For example Aniracetam has an elimination half-life, 0.5 hours. Yet, noticable effects can be felt for at least 4-5 hours, sometimes even up tp 8. Armodafinil has a half-life of 15 hours, but many will notice that beyond 12 hours, you stop feeling it. Half-life doesn't tell you how much a substance is still effecting you.

That's why we don't only look at what neurotransmitters are released but also where they are released. Viewing mental states as simply neurotransmitters is reductionist. For example, releasing dopamine in the substantia nigra will produce a different effect than dopamine released in the prefrontal cortex. Plus, your statement is incorrect as there are different neurotransmitters correlated with states of euphoria and states of anxiety.

huh? I'm just trying to convey facts on THC metabolism to OP

Fat solubility doesn't necessarily mean a long half-life (as in all day long). For example, caffeine is also sufficiently lipophilic to pass through all biological membranes and readily crosses the blood-brain barrier. Yet, people can drink caffeine early in the day and still eliminate it by the end of the day without it affecting their sleep. Don't smoke close to bed is how you eliminate the REM suppressing effects of THC. Although regular weed smokers do show abnormal sleeping patterns, which is a concern. Are you talking about second hand smoke or smelling the plant itself? Smelling the plant is highly unlikely to get you high friend. The form of THC that is found in uncarboxylated buds/plant is Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA). This is a prodrug to THC and doesn't exert psychoactive effects. Conversion of THCA to THC in the body is very limited. Hence why decarboxylated via heat is crucial for getting high. Plus, the smell of weed is due to terpenes, not THC. Second hand smoke is possible but also very unlikely as most of the THC is being absorbed when someone smokes and diluting it with air is just so not effecient that almost no one gets really high just from being around weed, but not impossible especially if its hotbox. Again, highly unlikely. A few molecules? No way, man.. The bioavailability of THC when smoking or inhaling is approximately 25%, with a range of 2% to 56% (although most commonly between 10 and 35%). So when you say a few molecules, cut that by 80%. Also, considering the THC is lipophilic, this means that a lot of it won't even reach your brain but will absorbed in other tissues. Not all of it reaches the brain, and the majority of it isn't even absorbed. A few molecules will not produce an effect; no more than smelling cigarettes makes you high on nicotine. It's harmful to breathe smoke, but that's different from actually getting high from said smoke. Also, you use words like "poisoned" when referring to THC ingestion. Let me first say this: I AM NO FAN OF WEED. I realize its addictive and I was addicted to it.. I know it's not a harmless drug, and it does affect brain development, etc. But you weren't poisoned. Poison means there has to be some form of neurotoxicity involved. THC is not neurotoxic in normal doses, it can actually be neuroprotective in some cases, like protecting from stimulant induced excitotoxicity and reducing brain oxidation.

THC metabolites is what lasts a long time and what can be detected in drug tests, this is different from it having effects which last this long. Metaboloites can be tested for up to 1 month while THC itself breaksdown faster. After cannabis consumption, THC is metabolized inside the body by cytochrome P450 enzymes such as CYP2C9 and CYP3A4 into 11-hydroxy-THC and then further metabolized by the dehydrogenase and CYP2C9 enzyme to form 11-nor-9-carboxy-THC (THC-COOH) which is inactive at the CB1 receptors;[2] and further glucuronidated to form 11-nor-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid glucuronide (Δ9-THC-COOH-glu)[3] in the liver, from where it is subsequently excreted through feces and urine (via bile from the liver).[4] Both metabolites, along with THC, can be assayed in drug tests.[1] Getting high for a week is really weird.... it should not last this long. I suspect you might have a metabolism abnormality which makes your body inept at converting THC and excreting THC metabolites.

@Leo Gura Thanks for the lips, Leo. I have a few more questions. If you already have a job/need a job to sustain yourself: How will this realistically be achieved? I work in business consulting and my hours are already stretched thin as is. To live my LP I need to somehow make it online, but if you're saying I need treat it like a fulltime job to maybe even make it..... This feels like a double whammy. What constitutes consistent uploading? What do you mean by high quality? The content itself, or do you mean editing/video quality I have this camera, is it good? I truly believe I have fresh and high-quality research/thoughts. But I have to say its not purely original. I synthesize from several domains/people, but the originality of what I offer is how I synthesize/integrate it into one idea/video/topic, etc.

Discipline is Destiny by Ryan Holiday

@Leo Gura Technically all tinnitus is brain-related, since processing sound happens in the brain.

I wasn't in Saudi I was in lisbon Portugal. But no they wouldn't, they would jail you. Which is why I avoid taking anything here

Oleamide does as well. I explained the mechanism behind it and have tested it myself