Jodistrict

Traditional psychoanalysis was replaced by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) during the 1980s and 1990s in alignment with Neoliberalism and its preference for cost-effective therapy and productivity-oriented care. While psychoanalysis involved years of deep internal work, CBT offered quick returns, enabling individuals to return to the workplace in weeks or months. By focusing on external actions rather than internal states, CBT provided quantifiable results that suited capitalist requirements for emotional regulation and workplace compliance. CBT is considered the gold standard of therapy. It delivers quick and quantifiable results. It trains patients to self-monitor and police their own thoughts, which functions as a form of "soft power" that benefits the system by reducing the need for external management. CBT shifts the burden of blame for systemic issues onto individuals by acting as a form of compliance training that targets internal reactions rather than external conditions. Instead of addressing structural problems—such as exploitative labor, lack of safety, or economic hardship—CBT encourages individuals to perform the following: Question their own perception: Patients are taught to reframe their thoughts and view their distress as a cognitive distortion or a personal failure rather than a rational response to an unhealthy environment Internalize control: By focusing on individual breathing exercises, cognitive restructuring, and mindset shifts, the therapy keeps the broader system invisible and uninterrupted, effectively training individuals to become their own "jailers" Avoiding system critique: The framework discourages looking for external causes of suffering, which protects the status quo by ensuring that the individual is solely responsible for their ability to function within the capitalist order. Imagine your hand is on a burning hot plate. CBT therapy does not ask if the plate should be turned off or moved. Instead, it assumes the plate is correct and teaches you to reframe your thoughts about the burning or change how you feel about the pain, effectively keeping the system that caused the harm invisible and uninterrupted. When someone fails to thrive—not due to their own lack of grit, but due to systemic issues like structural poverty or workplace exploitation—the system flips the switch and labels the patient as the "scapegoat" or the problem. CBT doesn’t make you a happier person. It makes you an obedient person. It maintains the power structure by shifting blame from systemic failure to you the "scapegoat".

If you want to take a deep dive into Shia Islamic mysticism, I highly recommend Henry Corbin. A good starting point is his book “Alone with the Alone”. He describes the imaginal realm as a concrete objective reality that sits between the physical world of the five senses and the Intellectual world of abstract concepts. It is the space where mystical visions, prophetic revelations, and spiritual journeys take place. https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691058344/alone-with-the-alone

The ancient scriptures are actually deep expressions of the human condition. But they get turned into fomulas for the masses and become mechanical. I find the rantings of some fundamentalist christians similar in its shallowness to nonduality blabber. We aren't improving.

I agree. The progressives are coming out with some really impressive candidates. They are grounded, intelligent, articulate, and talking about bread and butter issues. This is the winning formula. They are a cut above giggling Kamala. Trump has been so horrible that the backlash has created an opening for new faces.

Yoga is better for your health than any of the gimmicks these influencers come up with. It’s like they just throw paint on a wall and hope something sticks. I continue to be surprised at the benefits of yoga. Recently, after a routine health exam, I learned that I had actually grown an inch, most likely do to all the spinal stretching and twisting.

This is actually a valid post. The same argument applies to Christianity, which also emphasizes community, marriage, and service to others, while providing concrete guidance on how to weather the tough challenges of life. For 99% of the people on earth, a dualistic system and Bakti yoga are the way to go. A true path of awakening, as was practiced in the ancient East, requires years of purification and maturation until nondual investigation is even allowed. It is an activity for matue adults. You can witness the foolishness, unbalanced nature and wild claims of those who are unqualified and not under the mature guidance of a teacher.

When I hear the word "nuance" in these discussions, I am starting to expect an avalanche of AI generated text. When does "nuance" become a code word for "obfuscation".

As you may recall, Obama already made a deal with Iran which was torn up by the idiot Trump. So the problem isn’t Iran. Now, whatever happens, Iran is going to have permanent control over the Straits of Hormuz. Under Obama, this was international waters uncontrolled by any nation. But then Obama is an order of magnitude more intelligent than Trump. Trump will probably end up spending a trillion dollars to get us back to a worse position.

Nothing to do with what I said.

Tampering with billions of years of evolution is not a healthy idea.

Trump finally succeeded in doing something real. He made Iran great again.

Psychedelics are overrated and the new shinny toy. He was right about the ego hijack (2) and the creation of more confusion than clarity (1). He also challenges the underlying assumption of American capitalism – “everyone has the right to their McDonald’s hamburger within 5 minutes” (4).

The same minds that believed decapitation would work, believe there is a nuclear option. The result: Failure.

No they didn't have that option. Russia and China have nuclear bombs too. The arrogant are being brought low.

They already tried annihilation and failed. They murdered all of Iran’s top leaders, betting on an instant collapse. Trump was the only president dumb enough to buy Netanyahu’s bullshit. The United States doesn’t have the power to defeat Iran. Professor Mearsheimer and many other former high ranking officials of the government were predicting this disaster from day one and say America has lost the war. The USA just needs to sign the MOU and get out. The USA lost to Vietnam and still managed to survive.