THE DISRESPECT

[Different]

I'd appreciate it if you read the following paragraphs very carefully. If you don't read any of what I said above, I don't care, I just want you to really try to actively read these next ones without skimming them. I'm not trying to be rude, I just think the text below is particularly important.

Believe me, I've read everything that you've written and I've learned more about you than I needed to know. I'm just going to address these viewpoints since they seem to be the most, prominent ones.

1. Based on your mannerisms and my previous history with you, it appears to me as though you allow your insecurities, your emotions and what you believe other people think of you to control you and your actions. But I don't know you, so I could be wrong. If you do struggle with these kinds of things though, I think you should be open to talking about it rather than denying it or lying (like in the infamous car thread, among others). A lot of popular figures (such as Joe Rogan) prey on sensationalism and the insecurities of young adult men ("if you want women, you need to be an aggressive 'alpha male' and get giga jacked!!"). While some of their content can be fine, it's important to be prudent and conscious of the kinds of messages they're sending. I unfortunately know too many guys who suffer from body-image and self-esteem issues due to religiously following these kinds of people's advice, and they're now having to deal with the tough process of overcoming these problems they've developed. It's a terrible rut to end up in. I don't know you or your situation though.

No, you don't know me. So don't assume anything and insist on summing up threads that I've made in the past assuming that that's who I am. It's disrespectful and you know that. It's obvious the two of us are two, very different people. Two different people learn something from each other, just like I've learned something from you. We think differently, we see the world differently, and at this point, we're just budding heads. Listen, you're smart enough to decipher between what's bullshit and what isn't. I'm not going to dive too deeply into this topic, but many popular figures such as Joe Rogan, do have a positive influence on the world. They're not 100% right about everything, but they do have a positive influence on people. I myself, just don't buy into bullshit news on tv because it's NWO trash. Again, completely separate topic, let's nip this one in the bud.

2. I have no issue with someone who believes in and practices self-defence, but I believe it should be practiced with care, and the priority should be on defence rather than offence (harming the offender only so much as is necessary to protect yourself, rather than going out of your way to "teach them a lesson"). To do anything more than this is revenge, and one can certainly argue that in practice this is generally antithetical to stoicism, as it is driven by anger. If you're fine with vigilantism and forcing your own moral views on others though then be my guest, I just don't personally agree with it. I understand that things can be hazy here for some people though.

Self-defense consists of defensive and offensive tactics. If you're the one who initiated the problem and threw the first punch, then yes, it's revolves around offense. But not if they're the one's who initiated the problem, first. When they initiated the problem in a physical manner, your first instinct should be to survive and live to see another day. Even if you don't know self-defense, and they have you subdued to the ground, you could at least poke his eyes out. The last thing you want is for the guy to whale on you because then that'll lead to serious medical problems. The reason you're teaching them a lesson is because they need to know that it's not ok to take advantage of people, physically. I hate to reiterate it again, but this is how some people learn. An inexperienced person doesn't understand that.

"If it is not possible to de-escalate, and you are in a situation that is threatening your life, when violence is the only answer, it must be given swiftly and devastatingly." The stoics may not believe in using violence, but they do believe in hardship and survival. Part of hardship is dealing with things that you don't want to do.

Look pal, I'm not forcing my viewpoints on you at all. All I was trying to do was to get you to see another pathway to a devastating situation. It's not logical to restrain yourself from violence when your life could potentially be on the line.

Moreover, you've accused me of having no valour, being "weak", "weak-minded", "pathetic", "ridiculous", "low-testosterone" (??), a "pathetic fool", a "hopeless and helpless coward" and a "spineless weasel" (by implication). You've accused me of wanting other people to fight my battles for me. You've accused me of "running away". I don't appreciate being the subject of this kind of language.

I find it a real struggle to discuss things with you. I feel like you're more interested in pushing people into imaginary boxes based on what you want to think they believe. You immediately labelled me as a "pacifist" and then proceeded to rant against some strawman that represents your ignorant idea of a pacifist is "supposed to be like"; never did you show any interest in trying to understand the nuances of what I actually believe in and how it could differ from your idea of pacifism. To complete the package you seem to be trying to speak down to me. This mirrors what happened when you labelled me a "liberal" a while ago. It's unnecessary and tiring.

It's a grand waste of my time to be trying to talk to someone who isn't willing to have a sincere debate. This is the last post I'm going to make in this thread; I think this is a perfect example of a situation where one needs to just walk away, since it's clear that it's not getting anywhere.

Listen, my goal wasn't to verbally attack you and criticize you for not adopting violence, if that's what you think. Also, no one's calling you a liberal, but I can tell that you do have some liberal characteristics. On the other hand, the only thing that's really ignorant here is your way of responding to violent situations that require you to fight back. This is why my initial goal was to convince you that sometimes, part of managing a stressful situation may require you to use self-defense (violent tactics). Set aside your negative experiences to survive another day. It's hardship, it's disgusting, but it gets the job done. Yes, controlling your emotions and properly assessing the situation involves being aware of your surroundings & being able to determine the enemy's intentions. If his body language says that he's prepared to fight you, and somehow you end up with no other alternative, then don't ever use the bare minimum of violence to take him out. Use force to survive.

I suppose that's why, sometimes you find it exasperating to reply to my threads, huh? Because you find it a "real struggle" to "discuss things" with me. Also, since we're on the topic of "labeling" someone. At some point, I was irritated with you because you kept telling me things like "I would let the guy beat me up", and "I don't believe in attacking a human being". It just got to a point where I had to kick it into high gear and tell you off because I've had a few friends who used to get taken advantage of, and they never fought back. So I can see the pathway it leads down to, which is why I was trying to help you. Who says I'm not willing to have a sincere debate with you? Things were just fine until you pulled back the curtain and showed me what's really going on.

Bro, I don't care whether you think it's a waste of your time or not. You needed someone to tell you that the way you're going about these situations is harming you because you think that it's going to work on everybody. If you find it a "real struggle" to discuss things with me, then why are you still replying to me then?

Look man, I'm not here to "bully" you, criticize you, or "speak down" to you. The reason I previously made insinuations about how your moral principles and solutions were weak is because you made it sound like that's how you deal with every dangerous problem. I was only challenging you to see exactly where you're coming from, and now I know that you don't like to tolerate violence because of your childhood experiences.

I don't know if you've ever had to deal with trauma before, but growing up with a dysfunctional / abusive family, it was something I had to learn how to deal with. In addition to the previous anecdote, I've taken heavy beatings at a young age, being stomped on and kicked without being able to get away or retaliate, as well as just constantly being surrounded by angry, aggressive people.

Most people who grew up abused during their childhood, end up angry so they take up a physical sport like boxing or Ju Jitsu. I highly suggest that you do the same. I've heard many stories where boxing and Ju Jitsu helped others cope with stressful issues, especially during childhood. Hit the gym and lift weights. It helped me out, tremendously.

You know what, I used to get bullied as a child, too. I understand what it's like to be in a helpless situation where you're being overpowered by someone who's bigger and much more dominate than you. But notice that these are all negative experiences from childhood, which has a reflection on your adulthood. This is why I've been trying to tell you before, that you need to put aside your differences and learn self-defense because a lot of people take advantage of others. I hear plenty of people who became UFC fighters to cope with the stress of negative, childhood experiences. Nate Diaz is a perfect example. Self-defense is violence.

A lot of your statements seem to dive deeper and deeper into your childhood, and I caught that pretty early, which is why I was trying to teach you to stand up for yourself, even if it means using violence. Listen, I understand where you're coming from. You don't like to use any violent tactics on another human being because you think it'll psychologically and traumatically damage you, eternally. Not to mention, you're worried about potentially putting the person in the hospital. It's a reflection of your childhood that damaged you. I see this in a lot of people. But sometimes, when your back is up against the wall, by any means necessary you have to do what you have to do to survive (even if you don't like it).

Bottom line: This conversation with you has gone long enough, now. I was pretty much done going back and forth with you about this during my last post because I felt like I was pulling teeth with somebody. But, you wanted me to address the last few points that you've made, so I did. But now, I can see why you've told us in the past that you're planning on committing suicide, isolating yourself from people, etc. It all makes sense, now. Had I known about you being abused as a child, I would have diverted this conversation in a different direction. I think you need to talk to somebody about that because that currently has a massive impact on your adulthood. I can see that it's made you emotionally distressed causing you to miss out on a bunch of opportunities in life that can be achieved.

You gotta understand that I'm not just here to make interesting threads... I'm here to teach things as well. If it weren't for people like you who challenge me and heavily engage in some of my threads, then I would have quit this place a long time ago. I'll admit that sometimes, I'm in the wrong when I don't always carefully consider others' viewpoints because I'm preoccupied with getting my point across. A lot of what I do is based on experiments, alone. Based on last year's experiments, I've concluded that this site is highly liberal. I just think it's important to do experiments like that to understand what I'm getting myself into. It's not fun being the odd one out who has completely different viewpoints from everybody else.

On the other hand, there are just some people on here who irritate the hell outta me, based on their ridiculously stupid ass, posts alone. I choose to ignore them because they act like children. If somebody doesn't like me, then I could care less. If you think my ideas are ignorant, then I really don't give a damn because I say what's on my mind.