hannahbanana

Do you mean improv games as in improvisational comedy, or video games that are open world, involving a lot of personal initiative? I love doing both, but I'm curious for the sake of clarity

I just had a difficult conversation with two guys who I was friends with from highschool, about men's rights and feminism. They kept telling me that the men's rights movement was tactless because it was sort of like saying "straight pride" around a LGBT community that didn't have equal rights. I also had trouble dragging out real examples of the patriarchy from them. It really made me sad, because I've been really good friends with them and been able to have philosophically relevant discussions about other topics, but this was really difficult. I think a lot of it is an "if you aren't with us, you're against us" attitude. It doesn't matter if you still believe in treating people equally regardless of gender, if you don't support feminism, you are automatically against gender equality. That is how most people see it, since most people are thoroughly convinced that feminism also opposes double standards that are detrimental to men.

I also find it irritating in the second video that they often feel like they need to give a reason for why women don't do certain actions. "Don't make eye contact, it could be seen as an invitation for more." Replacing it with issues that aren't related to gender, it just sounds paranoid. "Don't cross a street, you could get hit by a car." "Don't eat bacon, you could get a heart attack." "Don't walk up staircases, you could trip and break your leg." Instead of making these generalizations, which sow fear where it isn't necessarily needed, it would be easier to encourage good judgement. If there are a ton of cars speeding up and down the street, look both ways, or don't cross at all. If you've already had a ton of bacon, or have heart problems, cut back on the bacon. If the stairs look slippery, don't use them. Each of these situations aren't inherently dangerous. Not every staircase is going to break your leg, but it's good to be able to decide which ones might. Same with these issues. If a guy or girl looks really shifty, don't make small talk. That's just common sense. But it doesn't mean you should treat the clean-cut looking guy at your friend's party like he has the plague.

I've been talking to my parents about raising children, and they seem relatively receptive...except they stick to the argument that when a child does something really dangerous, spanking acts as a negative reinforcement; if they associate said dangerous action with pain/shock of spanking, they won't do it again. Which I suppose is true, although I think there are better alternatives that could be done instead. But I have difficulty figuring out how exactly to argue that.

This reminds me of a tv show I tried watching about a group of socially awkward people who were part of an online video game, who then decided to begin meeting in person. One of the characters was a mom who cared more about the game than her own children. The show was supposed to be funny, and while I was amused by the other characters, I could never feel comfortable laughing about how this woman neglected her children. :/

I listen to a lot of different music; much of it just for the sound, since I listen to most music while I work, so I'm not usually paying attention to lyrics, but I really do love a song with good lyrics, or even just small fragments that hit home for me. However, I think the most interesting thing for me is that there are some songs that I used to listen to a lot, and when I hear them again, they make me almost feel like I've gone back to that time. I can feel what me from 2 or 5 or whatever years ago felt like. Sometimes, too, I can get the sense that I know exactly what the artist was feeling when they sang or wrote the song (the song "Nineteen" by Tegan and Sara makes me tear up almost every time). I have wondered in the past whether this is some expression of empathy, for my younger self or for the artist.

I go to parties with some of my old high school friends occasionally, about 3 or 4 times a year. It's interesting, because even though we sort of avoid intense conversations about religion/government, we DO talk a lot about relationships and people-to-people interactions that we've all had. In this way, I feel like I can express my views, since how I view my relationship with the government is essentially how I view relationships with people on an individual level. Also OP, the conversation may be boring you for a reason other than it not being "deep" or "philosophical." From what you said, you obviously have no interest in sports, or the video game they were talking about. True, they are not particularly deep topics, but maybe they were also boring because you knew nothing about it. I HATE talking about sports or pop culture, but if it's a book or TV show that I really like, that's a different story. Here's another thought - do you have anyone at all that you can talk philosophy with in person? It's practically all I do with my significant other, and for me, it can act as a sort of buffer when I interact with other people; just knowing that I could talk to my SO about important topics makes me feel less stressed out about talking about other things, because if I had an important thought, I could always bring it up with him later.

Yes, I was upset to hear that many people were using the chaos to loot, as well as use violence on others. It sort of messes up the whole point of a protest for other people. And yes, the situation has been made very racial as well. But the people in this country are so sedentary and allow basically anything to be done to them, it gives me some hope that there is at least some sort of line that people are not willing to allow the government to cross without any complaint. ...Although now I hear things have calmed down a bit, now that the government has thrown us the bone of the name of the cop who killed the boy. I guess that's all it takes to get some people to comply with violence and corrupt power.

I saw the article related to the second video, and I was actually pretty surprised. Maybe it's because I don't live in a big city (the video seems to make it look like that), but many of the fears listed have never even crossed my mind. For instance, not having a cab drop you off in front of your apartment. I find this silly, because A) we have the intelligence to install a deadbolt on our door, or even pick up the phone and have someone else do it for you; and B) wouldn't getting out somewhere other than your apartment, and then walking the rest of the way actually be MORE risky, since I'm pretty sure it's more likely for you to get mugged than for a cab driver to remember YOUR HOUSE out of the many people he drives around, find a way into your building, and THEN break your deadbolt and get into your apartment. When I read that article, it felt more like fear mongering more than anything else. But I also saw that these fears came from women who were surveyed about things that they have missed out on because they are a woman, so at least someone is thinking them. I'm not sure how to feel about that.

How very Christ-like http://www.examiner.com/slideshow/atheists-receive-death-threats-on-fox-news-facebook-page#slide=4

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/08/12/police-use-tear-gas-on-crowd/

First, I am so sorry about what is happening to you, and for the stress it is making you feel. :/ Although I don't think I can give input about all of your questions, it sounds like what you feel about the last bit makes sense. Your family gives all these reasons to put you down, but you even showed that these aren't really real reasons in the first place. It makes sense because it doesn't seem like your family knows a thing about you, so how could they make correct judgments about you? But I understand that even knowing this, it is still causing you anxiety, which is pretty bad You said you start thinking about the things your family members say. Are you doubting your reasons to not believe the things they're telling you?

Making information accessible about the real dangers of vaccination, as opposed to the fake ones, the benefits of herd immunity, etc. Also, it could be a contractual sort of thing...like it's okay to not vaccinate, but other people may not want their children to be around unvaccinated children, and it sounds like they shouldn't be forced to be around unvaccinated children either.

Along the same track as drug legalization, you could do gun control. You could also do circumcision and spanking...sounds like you have a lot of juicy topics ripe for the picking

Aren't most MRAs strongly opposed to circumcision? That is a form of child abuse, and even if it may be a bit selective as to which aspects child abuse they oppose, it is still drawing attention to how young children are treated based on their gender.

This actually sounds like a great idea to try, especially the last part about asking what that part of you wants to achieve. I was discussing this feeling with my boyfriend, and he suggested that empathizing with that part of me might help me be able to address it better. I have been struggling with how to do that, but your suggestion sounds like a good one. Thanks jdjeffers, I hope it could be helpful to you as well!

Not sure, but the fact that she refused to explain to Dave why she was upset with him is a big "no" when it comes to relationships.

http://existentialcomics.com/comic/9

No, but I just looked it up . Do you think you've experienced that?

Ah yes, that sound different than what you were saying before. I guess I wouldn't say "craftability" exactly, since I think that is different than someone who has an open mind and has simply not been exposed to virtue. I know it's a little nit-picky, but I'm working on my word accuracy, haha. I think that we do agree then, that it is good to try to lead by example and expose people to what virtue is while they are receptive to it. Thank you for clarifying

That is really awful, and must be terrifying for you...I am so sorry this has happened to you, and your brother. I think that is was very brave of you to stand up for your brother like that, and it probably helps him, knowing that you're trying to look out for him. What your dad did was completely unacceptable, and even though he might say he agrees with your ideas on peaceful parenting, actions speak louder than words in his case. That must feel like a pretty bad betrayal, huh? And the fact that your mom agreed with him is almost, if not just as bad. It sounds like they don't want to make the effort to change their ways, so they try to convince themselves that they can't change even if they tried (hence the unrealistic expectations part), and to push the blame onto you (blaming you and those horrible, dumb-as-bricks people you talk to on the internet ). Also, your dad said that you don't have the authority to tell him how to be a parent. This is such a non-answer. Who WOULD have the authority to tell him? If that authority said the same things to him as you did, would he listen? My guess is no. Then it is just an empty justification to you, and to himself.

I've been feeling this way a bit lately as well, and I'm still a little unsure as to why as well. One thought that I've had is that I am often very critical of myself (something that I've been trying to do less of), and sort of tell myself that whatever I'm doing is either a waste of time, or that there are more productive things that I could be doing instead. But it feels like whatever I choose to do is not productive enough for that part of me, that it sets an impossible standard, so I always feel out of place, anxious, or uneasy. What about you? Are you critical of yourself a lot, or is it something different?

Yeah, it's basically unavoidable now. They put you in the pool through voter registration, DMV, unemployment, social security, disability, basically any government program. And you can't be excused, even if you have a job that requires you to be present at all times (an ER doctor on call, a full-time daycare runner, etc). You can only get it deferred.

Thanks everyone for the quick responses! I think it helps a lot to know that there's some support out there, even if I don't get it from 99% of the people physically around me. I think a large part of my surprise was that although other people gave objections such as issues with the police departments, the judge was completely fine and even nice for all of them, except for me. I guess for them it's okay to attack symptoms, but wrong to get right down to the heart of the issue with the government. It gave me a bit of a reality check as to just how much people really do react violently to these ideas. I'm hoping that although I initially felt afraid by doing this, it will help me be more confident in being assertive, and in standing by my opinions.

Maybe find some good, quick reads to ease yourself into it? I've been reading all my life and love it, but even I would find Atlas Shrugged to be a pretty serious reading committment, so perhaps it might not be a good thing to jump into right from the start. But then again, maybe it is; that's your decision. There are some websites out there that are meant to give book recommendations. You might type in a specifier (genre, author, etc.) and it'll give you a list of books to try out. If there's some factor that you enjoy in books that you've read so far, maybe you could type that in and start from there. Here are some examples I just got from google: http://whatshouldireadnext.com/ http://www.openingthebook.com/whichbook/