EasyNumbers123

I think even if it's true that these socialist countries are breeding a happier mind state amongst their populations, it doesn't matter. I say this because happiness, as a standard of goodness, cannot be universalised. For instance, taking the general UPB, example, applying UPB; If; Happiness equals virtue, then; if punching Doug will make Bob happy, Bob must punch Doug in order to achieve Virtue, ergo; Assault is moral. And by extension, assuming this makes Doug unhappy; Doug is immoral. This is clearly an unsustainable contradiction ('that's a funny tautology!' - he though whilst typing). Also, I don't hear a lot of socialists saying, "well, all those loggers in south america seem to be pretty happy, good on them" or, "Those that get private healthcare are way happier, this is definitely the way to go!" or, "The rich seem far happier with their income, therefore...". You could go on. I mean a lot of socio paths get a kick out of abuse and terror, but so what. If we take happiness as a standard of morality or goodness then we're back to a subjectivist view of ethics, or "anything goes, as long as it's good for my interests or preference". So whenever someone uses this argument that socialist countries are generally happier, I think it's a reasonable position to point out that happiness is not a universal standard for judging or justifying the morality or sustainability of any given situation.

Since I have been listening to Freedomain Radio I have been experiencing a great conflict between my desire for true, connected relationships and the relationships I currently have with my peers, as well as my parents. (maybe there should be a warning label somewhere, I don't know...) This conflict has only recently hit home, that it is 'one or the other' so to speak. So a couple of days ago it was a friends 20th birthday party. And whilst 'speaking' with the peer group that day, I found that all i could focus on was that anything that I truly cared about or wanted to say, could not be spoken to these people. Not because I would necessarily get attacked, but probably minimised. And it saddens me to say that all the people who I know and hang out with, have highly evolved methods of dissociating from uncomfortable topics, or really anything of substance. The theme of the night was MDMA. I told myself that I would not take any but I think that night I was confronted with the 'either-or'. I could choose the illusions of my current relationships, or myself, and I have become very alarmed (after giving my motivations some thought) that I chose the illusions and to take the drug. It has become horrifyingly clear, that I am living a double life within myself. I am living the life of illusions without the pleasure of illusion. I am making some progress in the realm of self-knowledge - having almost completed Nathaniel Brandons' sentence completion program for self-esteem - and am making progress towards my career goals but am stuck with the knowledge that I am failing in my pursuit of relationships composed of honesty. I am planning to move to London soon to enrol as a sound engineering student at a college in the area. When I do I intend to attend the freedomain radio meetup group there. Not to 'dump' on anyone, but at this point I think I need people who I can have a genuine interaction with. I feel like a siren of wisdom in an echo chamber right now. So I suppose my question is; 'given that I know I am am in dead end, unconnected relationships and that I know that I need to leave them soon, for myself, what now? And what might I expect?'. Any and all questions are welcome and I appreciate your time.