Rocky

Insight on M and A?

Related to a sense of belonging: A couple of years ago (I don't remember how many) I learned about Guy Winch, ABOUT THE AUTHOR Guy Winch is a licensed psychologist who is a leading advocate for integrating the science of emotional health into our daily lives. His three TED Talks have been viewed over 20 million times, and his science-based self-help books have been translated into 26 languages. He also writes the Squeaky Wheel blog for PsychologyToday.com and has a private practice in New York City. Today, I received an email newsletter from him. The following is an excerpt from the newsletter" What We Tend to Get Wrong about Loneliness 1. We think loneliness is most common among older adults but the loneliest cohort today are actually 18-30 year-olds. 2. We don't realize how dangerous loneliness is. Chronic loneliness poses as big a risk to our long term health and longevity as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. In last month's poll 60% of you knew that but that number is much lower in the general population. Indeed, as per this new study, loneliness poses a risk for all adults . 3. Loneliness traps us. We feel like nobody cares so we're extremely hesitant to reach out to the those who could make us feel connected (see my TED Talk for how I 'got loneliness wrong'). Why we get it wrong 1. We tend to think loneliness is about the quantity of a person's connections but it's about the quality. Loneliness is defined subjectively. What matters is whether you feel connected to the people around you (many lonely people are married or live with families and roommates). 2. We evolved in nomadic tribes in which loneliness signaled that we were about to be kicked out (a death sentence). As a result, loneliness induces a strong physiological stress response that impairs the function of our immune system and increase our risk of illness, disease and an early death. [i.e. mark and avoid] 3. Loneliness is associated with two perceptual distortions that discourage us from reaching out even though we need to do so: (more at the linked newsletter)

Does rationalizing how one is not wrong equate to being offended?

Yes, it is.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exvangelical of people who have left evangelicalism, especially white evangelical churches in the United States, for atheism, agnosticism, progressive Christianity, or any other religious belief, or lack thereof.[1][2][3] The hashtag #exvangelical was coined by Blake Chastain in 2016 to make "a safe space for people to find solidarity with others who have gone through similar experiences."[1] People in the movement are called "exvangelicals" or "exvies." Many attribute their departure to experiences of homophobia, misogyny, and racism in evangelicalism, , or to a personal crisis of faith such as sexual abuse in a religious setting and/or by a religious leader or volunteer (often which was ignored, actively covered up, and in some cases the victim was subject to DARVO treatment). The movement is disseminated largely via podcasts. Popular exvangelical podcasts include Almost Heretical, Straight White American Jesus, and Chastain's podcast Exvangelical. Have any of you heard of the term exvangelical?

This one, about Du Mez' book Jesus and John Wayne, is a longer interview/discussion at UChicago Divinity School. White evangelicalism and toxic masculinity are the main themes of the book.

Holy Carp! I think I love this woman... not in a sexual way. She's takes apart White Evangelicalism.

It's ALL bull$ hit. Occam's razor, to me, suggests it's ALL nothing more/less than rationalization. Why do people fall for it? That's not an easy question to answer. I suspect academics (philosophers/psychologists/sociologists) have been pondering it for years. Maybe 200 years or more.

YES! Martindale, IMO, was the epitome of Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. I've seen it in my life. I've seen it in local politics. It's reality. I see the verses Twinky highlighted trying to get that message about vulnerability across. The antithesis thereof, is, IMO, captured in much of what Brené Brown discovered in her research and wrote about with tremendous authenticity. Primatologist Frans de Waal illustrated it best when he described how Alpha males are NOT bullies. His research demonstrates this when he states, "the smallest male, when he has the right friends and keeps them happy, or he has female support, he can be the alpha." How does one keep his friends happy and get support from the females? It's certainly not rocket science. Instead, it's social psychology. IOW, you got more with honey than with vinegar. There's a LOT to the concept of vulnerability being a demonstration of strength.

A worthy goal. Not answerable in quick sound bites. I suspect this is why ideally it's something to start building for children early in life. Among possible objectives/steps: Realization of the fact: everyone gets conned. That's what magicians do just for entertainment. Perhaps a foundational reality to teach could deal with how a person's attention is diverted to what others want to convince you has happened, will happen, or is really now happening. Further, discussion of the role of early childhood education focusing on critical thinking skills. Then, post secondary education exploring the reason broad liberal arts courses are graduation requirements, including humanities, social sciences, foreign languages, philosophy and mathematics. IOW, in my view, there's no easy fix. Doesn't mean there's no fix, it's just not easy. Might boil down to motivating individuals to become life long learners... which for many gets set aside when the necessities of life crowd them out.

Nice sarcasm by both chockful and waysider.

I accept your criticism with humility. Thank you.

That depends. If you continue to respond by telling me what (you assume) I'm thinking, I might lecture more.

Cool. It's probably safer to not assume you know what is going on inside my head.

Are you sure?

A likely story.

Oh really? (Physically) Healthy atheists? (rhetorical question) I neither request, nor expect response.

“You will face many defeats in life, but never let yourself be defeated.” -Maya Angelou I like this quote. We will face many defeats in life. It is one of the reasons for living our life. We are meant to face challenges. And to learn from them. I think the first way in not allowing ourselves to be defeated is by recognizing challenges will occur. We will not, and cannot, win every challenge which comes our way. So, my challenge for you is to figure out a way to face those defeats, but not let yourself be defeated. Find the wins in every challenge you are nearly being defeated by.

If you're referring to Lonnell Johnson, he wasn't a token anything. He's a smart, industrious gentleman. As far as I know, he's still upright (alive). https://www.lonnelledwardjohnson.com/ Three athletes I remember Loy latching on to and promoting were Tony Phillips (MLB utility infielder), Tony Collins (NFL running back) and Irving Fryar (another NFL player). All three of them had significant problems post TWI and did not laud their PFLAP grad status.

Not without someone like you providing feedback to say such a thing. Has it not ever occurred to you that your interactions with bait and hook trolls like Mike and JohnIam might be counterproductive? To clarify, I sense, because of your feedback, you find my "running commentaries" at least irritating. I hope not overwhelmingly so.

Why do you think your comments are necessary? I post mine because I can and suppose you have similar motivation. I'm not supposed to be anything. It just seems to work out that way. I do appreciate how you don't mean to attack me. I just seems that way... but it doesn't bother me.

Much like they did with professional athletes in major league sports, and with people who provided large financial donations.

Such is the wonder of iron sharpening iron. I LOVE how THIS kind of interaction enhances healing for readers. Thank you.