#truly do not give a fuck emotionally but i DO give a fuck intellectually. philosophically

[curiousscallop]

i need my aroace people across the sea to wake up and remind me through my giggling that i am not insane

[earthboundmssft]

The Pros and Cons of the Zodiacs: A Personal Opinion

Let me start off by saying this is just for fun, I love and admire each sign, good and bad qualities, please do not take offense to this list and remember that your Sun sign is only the surface of what you believe to be You, I will be listing these by my favorite elements !

Fire : Active, Creative, Assertive, Self-Regarding

Leo, the Lion, ruled by the Sun, the 4th house ruled by Creativity, a very demanding sign, admirable and courageous, Leo’s have a very luring personality that always makes me want to ask “why?”, they are resilient, they make excellent leaders and have a key to success in whatever it is they do, However, Leo’s can really let it get to their head, they can be overconfident and at times egotistical, letting their excellence get the best of them and may become to prideful to ask for assistance, like the other fire signs Leo’s can be very aggressive, learning to channel that aggression into love is what I believe will benefit a Leo through their life’s journey

Sagittarius, the Archer, ruled by Jupiter, the 9th house ruled by Philosophy, what I feel is one of the most magnetic signs in every meaning of the word, Sagittarius tends to be one of the most lucky signs, they have a charm to them, erotic, brilliant, philosophical and very optimistic, However they do have a tendency to over indulge in the luck and skill of the archer and can become hostile and carry a superiority complex or “God” complex, Sagittarius should work on finding a good balance between keeping their feet on the ground and their heads in the clouds 

Aries, the Ram, ruled by Mars, the 1st house ruled by Self, Aries are to me THE most fiery of the fire signs, they are cardinal signs so they tend to be very established and firm individuals, they are ruled by the face and body and i find they manifest that trait physically, broad and very attractive signs, they really do bring the heat, However an Aries can be very stuck in their bad habits and troublesome and may defy the ones who love and care for them, Aries to me embodies all things fire, but they must learn to take a step back and question their ways of handling their fiery energy, but since its such a creative and expanding sign it shouldn’t be too difficult. 

Earth : Dependable, Practical, Preserving, Materialistic

Taurus, the Bull, ruled by Venus & Earth, the 2nd house ruled by Money, Taurians are one of my favorite signs, trustworthy, honest, very intuitive signs and usually from what I’ve come across have a head of thick beautiful hair,  Taurians tend to carry very pure energy what I describe as a “Breath of fresh air” in conversation, they usually are very well rounded individuals and extraordinarily passionate in love, However, they are represented by the bull for a reason, they can be very stubborn, idle and can even be a bit of a bully when prompted, Taurians I find can be very hard on themselves when confronting their failures, they have a “Fuck It” tendency that usually leads them to trouble and eventually self destructive habits, Taurus needs to learn that nothing is forever and you cannot change what has already been done, but you can learn from the pain and forgive yourself as well as those who have hurt you, give yourself a break, take some of that weight of your shoulders, your independent nature can take you anywhere you want to go

Virgo, the Maiden/Virgin, ruled by Mercury, the 6th house ruled by Service, Virgos are one of the most intuitive signs ruled by the intestines, they are very analytical, social, people pleasing creatures, they love to see others succeed and they themselves love success, very organized in their heads and often times in their outside world, they make great bushiness persons due to their communication skills and keen eye for service and providing, However, Virgos can be very critical of themselves and the world around them and often times unaware of their own potential greatness, when hurt Virgos can become cold and untrustworthy, Virgos should learn that perfection is truly unattainable. Due to their helpful nature Virgos can stretch themselves a bit too far and become too involved in others personal lives while ignoring their own needs and desires, Virgo should know that the self should always come first if you truly want to help others, Virgo should also know that not everyone needs your criticism, allow your heart and head to catch up with one another.

Capricorn, the Goat, ruled by Saturn, the 9th house ruled by Career, Capricorn THE earth sign, very grounded individuals, adventurous minds, whimsical yet serious characters, they’re hard to upset , they take their work and passions very seriously and have a tendency to be very successful in whatever they put their minds to, However, Capricorns when not evolved can become very arrogant and bossy due to their drive for success, they are a sign that cannot be controlled, they tend to do the controlling since they are cardinal signs, Capricorns should learn that career isn’t everything, give yourself a break, it’s okay to work hard and want success, but everything will come in due time, they should learn to balance vulnerability and resilience

Water : Hypersensitive, Emotional, Inward-looking, Doubtful

Scorpios, the Scorpion, ruled by Pluto & Mars, the 7th house ruled by Death and Rebirth, Scorpios are one of the more solid of the water signs, fixed water, so unlike Cancer and Pisces they are intense in their ways of anger and love, they are fearless and determined and make very wonderful romantic partners once evolved, However, when a Scorpio feels as though they aren’t receiving the recognition they believe they deserve or when they simply do not trust you, they can become cunning, promiscuous and closed off, Scorpios usually get a bad reputation for being promiscuous, ruled by the sex organs and ruled by two very powerful planets, Scorpio is passionate in everything they do, Scorpio should learn to take life slowly, there’s no good in rushing emotions, its okay to feel, stop being so generous with your energy not everyone will accept it, be careful who you allow into your heart...not everyone will understand 

Cancer, the Crab, ruled by the Moon,the 4th house ruled by Home, Cancers are very pleasant, warm and comforting, emotional and heavenly, their presence always provides a sense of familiarity to me, the poet of the water signs, their lives very much revolve around family and friends, motherly and OH so caring! they love to feel needed, However, Cancers can become very moody if they feel as though they aren’t fulfilling their purpose in life, they can become possessive, pessimistic and suspicious of their surroundings and even of themselves, Cancer should learn that it’s okay to be emotionally sensitive, but grounding yourself is important as well, you live in a world of doubt and that’s okay, but don’t let the world make you cold, you are a moon child, warm and full of love, just be cautious of who you let in.

Pisces, the Fish, ruled by Neptune, the 12th house ruled by Self-undoing, Pisces are very intuitive, being hypersensitive is a very water sign trait, but to me Pisces takes it to another level, they are very inspired souls and always want to help, they make lovely friends and playful lovers, they always have a wide range of tastes never too specific, but it always is interesting, they’re quirky souls and almost mysterious, However, Pisces being the sensitive souls they are can become self-pitying, indolent..a true escape artist , Pisces can avoid drama and socializing like a bad cold, they can also become confused in their own heads, not knowing when something is too much or too little, Pisces should learn that it’s okay to take a break and escape from your own head from time to time, but don’t let that become paranoia...the world isn’t out to get you, you love and you love with your entirety, “ Once it has been lost, the Water of Life can only be found by wandering off the beaten path.” and like the water of life Pisces should learn some resilience.

Air : Free Spirited, Versatile, Self-centered 

Libra, the Scales, ruled by Venus, the 7th house ruled by Partners, Libras are very sensible, represented by the scales Libras tend to be very fair in their criticism everything they do they have reasons that may even come off as excuses to others, Libras are artistic souls with excellent taste in material items, like Aquarius they simply want peace and quiet in their life. They love to make people happy, However, in their drive to do so they may find it difficult to say “No” to some things, because they enjoy the nicer things in life, Libra can become self indulgent in spending money on material items. Like the other air signs , Libra is very indecisive and sometimes superficial, they really enjoy the beauty of life, but have a hard time grasping what it really is, Libra should learn that surface beauty doesn’t equal happiness, their charming personalities and sensible souls make them wonderful care givers, they should learn to balance their high energy with some meditation instead of window shopping, they should learn that there is always more than what they think they know, you are the scales so remember to ALWAYS be fair and cautious to those around you.

Aquarius, the Water-Bearer, ruled by Uranus, the 11th house ruled by Aspirations, Aquarius from my experience are either very calm and collected or very extroverted and eccentric, not to say that they cannot be both at the same time. Aquarians are Fixed signs , but being air signs as well they really cannot be pinned down, they are huge humanitarians and simply want whats best for everyone, they have very intellectual and deep minds that take a lot of patience and understanding in order to be trusted by Aquarius , they are very particular in love, true trend setters, However, Aquarius like Sagittarius can carry a god complex, they can become extremely irrational in their judgement and feel their way is the only way, when hurt they can become detached and aloof being able to shut off all emotions, Aquarius should learn that it is okay to get hurt, it does not make you weak, it may wear down elasticity, but once you’ve let go of resistance you will ultimately be free, it’s okay to be you, it’s okay to be different! you’re greatly appreciated! 

Gemini, the Twins, ruled by Mercury, the 3rd house ruled by Communication, Gemini’s, like their sister sign Sagittarius are VERY philosophical in nature, their minds tend to wander. Being an air sign they really do expand and use their knowledge to make the best life possible for themselves, they are excellent communicators, very humorous and optimistic, However, with all that knowledge and self awareness comes trouble and confusion, Gemini’s tend to be very moody and inconsistent, they are represented by the twins, so think of them as two souls morphing together and attempting to find balance in a singular vessel, for Gemini this can spell trouble since it can be tough for one to please two very different sous at the same time, this may make them deceitful, master manipulators and they often play victim, Gemini should learn that not everyone is like you, not everyone contains the depth that you desire, “ All that glitters is not gold”. Use your communication skills to your advantage Gemini, be patient with the growing process, going through with your actions is crucial to your inevitable success. 

[racingtoaredlight]

This is a capital P Perfect Song

I’ve been obsessed with this song since I first heard it Friday morning.

Apparently it was a number one hit in the UK in 1976...which doesn’t mean a whole lot 43 years after the fact, but goddamn is this one motherfucker of a burner.  DEEP CUTS!  [more music lingo I don’t know]

Perfect songs are a delicate balance of seemingly contradictory elements.  Any technical or substantive brilliance must be packaged in an easily digestible format to the point where people...any “people”...will know it’s great, even if they don’t particularly care for the style of music or have trouble explaining why it’s great.

It must fit the environment but feel as if it’s played elsewhere.  Live albums that sound so great you think it came from the studio.  Studio albums that feel like you’re sitting in the middle of the band, even if the musicians never recorded their parts in the same room, at the same time, as the others.  Off the cuff must feel deliberate with a rock-solid foundation.  Complexity must feel like it’s on autopilot, and the musician could make an omelet while playing this, it’s so easy.

Overly stylized music needs a raw edge.  Rustic music needs refinement.  Feel players need a navigator who can plot out a chart.  Technicians need to let their balls drop.  Whatever the elements are, it’s that contrasting philosophical polarity that makes for the most interesting music.

And what I love most about this song is how deep those philosophical contrasts run.  A credit to both Harley and producer Alan Parsons, who took this song and turned it into what you hear above.

***

This song was written by Steve Harley as a “fuck you” to his old band, who he felt abandoned him.  His wiki tells a pretty interesting story about a dude who was wracked by polio as a kid, never finished high school, talked his way into an accounting job, moved to newspaper work, then decided to start a band.

That band he started was his band.  He was writing the songs, arranging them, booking gigs...it was his show the whole way.  But the band...as bands are wont to do...in Harley’s words “formed a posse,” and wanted to write their own songs while having more of a leadership say.  Hence the split.

Originally, this song was supposed to be a slow, dirgey blues, the dark atmosphere reflecting the abandonment Harley was feeling.  But when Parsons heard it, he was like “lets up the tempo a bit, add some backup vocals, and spice it up.”

You can imagine this artistic suggestion would have rankled a lot of musicians, regardless if they had clout or not.  Even would make sense if Harley was like “fuck that” given that he was telling his bandmates to fuck off when they wanted to give artistic input.

But Harley welcomed it.  He added the “oo-lalala’s” and arranged the middle section for the acoustic guitar solo that was never in the conversation when the song was a dark blues.  It’s because that contrast between the lyrical material and the musical message was so complimentary, both Parsons and Harley knew there was magic.

When the song was done, one night Harley was drinking with the head of EMI’s A&R department Bob Mercer.  Mercer went to another room to listen to the song, came out four minutes later and simply said, “number one.”  In 1976, “Come and See Me (Make Me Smile)” reached number one in the UK and Ireland.

***

When you listen to this song, it’s hard not to get caught up in the groove.  The chorus is just fucking outstanding...the backup singers giving the song this beautiful orchestral quality that makes the section explode.  Even more, given Harley’s gritty, out of tune singing style, the slick and ultra-tight backup section gives the music the gravitas to allow Harley’s liberties to add an element of raw emotion without dimming the professional sheen.

This is not a song that feels like it’s written by someone singing from the darkest places of their heart, but you can feel the sneering disgust dripping from every one of Harley’s swampy groans.  That professional sheen though, it’s the light at the end of the tunnel.  It’s the undercurrent of optimism coursing through the song that subconsciously turns Harley’s angst into somewhat of a nostalgic hope for reunion.

Musically speaking, there’s nothing here that’s more complex than what a musician playing for 4-5 years could pull off.  The musical brilliance isn’t in any of the particular musicians, rather in the way that they’re all combined.

It’s an incredibly tight song.  The groove is about as simple as it gets and is pervasive through the whole song.  The bass is bubbly and active, but never trouncing on the other musicians, when it would be easy to do too much over those chugging acoustic guitars.  Theoretically, there’s nothing more complex than a “call and response” in the oo-lalala section.  In terms of form, it’s Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-rinse-repeat, the polar opposite of something like the first movement of Beethoven’s 9th.

What makes it so musically rich is that the tight, cohesive band never abandons their individual roles, allowing the whole ensemble to shine.  Without that tight backdrop, Harley’s warbling, off key verses wouldn’t have the foundation they need to make it a great song.  Strip away the raw grittiness Harley brings to the forefront, and the background’s essentially the theme song for a one-season network sitcom or a laundry detergent commercial.

Virtuosity is not a requirement for incredible performances, but goddamn they certainly sound virtuosic when all the parts come together in harmony like this.

***

It’s interesting to look at how the song evolved along with Harley’s career.

Harley was in a transitional period in his career and life when he wrote “Come Up and See Me.”  He felt alone and betrayed, themes you can easily pick out when you read the lyrics.  But the listening experience of the song doesn’t come close to matching up with the emotional tone of the lyrical content.  All you hear in the chorus is “to come up to see me and make me smile!”  You don’t really even hear the lyric immediately before saying “ don't say maybe you'll try...”

As Harley emerged from this dark place and started working with Alan Parsons, that scary unknown he was feeling, changed dramatically.  Here Parsons was, an elite established professional with a virtually unblemished reputation, in his corner, on his side, as a partner in crime.  All that uncertainty started to settle and Harley’s eye was on a quite-rosy future.

This song...yes, it was still a “fuck you” to his old band...took on something different once the two started working together.  It wasn’t “fuck you I’m sad” or even “fuck you I’ll show you”...it now felt like a “we both made mistakes and we will see each other again.”

A dark, angry song is not necessarily something people won’t listen to, but it’s a harder sell.  People can emotionally relate, but it’s hard to actively put yourself in a sad headspace.  Those same people can also emotionally relate to a rocky relationship, and when there’s a musical undercurrent of optimism and joy, that emotional reaction is overwhelmingly positive, even if the current time is still in that rift phase.

It’s that musical undercurrent that totally makes this song.  It’s such a great study in contrasts throughough...lyrical vs. musical content, professional production vs. rusticized singing, simplicity in individal parts vs. an absolutely brilliant ensemble performance.  There’s a lot of these contrasts flitting through this song, and what makes it so goddamned great is that all of these different elements perfectly compliment each other.

All too often...especially in my case, admittedly...there’s this combative feeling between technical/intellectual content vs. emotional/psychological content, as if they are two forces that can’t work together.  This song is a great example of how that isn’t the case, and how combining these seemingly contradictory elements makes for some truly incredible music.

Goddamned great song...and throw on some headphones or play this song on good speakers to hear a great example of that killer British Precision Bass tone when paired with a bubbly Hiwatt tube amp.

[asherlockstudy]

you know as awful as this shit episode was we got confirmation that moriarty bottoms for his beefy security guards which is like. my Son. also the choo choo noises were cute, fucking fight me

Yeah, Moriarty’s scenes were admittedly the only cool thing in this episode, but I’m sorry, I can’t like them when the script is not anymore based on the original characterization of that brilliant villain. 

Seriously, Jim here looked like swagoh so cool and stylish and oh so scary crazy caricature. 

Yes, Jim bottoms for his guards. As if he’d ever give that privilege to his guards. Jim could use anyone to have sex when he wanted to but as I consider him a very emotionally driven and fixated person, I doubt he regularly bottoms for his guards and then complains because they are not caring enough. LOL what. When it comes to people, Jim cares about one and only one person and all his emotion flows through him for Sherlock. All his relationships and affairs were fake in order to get to Sherlock. Now if he has one night stands and tops or bottoms, that barely interests me. I think this was more a way to make the guard uncomfortable than anything else.

Showing an interest in cannibals. Really? The person who is all about intellectuality, elegance and taste is interested in cannibals? Is this some kind of Hannibal Lecter homage perhaps? Because 99,9% of cannibals are not like Hannibal. And then saying that giving dead people to cannibals is more useful that giving them to science. Yeah, right. Canonically and in TAB he was a Maths professor by the way. Also, if Jim ever saw a man eating another he would be puking like Mycroft. The man who was like “I don’t even want to shoot because I am so above all this” now was like woohoo cannibals, how interesting.

But the whistling was cool.

And the we learn Jim wrote a Bible adaptation where a donkey eats baby Jesus. #oh my god Jim you’re such a gruesome and shocking villain wow 

The Jim Moriarty of the previous series would know donkeys eat no meat. 

He would never write something so tasteless like a story about a hungry donkey. 

He would never be remotely interested in writing a gore story just to mess with religion. Jim is that kind of person who would either respect or completely ignore religion but in a very philosophical, well-thought, elaborate way. The use of fairytales and Devil / Angel parallels in TRF fits this. A hungry donkey doesn’t. Yeah, he was a kid but I do believe he was always elegant and intellectually superior than that. Seriously, his character has never showed us any reason he would have such a hatred towards holy symbols? Laugh at their stupidity? Yes, very possible. Be fascinated by it in a philosophical way? Also possible. But this was totally OOC.

Really, his script was as messy as the rest of the scenes, I am afraid. 

Style, good looks, gay jokes - cool, okay. 

But this wasn’t Jim Moriarty in my opinion. Or perhaps I’m reading the character in a completely different way. I’m sorry this is such a bitter answer, I was truly, truly disappointed. Not with Andrew of course. He temporarily saved the episode at these moments even in this superficial way. I am disappointed with the script that made him such a disgrace of his true self.

And I don’t want to fight you about the train sounds but………. it would be cool if this was actually just a familiarly awkward but cute addition to a solid characterization. But the choo choo sounds were all we got and that’s not what I wanted… Sorry :(

[mindcoolness]

On the Importance of Values in Life

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On the Importance of Values in Life

What are values?

A human value is a statement of the form “X is good.” For example, to say that we “value honesty” is just another way of saying “honesty is good.”

Values are ordered by priority. For example, we may value freedom over comfort and comfort over equality. This would represent the statement “freedom is better than comfort, and comfort is better than equality,” which is equivalent to saying “if necessary, we will sacrifice equality for comfort and comfort for freedom.”

Every human value is a ‘goodness’ that exists in people’s minds, exists as a sociomental construct that guides collective action.

Wait—is that true? “What about my own, my personal, my individual values?” you may ask. Individual values are delusions.

Individual values are delusions for the simple reason that values cannot exist in isolation from society. Instead of creating his own values, a man’s values always arise from a social context. This may be a culture, a nation, a tribe, a class, a church, a company, a club, a clan, a family, a team, or any group one can affiliate with. It can even be a spiritual connection to an ancient pagan tradition or an intellectual connection to an old philosophical school. Whatever your values may be, they are never uniquely your own.

Where do values come from?

Human values originate in everything that makes us human: our biology and society. Values are formed in their embryonic state by our human needs, wants, and desires before they are born from the womb of a particular social group, whose core values are determined by its purpose:

In a tribe, core values may be courage, loyalty, and honesty because the purpose of a tribe is to stay together and survive.

In a sports team, core values may be discipline, mental toughness, and competitiveness because the purpose of a sports team is to train and win. The same holds for military platoons.

In a school class, core values may be popularity, sociability, and emotional intelligence because the purpose of a school class is to develop social skills.

In a college class, core values may be wit, knowledgeability, and rationality because the purpose of a college class is to debate and share knowledge.

In a monastery, core values may be simplicity, quietness, and punctuality because the purpose of a monastery is to pray.

In a church, core values may be humility, devotion, and self-restraint because the purpose of a church is to subdue.

In a poor nation, core values may be natality, patriarchy, and security because the purpose of a poor nation is to reproduce and survive.

In a company, core values may be innovation, perseverance, and assertiveness because the purpose of a company is to make deals and profit.

Every man belongs to numerous social groups with specific purposes and differently prioritized values. His personal value system is a function of those societal values based on how strongly he associates with each group, for example:

A man who cares more about his gym buddies than about his classmates or coworkers will value physical strength and competitiveness over resourcefulness and friendliness.

A man who cares more about the scientific community than about the mainstream culture will value facts and rationality over fun and popularity.

A man who cares more about his conservative family than about his liberal friends will value culture and tradition over fairness and equality.

In juvenile terms, your values categorize the fucks you give in life. Every time you give a fuck about something, you can be certain that there is a value underlying that ‘fuck’ (and probably an insecurity underlying that value). If you care about how your friends and colleagues think of you, it will be best for you to align your actions with the values of those groups in order to improve their judgment of you. If you “don’t give a fuck,” this only means that there is another person or social group, real or imagined, whose approval you need even more.

More broadly, your values depend on all your social identities, and only insofar as you have multiple social identities can your value system can be individualistic. For example, if you belong to a particular gender, age group, family, culture, ethnicity, company, university, political party, football team, and hunting club, you have multiple social identities and thus a complex value system that is uniquely your own. However, no single value will ever be uniquely your own because no value exists outside of a particular community. Although a man’s value system may be personal, every value within that system is communal.

Why are values important?

Values are important because they connect you to a group of people. Values tell you—in a more abstract way than norms—how to behave if you want to be accepted, respected, and venerated by a social group. The more you align your actions with a set of values, the more popular you become in a group. You rise higher in a social hierarchy the better you implement its value hierarchy (= the more virtuous you are).

Human values are the key to power, to leadership, to social status, to ‘being alpha’. Values are signposts for acquiring high social status, for maximizing one’s influence within a social group. They are conscious expressions of the will to power. That is the importance of values in life. Some examples:

In a group of prisoners who value loyalty, people rise in social status by violently asserting dominance over members of an enemy gang.

In a group of leftists who value equality, people rise in social status by signaling their anti-racism on social media and yelling at university professors.

In a group of young men who value masculinity, people rise in social status by building muscle and banging more and hotter chicks.

In a group of entrepreneurs who value profit, people rise in social status by developing innovative products and marketing strategies.

In a group of rational people who value ethics, people rise in social status by maximizing the well-being of conscious creatures.

Are values ethical?

Being ethical is just one value among many. Ethical values are not valuable by themselves. They are valuable only to the extent that you belong to a group of people who value ethics so that you can rise in social status by being ethical. The meta-value is power, not ethics. Even objective moralists still speak with an in-group bias, namely, a bias towards the value of rationality, which is a prime value within the social group of academia.

There is no direct human desire for being moral. There is, however, a human desire for power, which is required for reproductive success and genetic survival, and being moral is simply a means to enhance power—even if that power is merely intellectual and even if the respective social group is merely imaginary, idealistic.

Again, values are important because they guide our actions to help us gain influence among those people who matter most to us, whose love and respect we crave. This also explains why there seems to be a universal hatred of hypocrisy. A hypocrite is someone who professes to adhere to a group’s values while his actions profess otherwise. Because he violates the value hierarchy, he loses social status.

By contrast, a revolutionary is someone who reminds people of their ‘true values’ and who, by proving through his actions his commitment to these values, becomes the group’s leader. He is not a Nietzschean Übermensch who “creates new values,” but rather a Socratic anamnesist who entices core values out from under the dirt of moral degeneracy. A revolutionary helps people to remember their collective True Will.

Can we create new values?

Around the devisers of new values revolveth the world:—invisibly it revolveth. But around the actors revolve the people and the glory: such is the course of things. (Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra)

I reckon that all human values have already been created throughout the process of evolution and civilization. To truly create new values, we would have to create a new sociobiological type—or an abiological artificial intelligence. (You may read this also as a hint at what I think about the ethics of AI: If values make sense only within a given social context, then programming human values into a machine is infinitely more difficult than writing a few utilitarian algorithms. Who knows, maybe the creators of new values, i.e., computer scientists, have little desire to devise human values anyway.)

What does this mean practically?

The purpose of this article is to make you reflect on your ‘own’ values by considering two questions:

What social groups do you belong to and what is the value hierarchy within each group? This includes how consciously aware you are about your social identities and about the values that come along with it.

What social environments do you spend most of your time in and where do you resonate best with others? This includes how consciously aware you are about your belonging to various groups; many people, for example, do not feel a strong sense of belonging to their nation or culture, whereas others might lack such a sense at home, at school, or at work.

Remember, your personal value system is a list of values that are ranked based on how strongly you are emotionally invested in each of your social identities.

As a practical consequence, you can alter your values only by altering your social environment. Ideally, you choose social groups that value things you are talented in and naturally inclined to do. If your personality sorts well with a certain community, you will organically align your actions with its values. Then you can rise to the top of the social hierarchy—turn into an alpha male, become a leader, and get power & pussy.

Am I saying that power & pussy (or their biological equivalents) are more important than ethics? Well, what I am saying is that ethics itself is just a way towards power & pussy. It is the modern, liberal way—a relatively ineffective way, still. Objectively, power & pussy should not be more important than morality. I, however, am more interested in sociobiological than utilitarian facts—and yes, that personal interest represents a value preference that is fundamentally socially embedded.

Read More

The Limits of Truth and Justice (Objective Morality)

Why Freedom Isn’t What You Think It Is (Modernity Vs. Tradition)

Barbaric Tribalism Vs. Scientific Moralism