There is hope

It is possible to give up smoking,
even if you are heavily addicted to nicotine.
It is also possible to recover from alcohol and drug abuse.

There are so many alcoholics and drug addicts

who have managed to overcome the addiction,

and who did not replaced it with a destructive religious cult,

or some other wacky activity.

It is also possible to recover from neurotic ideas of inferiority,

meaninglessness and wretchedness.

Such ideas can fade away and lose their power

when they eventually are taken for what they are, ideas, imaginations.

Finally the penny drops:

'I am worth exactly as much as anyone else.

Life is something very important. How stupid I have been.'

It is possible to abandon political and religious belief systems.

You don’t have to be a Nazi for the rest of your life

just because you used to hang out with Nazis in your youth.

You don't have to hold on to neoliberal or conservative ideas.

You don't have to live for career and money.

You don't have to exploit other people.

These are not natural laws.

It is possible to wake up and get out of bed.

There is hope.

Why do we deceive ourselves?

You lie, but this is not something you need to be ashamed of.

All people lie, to a greater or a lesser extent.

And everyone pretends that it is important to be honest.

Observe yourself.

How many fibs do you use a typical day,

how many white lies, how many stupid lies

and how many times did you withheld something?

Also the question why we lie to ourselves is trivial, as I see it.

You feel better when you tell yourself that you're OK.

If you are telling yourself, loud and clear, that you are a selfish idiot,

when you really are a selfish idiot,

then you're throwing a spanner in the works.

For many people are lies and self-deceptions absolutely essential

to make life worth living.

A religion, for example, regardless of how crazy,

provides both consolation and community.

Common sense and truthfulness provides no consolation.

Self-deceptions can also be very helpful for frustrated upper class housewives

who need to keep up the illusion of success

and they can also help losers who need justifications and excuses

for their excessive alcohol consumption.

Negative people may be more realistic than optimists

but optimists live a more enjoyable life.

It is in so many ways better to deceive oneself and have some fun

than to hound for truth.

Truth fundamentalists are such tedious boors.

Nevertheless,

it's much nicer to spend time with people who do not live in denial,

and delusional dream worlds.

So, white lies and little lies are necessary in modern life, I believe.

However, problems arises if you lie too much.

A few glasses of wine now and then is a pleasure,

but a bottle or two wine everyday

you will end up as an alcoholic.

Robert Trivers: Why do we deceive ourselves?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfybu_KJGo4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressive_realism

Be normal

Act normally.
Use regular clothes.
Say ordinary things.
Smile normal smiles.
Be like an undercover agent.
You're in great danger if they blow your cover.
It helps a lot if you can forget about your true self.
A true self is useless here.
Do not question their views.
Get yourself a hobby.
To be a supporter of a sports team can be helpful,
but do not go to extremes.

How is it, really

If you happen to be born and raised in a right-wing family

or if you for other reasons have acquired strong right-wing views,

then you'll see the world through right-wing glasses.
If you read the Bible, you'll find that Jesus was rightist;
if you study biology, you'll find that life is a dog eat dog business.

We look at the world through colored glasses,

right-wing glasses, left-wing glasses, neurotic glasses,
spiritual glasses, Buddhist glasses, Christian glasses...

What would the world look like, do you think,
if we could take off our colored glasses?

http://www.momentum98.com/colorther.html

Fallacies

Delusions, misapprehensions and crazy ideas,

can make you very, very ill.

Depression, the powers of Darkness,

leaden beliefs that drag you and your family

deeper and deeper down,

to a totally meaningless and dirty dungeon,

or,

religious fantasy worlds, superstition,

suicide bombs, exorcism and fear of imagined Gods,

ethnic cleansing, hallelujah, praise the Lord.

or,

political fanaticism,

Nazism, racism, neoliberalism,

surrendering to the God of Money,

the God of Madness or the God of Destruction,

or,

alcoholism, wet pants, endless lies,

idiotic smiles and imaginary elegance,

anger, whiny self pity, excuses, selfishness ...

Delusions can take so many different forms.

The only important question is:

Is it possible to wake up?

Is it possible to give up drinking?

Is it possible to give up political beliefs?

Is it possible to leave religious cults?
Is it possible to stop feeling sorry for oneself?

What do you think?

Self deception

Imagine a selfish and false old man.

His falsity began to grow in his teens, because it paid off well

and he made his career in politics.

He devoted his life to promote right-wing views,

competition, tax cuts for the rich

and restrictions on public expenditures on the poor.

He had a trusting image and a winning smile.

Now he sits in a wheelchair, in a nursing home, staring out a window.

A faint odor of urine surrounds him.

Of course he regrets a few mistakes, but on the whole, he is proud of himself.

He has done his bit for freedom and democracy.

His children wish that he would die soon.

They make courtesy visits and say nice and polite phrases to him.

When he eventually passes away,

there will be an obituary filled with bullshit in the local newspaper,

the priest will say nice things at the funeral
and the loved ones can finally relax.

We need our shells

Hermit crabs are not protected by their own shells.

They generally use abandoned shells of sea snails as armor

but they may also use other suitable containers.

So, when a hermit crab outgrows his shell,

he must seek another larger shelter.

I once saw a small plastic jar walking about in the Philippines.

It was a hermit crab and I came to think of religions,

worldviews and ideologies, as kinds of protective shells.

Therefore, in your life, when your religious beliefs, your political opinions

or your worldview begins to feel restrictive and tight,

then you have to do something.

Then you have to start searching again.

                                  *

I look at it in this way:

Religions, worldviews and ideologies are important

because they give us a group affiliation.

We need a group to belong to.

We're pack animals, after all.

We can't fend for ourselves.

It's difficult to change worldview, it's difficult to change identity,

but it's possible, nowadays.

A cult member can leave his cult and become a careerist,

an alcoholic can stop drinking and start running,

an atheist can suddenly be saved...

                              *

I believe that it is possible to drop all religions and ideologies.

You don't have to become an atheist or a nihilist.

You don't have to become anything.

It's not necessary any longer.

You don't have to follow this or that spiritual teacher.

You don't have to belong to any particular group.

Many people can afford to be just humans, nowadays.

We belong to a big group.

                             *

Well, those who belong to a group,

those who are possessed by a religious faith or a political ideology

neoliberals, political Islamists, careerists or whatever,

they are always so much stronger.

They will forever be the rulers on the this planet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermit_crab