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Genevieve Tran

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What was not taught in school that you realize, REALLY should have been? (Why?)

For me, things like Financial Literacy, Entrepreurism, Cooking and Sex Ed (and the Psychology of Relationships), were not taught. And I realize that I have had to spend quite a few years now bumbling through life with the rest of my friends, rather clueless. Yet, I'd always score high on calculus quizzes, in labelling body parts and I am an excellent speller. Oh! And I am really confident! : /

I feel I have useless superpowers in some areas and not enough power in others where I super need it. (Perhaps my ignorance is ripe for being picked on by predators in society...) Most of the things that I wish I learned, improved the quality of my life and mind once I did learn them.

What is your deal?

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Topics: education life skills
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  • rick spalding

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    Sep 23 2012: I will keep this short. I guarantee none of you believe in conspiracy but just look how inept governments are. They control the education and many other aspects in our lives. I have read much on the deliberate dumbing down of america with essentially brainwashing. If you can get more than half the population to depend on government it will grow larger and at some point with the technology will pretty much control your lives. There is plenty of evidence out there. Remember you aren't going to find proof. A court case depends on evidence if there was proof the case is over. They don't teach central theory or natural law instead you must memorize capitals of the world...... You would say why people do this? If you were rich and powerful, wouldn't you make sure you would want to stay rich and powerful? Yes I know this comment will be glossed over. All you "intellectuals" will sit there providing witty banter with each other as you think you are having a progressive conversation to help save the world or fulfill your ego of having such said conversation. The answer is right in front of your face. I could go on and on, but it is pointless, you must look into yourselves.
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      Krisztián Pintér 200+

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      TED Translator
      Sep 24 2012: you are right, i don't believe in conspiracy. i don't believe that politicians can or want to do anything of that magnitude. the reason why children are treated that way in school because parents want that. people want to be irresponsible, stupid and ignorant. and they want their children to be that way too.

      example. imagine schools start to teach proper nutrition. how awkward that would be if 12 years old children realized that their parents know nothing about the subject, and they all eat crap. it would lead to tension within the family. and as we know, family is sacred, and we don't want the school to "interfere" with the family, do we?
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      Genevieve Tran 50+

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      Sep 24 2012: hi rick,

      can I ask you what kind of things you recommend for conspiracy believers to do, once they realize that it is all hopeless and out of thier power to fix?

      • rick spalding

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        Sep 24 2012: To do? It really depends on the angle a conspirator is taking. Taking a step back and looking at the complex world we live in I have realized a few things. It really isn't hopeless. But it is projected hopeless because the perception is "most people are asleep, we need to wake them, they are sheep!" But trying to explain to a non believer is futile. The ironic part is some conspirators go overboard with their ideas to the public which in turn opens the conspirator niche to ad hominem attacks to completely discredit the whole group. For example, some believe the earth is hollow and aliens and rich people live down there and communicate. I keep an open mind but I just laugh at these ideas that have zero evidence. It is pure conjecture. I am not religious as an agnostic and I am not an Objectivist as Ayn Rand would call it. I have 100 pages left in Atlas Shrugged. I find it unsettling how true that book is. Lets put Jesus Christ's spiritual beliefs to the side for a moment. To reiterate I don't have a religion, but I find parts of the bible interesting. Jesus Christ and Ayn Rand who have opposite beliefs both warn of the same breakdowns in society that lead to complete ineptness in a functioning world. But what is functioning? The "society" decides what labels are good and bad. In a way all societies are doomed. Anarchy is portrayed as chaos but it is precisely the reverse. There are no simple transactions anymore, everything has a policy on top of a policy along with several types of taxes. The dollar (backed by gold) was to be an efficient bartering system for this great free market society. That society is slowly dissipating over generations. The conditioning one receives from birth is no different from brainwashing. I have learned more about central theory and natural law in one year than any education would provide. Beyond this diatribe, what one must do....

      • rick spalding

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        Sep 24 2012: 1 Is to truly think for themselves. Not just see something that makes them think about things or rationalize something. Anything can be rationalized off of a false premise. I don't talk about conspiracy cavalierly because no one will believe it. I came across a kid a few months that was in high school. We had that conspiracy connection but neither of us divulged our "crazy" beliefs. But he said that in school they are learning and believing that if you said that "90% of muslims are terrorists." That this is completely racist. That comment is not racist whatsoever. He was looking around his classroom and he sees people just soaking it in and agreeing. He couldn't believe how stupid people have become. Many people believe things are racist comments or acts all the time when they are not. On the conspiracy side this would be considered a deliberate tactic to to keep dissonance among the people. Look at that Trayvon Martin case in Florida, the media got caught red handed making it look like a white on black hate crime. If you beat something into someones brainless mind they will believe it at some point. e.g., "Change" "Their fair share", "It's the right thing to do", these Obama comments have no substance or reasoning whatsoever. Before you judge, I believe the Republicans are just as bad.
        2 Is to love your friends and family and support community. Truly keep a balanced mind. Any type of negative energy emanating from someone because they had a bad day, etc, truly rubs off to the people around them. I could go on and on about this also but I will try to wrap up this whole crude summation of everything. As you mentioned "hopelessness" many conspirators have been led down the wrong path (fear mongering tools). What better way to make someone feel catatonic, for lack of a better word, than fear. The endless capacity of our mind is the greatest tool we have, and many use it poorly or the wrong way. I am willing to continue if any1 is interested
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          Genevieve Tran 50+

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          Sep 24 2012: I think your first point of thinking for yourself is universally admired. Though, it's all super-subejctive, isn't it?

          I was more curious of how a said "conspiracy theorist" might practically go about employing the alternate set of knowlege that s/he has learned. For example, in order to change the world---if that is a goal etc.? Or, is it such a small group, thinking negative thoughts, that it ends up being defeatist?

      • rick spalding

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        Sep 25 2012: It is super subjective, but what that person believes should believe it whole-heartedly from their own passion not from fear from rejection of the "society". Today's society has gotten so bad that many people are in other's business. When it doesn't affect them in anyway. Talk about a lack of harmony. That discord is bad for everybody except the people at the top that control everything. It allows them to lay down more policies on top of policies to make it look like they are fixing the discord. This would lead to your "change the world" idea. Everyone is so dumbed down that they just let government do what they need to do. To physically actually change it, you don't even need someone to believe in conspiracy. You need men/women who are great leaders with great minds that support community as a whole. I don't see that anywhere. THere have been people like this though, JFK, MLK, Lennon, etc and they were all killed. Yes, I know I am a conspiracy nut, I have no evidence of things like this that the big man is holding everyone down but to me it is more than a coincidence that these people are killed. I don't believe in coincidences. So in general, unless someone is going to take that leadership role, they can still keep a balanced mind and spread love/energy. For how cheesy that sounds it keeps more harmony in the world than dissonance. The more dissonance there is, it will just get worse for the general population.

        Oh and if you are a bible believer, this can't be stopped. That is why I find Book of Daniel and Revelation interesting. Not saying I believe it but God will come down fullfill the rapture and cleanse this earth. I personally can't believe in a personal God like that. Genevieve have you read Atlas Shrugged? If you haven't I would love if you took the time to read it and hear your thoughts. I can tell you are way smarter than me, I would love to to hear your thoughts on the book.

        • Antonio Robateau

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          Sep 26 2012: Great conversation! Yes, a quest for truth always leads to conspiracy as the lies unfold over time (as every generation confesses on their deathbeds). Identifying conspiracies is a part of critical thinking which society has been deliberately taught to shun (since the perpetrators of conspiracy are those in the power to teach).

          But what I was waiting to hear is the natural law of Conflict of Interest. Conflicts of interest are any situations where one's personal interest or benefit negatively influences one's actions of benefiting another person's interest or benefit. It is proper for conflicts of interest to be publicly stated up front beforehand, but through its powerful influence it is kept secret so as to prolong the selfish advantage. This all springs from an attitude of (cold) war where everyone is your personal enemy and that you would be foolish to sacrifice for another person's gain willingly - yet that is exactly what love is!

          In studying conflicts of interest and uncovering unknown conspiracies, I have devised the following litmus tests: 1)What do they say they want to do to benefit you? 2) What, if possible, could instead benefit them alone? 3) How easy is it for them to conceal this?

          By applying this during the Gulf oil spill, I surprisingly discovered a HUGE conflict of interest actually prolonging the oil spill: 1) On the news were US Military personel in helicopters and boats all over the Louisiana beaches and coastline saying they will do everything they can to help the local fishermen and townsfolk stating BP would pay the bill, while at the same time there were absolutely no one at the spill site trying to stop the gushing crude! 2) The US Government had a HUGE self interest in that the disaster was caused by one of the world's biggest (Brittish) oil companies, the US had the power to stop the spill or just simply let it get worse to increase cleanup costs. 3) I bet we'd never see the total bill. So said, so done. Someone's rich!!!

        • John Walker

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          Sep 26 2012: Bruce Lipton, in "Spontaneous Evolution", compares corporations with dinosaurs - big bodies and small brains - and believes that they will go the same way because they cannot adapt to the changing environment. As we become more conscious, from the noosphere (internet and 5.6 billion cell phones), then the number of customers will drop and withhold the 'oxygen supply' from the large organisations who try to keep us dumbed down. It is already starting to happen.

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