Quote:What's a truly unique oddball to do?

Quote:When you look at me, do you question what a man is capable of being? Do you question what you are capable of and wonder if you can do something? Do you feel your faith in humanity waver or falter when you think of me?

Quote:Do I inspire you? Frighten you? Do I make you want to be a better person? Does something about me provoke you to anger? Am I all those things wrapped into one?

Quote:Question everything and realise that nothing is as it seems. Even this forum posting right now, is a lot more than it appears to be.

Quote:I come here, and to other places, for personal reasons. I like to get inside people's heads, for reasons of my own.

Quote:I learned a lot about human thinking and behaviour playing online games like Diablo.

Quote:There are things people will say about themselves in a comfortable environment where they do not feel threatened. People online let slip all sorts of things. Valuable views into the human condition. Precious bits of wisdom, insight, and thought that are far more valuable than gold or silver. In this sort of atmosphere, people are more prone to say something that normally they would not let slip away from their keyboard for whatever reason.

Quote:If one looks past the text, the pr0n, the leet speak, and all that other debris that clouds the vision, there is a lot about human nature out there.

Quote:And yes, if you are asking your self right now, I have taken a lot of mind altering drugs. My thought processes are alien to yours because they are in no ways like yours.

Quote:I realise that I have put my self at risk here by letting this out. I don't care. People will think of me what they will.

Doc,Jun 3 2005, 11:23 AM Wrote:This thread is going to take a turn for the weird that would even make Hunter S. Thompson cringe.
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Quote:What Leary took down with him was the central illusion of a whole life-style that he helped to create ... a generation of permanent cripples, failed seekers, who never understood the essential old-mystic fallacy of the Acid Culture: the desperate assumption that somebody— or at least some force— is tending that Light at the end of the tunnel.

Doc,Jun 3 2005, 08:45 AM Wrote:Of course I am real silly... Pete™ is the one that is a program.

I love games and I am an old man with free time. What am I gonna do?

What's a truly unique oddball to do? I am not allowed to hang out online? Not allowed to play Diablo? Am I not allowed to socialise and share my views just the same as you do? Does being weird, having strong opinions, and a skewed sense of reality limit me from being able to come here and talk smack just like the rest of you? I put my kilt on both legs at a time just like everybody else.

No offense taken.

I am the product of what other people believe me to be. So are all men. When a man is believed to be a hero, he will do heroic acts to bolster his image. If a man is believed to be a villian, he will commit vile atrocities in the process of protecting himself from all the heroes bolstering their image that take up arms to slay him. Somewhere in life, we pick up on what others believe us to be. And we somehow reinforce that image. Why? Don't know. Can't say. Not sure I would tell the answer even if I knew, because, I suspect, knowing that answer is one of those things you have to find out for your self. When you look at me, do you question what a man is capable of being? Do you question what you are capable of and wonder if you can do something? Do you feel your faith in humanity waver or falter when you think of me?

Do I inspire you? Frighten you? Do I make you want to be a better person? Does something about me provoke you to anger? Am I all those things wrapped into one?

Question everything and realise that nothing is as it seems. Even this forum posting right now, is a lot more than it appears to be. 

I come here, and to other places, for personal reasons. I like to get inside people's heads, for reasons of my own. Here, there are no faces, no skin colours, nothing for the eyes to trip over. Only people. Of all kinds. And you can learn a great deal about people by gaming with them. I learned a lot about human thinking and behaviour playing online games like Diablo. I have made friends. Good ones. Ones I will never meet. I do not know their bodies, but I am somewhat aquainted with their minds. That is why I am here. One day, I might figure out why I am doing this. When I do, I most certainly will not be telling you, or anybody else. There is a Question. I don't know what it is, but I know where to look for the Answer. There are things people will say about themselves in a comfortable environment where they do not feel threatened. People online let slip all sorts of things. Valuable views into the human condition. Precious bits of wisdom, insight, and thought that are far more valuable than gold or silver. In this sort of atmosphere, people are more prone to say something that normally they would not let slip away from their keyboard for whatever reason. They might be shy, or have a stuttering problem, or they might feel they are ugly, have horrible acne, and are far to geeky to ever socialise with normal people. These folk, in general, have a lot to say because they have suffered. The people here are the cream that rises to the top. The sort of thoughts that I want. The internet, if one wishes to look at it as such, is a library of human thought patterns. If one looks past the text, the pr0n, the leet speak, and all that other debris that clouds the vision, there is a lot about human nature out there. A vast collective of the human condition. I have no idea where to keep looking or what it is I am looking for, but I see little trails of breadcrumbs leading to what might be the greatest experiment in human history. 

Like it or not, you are a part of that. And so am I. What's that line about observation effecting an experiment? Some scientific bit of jargon about observing something changing the outcome. The internet is an amazing portal into God knows what. Even I don't know. But I get the feeling that I, and everybody else, is being observed somehow. And I want in. I wish to be one of the observers. Am I changing the outcome by doing so? Maybe. Who cares. I am in this for my own reasons.

And yes, if you are asking your self right now, I have taken a lot of mind altering drugs. My thought processes are alien to yours because they are in no ways like yours.

I realise that I have put my self at risk here by letting this out. I don't care. People will think of me what they will.
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Ghostiger,Jun 3 2005, 03:47 PM Wrote:Frankly I think just hearing that you took a fair bit of LSD should be a warning to the astute reader.

I really didnt intend to aim anything negative at you in this thread. It was intended to be rather light and I enjoy seeing your posts here. But since LSD came up I feel compeled to be honest.

You say a lot of stuff that doesnt make sense. You say it as though it part of some zenish cosmic contruct, but frequently your pieces just dont fit.
This is reminicient of a the only LSD user I ever knew in real life.

Brains arent meant to reprogrammed and when you do it mistakes are added. Of course the brain itself doesnt notice this often.
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Doc,Jun 3 2005, 05:09 PM Wrote:Tell me... Since we are being honest, do I seem that badly damaged? Warped, maybe. But in a sincere sense, damaged? Damaged or different? Am I crippled somehow by my experience? Am I any lesser than what I should be? Am I crazy?

Or am I a better man for my experience... I took a risk, understanding full well what was at stake. I only had my sense of self to lose.
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Raelynn,Jun 3 2005, 04:30 PM Wrote:I wouldn't ever take drugs as I don't feel the risk for me is worth the reward, but you seem to have come out fine, not damaged.  You are the type of person I would love to sit down and just chat with occasionally.  Some of the ways you present your thoughts just fit.  They make me think (as I believe someone else said) "Wow, why didn't I think of it that way?"
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Ghostiger,Jun 3 2005, 05:15 PM Wrote:Since you mention it.

My dad had a stroke and I have had some first hand observation and have been reading about others.
The brain can be reprogrammed to function well, but its not as good as it was before.

My dad for instance had a stroke(a fairly minor one fortunetly) in his right brain. After the stroke he had a hard time speaking but he was still able to figure out and understand rather complex machines; he took apart and fixed the furnace the 4 days later even though he could hardly speak.

Over time his speach has improved again to the point that a stranger woulnt notice anything but the family sees that he no longer speaks as fluidly as he once did and his casual conversations are a bit off.

From what I have read about people with left brain strokes is they often speak great and relate well to people, but they have a hard time understanding anything complex.
My point? Yes the brain will reprogram itself. Its making the best of a bad situtation.

To say the brain is "meant to be reprogrammed" is like saying someone is meant to scarred knubs on ther hand since thats how the body reponds if your fingers are cut off.
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Doc,Jun 3 2005, 10:01 PM Wrote:but it's a bit like my brain can multitask like a computer.

Mithrandir,Jun 3 2005, 07:42 PM Wrote:"On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog."
    - Paul Steiner

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Assur,Jun 3 2005, 05:48 PM Wrote:"On the Internet, nobody knows you're Paul Steiner"
      A Dog
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Ghostiger,Jun 3 2005, 01:59 PM Wrote:Mine doesnt.

I could say its nice to see you back - but it isnt. So I wont.
But feel free to focus on spelling and typing in all your responses to me, it saves me the bother pointing out your frequent mistakes in reasoning, in response.
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Doc,Jun 3 2005, 04:29 PM Wrote:Bunk.

The brain is highly adaptive and it can be reprogrammed. If you take certain substances and expose your brain to them, the brain will create receptors to take advantage of said substance. Take caffiene or capsaicin for example. The brain can program it self to become receptive to these chemicals. It creates new receptors specifically designed to take advantage of these chemical compounds. The brain then figures out how to work better while under these particular chemical influences. With the two chemicals I listed, the brain can train it self to work harder, faster, and with clearer thought processes, and both will leave you with a mild sense of euphoria. You stop giving your brain these chemicals, and your brain will punish you with headaches... Your brain is screaming at you that it is not well and desires more of said chemicals. Much like drug addiction. I listed two mostly harmless and easily available compounds that any human being can enjoy.
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