GammaGlobulin

Yes. A logical contradiction. Nothing about human behavior is logical. Perception has little to do with reality, as well.

Did you notice that I, above, wrote: viscous cycle... INSTEAD of.... vicious cycle.... So, then...why did you not call me out on this glaring error???? Wish you had... Best regards, Glob

As an aside to the original post: One might add that here is, basically, a diagram of the Pattaya-type Hedonic Treadmill... Therefore, perhaps... While you might give up one or another hedonic cycles when you leave the West, ... Yet, if you come to Thailand, and if you are not careful.... Then you might become enmeshed in another viscous cycle, worse than what you had left. No matter where we go, So apparently, We are just lab rats in a Skinner box, In the end. Until the end, of course.

If you want kissing... Please return to where you came from. Everybody knows about this. This is just too intimate of a subject to write much about here.

My Dear Friends, What is your set point of happiness? High or Low...? And, since moving to Thailand, has your set point been reset? Here is a link for you about set points and the hedonic treadmill. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonic_treadmill Personally, I do believe in my hedonic setpoint. Mostly, it stays just about the same, in Thailand. I think we need more research to define more clearly why some people are happier, no matter what their circumstances. Also, why, for example, do people smile less now than they once did? Regards, Gobby Please Note: Let us next discuss the paradox of hedonism, which is sure to be a hot topic in Pattaya.

One more word concerning psychoactive drugs, either illicit or legally prescribed: Some have said that drugs might expand your mind. Some have said that drugs might fry or fog your mind. In the case of Richard Feynman, how much more mind expansion might have been necessary for him to even more clearly describe the character of physical law, in 1964? First, of course, he talks about the bongo drums. But, I don't see him smoking pot, Man. Feynman was a genius. Timothy Leary was just another idiot from Harvard. Cal Tech is where it's at, Man, these days. Enjoy this long video if you might...from Cornell. You will not be sorry for spending the time. So, therefore, stay sober and apply to CalTech, the only good school in America. Someday, you, too, can be another Richard Feynman, only better.

Regarding psychoactive drugs: Take a lesson here.... This is Van Gogh on mescaline..... Van Gogh and Munch were fast friends. When they go high, They would forge each others names. This is why it is so difficult to tell a peach blossom painted by Van Gogh from a sunflower painted by Munch. Also, while high, Much would sometimes walk naked on the beaches. This is true. Just ask Van Gogh.

There is always the placebo effect to consider. As well, when you take a look at the trials and the data, then you also must consider that, when looking at the trials, after averaging out....there is probably only a few percentage points of difference between the experimental group and the control group. Because...IF there were a huge difference, which there is not, then everybody and his sister would take this hugely effective drug. So, do these few percentage points warrant the "possibly crazy" claims touted on American TV, and elsewhere? Just a question. And, please add in the side effects, which even the drug manufacturers readily admit. Psychoactive drugs come and go, as they gain and lose popularity. Psychoactive drugs posses nowhere near the efficacy of antibiotics, for example. Even the drug companies must admit this. There is no silver bullet for brain dysfunction, other than brain transplant, which I think I mentioned somewhere, above. By the way, we know that some individuals are just naturally happier than others. Yet, we do not have a clear answer why. Also, of course, there are those who are slaphappy, a condition which is also incurable, and I have met a few in my life. Drug companies, at least in the UK and other places, must publish information about their trials which they conduct themselves. Therefore, it is easy to compare the the control group results to the experimental group results. And, when you do...the results are not so clearly defined as the product marketing might lead one to believe. Who is to say that I am not wrong, anyway? Sometimes, pharmaceutical companies are honest, such as was the case with OxyContin. The manufacturer told the public that they would feel no pain, just as long as the dosage kept increasing. And, they were right! The same goes for psychoactive drugs. These drugs are not candy. And, when weaning off of them, the physicians are often at a loss for a good plan. In my view, it is always better to be crazy than to be sorry. Some psychoactive drugs are thought of as being chemical straitjackets, simply because, with a high enough dosage, almost any patient can be brought under control, and it makes things easier for the nursing staff. I do not take psychoactive drugs which are intended to alter mood, including cannabis. Still, chickens flyin' everywhere around the plane, could we ever feel much finer? Smoke at your own risk....Far Out! It's your life to waste if you wish....

Hey, Man! Thank you very much for supporting my argument. I have been observing this phenomenon for many years, now. Never a truer observation was ever made. Of course, you gotta know how young people view our present-day world. Not only is it that fertility is being affected, but, just as importantly, so many other facets of social interaction among youth are being warped, as well. Let's not forget to mention the ways in which children develop personal plans and aspirations and goals for their future. The data continues to be collected. It is what it is. These days, the IPCC, which is a political organization, is behaving as children do, as most of us clearly realize. So, then what? Stiff upper lip? Pray to the tooth fairy? Escape into fantasy until the next major tipping point rears its ugly head? I don't discuss these obviously impending issues with anyone other than friends who are between the ages of 70 and 93. And, my 93-year-old friend considers himself lucky. Still, don't worry 'but the future, 'cause that day might never come. What a pretty pickle. Speaking of pickles, yesterday I visited the local mall. And, in one big box store, I priced a jar of imported pickles. Very expensive, about Bt.500. But I am up north. Maybe pickles are cheaper in the south, in cities like Pattaya, where pickles might be more plentiful. I don't like them sweet. Speaking of cheese, it has been 25 years since I had a wedge of decent Stilton. If I were to buy a wedge, then I would probably be unable to enjoy it, fully, just knowing that each bite had contributed to my carbon footprint. So, these days, pre-1997 in HK is beginning to seem more and more like the Heaven from where I was so sadly cast out. Call me Lucifer. Don't you know my name? His names are legend. Evidence-based science is all we have left, these days. No need to pretend otherwise. Also, Harry Potter.

Right you are! Western Girls are just too much into kissing for my taste. Likewise, although I enjoy chick flicks, it is the kissing scenes which truly makes me squirm. Kissing in public is the worst. Nobody does that here.

Yes. And she knew many, many men. Until she finally ran out of apples.

The Economist does not publish peer-reviewed science articles. Also, economists are not scientists. Even Chimpsky knows this. Also, there exists some recent and seemingly valid controversy concerning your claim, which is a claim that has been generally accepted, as you say. Nothing is either completely black or white, even a black hole.

Prozac, probably, has rarely been effective, although I have never sampled it. Given time, the brain will adjust, and, therefore, these types of psychoactive drugs are arguably quite useless, in the long term. Psychoactive drugs, so far, are pretty much a complete failure, except for their use in sedating the inmates at Bedlam. Still, we should not lose hope. Some day, in the near future, we may be able to cure mental illness through either gene manipulation, or, in severe cases of mental disease, then there is the option for a complete brain transplant. Transplantation is the final solution, but there is no going back.

(It counts) No worries. I will soon vacate this old barn for a proper stable. After which, it will be blue skies and hay.

Betel Nut with Lime. My dentist's delight.

You have done very well in that you have reached such a ripe old age. As you know, only things such as the Hindenburg disaster is older than you. But, seriously, I think it is inspirational to the rest of us young sons to know that there is still some life possible at almost 80. May you continue to improve your cardio, your swimming, some light weight lifting, and some in and out, if necessary. The thing is... For most people, we begin to learn how precious life truly is only after we approach decrepitude. May decrepitude never happen to the likes of you! (Please note: As we age, it is natural for our BPM to slow. Even Chomsky knows this, and he is now a spry 93 years young with 98 percent of his memory still intact. Unfortunately, he is still despised by 92 percent of Americans, give or take. ) Anyway: Keep it up. And, keep it stiff. Who needs Viagra? Personally, I do not.

Give me Biafra-rotund, any day of the week. Food insecurity risk is mounting, as we speak. Some say that famine is due to the logistical problems of food distribution. And yet, Apple has zero difficulty providing its non-open-source substandard products to every sucker in every cranny of the planet. Only a fool would not know why. And, there were once days when fools believed that we could cure the ills of the world... What fools believe.....

So said Eve.

I replied, only, to the aphorism you mentioned. We are all on different paths. And, all roads lead to Rome. In the end.

Don't do it. Don't advise it. You'll regret it. Why? Having a short-time pickup is the same as having a banana split. The pleasure is only transitory. And then, you will be looking for another, and another, almost endlessly, until you meet up with negative consequences. I once had a pickup on the roof of the Hilton Hotel in Taipei, opposite the train station. We went from the second-floor bar/lounge up to the roof. The lounge was beautiful, as you might recall. The roof was not. I have always regretted it. There was no lighting. There were too many exhaust fans. Also too many pipes to step over, in the dark, as you might know if you have done the same. But the pipes and the darkness is not why I regret this pickup at the Taipei Hilton (no longer extant). The reason I regret it, even to this day, is because it was sort of degrading, in a way. When you are young, almost anything goes. Except, do not have a pickup on the roof of a building if the roof is no more romantic than the typical construction site. This is no way to treat a woman. So solly (really!). Men and Women are not the same. Men think a roof, or similar, is a perfect place for romance. Women, on the other hand, if they are normal, do not.

If this is what you believe then.... Unfortunately, so very unfortunately, you will NEVER see a declining world population in your lifetime. Not unless, perhaps, you discover a cure for aging.

I assume you are referring to: Howard Hughes? He had it. He used it . Yet, even while using it,... He lost it.... Question is: Why? Hughes-and-Harlow-Angels-in-Hell-Adverti.xcf

1. "striving." The Seven Year Itch. 20th Century-Fox Always striving.

So then... Are you on the hedonic treadmill, perchance? Do you disagree that there is a hedonic "baseline" above which you cannot last for long? Are you always striving*, striving*, until, at the very end, you might ask yourself..... SAME AS IT EVER WAS... No matter what you do.... Right? Ask yourself. In the end, it ups to you.

Oh.... You are referring to Lobbut Kennedy? Malilyn Monloe & Lobbut Kennedy in Hawaii....? The trilled R in Thai is NOT an L. But Malilyn looks scrumptious in her tight fitting gown, nonetheless. (Also, Lobbut seems, in this photo...to be....Nothing But a Hound dog....)