The Open Thread is a place for open discussion among my readers. Post anything you feel like sharing! From now on, the Open Thread will no longer be monthly. Instead, there will be a new Open Thread whenever it is adequate. The stage is yours. Go ahead!
The latest Open Thread is made ‘sticky’ to improve access.
Please consider throwing a few coins into the tip jar, and buy my books! They are great. Your support is greatly appreciated.
https://x.com/more_meat_loaf/status/1855615565148156278
“normal and complete high school experience” – Shit that nobody needs.
Anyway, was waiting for the new misc open thread to come up. I wanted to ask Alek another question, if he’s got time to answer.
As you’re that rare someone who doesn’t consume media entertainment, and you mentioning in the past that you come from a family of scientists, I hunch you must have been raised in a completely different way from the norm. (although I assume you weren’t homeschooled, as I think you’ve mentioned being bullied yourself in the past)
what did you do for fun as a kid? were you into TV/Video games? or did your parents minimize the presence of those things in your early life?
If what I’m hunching is correct, your own life may be a confirmation of what I’ve been talking about regarding optimal childrearing.
Then again, maybe you weren’t raised different, and just grew up competent on your own. Some folks are just born with a propensity for hyper-competence. Nature is at least just as important (likely more so) as Nurture.
Alternatively…
https://chirontraining.blogspot.com/2006/04/compulsive-competence.html
@CQV,
I’ve read that there has always been somewhat of a divide (although not a legal one) between Southern and northern Vietnam. Way before the Geneva Convention. Do you agree?
If so, how does this compare to the divide between the north and the South in the US? We obviously had our own terrible civil war.
I dont want to speak in CQVs name, but it occurs to me that the comparison is not apt.
The differences between northern states and southern states were pretty organic. By this I mean there were geniunely different societies, different cultures, different economic production models. They had more in common between them than with, lets say, Mexico, but they were different enough that they could realistically have evolved as similar but different countries, like the US and Canada.
As far as I know (and I encourage CQV to correct me if I am wrong), the division between north and south Vietnam was artificially imposed because of where the battle lines of WW2 ended, similarly to Korea. An otherwise quite homogenous society was split apart by geopolitics of intervening outside powers, and the different idiological models they supported.
Did I get that right CQV? Indochina is not my area of greatest expertise, I will confess. I am much more familiar with Europe and the Middle East. 🙂
There were major differences between North, Central and Southern Vietnam. View the differences as in British and colonial Americans. Sothern Vietnam were explored and colonised by Northern Vietnamese throughout the XV-XIX centuries.
Most Southern Vietnamese did not know what Communism really was. What I hate most within the southern Vietnamese society during the Vietnam war were leftist intellectuals who stirred protests for peace and eviction of American troops despite enjoying the very benefits of American freedom.
They were all later in a rude awakening and ought to cross the ocean to America.
Yes, CQV Pierre Asselin made this point, as you know, in Vietnam’s American War (thanks again for the recommendation). That the a cultural divide exists to this day. That the North see themselves as the “real Vietnamese.” Central Vietnam figuratively and literally in the middle. And the South being much more open to Western influence. Asselin covered Vietnam’s whole history pretty quick, but Karnow took too long to explain the whole dynamic.
The Western reporters were the real problem during American involvement. They were the ones pulling for a coup in 1963. Turned out to be a bad idea, then they pulled a 180 on the entire effort.
@CQV
Thats interesting, thanks! Looking from afar its not easy to grasp these nuances. The materials I read when I studied the Vietnam war left me with the impression that the divide was primarily a result of the intervention by outside powers, like in Korea.
Hey guys, remember that guy Lisbon who used to comment here a lot a couple years ago. I remember he died (or most likely killed himself) at some point between 2021 and 2022, but I cannot find it with the search function. Does anyone have the link(s)?
I want to re-read some of his sad story for a postmortem analysis.
@Aaron: BTW I seem to remember you had some face to face skype meeting(s) with him? If so, I would like to ask you a little more about it privately, if possible.
I’ve attempted to search about him myself. Would definitely appreciate a link to an article or forum thread or something on the subject myself if anyone here can provide it.
Lisbon left hundreds of comments on this blog. He first showed up under the name BlackPill, introducing himself in the Open Thread #6. There was a comment by “Luigi Bavaria” on the Open Thread #123, announcing that Lisbon had passed away. In that comment, two YouTube videos were linked, but both have been deleted in the meantime. Lisbon himself made his last appearance in the Open Thread #119.
This was years ago. I do not keep records of my consultation sessions, so I am not sure I can be of any help. Also, what people tell me privately I keep confidential.
I was hoping it wasn’t true, but I’m pretty sure it is. Aaron did a great job trying to help, but I think Lisbon was too far gone. Just a very sad state of affairs.
This helps, thanks. I didnt remember his first posts were under the “Blackpill” name. It makes more sense now, he was already suicidal from the beginning.
I seem to remember cause of death was an overdose?
The reason I am asking is I got into an interesting academic conversation about incels, online communities and violence with someone. This person brought up Elliot Rodgers of course, who also came up in our old forum back in the day. I seen to remember a thread where someone had known him, either on another forum or IRL. I will look it up later, but if that person is still around pls chime in.
I am arguing that online communities like this one do not radicalize guys to violence, but on the contrary people usually try to help them (admittedly not always with useful advice). And, if anything, they are more likely kill themselves rather than commit violence against someone else.
If anyone has other links to things he posted outside of this blog, I will aporeciate it.
Indeed, the purported cause of death was an overdose. He also had an alcohol problem and was quite open about it.
I think Lisbon is a sad but interesting case study. He was a guy of indian origin in a western country, so he had that going against him. This put him squarely in the target demographic for PUA snake oil salesmen.
However the rest of his fundamentals (LMS) seemed to be more or less in order, so he should have been able to get at least some girls. Was there anything else off about him, besides his mental state? Did he ever mention having psychological help, or taking any meds?
I remember there was a video somewhere where he appeared in person, but it seems to be one of the deleted ones. Did he speak with an accent?
I recall that he spoke with an accent, but not at all like The Simpsons’ Apu Nahasapeemapetilon (of course, I had to look up the spelling). He came across as rather subdued and pessimistic, which is nothing women appreciate very much, or anybody around you, for that matter. I may be wrong, but I am under the impression that people repeatedly suggested to him to get his mental health checked, but in a supportive way, instead of cyber-bullying him. My armchair analysis is that antidepressants may have helped him a lot.
Thanks for the links, Aaron. At least the poor fella is in peace now. I’d say Lisbon is similar to Omega Virgin Revolt in the sense that both probably got far too damaged by our cruel, gynocentric, and fickle society in their developing years to be salvageable. (I’m talking in terms of being able to manage with women’s propensity for plausible deniability. all women would have to do is drop that shit with men who are obviously on the less confident side, but that’s apparently too much to ask for)
The difference however is that OVR eventually learned not to derive his self-worth off the opinion of the so-called “fairer sex”, which Lisbon sadly never managed to do.
https://archive.is/wi48g
I’m pretty sure you’ve written about this yourself, Aaron. Getting your worldview shattered in the heat of the moment (Trusting and Idolizing women all your life only to one day find yourself in a position to be seriously fucked over because of that naivety) can lead to disastrous consequences.
The Bluepill is unfortunately not just a comfortable lie. Its dangerous.
Yknow, having talked about my unfortunate earlier history quite a bit here, I feel the reason I never fell into the trap of being a bluepilled woman idolizer is that, having started school being bullied mercilessly and having low-tier status, meant female classmates (before I eventually transferred to an all-boys school) treated me like shit right from the getgo. They didn’t bully me, but they certainly expressed disgust at me and wanted nothing to do with me. I got a taste of the nasty side of female nature right away.
Inexperienced men (so-called “Nice Guys”) often mistake friendliness/kindness for sexual attraction, but when I went to college and finally started being treated well, I was just grateful at finally being treated like a person. I didn’t think this was attraction because in my mind at the time…there was just no way. Even from the very beginning, I found fat women absolutely repulsive, and I simply assumed women felt the same way about fat guys. (which is mostly true, unless they are built a certain way…and I just so happened to grow to fit into that box)
Little did I realize that I had completed my “Ugly Duckling” transformation.
https://aloofguy.blogspot.com/2011/11/road-to-aloofness.html
________
It’s also around this time that puberty started to work its magic. Now, by this point I had internalized the notion that I was an outsider and that no one wanted to fuck me. This is critical to realizing why I’m still a very aloof person. Simply put, I went from being a fat nerdy kid that no one wanted to fuck to being some sort of sexy rebel that every girl wanted to fuck.
Being a complete social retard from years of geekery and poverty, I had no fucking clue this flipping of the poles had happened. When the first sexual signals started floating in, I figured it was some kind of chickenshit setup. That other people were fucking with the fat nerdy kid for fun — after all, it was high school.
________
My origin story in regards to interaction with the “fairer sex” is very similar to his, except it happened in college. I think you might also like his blog post (its in 2011 which is the same year as that blog post I link) “The Basics: How Women Approach Guys”
If you are a racist, you immediately assume that a news story about a guy throwing a baby against the wall in response to getting owned in an online game must involve an urban gentleman:
https://archive.ph/ibVVq
As I am not a racist, I was shocked and surprised to find out that the racists would have been right.
Berlin night clubs are closing down
https://www.thetimes.com/article/e67617af-0d9c-48e4-8b40-812d3fa7b3e7?shareToken=f32e0aa43d371a9edb22cbb498a21ad0