© UnknownNarcissus
One of the unintended consequences of our increasingly narcissistic culture is the lack of interest in others, the common good, and quite possibly romance as well. After all, if you are so self-centered and focused on your own needs and desires to the exclusion of others how can you possibly negotiate the important give and take that goes with any healthy loving relationship? How can a narcissist maintain interest and concern for anyone else and to do so in a sustainable way? We know that traditional dating culture among youth is much less common than it used to be while casual hook-ups are much more commonplace. The widespread use of and rise in online pornography also fits this more self-centered approach to sexual and lack of relationship behavior.
Therefore, as our culture and community gets more narcissistic where egoism rules the day, the ability and interest to engage in collaborative, loving, giving, and sometimes selfless intimate relationships become more and more challenging to negotiate and sustain.
So, what is the solution? While there are no easy answers it appears that everything that we can do to push back on narcissism in our society would be a welcomed step in the right direction. More focus on compassion for others (and not just self-compassion which is so popular now), empathy, and the common good are key. We must work to move from our "me" culture towards a "we" culture reinforcing those who are good exemplars while not reinforcing or ignoring those who are not. And we need to start early in life with our young children to have a prayer for a better future for us all.
Yes, it is easier said than done but we must try and try hard.
So, what do you think?
Copyright 2016 Thomas G. Plante, PhD, ABPP
Everyone is trained now, to act, and to fool others into thinking something that is less real than what was before. This is like shock wave after shock wave after shock wave beating upon each brain, day after day after day, hour upon hour upon hour.
This concentrates everybody's thinking into lasting (perpetual) patterns that are most profitable to the CEOs (money mongers), the so called so labeled higher chain of thinkers (phoney actors) that serve the entirely phoney (evil and corrupt and narcissistic to the core), obscure elite. This is all propped up and protected by administrative clauses and sanctions (phoney laws), general business attitudes (aggressive phoniness), a long and complex chain of bureaucracy and various nitpicking devices that are incorporated into our language and being. Everyone is employed and salaried to do just this: To act and behave as a legitimate phoney.
All of this is further reinforced by each new technological item and the accompanying narcissistic lust for more and the belief that this is somehow producing 'better'.
Hell can be said to be not real (only God is real), but no one has the even the slightest clue how to rid themselves of it.
Phoney becomes real (God is killed), the bars and the chains and the whips and the hot fire take God's place, and it lasts forever.
How about we make some more laws and manufacture some more sanctions and elicit some more ideas and make some more junk to protect and to serve us?
MOTHERFUCKERS.
Have a nice day.
ned, out