I think more likely what they are, maybe selfish and narcissistic is what leads to all of those actions. I think actions are always just a result, not the cause. And mind is the cause for all actions of people. If person has evil mind, he produces evil actions.
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Effect of drugs, alcohol, casual sex on Spirituality
- Thread starter InvestigateTruth
- Start date
I think more likely what they are, maybe selfish and narcissistic is what leads to all of those actions. I think actions are always just a result, not the cause. And mind is the cause for all actions of people. If person has evil mind, he produces evil actions.
I think you are using the "religious" rote explanation to casual sex. In most cases there is no unfaithfulness, they are alone and lonely without a partner to be unfaithful to. And sex is all about pleasure anyway, sure love is a bonus but love is not a requirement for sex.
I do not believe casual sex causes loss of sympathy and makes one cruel and cold. On the contrary it can, even without love, be an emotional experience causing (at least) temporary warmth towards the partner.
To turn a human being into an object requires a degree of pre existing sociopathy. So again we have the mental disorder as the overriding cause, not the casual sex.
idea
Question Everything
Attribution error.
It's their environment, and their DNA. Given a different upbringing, they would have turned out differently.
Wildswanderer
Veteran Member
Self control is wisdom and most religion would agree.
Narcissistic behavior is the opposite of wisdom and tends to lead to destruction and chaos.
The evil one is literally known as the chaos bringer.
For those who want to walk a spiritual path, certain actions are like weights that slow or stop progress. An occasional glass of wine, for example, is not a problem. Casual sex focuses the being on the sexual dimension of life which retards progress. Certainly heavy casual drug use does the same..
Shadow Wolf
Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
We just don't see this playing out in the world.
That's a very cynical view of people. Most people aren't murderers because we have empathy amd strong taboos against it. Overwhelmingly, as a species, we don't do it because we just don't have it in us. Of course things can happen, emotions can fly, and we can lose control but those are outliers and not a part of our day-to-day psychology (many courts acknowledge this with the concept of heat of the moment crimes). Often times we'll even acknowledge it as something other than murder, like manslaughter, because murder just isn't something we would usually set out with the intent of doing.
Shadow Wolf
Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
Or it's just sex.
DNB
Christian
Your absolutely correct in your induction - wicked behaviour begins with a hedonistic approach to life.
And, absolutely yes, this is exactly why religions prohibit these - not to play taskmaster or control the masses, but because these lifestyles do not edify, but, rather, destroy good character. You will never meet a promiscuous woman who can also be called a lady, or a promiscuous man who can be labeled as a gentleman. Drug users lack self-control and self-discipline, the vice has more control over them than they do over the activity.
Life is too serious, precarious and often sorrowful - who has the time, energy or concentration to be getting intoxicated as a recreational activity? Build or create something instead, read a book or go to the gym, learn an instrument or language, do some volunteer work, etc...
Drugs or alcohol are an absolute frivolous and subversive way to spend time. And, casual sex makes one callous and vulgar, and objectifies their partner.
Get married to a person of the opposite sex, respect and appreciate each other, and no amount of casual sex will ever replace such a meaningful, productive, loving and symbiotic relationship.
Shadow Wolf
Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
So, why am I not a bad person? Why have I not resorted to objectifying casual sex partners? Why have drugs (including alcohol) not made me do bad things? How did I graduate college with honors and distictions? How is it I'm regarded as a very good worker who even managed others successfully?
Suppose it has has anything do with learning not to take life too seriously? I draw, play bass, write, read often enough to read a dozen or so books a year, I also enjoy indulging in certain drugs (including getting a little drunk about a few times a year). There are times to be serious, but I've found that's significantly less than most of the time (especially because there usually is a joke in there somewhere).
The Kilted Heathen
Crow FreyjasmaðR
This seems to follow the typical line of thinking of "Ah yes, it must have been all the violent video games!" Rather than looking to the person as the source of the problem. And especially lumping spirituality in the mix as being in detriment because of these things? Plenty of murderers have been deeply spiritual and religious.
Everything in moderation. "Shun not your mead, | but drink in measure". All of these things - drugs, sex, and Rock & Roll - can aid in spirituality, hinder spirituality, or have no effect whatsoever.
Everything in moderation. "Shun not your mead, | but drink in measure". All of these things - drugs, sex, and Rock & Roll - can aid in spirituality, hinder spirituality, or have no effect whatsoever.
Odd ... I never even think about these things, unless I visit RF. It always amazes me how much the self-righteous have these things on their mind. Interesting, psychologically.
dybmh
ויהי מבדיל בין מים למים
In this case; it's part of the script.
Indeed.
I remember going into a store once upon a time, trying to promote a book I had self-published, and the fundamentalist Christian's very first question was "Does it have any SMUT in it?" with that disgusting disapproving pronunciation of 'smut'. Now ... that was so telling, what a way to start a conversation ... I was sort of befuddled, and I should have said ... "Why in the world would you think that?" It was obviously what he had on his mind. Right up front about it too.
What if people that are prone to serious criminal acts are more likely to engage in the behaviors of substance abuse and causal sex? What if they are all extensions of a personality type in some cases. Perhaps it can go both ways and there are other critical indicators to separate the two out.
Colt
Well-Known Member
There is a saying in the 12 step programs “If you take the alcohol out of a drunken horse thief, you still have a horse thief.”
Is there any good reason to believe so? By what I see, bad people can come from good upbringing and good from bad upbringing.
idea
Question Everything
Statistically speaking, good environments produce good people.
Example:
The Link Between Crime and Poverty in the U.S. by State | OpenCashAdvance
It's not the person, It's their environment. It takes a tribe, no single person is ever to blame.
InvestigateTruth
Veteran Member
I actually had many friends in university or before, that had casual sex. They talked about it to me, because guys in those age, like to brag how many women they have sex with. The message I got from them, was exactly as if they are just using objects. Not much care or love. And in fact as I remember, they liked to say, they could hurt them, either during sex, or if they got mad. I remember this guy from university who told me once , he got mad at a bar and beat some girls with fist as hard as he could. Now, these are stories from people I knew well more than 20 years ago.
I used to have a roommate who could go out for eggs, milk, and a quick romp in the sack with a stranger. I would say she didn't care much about the person involved... most of the time. There were a few, though, whom she kept around(both knowing it wasn't headed for a relationship), and was quite fond of them. So, I can't say she always had the same response.
When I worked, I had a revolving door of coworkers who were in their early 20s(the place recruited from a local campus). I would say I found mixed attitudes there, too. Though there were exceptions, I'd say most looked at casual sex as just part of a good time, and behaved overall respectably to their temporary bedfellows.
I do think there's some expectation from men(from other men) to brag about numbers while they're in their early years, whether there's truth in it or not. I remember talking to an acquaintance about someone we both knew. He told me "So and so says you took their virginity when you were both young. I would have never expected that!" to which I told him... "Well, I'm honored he chose me for his first time, but you let him know for me that it has to be more than him and his hand to count!"
While it could be said 'number bragging' is dehumanizing, I think a lot of it is just bull manure that the immature engage in.