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(Rant starts 05:56) Sado-masochism applies to non-romantic relationships as well: same dynamic of using sadism to provoke reactive abuse for masochistic supply. The narcissist is the cause of the reactive abuse, he makes it happen. So, it enhances his sense of omnipotence (grandiosity) - the opposite of narcissistic injury. Source of cognitive distortions such as grandiosity or catastrophizing (both predispose to depression) could be: compensatory to early childhood abuse and trauma; brain abnormalities; societal anomie; technology; peer pressure and conformity; fatalistic, defeatist, or deterministic culture; or expectations (esp. of significant others). RANT If you give flowers to a woman on a first date you may end up in prison as a sexist lovebomber. But if you recommend suicide to a patient, you get paid for a therapy session. If you befriend people IRL, you are a mentally ill codependent people pleaser. But if you befriend them online, you are cool and hip. If you read books, you are an incel nerd. But if you play video games, you fit in and fun to be with. If you speak the truth, you can be sued. If you flatter and cajole and fake and bullshit, you are a global guru. Sex is meaningless and casual, promiscuity is an accomplishment, virginity a repellent liability, adultery is universal and fun; Divorce and reciprocal abuse are the norms in all manner of so called “relationships“, intimacy is threatening, courting is harassment; Expertise is suspect, mocked, and rejected; Charitable acts are vile conspiracies, technology is slavery, erudition is derided, truthism and malignant grandiose egalitarianism abound; Entitlement pervades; career criminals are martyrs, law enforcement monsters, con artists and actors rule and rock; Social interactions and sexuality are vanishing, loneliness is in vogue; The occult, the paranoid, and the irrational are considered superior to science and rationality, books and learning are niche pursuits; Birthrates tumbled under the replacement rate, marriage and parenthood are widely shunned and frowned upon; Only the virtual is real, censorship is praised, rabid and escalated self-promotion touted; Plutodemocracies and authoritarian psychopaths govern, poverty, hardship, and sickness the norm worldwide. And this was before Nature declared war on us. I count my blessings: I don't have much longer to live. This is one planet I would be delighted to check out of. It is not mine and I have no idea how I ended up here. I want to go home. I hate this brave, new world where: Illiteracy is 140 characters long and has a face-book; Everyone has a thousand virtual “friends“, but virtually no real friend; Every child has a mother and multiple fathers, but no parents; Knowledge is a matter of opinion and opinions a matter of fads; Our idols sport muscles and vocal cords, but little else besides; The right to vote is universal, but the will to vote is not; Everyone has a right to free speech, but little of value to say; Extramarital sex is considered recreation and monogamy a throwback; The only ideology is self-gratification and collectives are mere dim memories; The only certainty is uncertainty and the only permanent fixture is change (for change's sake); Obsolescence is the driver of innovation, but science, art, and literature are obsolete; As men and women lose their traditional roles, confusion and inter-gender enmity reign. In a unisex world, homosexuality, or sexual abstinence are rational choices. As malignant, narcissistic individualism is on the rise, the species is dying out. In many countries - including major ones such as Japan, Russia, and Germany - the population is declining precipitously. More than one third of the youth of these places opt for celibacy and singlehood. Sperm counts have plummeted by a whopping 70%. We are in the throes of vanishing.
