"One former member said the process of drawing people into the group was like “boot camp in the Marines."
Having been in the Marines I can assure you that there was no love-bombing to draw us in. That being said, it is true that the individual is broken down and then built back up to serve the purpose of the Marine Corps. The pressure is in being part of a group in which you don't want to disappoint or let down because the cohesion and effectiveness of the group is then diminished. One's life is literally in the hands of the other members of the group, and identification with that group becomes very strong indeed. Even after 34 years out of the Corps I still feel great pride in having been in it. The "love" of the Corps came latter, the fear of being a "weak link" is what held us together as we were trained, and turned us into a powerfully effective force to be reckoned with.
poppers
JoinedPosts by poppers
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11
ITS NOT ABOUT THEOLOGY; ITS ABOUT YOUR PEER GROUP
by Terry ini never converted to becoming a jehovah's witness as an act of volition.
i gradually found myself absorbed into a group that "accepted" me.. being a part of something larger than myself was key.
i'd never been inside a functioning group.
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poppers
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Whats your fav quote from a movie
by Es inwhat are some of your fav quotes from movies???.
i love the line in face off "oh eve i hate to see you go but i love to watch you leave".
and the one in the rock " you want me to stick this in my heart are you f#$%ing nuts".
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poppers
I love the smell of napalm in the morning.....it smells like..victory. Robert Duval in Apocalypse Now
You have bewitched me, body and soul. Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice.
Plastics. from The Graduate
Rick is asked by a Nazi officer what his nationality is. Rick's reply: I'm a drunkard. Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca
Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine. Humphrey Bogart as Rick in Casablanca
Play it Sam, play As Time Goes By. Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa in Casablanca
Major Strasser has been shot....round up the usual subjects. Claude Raines in Casablanca
Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca
You'll shoot your eye out. Mom, Dad, teacher, and Santa to Ralphie in A Christmas Story
I'm sailing! I'm sailing! Bill Murray in What About Bob?
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What is the ONE word that describes you best?
by In Between inwas thinking about this today while heading' down the road and thought it might be a fun topic.
if you break it down to the simplest degree, and i'm not necessarily talking about 'qualities' here ... but what one word, noun, adverb or adjective would you say describes you best?
for me: passion
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poppers
Peaceful
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Thank you all so much!! I think I am going to spend less time in WT land...
by Check_Your_Premises ini showed up here about a year and a half ago confused and in shock.
i was yet the latest victim of the runaway train that is the wt.
my wife joined the wt and i was surrounded by drones doing their level headed best to consume my family while i am at work paying for it all.
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poppers
don't leave a Marine with no options and nothing to lose.
Semper Fi, CYP
Cpl. "poppers"
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Garrison Keller, a national treasure ...Anyone else think so?
by confusedjw ini just love that show.
although not so much for the music, but for gk's story telling.. any other fans?.
<tonight it was a repeat>
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poppers
I love Keillor too, although I don't listen that much to PHC much anymore. The best part of the show is when he talks about what happened this week in Lake Wobegone. One of my favorite stories was the one about rhubarb pie. What are yours?
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Do you talk to yourself?
by rassillon indo you do it with an inner monolog?
do you do it out loud?
---- when i am stressed or am drinking.
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poppers
.....ah.....is thinking words,sentences,thoughts in the english language in your mind considered talking to yourself? if so, i constantly talk to myself !
I would say that this is what nearly everyone does, in their native language of course. People don't realize just how many thoughts they have until they learn something like meditation, especially with the intent of stopping their "self talk".
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Kidney stones hurt !
by In Between inspent all day friday in the emergency room.
feels like i've been stabbed in my back, right side, with a sword.
thank god for pain killers ;)
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poppers
I agree, they hurt like no other kind of pain. I've had them twice. After the first episode in 1996 I became lazy over time and didn't keep up my water intake. What a mistake that was. My last episode was in Jan. of 2000; that time I had to have lithroscopy where they shock them and break them up so they can pass. I've been very good about my water intake for the last 6 years. I've learned my lesson.
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Is is easier to just forget about religion as a whole??
by EC ini feel like i am getting bitter and that is onr thing i do not want to be...but this whole religion, god thing is gets to be too much... .
i do believe there is a creator, but have no idea what the purpose is.....i've tried the whole jesus thing, but really that doesn't make too much sence to me either....so where does that leave me???
in limbo....so i would rather just forget it all... .
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poppers
Hello EC. Giving up religion is the first step toward freedom. Some may not like or want to hear this because it's scary. But even more critical to finding real peace and freedom from suffering is to investigate the nature of the one who wishes to be free. In other words, ask "What am I really?" and then look honestly.
the dremer dreaming said this
I can accept that my perceptions are facts, but not any of my beliefs about them.... I cannot be sure that I am not dreaming, thus the name.
This is very profound because it gets to the root of everything - beliefs. We have a sense of self which is based on beliefs, but when investigated the sense of personal identity dissolves. This begs the question, "What am I really?" Discovering what you really are brings peace, contentment, and fulfillment. -
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Is all religion just about personal egotism?
by jambon1 inas an atheist, i feel like i am coming to terms with my mortality.
one day i will die, just like the beasts of the field.
it has lead me to think about the whole concept of religion, a personal god, one who approves or disapproves of our individual actions.
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poppers
Is it really not just the case that we cant accept our own mortality?
I'm inclined to ask too, is it personal egotism - or is it more fear which is at the root? Fear that there's nothing beyond? Fear that if there is a God, He will punish us if we don't do as He says? Are egotism and fear closely linked?
Both excellent questions, and get to the root of suffering, which is "ego", the personalized sense of self. We think we exist as separate and distinct entities, and being separate creates a deep sense of fear. We fear that which is separate because it can pose a threat to our existence, so a personal mortality is created and then feared.
Religion caters to this personalized sense of self by offering answers, which to many appeals to the ego sense. They offer beliefs to waylay fears about the future if only you abide by such and such dictates, or believe in this, that, or the other deity and perform/participate in established rituals.
What religion fails to do, for the most part, is question the existence of the ego sense to determine whether or not it actually exists. The main reason they don't do this is ignorance themselves of the reality of the ego sense. Instead, they use the power of beliefs and the ensuing fear attached to the dropping of beliefs to keep people under their control. amd with control comes power. Power is very intoxicating to the ego sense.
To subvert the control and power of the ego sense one must question its existence. This goes directly to the heart of the problem. Ask yourself "What am I really?" and then look. See if you can find a separate and distinct entity. Look sincerely and see if "I" really exist beyond just ideas of "me". Once you see for yourself that "you" are nothing but a collection of ideas that are clung to the egoic sense begins to crumble. What is left is the awareness in which those ideas arise. This natural state of awareness is what you actually are, and it is not separate from anything else. "YOU" are seen to be whole, and with wholeness fear evaporates.
The fear of not following through with this investigation arises solely from the ego sense, because the ego fears its own dissolution - it is afraid of what it will find. Instead, it will cling to its own beliefs, thus ensuring its own survival.
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What keeps you from killing yourself?
by AlmostAtheist inevery once in a while, the whole "futility of life" thing washes over me and something inside of me mentions the suicide option.
not that it's ever seriously considered, but one of the low-level accounting-types in my head quietly sends around a "worst-case scenario" memo that everyone reads, then dismisses.. after all, things always perk up.
"but," reminds the pessimistic little guy that should've been fired years ago, "they always go back down, too.
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poppers
When your demons pop up and remind you that you aren't obligated to keep on living, how do you dismiss them?
By seeing those thoughts for what they are: just thoughts. That's all they are, thoughts. I am not my thoughts, I am that which notices thought. I am not the thinker, I am that in which thinking appears. I am not my emotions, I am that in which emotions arise. These statements I am making are not based on beliefs but on what is actually seen to be true when investigated.