General discussion thread - keep the other threads clean 29 29

[accessndx]

 

You have zero credibility here or any of the other forums on the Internet. You've burned any bridge you had here and frankly, you should be austrocized ostracized.

 

A zebra cannot change its stripes.

 

I don't think making him Austrian would be any help at all.

[joeypost]

I remember getting up on Saturday mornings to work the breakfast line at McDonalds, leaving that to go work a landscaping job and then leaving that to work at the mall in the afternoons and the evenings.

 

At the same time I was doing "things" on the side to make money. Unholy things... bad things... things that I am ashamed of today to admit I was doing. What was this horrible thing I did? I made arrangements with a guy at Toys R Us and sold Power Rangers figures to desperate parents at Christmas time.

 

 

I did what it took...

 

 

 

 

I un-friend you.

[vaillant]

I wish to point out an essential aspect.

 

While bad behavior can find explanations in ignorance, ignorance is not a justification to bad behavior. The thing of utmost importance in such cases, is a radical change in attitude.

As Harvey as said when one is forced to deal with things – that is the good moment.

In general, one needs to want to voluntarily address the issues, otherwise there is no moral and personal improvement. You can continue to experience difficulties (and even further failures), but what is essential is to recognize the problem has not been determined by simple "mistakes", but by a partial, more or less extended, degree of bad will.

Force of will is not an "mysterious supply" that someone just has, while another doesn’t. I am talking of "good will", not of "force of will": the former is something which is always within everyone’s reach, but one must repeatedly keep it at the top of his/her priorities, otherwise it won’t gather strenght and momentum.

 

Psychology? Maybe, maybe in part, maybe not. What I am talking about is chiefly a moral decision, even if one does not see entirely clearly (but who does, honestly? N/A, Columbia, Jeffro?). After having settled all your past deeds (when possible), you just need to go ahead, with all the help of people trusting you.

 

I really do appreciate Harvey's interventions and Roy's attitude. Both are needed (aside from the discourse on "therapy", towards which I am very critical, but that is another matter).

 

To summarize, what would be best for Chip, in my opinion, would be to follow the honest advice (and let the judgements slide). As soon as things will be better, my further advice would be to dig and try to mend and make up for past wrongs or debts he may have contracted.

But all of this while always keeping the need to put honesty and good will at the top. Any morning, any given day God puts on earth, you always have to fight what Pope John XXIII called "my friend", which is our pride, the byproduct of our human nature.

 

In the chinese horoscope I should be of the Rooster, but I am not sure I want to have to deal with Branget.

[vaillant]

Roy, my on this? I think it was really nice of you to do that, but contact the shipper and redirect them back home to you. Not as an insult to Chip. Not because I think Chip is going to steal your books (which I don't) but because right now he does not need to be selling consignment for people. Chip has been doing this and it isn't working. Getting another box of consignment will only distract him further from putting things together (as he has previously said, he can be lazy and doesn't have the drive to work "a real job"). Chip just started a new job, that's great. He needs to give 110% of his time and attention to doing everything he can to achieve there, as well as spending time sorting out his personal issues, getting his finances on track (and cutting down on expenses). Processing your consignment, scanning the books, listing them etc is all time that could be used elsewhere to help him in the long term instead of the short term return of maybe selling a couple books and getting a couple bucks from a consignment.

I quite agree with you, Jaybuck, mostly because having Chip a job now, he would be more distracted if he has to prepare and list the comics.

On the other hand, he already shipped them – well, it’s their business, they’ll see what proves more effective. :shrug:

[vaillant]

BTW, Roy, I expect a chinese horoscope reading for me…

[VintageComics]

BTW, Roy, I expect a chinese horoscope reading for me…

 

Roosters are pretty tough little buggers so I expect you'll do OK should you meet up with a monkey.

[Columbia Comics]

This entire episode reminds me of the parable of the snake:

 

Summary:

 

Farmer finds a snake freezing in the snow. Snake asks the farmer to rescue him as he is dying but farmer refuses, saying you're a snake, if i help you'll only bite me. Snake insists that he will do no harm to the farmer. So against his better judgment, the farmer nurses the snake back to health.

 

Upon healing, the snake bites the farmer. While dying, the farmer asks the snake "Why did you bite me?" to which the snake replies "I'm a snake; you knew what I was when you picked me up."

 

There's a clear pattern that stretches 15 years.

 

Don't pick up the snake

[vaillant]

This entire episode reminds me of the parable of the snake:

 

Summary:

 

Farmer finds a snake freezing in the snow. Snake asks the farmer to rescue him as he is dying but farmer refuses, saying you're a snake, if i help you'll only bite me. Snake insists that he will do no harm to the farmer. So against his better judgment, the farmer nurses the snake back to health.

 

Upon healing, the snake bites the farmer. While dying, the farmer asks the snake "Why did you bite me?" to which the snake replies "I'm a snake; you knew what I was when you picked me up."

 

There's a clear pattern that stretches 15 years.

 

Don't pick up the snake

This "parable" just shows me the potential damage of unorthodox teologic improvisations.

[vaillant]

This wouldn’t prevent me from helping you in case you’d be "living out of your car" some day, anyway.

[Columbia Comics]

This wouldn’t prevent me from helping you in case you’d be "living out of your car" some day, anyway.

 

I appreciate the kind gesture and frankly, I would help many people.

 

However, many people need to break down before they break out.

[SquareChaos]

Those of you recommending someone hit rock bottom, I wonder if you've ever actually been at rock bottom - homelessness is not an easy state to escape.

 

I'm not sure what sort of tough love or strong medicine is required, but that's one I'm hesitant to wish on anyone.

[HarveySwick]

This wouldn’t prevent me from helping you in case you’d be "living out of your car" some day, anyway.

 

I appreciate the kind gesture and frankly, I would help many people.

 

However, many people need to break down before they break out.

 

Maybe Chip will have a break thru after time has passed from his break up.

[Cascaders27]

I remember getting up on Saturday mornings to work the breakfast line at McDonalds, leaving that to go work a landscaping job and then leaving that to work at the mall in the afternoons and the evenings.

 

At the same time I was doing "things" on the side to make money. Unholy things... bad things... things that I am ashamed of today to admit I was doing. What was this horrible thing I did? I made arrangements with a guy at Toys R Us and sold Power Rangers figures to desperate parents at Christmas time.

 

 

I did what it took...

 

 

 

 

I un-friend you.

 

[N/A]

This entire episode reminds me of the parable of the snake:

 

Summary:

 

Farmer finds a snake freezing in the snow. Snake asks the farmer to rescue him as he is dying but farmer refuses, saying you're a snake, if i help you'll only bite me. Snake insists that he will do no harm to the farmer. So against his better judgment, the farmer nurses the snake back to health.

 

Upon healing, the snake bites the farmer. While dying, the farmer asks the snake "Why did you bite me?" to which the snake replies "I'm a snake; you knew what I was when you picked me up."

 

There's a clear pattern that stretches 15 years.

 

Don't pick up the snake

 

I prefer the scorpion and the frog.

[N/A]

Those of you recommending someone hit rock bottom, I wonder if you've ever actually been at rock bottom - homelessness is not an easy state to escape.

 

I'm not sure what sort of tough love or strong medicine is required, but that's one I'm hesitant to wish on anyone.

 

Rock bottom isn't the same for everyone and in this case it seems the extreme is the only thing that will wake him up.

[SquareChaos]

Those of you recommending someone hit rock bottom, I wonder if you've ever actually been at rock bottom - homelessness is not an easy state to escape.

 

I'm not sure what sort of tough love or strong medicine is required, but that's one I'm hesitant to wish on anyone.

 

Rock bottom isn't the same for everyone and in this case it seems the extreme is the only thing that will wake him up.

 

Doubtful. All of the same issues would remain, he'd just be homeless too.

 

Maybe it is an unpopular opinion to have... but my personal belief is that people past a certain age are who they are. Some change, but the vast majority? Nope.

[comix4fun]

This entire episode reminds me of the parable of the snake:

 

Summary:

 

Farmer finds a snake freezing in the snow. Snake asks the farmer to rescue him as he is dying but farmer refuses, saying you're a snake, if i help you'll only bite me. Snake insists that he will do no harm to the farmer. So against his better judgment, the farmer nurses the snake back to health.

 

Upon healing, the snake bites the farmer. While dying, the farmer asks the snake "Why did you bite me?" to which the snake replies "I'm a snake; you knew what I was when you picked me up."

 

There's a clear pattern that stretches 15 years.

 

Don't pick up the snake

 

I prefer the scorpion and the frog.

 

 

I've always liked the one about the cheerleader sorority house that didn't have cash to pay the pizza guy.

[N/A]

This entire episode reminds me of the parable of the snake:

 

Summary:

 

Farmer finds a snake freezing in the snow. Snake asks the farmer to rescue him as he is dying but farmer refuses, saying you're a snake, if i help you'll only bite me. Snake insists that he will do no harm to the farmer. So against his better judgment, the farmer nurses the snake back to health.

 

Upon healing, the snake bites the farmer. While dying, the farmer asks the snake "Why did you bite me?" to which the snake replies "I'm a snake; you knew what I was when you picked me up."

 

There's a clear pattern that stretches 15 years.

 

Don't pick up the snake

 

I prefer the scorpion and the frog.

 

 

I've always liked the one about the cheerleader sorority house that didn't have cash to pay the pizza guy.

 

I kept my VHS copy.

[N/A]

Those of you recommending someone hit rock bottom, I wonder if you've ever actually been at rock bottom - homelessness is not an easy state to escape.

 

I'm not sure what sort of tough love or strong medicine is required, but that's one I'm hesitant to wish on anyone.

 

Rock bottom isn't the same for everyone and in this case it seems the extreme is the only thing that will wake him up.

 

Doubtful. All of the same issues would remain, he'd just be homeless too.

 

Maybe it is an unpopular opinion to have... but my personal belief is that people past a certain age are who they are. Some change, but the vast majority? Nope.

 

Interesting. Then imo he's lost. I personally changed before that point and others here also have. Are you suggesting "we" continue to support him because he is never going to change?

[SquareChaos]

Those of you recommending someone hit rock bottom, I wonder if you've ever actually been at rock bottom - homelessness is not an easy state to escape.

 

I'm not sure what sort of tough love or strong medicine is required, but that's one I'm hesitant to wish on anyone.

 

Rock bottom isn't the same for everyone and in this case it seems the extreme is the only thing that will wake him up.

 

Doubtful. All of the same issues would remain, he'd just be homeless too.

 

Maybe it is an unpopular opinion to have... but my personal belief is that people past a certain age are who they are. Some change, but the vast majority? Nope.

 

Interesting. Then imo he's lost. I personally changed before that point and others here also have. Are you suggesting "we" continue to support him because he is never going to change?

 

No, of course not.

 

Donating to this sort of charity case is similar to playing the lotto - don't do it with money you actually need, you're not likely to see the result you desire as a consequence of your spending.

 

I tried to help, I don't regret doing so with a small donation, but I'm also not a complete sucker, I'm just a moderate softy... but that only extends so far. I certainly wouldn't attempt to help again even in a small way unless I was completely convinced that change had occurred. Going by my previous statement, you probably understand that would be very difficult to convince me of.