The cult of positive thinking, and the economic collapse

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There is a difference between "positive thinking" and living in a dream world. The former is based on tangible progress and reasonable expectations while the latter is based on fantasy and self-delusion.

The cult of positive thinking is dangerously insane. I've read that in many companies you are punished if you criticize delusional positive-thinking group-think.

Actually no...what happened was the same thing that's been happening since Day 1:

humans are not responsible creatures, and when it comes to finances, fagghetaboutit.

there have been so many bad economies at this point in time, it's not even funny. Had nothing to do with the Optimism cult or the Gozer worshippers, or what have you.

It's the same sh*t it always is because people don't understand how to manage their money; never have, and as long as we're at this point in evolution, they're not going to.

Understand: they can't manage their finances, and they won't embrace pure capitalism.

You expected another outcome?

The "positive thinking" era started about 15 years ago and was bound to end at some point. I told this to my therapist about 10 years ago. I told her everyone was so brainwashed by it that I couldn't utter an intelligent/critical/analytical/realistic word because everyone would jump on me with the "think positive!" bark. It was a tool of control of the masses, just like any other tool. Now that this one has proved to be more damaging to the powers that be than fruitful, they'll brainwash the herd with some other nonsense for the next 20 years. The "you must go with the flow" and "just flow with the current!" era overlapped with the "think positive!" one, till people started to rebel against it saying: "dead fish flow with the current!" One of the reasons I went into reclusion some years ago was that I couldn't stand people scolding me for thinking realistically instead of only chatting about pleasant, optimistic stuff. I used to tell them that acknowledging reality and believing in the ability to improve it is more positive thinking than trying to distort it to oneself and believing nothing can be done about it. I was called a whacko for it, and my friend when she entered the "The Secret" cult dropped me immediately like a hot iron. That was a few years ago, and she's still in the same mud of a life, so it was obviously not my realistic influence that was keeping her in the mud.

No one was ever able to think positive all the time during these 15 years. All that was created was a culture where people were more alienated from each other than ever, because they were all supposed to meet with others only when they were feeling happy, upbeat and optimistic/positive, so people became isolated when they most needed others, or they established extremely phony relationships where everyone was pretending to be positive and keeping their realities and critical thoughts secret.

And yes, if you analyze the situation and try to find a solution at your job in a company, instead of flashing a huge smile and saying: "Everything will work out great!" you're soon fired. It happened to me 15 years ago for the first time. Then I learned better. Still, in my job before last I was fired, among other group-think reasons, for not smiling enough.

I forgot what I most wanted to say: I firmly believe it's the "think positive!" era that "unearthed" the Aspies, diagnosed them as disordered and sent them to hide on disability benefits. I firmly believe that it's our analytical talent, coupled with our candid telling the truth, our "the king is nude" attitude, that's a threat to the powers that be and their "think positive!" brainwashing. The "think positive!" era pervaded all sectors of the population - the rich bought it, so did the poor, the middle-class, all faiths and lifestyles - but what's most devastating is that the alternative streams all bought it, even more fiercely than the mainstream, and so there was not one voice speaking reality (except us, brainwashing-oblivious Aspies). The counter cultures bought it en masse and even became the enforcers, which destroyed the circles of thinkers that had always existed until then (writers, philosophers, bohemians, artists, theater people) and who had always been kept before as an important part of society that wouldn't let society stray too much. The intellectuals' cafes disappeared, and those younger than me here won't even know what I'm talking about, but those around my age will remember those places where thinkers gathered and analyzed stuff and wrote and performed.

Everyone has known for years that the "think positive!" is nonsense. But only now, when not pressured by the shepherds to continue paying lip service to it, are some voices starting to dare say it's actually not such a good idea.

We are in the DSM because, for "them", we're not right in the head. Someone right in the head is brainwashable. We Autistics are not.