K, in a person who is fundamentally evil, can make the evil worse:
Gavin Long spent the last weeks of his life on the road, trying to convince anyone who would listen about his strange beliefs and spiritual enlightenment.
He stopped in Dallas, crashing on the couch of a childhood friend’s mother and telling both how a visit to Africa had changed his life and how he “already knew the unknown.”
He stopped in Houston, telling strangers on a sidewalk how he had fasted for two years while abroad — as well as abstained from sex — and how it helped him shed 100 pounds and opened a third eye of wisdom.
Then he stopped in Baton Rouge, meandering through the city and recording a rambling video of himself — until the moment Sunday morning when he calmly and deliberately took aim at local police, killing three officers and wounded three others.
What happened was this character, by fasting and starving his brain of dopamine, turned on his amygdala. Since the amygdala is the center that produces awareness, and focuses attention, he felt more alive. But it also developed the level of discomfort his amygdala could apply to his brain. Now his brain was looking for something to focus on, be bothered by, and then be driven to act to ameliorate.
Enter a constant barrage of phony agitation courtesy of our race-baiter in chief, who presented him with an image of a kindly and innocent man, killed by an evil out-group. This created a perfect storm of irrational hatred and amygdala-drive, which cost the lives of three police officers.
This is a good example of the role of amygdala, and the necessity of other facets of the brain to produce goodness. It also shows how a demagogue like Obama can manipulate others using their mental inabilities against them. Alton Sterling was a felon on the registered sex offender list who had been threatening innocent people with a gun, and who fought with responding officers as he reached for that gun. Two years later he was doing all of that all over again, when officers were forced to shoot him to prevent him from killing them.
A normal intellect could tell right from wrong, and would not fall for the demagoguery of Obama. But when Obama presented that case to hundreds of millions of Americans, it was inevitable that some would lack the intellect to see through the lies, and they would respond violently. Sadly in this case, Obama’s behavior has cost the lives of numerous officers so far, and probably more to come in the future.
One other facet of this is that these stimuli, which drive anger, motivation, and focus will be foisted on all of America soon, by the reality we cannot escape. Where the rare idiot can be motivated to act when action isn’t called for, soon many more intelligent Americans will begin to find themselves driven to act where action is called for.
Hopefully that will prevent the Obamas of the world from gaining office, and being able to get any more Police Officers killed.
Speaking of activated amygdalae, the rumor is that the Washington state chair had to be physically restrained from Cruz after his speech last night. She’s not a large woman, but it apparently took some doing.
And what was the most prominent word in her tirade? “Traitor.”
Wow. Dogs of War are barking.
I thought this sort of incensed behavior was telling of a hijacked r selected amygdala. What’s the difference?
I would separate out K, which is an honest adaptation to the environment through an amygdala meeting, and adapting to the environment, from mere high amygdala activity. The Texas clock-tower shooter had a highly active amygdala because a tumor was pressing against it. But he wasn’t K because of it, just his amygdala was in high gear, and he couldn’t stop himself form killing people, even as he apparently hated that he was doing it. Likewise, this character wasn’t K, so much as I think he amped up his amygdala with a dopamine shortage.
My feeling is the fundamental aspect of rabbitry is giving up, and I am not sure of the relation of that to the amygdala. Once they give up, then their failure isn’t their fault, it is predetermined, everything is unfair, and envy takes over, crushing morality since suddenly everything is immoral. In this character, I think the fasting turned on an amygdala that was already filled with envy and rage, and that produced the crazy, irrational outburst, while on some level he had given up, because he saw no way to work hard and get ahead.
Dopamine quells anger – it is why nations won’t act when resources are everywhere, even as violent Muslim hordes are raping their women.
[…] Fasting, Abstaining, Amygdala, and Drive […]
Fasting is as important as prayer in Christianity, but we in the West have conveniently forgotten. It can enhance repentance and humility, or exacerbate evil.
I think the fasting is good …but this character is a nutter so I would not think there is any linkage.
speaking of nuts, the progressives have so damage language that nuts are elevated in moral relativism and not shamed as in the past into what was normal.
It was brave of Cruz to stand up for his principals.
I don’t understand how it isn’t more obvious to people that Trump set him up and in text book narcissistic fashion. Because he can’t control him, he controls how people see him by intentionally damaging his public image.
Trump knew what Cruz would say in his speech, it was submitted before hand. He approved and even talked to him about it. Then, he sent campaign volunteers out into the audience to rile up booing.
I find it funny how many people think Trump was entitled to Cruz’s endorsement.
you find it funny that Trump was entitled to his endorsement. you forget quickly.
all the candidates swore to support the nominee …something which was written into the pledge to stop Trump and when Trump still wins than Cruz forgets all principals and basically tells people to vote democrat.
some principals in your choice candidate. Cruz is basically the same as obama or hillary. lacking in principals is the least of his faults.
it actually turned out good that Cruz stabbed Trump in the back because it showed Cruz to be a scumbag that he is and that many people have come to realise.