EADD on it's knees

[Arnold]

It has been proven that camera's do not stop crimes but it does help a load of them being solved, no not all.
Yay nay innit

 

[Forever Changes]

Instead of removing the conditions that make people depressed...,

well this is the key. What is it in the West that is making so many people depressed and how do we remove those conditions without just resorting to drugging the population up with dubious prescription meds?

 

[Wilson Wilson]

well this is the key. What is it in the West that is making so many people depressed and how do we remove those conditions without just resorting to drugging the population up with dubious prescription meds?

Social media is honestly the biggest one as far as I'm concerned. If it were possible to eradicate the entire concept of social media from society and have it never again return I bet that rates of depression and anxiety would decrease. I would literally bet everything I own on it.

I also reckon that company issued smartphones tying people to their desks 24/7 cause crazy amounts of stress and anxiety in the workforce. But then at least here you see a positive side, especially during the lockdown, where many things can stay running as people work from home. And even in normal circumstances it's nice to have that flexibility. The downside is then that you are expected to always be on the clock. This is nothing new, people have complained about this since the invention of the BlackBerry, but it's now so normal we don't even think about it.

And of course we all know we live in a surveillance state that would have made Mao shit himself with jealousy. There are some very interesting experiments that show how people modify their behaviour when they think they are being watched. So that's doing a number on our brains as well.

It hits from all angles. Personal, professional, and of course from the state. There's so many factors. But a lot of it is down to rapidly evolving technological advances. They always come with good sides which are touted to the end user, then the negatives show themselves only once we've already become dependent on the new technology.

 

[Jabberwocky]

having a large wealth gap is supposed to make people on both sides of it less happy.

i think the fact society doesn't value things that we as humans have evolved to value doesn't help either. it really bothers me that if i had a kid i would be materially much worse off and my career would never recover from the time out, it shouldn't be like that. ditto if my parents got ill and i took time out to care for them, which i intend to do if i have to.

also, i have met a large number of people who can't fathom why i choose to do science on a post doc wage when my skills could get me a job at a hedge fund for at least 3 times that, so the societal value of money over everything else in life has spilled over to individuals. i don't think those people can be happier than me, with values so out of whack, and i'm not exactly ecstatically happy.

 

[Wilson Wilson]

having a large wealth gap is supposed to make people on both sides of it less happy.

i think the fact society doesn't value things that we as humans have evolved to value doesn't help either. it really bothers me that if i had a kid i would be materially much worse off and my career would never recover from the time out, it shouldn't be like that. ditto if my parents got ill and i took time out to care for them, which i intend to do if i have to.

also, i have met a large number of people who can't fathom why i choose to do science on a post doc wage when my skills could get me a job at a hedge fund for at least 3 times that, so the societal value of money over everything else in life has spilled over to individuals. i don't think those people can be happier than me, with values so out of whack, and i'm not exactly ecstatically happy.

This is a big one too absolutely.

When it comes specifically to having kids, it is a difficult one because in the past the reason this wasn't a problem is simply because women didn't have careers. I'm sure you'd agree it's not desirable to return to that model. So in a society where both parents are in the workforce, bringing up children brings new challenges for each parent. I personally don't want kids anyway for unrelated reasons, but I have to say I feel bad for anyone who does in today's society.

On that same note, the cost of raising a child has increased significantly, and part of that is a direct result of both parents working - e.g. you now have the cost of childcare to consider. As of 2015 it costs an average of £229,251 to raise a child in the UK which is an increase of 63% since 2003.

Then if you have a family you need to buy a bigger house. Let's not even get started on the fucking housing market.

Average cost of raising a child in UK £230,000

Cost of childcare could be shaping the population as parents rule out second child and take on extra work or cut back on toys to reduce costs

www.telegraph.co.uk

And yeah people think money buys happiness. There is clear data on this and it shows quite the opposite. Once you have enough of an income to live comfortably, more money does not make you more happy. Curiously there is even a phenomenon where lottery winners end up committing suicide. You can easily go on Google and find many articles about how people win the lotto and end up miserable or dead because of it.

Personally I'd be very happy moving up the ranks at my current job, finally buying a place (not rent), living with my girlfriend, and hopefully having enough to get a Cybertruck because those things are pretty sick.

I know for a fact that having enough money to buy luxury this and designer that does not make me happy and I doubt it makes anyone else happy either. I have some Gucci and Bape shit. Once the novelty wears off it's just overpriced clothes. I have two designer hoodies and both are less comfortable than one I got from H&M. My Gucci trainers look cool. But because they literally cost as much as the computer I just put together, I don't really like wearing them anywhere it's dirty or muddy or on a day it might rain. In other words I can wear them a few times a year and the rest of the time I keep them in the box so the light and dust don't damage them. You may ask what's the point of buying them then? Well I care too much about showing off because I'm an insecure idiot.

Oh and fucking hedge funds. The only reason they pay so much is because you work insane hours under crazy stress and get burnt out by the end of your 20's. I do like to fuck about with shares still. But I wouldn't ever work in finance for a living.

 

[Jackal]

And yeah people think money buys happiness. There is clear data on this and it shows quite the opposite. Once you have enough of an income to live comfortably, more money does not make you more happy. Curiously there is even a phenomenon where lottery winners end up committing suicide. You can easily go on Google and find many articles about how people win the lotto and end up miserable or dead because of it.

Money helps me be happy.

 

[Wilson Wilson]

Money helps me be happy.

Of course, having enough money to live comfortably helps everyone be happy.

What I mean is if tomorrow you won the lottery, after the initial novelty wore off and you'd bought all the crazy shit you dream of, you wouldn't be any more happy than you would with enough of an income to live comfortably, and in fact might even be more miserable.

One big thing that happens to people who win the lottery, or their relatives, is drug overdoses. I'm gonna go ahead and guess that a member of this site who suddenly came into millions would spend a great deal of it on drugs. I'm pretty sure if I was that rich I'd OD from a Micheal Jackson level pharma combo within a month haha.

But it's not just about that. The novelty of having luxury shit will wear off quickly for you, but the idea of it won't for the people around you who will always want what you have. So how do you know your friends are hanging around because they like you or because they want something? Same even goes for family in many cases. And sure you will attract a lot of women, but the same question pops up... maybe no problem if all you want is sex, but if you want an actual relationship it's gonna be very hard. And all sorts of people (friends, family, whatever) will come to envy and resent you. Loneliness is one of the top causes of depression and suicide alone.

Honestly yeah I'd go on a mad shopping spree and buy a Bentley and some mad fancy London penthouse and be dressed in Gucci everything and line up a few of those dodgy private docs who will script anything for cash, but I'm not naive enough to think any of that would actually make me happy when the novelty disappears in a month and tolerance builds to the drugs just as quickly.

I've met rich people but never met one who could actually say their wealth made them happy. You do get rare, highly driven individuals who laser focus on something very specific and enjoy the pursuit of wealth, but that's another thing entirely and they'd still say money itself won't make you happy.

Something probably more relatable to most people here, you ever quit doing a certain drug and suddenly find all your "friends" disappear? This is basically the same thing. Except you can always find new friends who ain't into drugs, but pretty much everyone will treat you differently if you are wealthy.

It's a more complex psychological effect than people tend to assume. Honestly, read up on some of the dark stories of lottery winners, it is (morbidly) interesting. There is also a good TV show they did a while back called Syndicate which is along these lines.

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

I don't want lots of money. I know myself well enough to realise that I'd most likely be dead in a year. Winning the lottery would be a fuckin nightmare for all the reasons you describe so well Wilson.

 

[Jabberwocky]

see i really want more money. but partially cos i'm in such a fucked situation financially and its really stressful. doesn't help that my housemate went nuts and now i am paying for an entire house by myself, so all of my leeway got eaten up by that. i owe my parents 40k after selling my house and giving them every penny.

like i really want to just be able to buy some new shoes and clothes without being stressed cos having gained 2 stone in rehab i really need them. but, i also piss away loads of money on a browser game that i'm totally addicted to. and hopefully later in the year i'll be going on a holiday that costs the best part of 3k. but i just think i should get everything i want right now because its somehow a reward for not smoking crack anymore, or more accurately a socially acceptable way of filling the hole inside me that is still there now the drugs are gone, despite all the therapy.

@Wilson Wilson 230k per child is fucking nuts!! and that's probably per 'normal' child. my mum took loads of extra time out of work cos of me, like 6 months after i tried to kill myself, another 6 months when i ended up in inpatient treatment for anorexia. don't know when else but i know she was taking bits here and there cos i was stressing her out so much.

that thing about lottery winners is nuts too, there's a lot who piss away all the money on drugs and the highlife then wish they'd never won it. i don't play the lottery, probably for the best. i'm sure i once heard about a family stupidly telling people in their town they'd won, word got to the wrong people and they got murdered. something like that anyway, my memory isn't what it was.

and yeah no way would i do the hours expected in finance. it honestly is part of why they all use so much coke. i used to have clients in finance when i was doing technical IT consultancy and they were all absolute fucking tossers.

 

[LoginNotSecure]

The people that say money doesn’t buy happiness usually don’t have it. Those that do and are unhappy/upset, usually have some underlying mental health issues.

I love my life and the life it affords me. YMMV!

 

[Jackal]

Of course, having enough money to live comfortably helps everyone be happy.

What I mean is if tomorrow you won the lottery, after the initial novelty wore off and you'd bought all the crazy shit you dream of, you wouldn't be any more happy than you would with enough of an income to live comfortably, and in fact might even be more miserable.

I can assure you, that I would be happier, and can also assure you that I'm not miserable at the moment.

I've got goals and objectives that, ideally, I'd like to pursue before my death. It's not about "stuff". And my goals have never been work related.

No need to throw a bunch of social studies at me. We all have our own place on the bell curve. Some of us know it.

 

[Wilson Wilson]

The people that say money doesn’t buy happiness usually don’t have it. Those that do and are unhappy/upset, usually have some underlying mental health issues.

I love my life and the life it affords me. YMMV!

I'm not exactly poor am I mate? I think it's tacky to be flexing salaries especially to strangers on the internet but you've seen my posts about shelling out for private doctors and Gucci trainers and trading shares, I'm not exactly strapped for cash. And I'm only in my early 20's, so assuming this corona shit don't fuck me up I'll be on a lot more soon and I should still be on track to own a house in London next year as planned.

I think we're talking about different things though. You're a GP so you're probably on six figures and have a comfortable life and a solid middle class lifestyle. Of course this will make you happy because you can live in a good area, have the odd toy here and there, and are not stressing about money in day to day life.

The reason I referred very specifically to lottery winners in my comments above is because I am talking about a completely different level of wealth. I am referring to multimillionaires and above, actual rich people who could spend your salary in a day without a second thought. They could never work another day in their lives and still keep up their lifestyles and buy whatever they wanted without any worry.

That's a completely different life and everyone thinks people on that level are super happy because it's money but I am just explaining the nuances. I seriously do believe that this level of wealth does not make one happy because once you've bought all your fancy toys and don't need to work anymore what are you actually going to do to give your life meaning? Luxury goods don't fill this and I can say that from experience.

In fact if anything I think people who believe money does make you happy are the ones who don't have it. In my experience most of the people who hold those views are people who have a lot of problems that would be fixed with money, so they assume anyone who has a lot of it must have no problems. The grass is always greener and all that.

I can assure you, that I would be happier, and can also assure you that I'm not miserable at the moment.

I've got goals and objectives that, ideally, I'd like to pursue before my death. It's not about "stuff". And my goals have never been work related.

No need to throw a bunch of social studies at me. We all have our own place on the bell curve. Some of us know it.

You do you man. But I didn't "throw a bunch of social studies" at you, I linked one article about the cost of rising a child (in a reply to someone else, not you) and generally mentioned the many accounts of miserable lottery winners. Where are these social studies I threw at you?

 

[LoginNotSecure]

I'm not exactly poor am I mate? I think it's tacky to be flexing salaries especially to strangers on the internet but you've seen my posts about shelling out for private doctors and Gucci trainers and trading shares, I'm not exactly strapped for cash. And I'm only in my early 20's, so assuming this corona shit don't fuck me up I'll be on a lot more soon and I should still be on track to own a house in London next year as planned.

I think we're talking about different things though. You're a GP so you're probably on six figures and have a comfortable life and a solid middle class lifestyle. Of course this will make you happy because you can live in a good area, have the odd toy here and there, and are not stressing about money in day to day life.

The reason I referred very specifically to lottery winners in my comments above is because I am talking about a completely different level of wealth. I am referring to multimillionaires and above, actual rich people who could spend your salary in a day without a second thought. They could never work another day in their lives and still keep up their lifestyles and buy whatever they wanted without any worry.

That's a completely different life and everyone thinks people on that level are super happy because it's money but I am just explaining the nuances. I seriously do believe that this level of wealth does not make one happy because once you've bought all your fancy toys and don't need to work anymore what are you actually going to do to give your life meaning? Luxury goods don't fill this and I can say that from experience.

In fact if anything I think people who believe money does make you happy are the ones who don't have it. In my experience most of the people who hold those views are people who have a lot of problems that would be fixed with money, so they assume anyone who has a lot of it must have no problems. The grass is always greener and all that.



You do you man. But I didn't "throw a bunch of social studies" at you, I linked one article about the cost of rising a child (in a reply to someone else, not you) and generally mentioned the many accounts of miserable lottery winners. Where are these social studies I threw at you?

I only read the first few lines of your reply and at no point have I insinuated or implied you were poor.. Not sure where you pulled that from. I was replying in response to your sweeping statement that you made prior.

 

[Wilson Wilson]

I only read the first few lines of your reply and at no point have I insinuated or implied you were poor.. Not sure where you pulled that from. I was replying in response to your sweeping statement that you made prior.

Maybe I misinterpreted, but "The people that say money doesn’t buy happiness usually don’t have it" sounded like a bit of a swipe.

Hope you can see better where I'm coming from now though, my statement wasn't as sweeping as you seem to think. I am not talking about someone on £100k but rather more like someone with a net worth of £100m. That's why I started going on about lottery winners, to make it clear that the level of wealth I'm referring to is multimillionaires.

Very different situations, very different lifestyles, sure you can agree.

 

[pinkpapaver]

Chin up you could get funding for any research you liked theoretically at the moment . Any question about covid ? Such as why is heroin still so widely available in a lock down style scenario ?

 

[KingOfWessex]

maybe EADD is on its knees because 90% of the posts that are posted are over thought, nothing to do with drugs self indulgent bollocks??

 

[dsd]

Chin up you could get funding for any research you liked theoretically at the moment . Any question about covid ? Such as why is heroin still so widely available in a lock down style scenario ?

personally, I'm surprised supply hasn't been hit at all in my W.London area. Still ok quality & prices.
But, you've got to think supply is going to take a massive hit. What i reckon will happen is first hint of supply trouble is when dealers start pulling out stuff that was hard to shift in normal times.
You know the 3/ 10 crap , that made you stop going to that seller for a couple of weeks.

 

[thegreenhand]

Forums > social media any day

But most people my age (18-25) would not agree. They seem to get off on creating their persona online. Whereas here, with anonymity on my side, I can express myself much more freely and without fear of judgement. Not that free expression shouldnt happen on social media but it’s just not how the world works right now.

This place has honestly been a saving grace in my life. Twitter and instagram are more like sink holes for valuable time and mental health

 

[Wilson Wilson]

Quitting Twitter did just as much good for my mental health as quitting oxy and I'm only partially exaggerating.

I do like checking IG now and then but I don't find it addictive despite their best efforts to design it that way because I just use it to scroll through pics of almost naked girls and supercars for 10 mins then close it when I get a text.

 

[pinkpapaver]

Twitter is a weird beast . It’s very individual bubble stuff . Did I mention that priti Patel announced the drugs are in on Friday ? They came , as planned in the ppe deliveries .