Comments on: Spiritual Guidance For The Non-Religious Libertarian

By: Christopher Shelley

Christopher Shelley — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 20:57:00 +0000

”It is interesting that morality is not forced upon us by some great all
powerful being, yet if we reject the golden rule, the natural laws of
the universe will make our life a living hell. Conversely, if we were
all to obey the golden rule, life on this Earth would approach a state
of Nirvana.”

This is brilliant.

By: Tim Keegan

Tim Keegan — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 01:06:00 +0000

I want to put this out there for your thoughts and comments. According to Wikipedia there are two forms of the Golden Rule:
(Positive form): One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself.
(Negative/prohibitive form, also called The Silver Rule): One should not treat others in ways that one would not like to be treated.If we follow the Golden Rule in its positive form, ones’ good intentions could mean less liberty for others. For example, “I want to be protected from terrorists and so we need to go to war to protect others” or “I would want help if I were unemployed so we need to provide unemployment benefits for others”, etc. I prefer the Silver Rule. It is presumptuous to think that everyone else would like to be treated like you.

By: ForlibertyNow

ForlibertyNow — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 11:34:00 +0000

Have you heard about DMT?

By: Michael Suede

Michael Suede — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 19:37:00 +0000

Some PhDs tell the truth, but many more tell lies to further their own agenda.

The difference between ancaps and most other people is that the ancaps are concerned with determining which PhDs are telling the truth before deciding to cite them. They do this by comparing and contrasting all of the arguments made and then choosing the most rational argument based on common sense.

If I cite a doctor, its because he’s making sense. If I reject a doctor’s opinion, its because he is making irrational arguments in the face of counter-arguments or data.

God gave us a brain for a reason. We are not supposed to be unthinking drones that reject all reason in the face of a PhD’s arguments.

By: JohnBoy

JohnBoy — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:35:00 +0000

Herp Derp! Look at all the geniuses on this board.

I can’t believe the arrogance in this article and in the comments. Tell me how you’re all so much smarter than the scientists and the PhD’s out there. Please do. THEN explain to me why you constantly cite their works as fact.
That’s all I need to say.

By: Matt Ancap

Matt Ancap — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 00:43:00 +0000

Great article. I’d love to see more stuff like this. Guess I’ll have to send a few bitcoins already!

By: 77Jack

77Jack — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:20:00 +0000

I’m glad you’re interested in reading the book. I think it’s a great intro or overview because it gives you quite a bit of info while at the same time getting to hungry for more…the tip of the iceberg I guess you could say.

By: 77Jack

77Jack — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:18:00 +0000

Actually, that’s how I found this page, I’d read some of his posts at the EU site.

By: 77Jack

77Jack — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 17:22:00 +0000

”The point being I don’t think amanita is
consciousness raising in the sense of finding God, however used by
Shamans for spiritual guidance.”

I don’t think I ever said specifically that amanita muscaria brought one to God or allowed one to speak to God. It’s, from what I got from the book, a way to find out who YOU are. It’s done in the dark alone and apparently one feels as though they die and have an experience and then wake up the next day able to evaluate their experience. So it expands your consciousness…perhaps not in the same way as psilocybin but it does expand it all the same.

Of course I’ve never done it so I can’t really say anything with absolute certainty but, considering people have been using it for thousands of years, its symbolism is enmeshed in our history and it has been demonized by the organized religions, it must mean that it and the other entheogens do something for you…and that something is opening your consciousness in one aspect or another.

Different entheogens do different things…in a sense each plant has something unique unto itself to teach.

That’s what I got from the book anyway.

By: Scott Gaff

Scott Gaff — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 05:11:00 +0000

”Well I believe psychedelic means ‘mind opening’ or ‘soul manifesting’
and Amanita muscaria would definitely fit in there and so would other
substances such as cannabis.”

Psychedelic means a variety of things in popular parlance, but as drug classifications Amanita, psilocybin, and cannabis are all hallucinogens, but not psychedelics. The point being I don’t think amanita is consciousness raising in the sense of finding God, however used by Shamans for spiritual guidance.

“It is different from the psilocybin in the book they describe the
muscaria as an out of body experience and the psilocybin as opening your
third eye.”

that clarifies what i was wondering. they do differentiate between the two.

“They definitely don’t make it out to be a really fun experience,
vomiting, shakes, sweats…it’s to tear away the veil and find out who
you really are rather than something done for pleasure.”

Kind of like a David Lynch movie, which isn’t a joke. I like Lynch, even if i don’t know what his thesis is in his works. He uses dreams, spirit guides and transcendental meditation/ OBE to “tear away the veil and find out who” the main protagonist really is.

“In the book they use psychoactive and entheogen more than psychedelic.
And though the focus is on the muscaria they touch on ayahuasca, DMT,
peyote, manna, soma, cannabis and quite a few others.”

I’m sold, especially if the books delves into Gnostic Christianity. so, while McKenna focuses on psilocybin awakening the rational/ ingenious mind of man (Adam the ground crawler picking mushrooms looking for grub the ambrosia of the Gods or the Manna), the other book focuses on the “spirit” or “dream world,” something we find in even the most ancient texts such as the Epic of Gilgamesh.