Ned Flanders Has Nothing Left to Say

By Not the Territory · Feb 16, 2022 · 589 · 5
  1. He doesn't practice clinical psychiatry anymore. His near-death scare combined with age has tipped him over that knife's edge, the one he walked between philosophical and literal interpretation of the bible, the one he walked between passionate practical discourse and stirring platitudes. His weakness made him susceptible to the constant, eroding mirror that burdens a 'Youtube personality.' The fans hold it up and angle it just right to burn the distinct features right off their target's face. He's just a cartoon now, a Flanders of his old self.

    qYFMFFP.png
    Credit: not me.

    What does he talk about now, other than platitudes? Politics. Lots of politics. And that's fine. It's okay. It's also low-value, disposable content. Anyone can talk about politics. See: Thanksgiving. He at least hasn't fully dropped the 3rd dimension like Shapiro or worse, Crowder.

    jordan.png

    Even without the benzodisasterpenes, he was at the end of philosophy. But that's not how it works. You don't just stop philosophy. You've built up a tolerance over the years, and a dependence. The ideas need to be wilder, more abstract, more compelling. You pull in all the other ones, at least the ones that fit the new model. They get contorted into your interpretations, sliced out of context, jammed in to a model that serves you and the other chicken-chokers. Somewhere along the line your mind realizes that you actually make the rules. An expertise in comprehension becomes and expertise in manipulation, and there is no way in the world you would let yourself know that.

    the problem with philosophy.png
    "There was a small increase in the octopus' serotonin after three days of exposure to Beyond Good and Evil, but day four onwards actually saw a net decrease."

    Criticism aside, I think he's a great person. Smart, compassionate, articulate, and most importantly hard-working.

    He can maintain velocity for now, as there is always another social study to cite and his charisma is still quite prevalent, but he would be wiser to dip out of view once he's finished selling another book or two. Leave while the room is full and all that.
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  1. jim onion
    I stopped watching his content. I can't say why exactly; I think it was that I felt like I had gotten from him what I needed to get. What I *didn't* need was just political commentary. Sure, some of that here and there I think is fine, but I don't think that's the content I originally found so compelling.

    I don't know about you, but I still haven't read his books 12 Rules for Life or Maps of Meaning. Maybe one day. They're just sitting on my shelf, gathering dust.

    He appeared when I was in a dark part of my life and needed guidance that I simply hadn't received from the people I was apparently supposed to receive it from.

    He's fallible just like everybody else. I remember donating quite a sum to him via Patreon and I didn't receive a signed copy of his book. He did respond by email however, and he got me to contact his wife who I believe was handling a lot of the "business" side of things. But still, never received a signed copy of the book like I was supposed to.

    However, I did get to meet him in private at a convention in Toronto. So I got the rest of my money's worth, at least. I can forgive him about the book since he kept the rest of his promises.

    Sort of similar to what you said, I think it is best to disappear for a while. Have some time to himself, have some time to think, to experience new things. That way he can maybe come back and have some *NEW* things to say. I just want to tell him: we get it. Feminism bad. Postmodernism bad. Marxism bad. Communism bad. Let other people carry that torch for you. Pass the baton. It's time to rest and prepare to run a new race.

    But, I get it. Hell, just bad experiences with recreational drugs, like edibles, alcohol, as well as some uhhh others... were enough to leave me with a good amount of trauma. Maybe spiritual damage, I dunno. All I know is that I'm fucked up now. Feel more like I'm falling on the knife than balancing on its edge.
    jim onion, Feb 16, 2022
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  2. Not the Territory
    I read 12 Rules for Life. It's 1/2 autobiography like King's On Writing which is fine. The content is cream compared to most self-help books but that's not saying much.

    I have the audio book for Maps of Meaning. It's not coming up soon on the roster though. I also don't know how great it will be listening to Kermit read academic prose for 50+ hours.

    Motivational content is a very easy sell (take extreme ownership of these NAVY SEAL SUPPLEMENTS), though it either intentionally or unintentionally becomes diverted for procrastination purposes seemingly regardless of quality.
    Not the Territory, Feb 16, 2022
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  3. jim onion
    "...though it either intentionally or unintentionally becomes diverted for procrastination purposes seemingly regardless of quality."

    I wonder if this is because there's ultimately no Action Plan. Like, step-by-step of how to integrate an actual change into your life. It's just movie quotes from Rocky or whatever, or Jocko Willink, with epic music in the background. At best it's like a little boost to your mood, but that only works the first few times, and then you have to detox for months/a year before you can get those meagre effects again.
    jim onion, Feb 17, 2022
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  4. Not the Territory
    It could be. In my more pessimistic moods, I see it as both parties being subconsciously aware of the entertainment contract. How many hours of Jocko or Jordan do you really need to see to start affectating change? 10hrs? 80hrs? Isn't good self help the kind you don't have to keep coming back to?

    "But at least it's not another Netflix binge," our minds might say. Is there a difference?

    Sometimes all people need is motivation, though; as much as it pains me to say, Jocko still does have utility.
    Not the Territory, Feb 17, 2022
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  5. jim onion
    Yup, nothing wrong with just looking for a little pep talk, a little mood boost or bump of motivation! Lord knows I need it a lot. But it does raise the question of how can we learn to summon or inspire that in ourselves, instead of becoming too reliant on others to do it for us.

    I mean, I can't say for certain since I don't KNOW them, but I would assume Jocko / Jordan and others like them are able to achieve this themselves, and quite reliably so.
    jim onion, Feb 18, 2022
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