We are learning to think in distorted ways. 

We are in the midst of a mental obesity epidemic. 

The rise in physical obesity mirrors the rise in mental obesity and gives us a lens to understand the world we find ourselves living in. Mental obesity is an invisible destroyer of our societal health. 

Before we begin, I want to mention that I desire to be sensitive to folks that have some fat they are proud of and who feel body shaming has gone too far. I believe a healthy amount of fat is actually good for us, and the focus on our bodies has been amplified by social media in a harmful way. However, I believe we each have an amount of mass that if exceeded would be undesirable. I call this “obesity”. 

How did we get here?

Problems of Progress

Our bodies and minds have evolved to survive and thrive in an ancient world that is far removed from the modern world we find ourselves in. 

Scientists call this evolutionary mismatch. 

Our bodies are not suited for an infinite supply of the tastiest foods. Our ancient world was scarce in supply of things like salt, sugar, and fat that we needed to survive. We evolved taste to help us. Tastiness is the body’s way of saying “This is good for us! Give us more!” Tasty food contains salt, sugar, and/or fat. 

Our minds are not suited for an infinite supply of irresistible content. We are wired to be social. Our superpower as humans is our ability to work together in large groups and we use this social ability to collaborate.

Also, our ancient world gave us the drama and news of about 100-150 people max. We are not suited to handle the stream of content from 8 billion people.

Increased Gulp-abilty, Increased Gullibility

Physical obesity makes us more susceptible to diabetes, strokes and heart disease.

Mental obesity makes us more susceptible to depression, anxiety, groupthink, and conspiracy theory thinking. Premature conclusion satisfaction. Excess conviction erodes our critical thinking. We now believe more emotionally and are losing our ability to reason. 

Perhaps the worst fake news comes from our own brains.

Let’s dive in to the delicious details…

“We’re giving them what they want”

Waistlines and mental unhealth have increased as large profit-maximizing corporations give us more of what we “want”.

Big food noticed sales increased when they gave customers what they wanted. They added salt, sugar, and fat to their foods because sales rose when they did. Profits grew. 

Big tech increased engagement when they gave users what they wanted. They adjusted their algorithms to deliver more emotional and sensational content. People spent more time on site. Profits grew.  

Give the customer what they want. Make the shareholders happy. Everybody wins.

Get your fix

Cheap and tasty food gives us a rush of dopamine. So does cocaine. We became addicted to low quality, highly tasty food. Our waistlines grew. 

Emotional and sensational content spikes our social brains. Likes and comments give us a rush of dopamine. We became addicted to our screens searching for that next tasty bite of content. 

Mmmm did you get your 3 servings of outrage today?

Fixed in place. Fixed in views. 

Bodily obesity results in excess weight. Gain too much mass and we become FIXED in place. Too big and inflexible to move around as we desire. 

Mental obesity results in poor thinking and decisions. We have gorged on an endless supply of emotional and desirable content. Our minds have become too full to visit viewpoints beyond our own. Too convicted, emotional, and reactive to touch another viewpoint. FIXED in view.

Empty Calorie Everything

Junk food is known for it’s empty calories. High calories but little nutritional value. It tells our bodies “This is needed for survival” but really it might not be. 

Junk food content is similar with it’s high emotional content. Lots of calories, little to no nutrition. We consume for pleasure. Indigestion everywhere. 

“You’ll Never Believe Who Tripped and Fell on the Red Carpet”

Monoculture Minds

Monoculture fields dominate our farmlands. Corn and soy crops abound with little diversity around. Our topsoil weakens, no longer held together by a community of organisms. Ready to blow away in the wind at any moment. 

Monoculture minds dominate our society. Social media amplifies our echo chambers. Finely tuned algorithms feed us “proof” for any interest and view we hold. No longer exposed to diverse viewpoints, our mind’s immune system weakens. Reactive. Ready to revolt against anyone that disagrees or expresses a truth we don’t like. 

The FEED

Sales and profits grew by providing more tasty low-priced foods, and we watched this cheap food become more numerous in our grocery stores and as more 24/7 fast food restaurants opened. Our options expanded. We could now have as much salt, sugar, and fat as we wanted anytime we desired.

Crammed to the brim.  

Imagine if you could eat as much of your favorite food as you wanted without becoming full, one treat after the next. Then imagine there is a magical portal in your pocket that gives you an infinite supply of this too tasty food 24/7. This is THE FEED. Big tech developed the feed style content delivery system so we could scroll and scroll until our appetite was full. The only problem is that we never really get full.

Num num num num [burppp]

Hungry for more

As we have seen, the rise in mental obesity has many striking similarities to the rise in physical obesity. Waistlines and mental unhealth have increased as large profit-maximizing corporations give us more of what we “want”. Cheap food fills our stomachs but without nutritional value leaving us still hungry for more just as highly emotional and sensational content fills our attention but leaves us still looking for the next rush of dopamine. We rely less on our internal wisdom as we are fed more fast food facts. We have become addicted to our screens just as we have to salt, sugar, and fat. The FEED style of our social platforms has given us an endless supply of content but left us malnourished and monoculture group-think threatens our societal fabric.

There are other characteristics of mental obesity that I could not match to physical obesity. Numbness, disconnection, the rise in scapegoating, and naive realism are a few. These may just be more signs of our declining individual and societal health.

What is our path forward? 

Perhaps our ancient past has insight and solutions for us. Personally, I have found higher quality health by leaning into how my ancient pre-civilization ancestors probably ate. Fewer ingredients. Less processed things in packages. It’s interesting that the latest health discoveries tell us a diverse gut-flora is essential to health.. Perhaps focusing on viewpoint diversity and content with less sensational ingredients can help. 

Perhaps our mind is the mouth that feeds and delivers the incoming information to our body that digests and delivers us bodily felt “knowing”. Somatic wisdom. The body keeps the score. 

Where do we apply medicine and healing methods? Individual or systemic?

Is this a failure of each human to choose healthy options?

Do we focus on the system? Taxes and censoring have not been shown to be effective methods. 

Perhaps the solution is for each of us to learn better skills to navigate this new world. Perhaps the system itself creates the conditions for un-health. 

How do you think we should treat mental obesity and awaken vibrant health?

I hope you’ve found the concepts I’ve shared here to be nourishing and helpful.

Wishing you health,

~Sinjun

Twitter

“Stop pushing fake news!” 

The solution is for me to become a better truth tester

What if we had mental tools for thinking about how true something is?

A simple job interview we can hold for any new incoming information wanting to apply for a position in our truth room. A rating to measure the truth weight of news stories.

• Truth Rating

• Truth Room

• Truth Matrix

• Truth Switch

“oof, 35, gonna file that under ‘maybeee’ for now”

Facts, Beliefs, Opinions, Ideas. Here are some of my attempts.…

Truth Rating

I use a range of truth for the rating scale. As I receive more evidence or experience I become more sure that something is true. Most truth is not on/off. Most truth is actually along a range.

The majority of ideas that I feel are ‘true’ are above 75. I'll call this my truth range. I’m pretty sure the Big Bang happened but since I don’t understand the complex math to really prove it I can’t put it at a 95. 87 feels right. Snuggly inside the truth range. At least for now…

As we rise we get closer to TRUE

Besides math or perhaps enlightenment, nothing can be a 100. Absolute objective truth is beyond the capabilities of my experience as a human. Perhaps enlightenment is a personal direct experience with 100 truth.

Here are my ratings for myself on a few items. Please forgive how badly these might be explained. I feel like some of this is just word vomit that shouldn't be shared. Unresearched opinions. But, perhaps sharing my inside workings can help sense out how the truth rating works.

100 - 2+2 = 4

99 - I have 5 fingers on each hand

I could read articles and watch many videos ‘proving’ that I don’t have 5 fingers. Perhaps the case is made that they’re actually technically just small tongues but this would not change my experience of looking at my hands and seeing 5 separate small limbs on each hand that I call ‘fingers’.

Even if it’s all a simulation, I believe that would not change my direct experience. Beyond some philosophical musings I don’t see this one getting lower.

92 - Green smoothies are good for my health

They seem to increase my health and vitality. I’ve been drinking a green smoothie almost daily for ~15 years. I can tell when I don’t have one for a few days that my body is missing something. I’ve gone through periods without a green smoothie and felt the difference. TESTED. I

feel better when drinking green smoothies. There is still a chance that over very long time periods I may be building up some toxicity I’m not aware of so I surely can’t give it a 99.

90 - My dog likes me

Maybe she actually is just using survival tactics to display that she likes me in order to keep getting food. I don’t know her inner experience so this is a possibility. However, for all the evidence I have, I believe she really does like me. 

87 - The Earth is round. It is a sphere, just like the moon and other celestial objects.

I don’t have direct first-hand experience here but it seems very true and if we act like it is true it seems to work well enough to get us around. This would be higher if I knew more about the science of how to measure it or if I went into orbit and saw it directly. 

83 - The pandemic was used by politicians and profit-seeking companies to enhance their power and profits in a way that harmed many people

75 - We enter the Truth Range.

Anything above this might be that which can be acted upon as true and reality will match enough so it works out alright. 

Maybe this can be thought of as a truth thermostat. Above 72 and it’s warm, 90 is fire!

72 - The Earth is a conscious living being

Among reading books that layout the ‘Earth is a living being’ theory I have personal experiences that confirm this for me and I admit it feels like I am using faith to raise this one higher and I might even have a desire for this to be true which is very bias. More on this in a future article.  

65 - Jesus was a real person

I wasn’t alive when Jesus supposedly roamed the streets but I believe based on everything I’ve learned of him from different sources he was very likely a real historical figure. 

45 - AI will help us usher in a new age of planetary thriving

Yes and no. I can argue for why it can (solving intractable problems, ushering in new scientific discoveries for real free energy...) but the way the tech industry is haphazardly rolling out AI art (not compensating artists who’s images were used to train the neural networks) has moved this lower.

35 - There are more than 2 genders

Are there? I know extremely little about this topic so I definitely can’t place this very high nor do I feel it should be 0 until further research. It seems worthy of questioning. 

Maybe it's a nuance thing like with the fingers actually being tongues - recategorization. Or are folks saying the 2 polarities (masculine-feminine) don't exist? Polarities seem very objective in our Universe. Light/Dark, Hot/Cold…Male/Female. 

Poking at fixed “knowings” is a good practice. Even if it’s stuff we KNOW.

Perhaps the case is being made that gender is more like a spectrum and people can exist at different parts along the spectrum of male-female.That feels like it could make sense. But the polarities would still be there. Hmmm I need to know more before I can raise or lower this. 

We have changed many things over the centuries - we used to think the Earth was the center of the solar system and that was a big change. Scientific truths have a history of changing over time, maybe this is an area for new interpretations? Or perhaps not. 

I need to do more research to move this one higher/lower. 

22 - The last US election was rigged

If most elections have been rigged then this is nothing special. Are people claiming this one was special compared to most previously rigged ones? What constitutes as 'rigging'?  

It seems there are many people saying it was rigged and many not. In my experience this tells me there is at least a crumb of truth. Maybe it’s an entire loaf. I don’t actually know as I haven’t done any signifcant research here beyond reading a few brief articles and headlines. I definitely would not mark this one TRUE yet. To change this rating I need to know more.

20 - Chemtrails are real

I know very little here but last year a very reliable author I respect alluded to chemtrails at least being worthy of more investigation. This made me raise it higher.

Bias Bias Bias

I have what feels like built-in biases. Social proof is one.  As more people say something is true I sense my brain automatically raises iit on the truth scale - even without testing and research.

Our digital age puts me in a precarious position. It opens the door for anything that gets enough headlines to rise on the truth scale. 

I cannot rely on outside authorities to feed me truth. I must become a better truth tester myself. 

What helps something move higher on the truth scale? 

What do I need before moving something into my truth range?

Direct first-hand experience. 

Trustable sources. Places I’ve gotten information before that turned out to be true. 

Low-emotionality in the information. 

And more...

Truth Weather

Perhaps our truth settings are more like weather that shifts and flows as we go about our daily lives. Some are more volatile than others. “I have 10 fingers” barely changes but political/social things can fluctuate wildly in truth temperature on a weekly basis. 

Some of my ratings here will vary wildly from yours. 

And that's fine. We’re all learning and we all have different truth weather. 

This brings us to our next tool in the hunt for truth...

Truth Room

The truth room is a sacred space. An inner temple to truth. The truth temple. We don’t just allow any random characters to come in and redecorate the place. Ideally only the most prime ideas and information are allowed in this sacred room. 

Many ideas want in here. Only let in the very shining best. 

What if held a thorough interview for each new applicant?

Hello Chemtrails theory. How long have you been around? Who do you know that I know? Do you have any high quality references? Do people speak about you with emotionally charged language? What are some good arguments FOR your validity? AGAINST? Why should you be allowed in the truth room? What are reasons you should not be allowed in? Got any spicy takes?

Don’t usher a new applicant into the truth room without a thorough background check

Expecting me to believe chemtrails are true right away is like asking me to usher an applicant past the line and skip the interview process. Besides, what is the claim being made? All trails behind planes are chemtrails? Some are but not all? I actually don’t know as I haven’t started an application process on this subject yet. 

I recently encountered a previously trusted source saying that private companies in multiple countries are performing geo-engineering. This moved my chemtrail rating from a 15 to 20. If that is possible then likely ‘some weird things are happening in the sky’ and it gives chemtrails a higher possibility of being true.

Hold the truth gently.

Truth Matrix

The Maybe zone is key here. We are used to just having True/False. Our evolution invites us to take in more complex information as we push our sensemaking abilities to new levels. Nuance sprouts up all around us in these new lands. Before filing a new fact under True or False let it simmer in the Maybe zone for a season. 

Use the Maybe Zone to your advantage

Truth Switch

We’ve all gotten pretty switch happy. It’s gotten harder and harder not to flip it. Thanks to social media and our increasing time spent online our instant gratification muscles have atrophied. Flip the switch and you get a hit of that feel good. Damn, it feels good to be right. Be very careful before you flip the truth switch. 

Don’t just read a headline and flip the truth switch. 

“Pluto is still a planet to me”

“I absolutely know masks ARE helpful because I AM a good person.” 

To challenge mask wearing is to challenge their identity and their morality.  

Maybe it’s true masks actually are helpful and it does reflect your good morality to wear one. 

Maybe not...

Truth Crisis

I wrote this article because I believe we are living in a truth crisis.

Another year. The crisis continues. 

Fake fake news. Dopa-mined thumbnails. Deep Tom Cruise dances. AI is here. Deep fakes are rising up from the depths soon to take a their first breath. Video counts as evidence..for now. 

How do you think about truth? Do you have any mental models for testing new truths? What did I get wrong here? What is begging for pruning or drastic weeding?

Wishing you blessings,

~Sinjun

*My truth rating for this article - 82. I think an older version of myself might read this and notice glaring errors. Much might change, but overall there is probably a simple way to think about how true we think something is. 

**Some images we’re created with the help of an AI art generator. I am aware of the ethical discrepancy of using AI art while at the same time having issue with it’s training.

Right now I am exploring using it as a tool in my creative suite, using it to tell better stories or enhance my idea visualization - not to sell off as my own artworks without modifying and adding my own flavor. Maybe this is very sus. Maybe it’s fine just like using photoshop as a tool. Something I am exploring now and perhaps to explore in a future article.