Guest Blog Post: T. Pain(e)

T. Pain(e), one of our favorite thinkers at Common Sense Writings, joins us today and shares a few words of demotic wisdom.

Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil in its worst state an intolerable one; for when we suffer, or are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country without government, our calamities is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer! Government, like dress, is the badge of lost innocence.

Take your shirt off! Take your shirt off! Take your shirt off! Twist 'em in the air like a mothafucking helicopter!
Take your shirt off! Take your shirt off! Brush 'em off, brush 'em off; brush 'em off. Do the damn thing. Twist 'em in the air like a motha fucking helicopter.

It is repugnant to reason, to the universal order of things, to all examples from the former ages, to suppose, that this continent can longer remain subject to any external power. The most sanguine in Britain does not think so. The utmost stretch of human wisdom cannot, at this time compass a plan short of separation, which can promise the continent even a year's security. Reconciliation is was a fallacious dream. Nature hath deserted the connection, and Art cannot supply her place. For, as Milton wisely expresses, "never can true reconcilement grow where wounds of deadly hate have pierced so deep." She turned around and gave that big booty a smack. She hit the floor. Next thing you know, Shawty got low, low, low, low...

Small islands not capable of protecting themselves, are the proper objects for kingdoms to take under their care; but there is something very absurd, in supposing a continent to be perpetually governed by an island. In no instance hath nature made the satellite larger than its primary planet, and as England and America, with respect to each Other, reverses the common order of nature, it is evident they belong to different systems: England to Europe- America to itself.

I'm leaving quickly, before she come an try to get me, and I'm taking everything with me.

So we went our separate ways. It's been a couple of days. Now I'm doing what I want to. Ain't nobody telling me what I'm gon' do; and I'm felling so free, with nobody but me. Now, I can handle all my business. All my fellows, can I get a witness!

Quitting Tobacco

Smoking tobacco is pleasant. Once addicted, not smoking it is not pleasant. Is quitting smoking tobacco the common-sensical course of action for an addict?

The short and obvious answer is 'yes.' "Based on data collected in the late 1990s, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that adult male smokers lost an average of 13.2 years of life and female smokers lost 14.5 years of life because of smoking," says the American Cancer Society Web site. "And given the diseases that smoking can cause, it can steal your quality of life long before you die."

Now, that answer is too easy. So easy, my addicted mind will not accept it. Not because the conclusion is wrong, but because the path does not include the distress one goes through as a smoker who is not smoking anymore.

Now, let us examine the original question and answer it taking the new factor into account: Is quitting smoking the common-sensical course of action for an addict?

First, we must establish what it means for a person to be an addict:

-addict: noun: a person who is addicted to a particular substance, typically an illegal drug. (Dictionary.com)
-addicted: adjective: physically and mentally dependent on a particular substance, and unable to stop taking it without incurring adverse effects. (Dictionary.com)

Second, we must do a cost-benefit analysis of the adverse effects due to not smoking versus the extended life span and other perks that increase pleasure and therefore the quality of life and continuity of one's genes.

Some of the costs of not smoking are:
-Unfulfilled desire to smoke causes anxiety, thus clouding judgment (decreased chances of survival when reasoning is required)
-Discontinued membership in the smoker's alliance (decreased chances of building relations with others based on a shared interest, and therefore decreased chances of survival when interpersonal effort is required)
-Melancholy for one of the few constants in an ever-changing world (increased chances for depression, and therefore further decreased chances of survival when reasoning is required)
-Not having a valid reason to excuse oneself from uncomfortable situations ("I'm going out for a smoke," is no longer an option)

Some of the benefits of not smoking are:
-Lesser risk of heart or lung disease/medical conditions (increased chances of survival)
-Not being out of breath when jogging for two blocks (increased chance of survival when in physical danger)
-Not making a bad first impression on non-smoking girls (increased chances for reproduction)
-Not spending over $10 per pack (increased chances of survival, as more money usually means better chances of survival)
-If successful, a feeling of accomplishment (which can result in increased chances of survival in instances in which a positive self-image is required)

Now, let us analyze these costs and benefits of not smoking.

1) The anxiety caused by not smoking is real, but if compared with the anxiety of going through a painful heart of lung condition, it is smaller. (I will not factor in the duration of the feelings of anxiety, just the severity, because one can die at any moment of any cause).
2) A conditional membership in the smoker's club can be retained through telling the other members one is trying to quit, and smoking again should this membership be revoked and the particular cost-benefit analysis dictates membership is most beneficial.
3) The constant of "smoking" can be replaced by the constant of "not smoking." After nicotine is removed and the brain chemistry changes, one's mindset should be able to grasp this. If not, nicotine from cigarettes can be replaced by nicotine from patches or chewing gum at a cost similar to that of cigarettes.
4) "I need a cigarette" can be replaced by "I need some fresh air." Failing that, a smoker gained about 14 years of awkward social interactions.
5) All benefits are self-explanatory.

Conclusion: The common-sensical course of action for a smoker/addict is to stop smoking. It is important to have in mind, however, that there is no need to make it unnecessarily tough on oneself, as there is chemical help in the form of patches and chewing gum. Not smoking makes more [common] sense than smoking.

"Mind-altering substances," by Altered-Mind

Is consuming mind-altering substances common-sensical? Let's break it down.

I have already established what it means for something to be considered "common-sensical," so let's see what "mind-altering" is referring to:

Mind: "The element, part, substance, or process that reasons, thinks, feels, wills, perceives, judges, etc.:

[aside: it's hard to focus].

[to] Alter: "To make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like."

To consume mind-altering substances would mean to change the thing that reasons, thinks, feels, etc.

But would that be common-sensical? Would that increase or be perceived to increase the chances of survival?

In some cases yes, in some not. For example, a person's chance of survival might be increased when his reasoning skills improve, or his feelings are enhanced, so consuming mind-enhancing substances would be commonsensical. But not mind-altering substances enhance the mind, but quite the opposite. And some might alter different parts of the mind in different ways, the combination of which might result in an overall increase in the chances of survival, or a net decrease in the chances of survival.

The result, therefore, must be that depending on the substance and the circumstances of the individual that consumes it, it may be common-sensical to consume, and at other times it might not be.

Conclusion: a deep understanding of the concepts and workings of the mind and of the substances and its effects on it might result in an overall increase in the chances of survival, so a very knowledgeable person could consume them or distribute them and it would be common-sensical.

So, iIf you're going to smoke up, be smart about it: stay home and write on a blog about it. C'mon: use your common sense.