Weird and fun Christmas gifts even your grouchy Grampa can enjoy! Here at FloxMonster™ we try to provide humor even about topics that some people find depressing. Like the Holidays… some people love them, others dread them. So here’s our take on Christmas, in the first of our FloxMonster™ Rotten Holidays line: “Ho F*¢king Ho!”
Weird Christmas Gifts… Fun Yes, And Kinda Off-Color
We acknowledge, not everyone loves the Holidays. Let’s be honest: plenty of folks hate them. So for all you Grumpy Gusses out there, we offer an only-slightly-censored “HO F*¢KING HO!” (You know what the * and ¢ stand for; we’re all adults here!) Furthermore, we are going to offer plenty of other designs in our “FloxMonster™ Rotten Holidays” series, so keep your eyes here on Flox.monster!
Here are some things we’d like you to know about FloxMonster™ creations.
All Unique and Beautiful FloxMonster™ Art
First, all the art on FloxMonster™ products is unique; you won’t find it anywhere else. Instead, with ours you can appreciate the result of keen craftsmanship focused through many hours’ work, and a polished creative process. To be specific, we create and compose our art not just using traditional methods, but by honing it with software like Filter Forge, Photoshop, and Blender. Occasionally, we also incorporate components of public-domain or licensed art. When finished, we combine all this work into unique, humorous creations we hope you will enjoy.
Custom Printed Christmas Gifts
Second, all the products on this website are printed when you order them. Therefore, we do not keep them in stock; they are made-to-order. This is good for the environment, because it keeps waste out of landfills and reduces electricity-use, because there’s no need to heat or cool extra stock.
Specifically, we contract our printed items through Printify.com, who sends them to printing companies, who then drop-ship them anywhere in the world. Once you complete your purchase here, our website sends your order immediately to Printify for completion.
Offensive But Funny
Third, we are fully aware that the “Ho F*¢king Ho!” line is going to offend some people. We strongly recommend that you wear or use the items somewhere private, or around friends who you know will laugh about them… because that is the entire point of why we made them. The art is meant to be funny. We call it:
“Dark Humor for the Dark Times of the Year.”
In conclusion, we remind you that some people really do want to flip off Christmas. And why not? There’s the gross over-commercialization, the false cheeriness, putting up the lights, the kids demanding presents, the visiting relatives, the traffic… oh yeah! Well, this one’s for all of you.
Ho Fucking Ho! Merry Fucking Christmas! You bet!
That said… let’s get to the gifts. 🙂
Weird, Fun Christmas Gifts: “Ho F*¢king Ho!”
FloxMonster™ offers custom-printed mugs, aluminum ornaments, unisex hooded sweatshirts (a.k.a. hoodies), unisex t-shirts, velveteen blankets, and more. Don’t see what you want? Contact us to request it!
Free textures on this page? Absolutely! Please honor our license (which basically says you won’t sell them, put them elsewhere without a link, or use them for hate). The filters to make these are also free, but you do need Filter Forge.
What is Filter Forge? It is a useful program for making textures, along with matching normals, bumpmaps, specular maps, etc. It can be a standalone program, or a Photoshop plugin. FloxMonster™ has been using it for over a decade. Until early 2023, when the company that owns Filter Forge made some unsavory changes, FloxMonster™ also created filters for the program.
What is & ISN’T Free?
NO, Filter Forge is NOT a free program. However, YES, there’s a 30 day free trial. Once you have Filter Forge, then YES, all filters listed on this page are FREE!
Also… YES, all textures on this page are FREE to download (except the two FloxMonster™ ones that specifically say “You May Not Use This Image” lol). Just right-click the images you want, and “Save As.”
~ This page lists all Floxmonster™’s filters ~ Below are just a few favorites 🙂
“Endless Cookies!” sample by A.M. Coy. 512×512 seamless.
This is one of my fave filters because I love cookies! It is based on Orteil’s Cookies filter, which created fantastic cookie textures… except they were round with pale/transparent backgrounds. I needed seamless textures to make 3-D cookies in Second Life, so I tweaked Orteil’s creation to make this version.
“Gobs of Monster!” sample by A.M. Coy. 512×512 seamless.
This awesome filter is fantastic for organic, bumpy, ripply things like pumpkins, candle wax, monster skin, even mud. You can increase the shine and metallic qualities, plus alter the size of the bumps on two different scales.
“Funky Punkin” sample by A. M. Coy. 512×512 seamless.
Funky Punkin. Because there are enough ordinary pumpkins in the world. 🙂 You can get not only weird pumpkins, but alien tree-bark, colorful candle wax, or even bizarre throw rugs out of this one! Use your imagination!
“Coy’s Horrid Foam” sample by A. M. Coy. 512×512 seamless, partly transparent.
Foam for all your frothy purposes! This has a wide range of uses: sea form, horror monster drool, frosting, whipped cream, ejaculate, pearls… use your imagination! I was in a Halloweeny mood when I made it, thus the name. It can be made any color, any metallic/reflection combo, and seamless for your repeating pleasure.
“Coy’s Heavenly Pearls” sample by A. M. Coy. 512×512 seamless.
Heavenly Pearls is great for making either light or dark colored pearls. It has controls for color and reflectivity. There is also a rainbow overlay to lend extra color to your pearls. Make them seamless for easy wrap on 3-D mesh.
“Coy’s SuperMoss” sample by A. M. Coy. 512×512 seamless. partly transparent. .
Coy’s SuperMoss can cover an existing OR new image with clusters of rippled moss. You can control moss colors, highlights, shadow, height, and much more. This filter is VERY detailed and thus runs slowly. As a bonus, the normal/bump maps incorporate any image you plug in.
“Coy’s Big Textured Clumps of Moss” sample by A. M. Coy. 512×512 seamless, partly transparent.
Not as complicated as the SuperMoss filter, this one runs quicker and covers larger portions of the image. You can use it to cover existing pictures, or a new one. Very flexible and pretty for making landscapes. You can change the colors, too, so you can add “alien” vegetation to things.
Watch This Space!
FloxMonster™ will probably add more filters and more textures as they come about.
Please visit our shop – Great prices on custom giftS… and all genuine Floxmonster™ art! 🙂
Great news–FloxMonster™ now offers fantastic, custom gifts at our FloxMonster™ Shop!
Overview
We debated doing this for some time, but there’s a virtual art project for which we are trying to raise money (not to mention real-life bills). So we now offer many items such as shirts, hoodies, blankets, etc. printed with our art. Each is created when you order, but it’s cool–there’s only a short wait to receive your goods. 🙂
Who Is Printing What?
To handle our print orders and shipping, we have selected a company called Printify. Through them, we have carefully selected vendors who are all based in America and who emphasize quality as well as environmental safety. That means they are not the absolute, rock-bottom cheapest, but we would rather find a comfortable balance between good quality, important values, and a fair price. We think the resulting products will please everyone.
Special Requests & Custom Gifts
If you would like to see some of our art on an item not currently offered, or some kind of custom gift, just let us know on the contact page! We will do our best to sniff it out and make that happen. 🙂 Printify has numerous vendors, and different ones offer different products. (For example, we found a bento box you could custom-print, the other day. That’s like a Japanese lunch box.) So just ask! 🙂
Gifts For Christmas?
Oh, you better believe we’ll be offering Christmas gifts! We plan to release a whole series of Un-Happy Holidays cards, shirts, and more with silly and sour slogans. So you can look for that coming soon! 😀
FloxMonster™ Sees You! 😛
Our first round of products follows a theme close to FloxMonster™’s heart! It’s our early logo and humorous slogan: “FloxMonster™ Sees You! :-P” Currently available on blankets, shirts, and hoodies in multiple colors. Enjoy!
We look forward to offering a great selection of products everyone can enjoy. Therefore, if there’s anything we can do differently, please let us know!
Please help save Haunted Nawlins! It is both Wyvern’s art… and his virtual home. He spends 90% of his waking hours there.
What is Haunted Nawlins?
Over the course of 2022, Wyvern Dryke worked endlessly to create an enormous, virtual art project called “Haunted Nawlins.” The build displays his representation of historic New Orleans from October 1901. He created it in a spooky, dark style. The art juxtaposes and contrasts beauty with decay, splendor with poverty and loss.
Visitors can explore the bustling, ghost-filled French Quarter; the stately, rotting mansions of the Garden District; the swampy Bayou where Rougarou and gators tread; the quiet columns of Lafayette cemetery; and so much more! It overflows with interactive games, vehicles, and characters
Why Does Haunted Nawlins Need Help?
Rent for “virtual land” in Second Life is expensive. Because Wyvern is permanently disabled, his income is very low. Therefore, he had a sponsor for the project, who paid the necessary rent. Unfortunately, in March 2022 that sponsor became ill, and by mid-October, his account disappeared from Second Life. That means the virtual land on which Haunted Nawlins sits will shortly disappear, too.
How Can You Help?
Please help rent virtual land for this project. There is so much left to add! Wyvern wants to improve the AI of his characters so that they can interact better with visitors, and tell the history of New Orleans. Also, Mardi Gras is coming! How great would that be? 😀 Haunted Mardi Gras? Yaaaas.
There are three SUPER EASY ways to help…
Option 1 – donate Via “GoFundMe” or Paypal to help Haunted Nawlins continue!
Option 2 – Purchase Items From Floxmonster™ Shop!
In late October, we added a new section to the FloxMonster™ website. There is now a SHOP! where you can buy custom, print-on-demand gifts like shirts, hoodies, blankets, and other great stuff!
10% of all proceeds from the shop will go toward Environmental Causes. The rest will be split between evenly helping Wyvern and paying our own bills.
Option 3 – Purchase Items From Coyoteas.com!
Coy o’Teas is a member of the Dreaming Gates Partnership, which has pledged to contribute a portion of every sale toward the preservation of Haunted Nawlins! They sell gourmet and dessert tea, fresh incense, and some handmade jewelry.
To visit, you need a Second Life account (basic ones are free). At least for now, you can still visit the build. We do not know how long it will be there!
Instructions for Second Life: 1) Log into your account. 2) Open the map by pressing Ctrl+M. 3) Type “Mieville Poe” into the search window. 4) Click “Teleport” button. You’re there.
NOTE: This entry pertains to a feature of the Second Life meta- or hypergrid.
~L/Fx~ EXPERIENCE INFO & HELP
Hello! I am Wyvern Dryke, creator of ~Lantian/Flox~ variety shop. This article is about the “~L/Fx~ Experience,” which is a great part of Second Life you can enable on your land (or for yourself!) to make my items even more fun and easy to use. 🙂 I will show you how.
Overview: what does an Experience do? The SL Experience system allows users to grant permission once, then not have to do so again. There’s no interruption to click “Yes” or “Accept” buttons in the middle of roleplay or chat. It is just like the traditional permissions system, but more convenient and (mostly) permanent.
I’ve been offering Experience-enabled items since 2020. Now there are games, food, jewelry, gadgets, and more!
For example, if you grant permission to my “~L/Fx~ Experience” in order eat a bowl of my soup today, a cup of my tea even months from now will not have to ask permission to attach or animate you. Instead, it will work seamlessly, because you have granted permission to the same Experience which powers it.
(And YES, you can always remove permission! Instructions are below.)
Briefly About Me:
I have been scripting in SL for 15+ years, and have become well known for quality items which are both useful and entertaining. I believe I have proven myself to be a responsible coder, with a respect for my consumers and my audience. If you have any concerns or questions, please do ask. I will be happy to show you how the “~L/Fx~ Experience” works! 🙂
Enabling ~L/Fx~ Experience On Your Land
In order for the “~L/Fx~ Experience” to work, you must enable it on the parcel or sim where the scripted item(s) are running.
It is EASY to do so. Follow these steps:
At top of SL window, open “World” menu. Choose “About Land” or “Parcel Details” from menu.
On right-hand side there is an “Experiences” tab. (You may have to click tiny right-arrow to see it.)
On “Experiences” tab, click top “Add” button. A “Choose Experience” window will open.
Type or copy/paste into that window’s search area: ~L/Fx~ Experience
Click “GO” button.
When “~L/Fx~ Experience” appears below search-box, make sure I am the creator: –> It may show my display name: “Wyvvy the Flox” or “FloxMonster”. Use calling card ^ to see current name.
If I am the creator, click that Experience in the list, then click “GO” Button.
BONUS: Are you an Estate Manager or Sim Owner? You can add my Experience to your whole Region too! Use… Menu: World > Region Details > Experiences tab… 1st or 2nd “Add” button… ~L/Fx~ Experience
How to Allow “~L/Fx~ Experience” Personally
To Allow (or grant permission to) “~L/Fx~ Experience” is to let my Experience-enabled items attach, animate you, etc. automatically without asking permission again. To do so…
1.) Copy/Paste this into local chat, and hit Enter: secondlife:///app/experience/9cdd90bc-f254-11e5-b985-fa4c4c646b81/profile 2.) Click the link that results. 3.) Click “Allow” button. –> if “Allow” button is grayed out, you have already granted permission.
That’s it! To revoke that permission, you will have to “Forget” the “~L/Fx~ Experience.”
How to Forget “~L/Fx~ Experience”
If you no longer want to allow my items to do things automatically (such as attach, animate, teleport you, etc.), you can remove permission from the “~L/Fx~ Experience.” To do this…
Copy/Paste this into local chat, and hit Enter: secondlife:///app/experience/9cdd90bc-f254-11e5-b985-fa4c4c646b81/profile
Click the link that results.
Click “Forget” button. –> if “Forget” button is grayed out, you have not yet granted “~L/Fx~ Experience” permission.
That’s it! You will need to Allow “~L/Fx~ Experience” again if you change your mind.
NOTE: This entry pertains to a feature of the Second Life meta- or hypergrid.
This EULA applies to all Full Perm items I create in the Second Life metagrid / virtual world.
Latest Update: 13 August 2022
Hello, my name is Wyvern Dryke. Thank you for your interest in my products. This is the End Users’ License Agreement for my Full Perm items.
First off, I have to admit, I spend a lot of time and energy making my creations. So, thank you for respecting me, my effort, and my EULA/TOS. My terms are simple.
By buying or receiving my Intellectual Property (“IP”) from me, you are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use it. It legally remains my property, but you may use it freely under the following conditions:
YOU MAY NOT…
Give/Sell/Trade it to anyone FULL PERM. It must be either COPY -or- TRANSFER. (If your build-partner wants a full perm copy, we can work out a deal.)
Give/Sell/Trade the UUIDs for it. (That is, don’t make a list of its keys and sell that. Yes, it’s been done.)
Place it or allow it to be placed on any website, network, or other online location. (That includes the “cloud” or virtual/meta grids other than Second Life.)
Generate, upload, send, or knowingly receive an illegal/”ripped” copy of it. (If it does not list me as creator, somebody stole it.)
Use it to express hatred or cause terror for any group. (No, not even that jerk who beat you up as a kid. It’s just not cool, ok?)
YOU MAY…
Make a personal, backup copy by passing it to an alt and/or saving it to your computer. (Because shit happens, and I believe in fairness. Save it locally, not online.)
Build things with it and sell/give away those creations, just not Full Perm. (Yes, even free. No minimum price required!)
Make derivation textures or materials from it (or for it) and sell/give away those. Even Full Perm. (I would like credit though. Also, they must be significantly different from my originals.)
Have a good time and create beautiful things. (Because that’s what they’re for! :D)
OKAY, THE HARD PART….
If you fail to follow the terms of this agreement, you automatically forfeit this license. Under United States and International law, I then have the right to take legal action against you, including but not limited to filing DMCA, legal suit, and criminal complaint.
Yes, Intellectual Property is important to me, and it should be to you. Some day you may create something nice. Would you want it stolen?
Sometimes we all have to cope with extra stress, especially when dealing with anxiety and/or depression. This entry is about all that struggle, not just as it occurs in regular life, but specifically when it comes as part of the pain related to emotional/mental illness. (I tend to use these terms interchangeably, when it comes to anxiety and depression.)
In my previous entries, I discussed how Depression and Anxiety are real diseases which adversely affect a huge percentage of Americans. I also urged us together to fight our social stigmas and reject our resistance to get help. As a society, we all need to discuss mental illness openly and without judgment.
Meanwhile, as our society gets over itself–and modern doctors search for a cure–we need to deal with these diseases as best we can. Let’s put up a good fight! And that means using every tool we can.
Coping Techniques
To that end, here are some suggestions to deal with the stress and pain of anxiety and depression. This is my personal list. If you have any you’d like to share, please “Comment” below this entry and add your own!
Do calming things such as: listen to music, meditate, exercise, do yoga, go for a walk, read, or draw.
Express anger in healthy ways like: rip up paper, scream into pillows, draw your enemies and splatter with paint, sing REALLY loud, or run very fast!
Make soothing tea or hot cocoa. (Studies show chocolate can boost endorphins in the brain1.)
Get hugs from family & friends. (Maybe not strangers. >.>” )
Get counseling. (From certified professionals, not Joe on the Corner. See above.)
Sit or nap in the sun for a while. (Cats do it! look how chill they are.)
Chat with friends.
Take your prescribed medication (if applicable) EVERY day.
Note: please do not self-medicate–drugs & alcohol tend to have bad rebound effects!
#1 Tip – Hold On!
The #1 tip is just to HOLD ON. The worst pain of depression and anxiety passes relatively quickly. If you can just HOLD ON, things will look different, soon.
… Don’t look at me like that! Yes, I do know what I’m talking about. I’ve been there. Even in my darkest days, my most terrible thoughts would pass in a few hours. I would wake up going, “why did I want to do that? It’s not that bad. Life still sucks, but look, here’s ice cream!” So just try to focus on the little, good things to keep you going day by day… or hour by hour, if you need to!
And remember… if things get too tough – Dial 988 and talk to an emergency crisis counselor!
Here’s something Americans do not discuss enough: mental illness, like depression and anxiety. Therefore, I am going to talk about it, and I am also going to do so VERY LOUDLY, because I spent so many years being quiet, and that cost me a great deal of time and pain. I want to spare others from that. So here we go!
If you are suffering for more than a few days from strong emotions like pain, anger, sadness, hopelessness, worry, fear, or anything else you cannot control, you may be experiencing a real disease.You may also be a teenager. It is not your imagination. And it is not something for which you should be judged, nor judge yourself!
Mental illness is a real condition–a real disease–with physical causes like chemical imbalances in your brain. Yes! Anxiety and depression are diseases, just like diabetes.
Okay, before we begin, let’s do some quick definitions. There’s a difference between “being sad” and “being depressed.” Also, you can feel some “pre-work jitters” and not have an “anxiety disorder.”
It is perfectly normal for every human being to feel strong emotions like sadness, fear, anger, etc. from time to time. In contrast, the terms “depression” and “anxiety disorder” come into play when you experience these strong emotions (or complete lack thereof!) for more than a few days… especially if they are adversely affecting your life, and/or you are unable to overcome the emotions in order to resume your normal state of being.
(No, I do not have a source for that definition. That is Floxmonster™’s Rule-of-Paw. And no, I am not a doctor, so if you do feel any of the above, I urge you absolutely to seek out a medical professional! It never hurts to ask, “Hey, do you think I’m depressed?”)
Anxiety and Depression Discussion
In this entry, I am discussing primarily depression and anxiety, because a.) I know them best, and b.) they are so widespread. You will also see that I lump “anxiety” and “depression” into the same handbasket. That is because, in many cases, they appear to have the same physical causes (more on that below), and they frequently “co-occur” (meaning that the same person has both).
You Can Pick Your Friends but Not Your Family
Moreover, In the same family with anxiety and depression, there are examples such as: PTSD (a.k.a. “Post Traumatic Stress Injury”), panic disorder (similar but stronger than anxiety), postpartum disorders (which typically appear after giving birth), and “suicidal ideation” (meaning you think about killing yourself a lot). Quite a family, huh? I would skip the reunions for that one!
That said, let’s talk about how mental illness affects us all.
Depression & Anxiety Are Everywhere
Mental illness impacts a stunning percentage of Americans. The respected John Hopkins Medicine has found that a whopping 9.5% of Americans have major depression, and 18% have anxiety disorders1.
How does that translate? Well, picture this: more or less, If you are sitting in a restaurant with 10 people, one may not give a crap what’s on the menu and two may want to run away.
Think About It
Think about those statistics for a moment. Even if some of those percentages overlap–that is, if we assume some of the people who have anxiety also have depression–it still means a gigantic group of ordinary people is suffering from mental disease. At the time of this posting, the Population Clock put the U.S. population at 332,894,885 people. That means 31,625,014 Americans (9.5%) have depression. 31 million!
That really puts a new light on going out in public, doesn’t it? Take a moment to look around: mothers, fathers, waiters, movie ticket-takers… everybody. Mental illness is all around us.
Therefore, I want to address something very important, which presents problems for nearly all who suffer anxiety, depression, and other mental conditions.
Break the Silence
In American society, even though we have progressed greatly in recent years, we still do not discuss mental illness / emotional illness as openly as we should. There is still a significant stigma or reluctance to talk about depression, anxiety, and especially suicide. Because of that, many people suffer silently without help–sometimes for years, sometimes even for decades. (Trust me, I know exactly what I am talking about, here!)
People suffering from mental illness may hide it out of shame, family pressure, or perhaps fear of social retribution. What I mean is, they are ashamed of being sick, or their families tell them not to say anything, or they’re afraid of being called crazy! Sometimes they might even be afraid of losing their homes or their jobs (with or without reasons).
The point is, there are far too many people who do not seek out, accept, or receive the treatment they so desperately need for mental/emotional illness. We need to fix that, right away.
We must change Society’s Stigma, Now!
I survived my years of silence, to say this: Our social stigma, fear, and avoidance of treatment needs to change, right now. As a culture, we need to accept mental illness as the genuine disease it is. This illness is not “just in our heads.” It is not some random “craziness.” It is not some “passing strangeness” that will “just go away.” Mental illness is a real disease!
As a society, we all need to foster open, healthy communication. What I mean is, we need to encourage everyone to talk about illnesses like anxiety and depression, without fear of being criticized, called crazy, or losing our jobs. Our society does not, at present, always offer that opportunity. People cannot discuss mental illness openly. Our neighbors still may criticize them, our family still may look down upon it as shameful, and our jobs–especially those with a government clearance–can still be threatened if mental illness is exposed. We need to change that, right now!
No One Criticizes Diabetics
To illustrate my point, I will use the case of diabetes. Everyone agrees diabetes is a real disease. With diabetes, in many cases, there are inadequate levels of the chemical “insulin” in the body. Therefore, the blood sugar becomes unregulated. Diabetes is a very serious condition which can lead to death. For those reasons, when diabetics show up at a pharmacy, no one criticizes them when they pick up the Metformin (or other medications) they need to balance their blood sugar. No one even bats an eye.
By comparison, anxiety and depression are also serious diseases. In these conditions, there are also inadequate chemical levels in the body. Depression and anxiety are also serious conditions which can lead (indirectly) to death, by way of suicide.
Why, then, should anyone care when depressed people pick up antidepressants to balance the chemicals in our brains? What is the difference?
And yet, there is often a stigma with antidepressants. Some people criticize those who take antidepressants… as if that might be some sign of weakness, or something that the depressed/anxious people ought to overcome on our own.
Oh yes, can we overcome it on our own? Well, does anyone expect diabetics to overcome high sugar levels on their own? NO. Of course not! That’s ridiculous.
What is the issue, then? Because mental illness is the exact same situation.
Depression/Anxiety = Real Disease!
To clarify, let me explain: Depression and anxiety are caused by chemical imbalances in the brain. They are physical illnesses, just like diabetes. In fact, recent medical research has revealed that, as a result of brain chemicals reaching critical levels, most normal people become very sad, angry, hopeless, nervous, and/or scared. At the moment, ongoing research shows these brain chemicals are primarily “serotonin” and “norepinephrine.” (Don’t believe me? LOOK IT UP.)
“Causes” of Depression and Anxiety
Mind you, I am talking about normal people, here: average citizens. How do they get this way? There are many reasons. First, sometimes a tragedy can trigger an imbalance, like the loss of a loved one or home. Second, sometimes a trauma can do it, like getting robbed, or getting lost when you need to be somewhere important. Third, sometimes you might naturally inherit a “predisposition” toward having an imbalance. (That means your genetics makes you more likely to have natural, imbalanced levels for no particular reason.) Those are only three of many possible ways to “get” depression/anxiety. Remember, it is very common!
Emotional and Long-Term Effects
So, what happens when our brain chemicals reach these critical (usually low) levels? The emotions go haywire. Look at the list above: anger, fear, sadness, even hopelessness. This occurs at levels you can barely control, or not control at all. Over time, these emotions can build up. The emotional effects of the chemical imbalance in your brain can become a persistent condition which health professionals term “depression” and/or “anxiety.” Sometimes, that condition can resolve itself with time and/or counseling. Sometimes, however, it requires the additional assistance of medication.
Mental Illness is a Disease
So you see, this process is very much like any other kind of disease that we, as humans, can experience. There is a measurable cause, usually in the form of a physical imbalance. Sometimes that cause resolves itself by natural processes, and sometimes it requires medical treatment. Either way, mental illness is just another kind of illness we can treat with medicine. It is not magic or hoodoo. It’s a disease.
Grasp Reality
My point is this: Our society MUST grasp that reality, as quickly as possible. I shall reiterate: Mental illness is a chemical imbalance in the brain. We no longer live in a place where demons cause depression, a woman’s wandering uterus creates “hysteria,” and Tourette’s is possession by the Devil. Welcome, World… meet Science.
In conclusion, mental illness is a real, physical disease. Period. Let’s ditch the Dark Ages, and develop some real compassion for those who live with it.
(Note: I moved the coping methods to their own category: COPING.)
And remember… if things get too tough – Dial 988 and talk to an emergency crisis counselor!
You’ve heard of 911 for emergencies? Now there’s 988! It is available everywhere in the United States RIGHT NOW! So Let’s Prevent Suicide and Help Mental Illness!
New Crisis Hotline: 988
As of Saturday, 16 June 2022, anyone in the U.S. can call or text 988 for immediate emotional help. Whereas before, you had to call 1-800-273-8255, you can now reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing 9-8-8 on your phone.
In fact, this same Lifeline has provided dependable suicide prevention counseling since January 1, 20051. They now offer emergency support for most emotional and mental crises, including (but not limited to) panic attacks, anxiety, depression, grief, and of course suicidal thoughts.
For more information about the new number, here is a link to the official site: The Lifeline and 988.
(By the way, you can still call their old number if you wish. It will stay open in addition to 988.)
Spread Awareness – Prevent Suicide
“Why Wait? Dail 988” by A.M. Coy. Logo with blue head in a circle with pink heart-shaped brain. Call anywhere in the U.S. for 24/7 Crisis Counseling You can use this image freely; do not sell.
In order to spread awareness of the new 988 number, I am hereby releasing the above image under the Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
License: Creative Commons — Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International — CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. Terms summary: you may use the image so long as you: A.) Give me credit as creator, and B.) Do not sell it or products made with it. Also, you may make derivative works from it, so long as you release those under the same terms. (According to the Creative Commons rules, you must also provide a link back to their license terms.)
This is less restrictive than my usual website license. Please spread the image, the new number, and the importance of mental health!
To begin, this Chewin’ (article) is about political reform. Therefore, if you are happy with how the U.S. political system currently works, then you probably won’t like it. On the other paw, if you are fed up with how money seems to bring power, and how we (the People) never seem able to get our voices heard, then please read on! Herein, I have some ideas to bring meaningful change for all Americans–meaning all parties and social leanings–so we can once again have our representatives represent us.
Political Moderate
Okay, before we begin, I want to make one thing clear: in terms of U.S. politics, I am a staunch, middle-of-the-road Moderate. Therefore, I don’t want to hear anyone shouting, “FloxMonster™ is an evil Liberal!” or “What a Conservative nut!” I may be a nut, but I am damn-sure not Conservative, thank you very much. (I support gay rights, and I own guns, honey.)
That said, let’s get into it!
Our political system is broken. We need sane, thoughtful political reform. We currently have representation, but not fair representation. In the United States, we are supposed to have a Representative Democracy–that is, we vote to elect people who represent us fairly on matters which govern us.
We don’t.
Representative Plutocracy
We actually have a Representative Plutocracy–that is, we vote for people who represent us, but they truly just follow the money. It is rule by the Almighty Dollar.
Here’s what happens…
We vote for Presidents and Congressmen (and local reps down to the city dogcatcher) who need money for their campaigns. It is expensive to get elected! So they take donations from citizens, corporations, PACs (“Political Action Committees”), and other organizations. The government also gives them campaign funds, in some cases, if they meet certain criteria.
The rules are, everyone gives donations and expects nothing in return.
… Yeah right!
How Politics Really Works
The truth is, after somebody wins the election, many corporations and organizations move in. They call up their successful candidate and go, “okay, buddy, now that you’re elected, I need this!” (and/or, “if you want to be RE-elected, I need this!“). Yes, it is unofficial and under-the-table but it happens every day.
In D.C. they refer to those folks (or the requests they make) as “Special Interests.” And our elected official–who is supposed to represent us, right?–does what those Special Interests want. After all, they gave him/her money, and s/he wants more. It’s all, “Screw the regular guys, who’s got the money?”
Now, I will pause here to say that there are a few representatives who do try to represent the populace, who do try to stay honest and avoid the pitfalls of big corporation donations and special interests. Good for them. If Washington were full of those people, I would not be writing this article.
Boo, Lobbyists!
Additionally, another problem complicates the issue. This is a group of people called “Lobbyists.” These are professionals hired by parties who want certain laws passed. Lobbyists spend all day trying to convince our representatives to create or vote for laws which support that lobbyist’s particular cause. Some lobbyists hold decent causes–for example, environmental groups often hire lobbyists to push laws protecting wildlife preserves. A huge percentage, however, represent corporations and private groups who want to protect or bring more money to their industries.
Lobbyists take our representatives out to lunch, bring them to parties, promise them campaign funds, and do all sorts of things to make sure their causes get political support. Therefore, our representatives give them an audience because they have more money and influence than we (the People) ever could have.
So, how much influence can a letter-writing campaign have, compared to a weekend in Vegas? Well… why not find out!
Let’s Do Something -> Political Reform
Because there are so many Special Interests in Washington, we must do something to curtail their power. They have the money, and we (the People) do not. So what can we do? We must ask the politicians to set limits on themselves!
Hmm, tough call. Well, so long as we’re asking, here’s what I think we should ask for…
1. Term Limits
First, I respect that an experienced politician knows his/her way around Washington, and that’s great. However, we don’t need Senators and Representatives serving lifetimes in D.C.. That just contributes to the whole “pay for my re-election and I’ll do what you want” scenario. So we need Term Limits: 4 terms of service, maximum. No more career politicians.
2. Donation Limits
Second, donations should be strictly limited to $1,000 maximum per each individual with a Social Security Number. Yes, that means private U.S. Citizens only. No foreign interests, corporations, partnerships, churches, organizations… no Special Interests.
3. Public Campaign Funds
Third, while we’re cutting back on private donations, let’s raise the government funding, to make for a more even playing field. Candidates with more than 10,000 legitimate signatures should be eligible to receive an equal share of government funds toward their campaign. This cuts back on only super-popular candidates being able to run. Let’s see more third-party and minority candidates out there!
4. Profit Lobbyist Ban
Lastly, lobbyists should only be allowed to speak to our political representatives if they support Nonprofit or Welfare Causes. They cannot speak for any corporation or other money-making organization. For example, lobbyists can stand for causes like feeding the poor, helping the environment… you know, ideas that our representatives should actually dedicate time toward. By contrast, giving so much time to for-profit causes makes our system inherently corrupt. It feeds back into that whole “re-elect me and I’ll pass laws for you” nonsense which got us into this mess in the first place. No!
Okay, then. That’ll do, for a start. If I think of anything else… I’ll let you know.
“Ho F*¢king Ho” – Unisex Ultra Cotton T-shirtPrice range: $11.11 through $32.64
You must be logged in to post a comment.