Should necrophilia be illegal?

As of 2007 there were nine states that had no explicit law in regards to necrophilia. And as recently as this summer, Illinois pushed a law governing the taboo topic with a vote 114-0 in favor of,  “Creating the offense of abuse of a corpse. Providing that a person commits the offense if he or she intentionally engages in sexual conduct with a corpse or involving a corpse”. The penalty could be up to seven years in prison; it goes into effect January one, 2013.

Interestingly enough there is no current federal law governing the topic either. In other words, the state you live in determines whether you get off the grotesque act scott-free or (in the case of Nevada) spend the rest of your life in jail. In Iowa, the act is a class D felony with a potential five-year jail sentence.

My question is why is this such a polar issue with seemingly unclear punishment? Let alone taboo.

I think the answer lies within the moral philosophy of whether or not dead bodies have “rights”. According to all state laws, acts of sexual deviance are only governed for living bodies that aren’t classified as “human remains”. According to most law, it is a victimless crime. Albeit probably the endgame of insults.

One might state that it is obvious that this should be illegal, but upon closer inspection it becomes more convoluted. The seemingly only “victim” of the act is the unlivable terror that might be caused to the family of the deceased. But should an act of extreme insult be considered criminal? I have even heard people go as far as to say that it’s just another fetish.

Obviously those that are more religious might be more inclined to demand for a greater punishment. Even though the supposed soul of the deceased might no longer be with the body, it still could be taken as a desecration to the soul in heaven. At least that is my assumption on the religious. This sort of logic (thinking?) would be impermissible in the legal system as it is religious. Although, “unnatural intercourse” is illegal in Mississippi — take that as you will.

Dr. John Troyer from the University of Minnesota, specializing in “technologies of the human corpse”, says: “Human corpses and the laws that govern the use of dead bodies are uniquely positioned to cause legal discrepancies since the dead body is a quasi-subject before the law. This creates a constant problem where the deceased body is no longer a living person and therefore not covered by the laws that regulate sexual deviance.”

He goes on to say: “I’m not proscribing more robust law enforcement but it certainly begs the question – how willing are people to examine the legal rights of dead bodies and the sexual desires of individuals deemed ‘human deviants?’” This is the question I pose to you.

My stance on any issue is that insults cannot be criminalized. Offense cannot be given, only taken. I also agree that in the eyes of the law, necrophilia is a victimless crime. But, with emphasis, the amount of psychological damage a family or friend might undertake upon learning of such atrocity to their deceased loved one only warrants some level of punishment — or at least attention.

Minimally, the supposed necrophiliac should undergo psychological evaluation. If this person is found sane, then I believe a hefty fine should be put in place, based on the percentage of their income. Jail time should exist, but only for minimal terms (no more than 5 years) that increases per repeated offense. The sentencing would also include the prohibition from employment at morgues, graveyards, and the like.

Why do I find this topic necessary to talk about? It is because I don’t like the fact that circumstances in America exist where someone could either be put to prison for life or walk the streets only labelled a creep, simply on the basis of where someone lives.

“To legislate against this kind of abject behaviour means acknowledging its existence, which some authorities may find difficult to deal with”, says Dr. Troyer, which means breaking the taboo will allow for public discourse of a seemingly controversial topic.

http://www.forensicpsychiatry.ca/paraphilia/necro.htm
http://www.huliq.com/34426/us-states-lack-laws-explicitly-outlawing-necrophilia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Necrophilia
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/BillStatus.asp?DocNum=5122&GAID=11&DocTypeID=HB&SessionID=84&GA=97
http://www.scribd.com/doc/91700435/168/Iowa

Revenge of the Introvert

One of my greatest pet-peeves, if not the greatest pet-peeve I have is when someone either intentionally or unintentionally labels my introversion with being anti-social, shy, depressed, and a whole slew of other fleeting related characteristics. I am the furthest thing from shy and by no means fleeting. I am very opinionated but only choose to speak when I feel like I have something of value to say. In fact, study after study shows that introverts consistently score higher on all forms of tests and outperform most extroverts in the workplace. Society wrongfully condemns introverts and it’s only damaging to nearly all aspects of life in doing so. I know it has made it difficult for me to justify spending time with certain friends who don’t understand introversion because all they do is comment about my “anti-social behavior”. Introverts live inside their own head, and they make up 1/3 to 1/2 of the population. One of the most interesting facets of the introvert-extrovert dichotomy is that most extroverts prefer a significant other whom is an introvert, and visa-verse. Watch this very intriguing Ted Talk about introversion and how society is biased towards extroverts… very interesting.  After the video you can read about 10 myths associated with introverts… the only thing I starkly disagree with is that we are not adrenaline junkies. Personally, my “drug of choice” is adrenaline. I seek out exhilarating adventure, and I am about as introvert as they come. “Comment and share below.

Want to know what your personality type is, click here. 

Myth #1 – Introverts don’t like to talk.
This is not true. Introverts just don’t talk unless they have something to say. They hate small talk. Get an introvert talking about something they are interested in, and they won’t shut up for days.

Myth #2 – Introverts are shy.
Shyness has nothing to do with being an Introvert. Introverts are not necessarily afraid of people. What they need is a reason to interact. They don’t interact for the sake of interacting. If you want to talk to an Introvert, just start talking. Don’t worry about being polite.

Myth #3 – Introverts are rude.
Introverts often don’t see a reason for beating around the bush with social pleasantries. They want everyone to just be real and honest. Unfortunately, this is not acceptable in most settings, so Introverts can feel a lot of pressure to fit in, which they find exhausting.

Myth #4 – Introverts don’t like people.
On the contrary, Introverts intensely value the few friends they have. They can count their close friends on one hand. If you are lucky enough for an introvert to consider you a friend, you probably have a loyal ally for life. Once you have earned their respect as being a person of substance, you’re in.

Myth #5 – Introverts don’t like to go out in public.
Nonsense. Introverts just don’t like to go out in public FOR AS LONG. They also like to avoid the complications that are involved in public activities. They take in data and experiences very quickly, and as a result, don’t need to be there for long to “get it.” They’re ready to go home, recharge, and process it all. In fact, recharging is absolutely crucial for Introverts.

Myth #6 – Introverts always want to be alone.
Introverts are perfectly comfortable with their own thoughts. They think a lot. They daydream. They like to have problems to work on, puzzles to solve. But they can also get incredibly lonely if they don’t have anyone to share their discoveries with. They crave an authentic and sincere connection with ONE PERSON at a time.

Myth #7 – Introverts are weird.
Introverts are often individualists. They don’t follow the crowd. They’d prefer to be valued for their novel ways of living. They think for themselves and because of that, they often challenge the norm. They don’t make most decisions based on what is popular or trendy.

Myth #8 – Introverts are aloof nerds.
Introverts are people who primarily look inward, paying close attention to their thoughts and emotions. It’s not that they are incapable of paying attention to what is going on around them, it’s just that their inner world is much more stimulating and rewarding to them.

Myth #9 – Introverts don’t know how to relax and have fun.
Introverts typically relax at home or in nature, not in busy public places. Introverts are not thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies. If there is too much talking and noise going on, they shut down. Their brains are too sensitive to the neurotransmitter called Dopamine. Introverts and Extroverts have different dominant neuro-pathways. Just look it up.

Myth #10 – Introverts can fix themselves and become Extroverts.
Introverts cannot “fix themselves” and deserve respect for their natural temperament and contributions to the human race. In fact, one study (Silverman, 1986) showed that the percentage of Introverts increases with IQ.

JerryBrito.org 

Related articles

• The ‘quiet’ storm: unleashing the power of introverts (waywardjourney.com)
• Who Will Rule Social Media? Introverts vs. Extroverts (warriorwriters.wordpress.com)
• Soul Searching: Are you shy or introverted? (excessemancipation.com)

Lying, Stealing, and Cheating; Why People Do It, and Why It Will Never Go Away

This post was sort of made haphazardly, made out of pure type as you think process. It is the most truthful and honest I can be and will remain un-edited out of spirit. Ignore the bad, and make do with the good. 

This question has plagued us forever. It is the harbinger of human upset while simultaneously the catalyst of “unfair” betterment. Technically speaking, people who can get away with lying, stealing and/or cheating will be better off. People who can successfully lie through job interviews will get better paying jobs. People who steal successfully will have greater resources at no added cost. The same is true for many other species on the planet. When penguins nest, it is not uncommon to witness them stealing rocks from another penguin’s nest when they aren’t looking. If you want to look at it from an evolutionary perspective, those that are successful at stealing, will be more prosperous and more likely to survive… therefore passing on their advanced traits to the next generations.

 

Even if you don’t look at it from an evolutionary standpoint, and just as human behavioral reasoning you will see that the majority of people do it, and everybody has done it at sometime in their life. It is human nature. I will try and explain why it will never go away, but also why it is good for you to avoid the behavior.

Lying exists because people like the feeling they get from the immediate pleasure created by the lie. It might make them look superior, give them things they otherwise wouldn’t get, or take advantage of a situation to sway things in their own direction. The fact of the matter remains true, if you lie, you WILL get increased benefit at that immediate moment and quite possibly the short future. It is almost impossible to refute this unless your lie is worse than the truth. But on the flip-side, nobody, and I mean nobody, can remember everything they say or do… so a liar will slip up eventually. People who tell the truth have nothing to fear, what they remember is what they remember. People who tell the truth are better people to be with (even if liars a rollin’ good) because there is nothing to worry about. A liar walks a fine line where if they slip up, it’s over, his circle of people won’t want anything to do with him because all he can do is take advantage of them. As far as a relationship goes, you need to get away from liars as quick as possible… they can only bring future harm. Though, it’s tempting, because liars won’t appear in broad daylight like you think they might… they will just look like an immensely wonderful person. A fake one at that.

Stealing exists similarly to the above… if you can steal and get away with it, you will be better off. It’s harder for a stealer to “slip-up” because they don’t usually have to remember all the lies a liar tells. But just as before, if a stealer gets caught, it’s over. Others will know that this person is dangerous to be around, and won’t want anything to do with them, for fear of themselves being ripped off.

Finally, cheaters. Why do people cheat? Genetically, it’s because men want to ‘spread the seed’ as much as possible… but I think we’re beyond that natural desire. I think it’s of the issue that if people have the ability to get with more than 1, and get away with it, then why not… more pleasure for themselves. It’s sad, but it’s true. It’s probably one of the most selfish things one can do. I have personally known people who have talked about cheating in almost a glorified manner. It’s pathetic. The only way you can prosper peacefully for the long term is if you rely singly on another person, and they do the same. Any form of wavering this and any and all mutual support is gone.

Why does this happen? Simple, humans are instant pleasure machines. We want what we want now, not later. And if we feel like we can selfishly benefit from it now, then why not take advantage of the situation? The error in this logic is that in the long haul this will prove fatal, because as time passes you will gain a greater and greater reputation of being untrustworthy and selfish absorbed. If you are able to find someone who is capable of removing any and all of these temptations, both of you will be significantly better off together because you will mutually support each other without fear of treachery. It also means that you can’t really trust people until you really get to know them. Too many people take everyone’s words for granted, and all too often fall prey to such deceivery. Be open and honest with people, don’t exclude people from your lives but be sure to keep a tight circle and only allow yourself to fall for people you already can deeply trust and have a great time with. This tight circle will only boost your well being in life and decrease the likelihood of setbacks caused by liars, stealers and cheaters.

This post was sort of made haphazardly, made out of pure type as you think process. It is the most truthful and honest I can be and will remain un-edited out of spirit. Ignore the bad, and make do with the good. 

Related articles

• Open Letter to All Liars (auroramorealist.wordpress.com)
• Why Do People Cheat? (mademan.com)

How To Easily Train Your Brain For Increased IQ and Memory With “N-Back Test”

Professor John Jonides of University of Michigan talks about the latest research into brain training. This is the first time we have seen consistent improvement in a person’s IQ and memory across all ages and all types within a matter of days. Take a look at the video, here is a link to begin your n-back training: http://www.soakyourhead.com/dual-n-back.aspx

What Is Your Personality Type? I Can Tell You.

There exists a test in which your personality can be immediately narrowed down to a level of high precision. This test involves breaking down each person into 4 categories where each category contains 2 different “qualities” of a person. These qualities are neither good nor bad. This leaves us with 16 different personality types. This test is a psychometric questionnaire utilized by psychologists to discover how people look at the world around them as well as the ways they are most likely to make decisions. It has been utilized by many covert agencies as well, in an effort to predict behavior of enemies of the state.

The test is called Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. The 4 categories are: Attitude, Perceiving Function, Judging Function, and Lifestyle. At the bottom of the page I will post a link to the test… complete the entire test, without rushing, and remain as accurate as humanly possible. Answer based off what you think, not what you think others think of you.

Attitude: You can either be an Introvert (I) or an Extrovert (E). One is not better than the other. It is often misconstrued that an introvert is shy… the two are completely different. Extroverts are action oriented and seek a broad range of knowledge where introverts are thought oriented and seek depth of knowledge. Extroverts look for frequent interaction and introverts look for substantial interaction. Extroverts gain energy as a party goes on whereas introverts lose energy as the party goes on.

Functions: There are four functions. You are Sensing (S) or Intuition (N) and Thinking (T) or Feeling (F). Everyone has all of these, but there is always a dominant one and a 2nd dominant one, S or N -and- T or F. Sensors prefer information that is perceived by the 5 senses, and distrust hunches. They prefer details and facts as apposed to theoretical information, like Intuition people do. Intuition people are highly intrigued by future knowledge. They are more likely to pursue thoughts that coexist with facts as well as patterns of theory.

Thinking and Feeling is a decision based category. Thinkers make decisions more from a 3rd person point of view. They tend to be more logical, reasonable, and consistent. Feelers base their decisions on sympathy and empathy and from a 1st person point of view. They tend to follow “general consensus”, and are more concerned with people in the given situation.

Lifestyle: Judgers (J) are people who prefer finding resolutions to an issue. On the opposite, Perceivers (P) prefer things to be left open ended. It gets more in-depth than that but this is a general round about relation to the J and P people.

What you get, once you take the test, is 16 possibilities…

INTJ: As some of you might be aware after reading the “About Me” section of this website, I am an INTJ… which is always in a battle with INFJ as the rarest type indicator.

Based off what I’ve read, INTJs project a high level of confidence in all their thoughts and decisions. Sometimes coming across as arrogant to the feelers and sensors. We have a very specialized knowledge and train of thought. We have very high levels of expertise in (usually) multiple areas and we are able to tell you immediately what we do and do not know. We are often known as perfectionists with great ambitions and will always seek improvement in any area of interest. The phrase “does it work” is almost a doctrine of INTJs and is applied in literally every situation. Thus, we are highly independent, and authority and general consensus is often negated. INTJs have a high level of imagination with an odd level of reliability. INTJs are synonymous with science and engineering, they often hold positions of great leadership, often in the military since they are natural leaders.

The downside of INTJs is their relationships. They care immensely for their significant other and will go to any lengths (beyond any other type) to make it work. The reason they have a hard time is because they are easily mislead when even the slightest signal is read incorrectly. The best way to approach an INTJ is to tell him/her directly what you want and how you feel. Relationships often fizzle out because they don’t understand why other people behave certain ways and more often then not over evaluate and become impatient. Never EVER “hint” or “signal” anything to an INTJ, if you ever have, that’s probably the soul reason the relationship never started. Just be DIRECT.

On the plus side, INTJs are also perfectionists when it comes to sex. And no, I am not just saying this… studies show that the greatest sexual pleasure that a man or woman has received, was significantly more often coming from an INTJ… just give them a few instances to build upon. This may seem peculiar because one would assume the sensors or feelers would be the best. INTJs are perfectionists in bed too and will do anything to satisfy him or her. We often exhibit a high level of creativity and intensity. Although, in negative relationships INTJs are more likely to think about sex than actually doing it.

Here is a compatibility chart to see how suitable 2 types of people are in a relationship: http://www.socionics.com/rel/relcht.htm

INTJs are usually good at telling jokes, often dry, sarcastic and with a straight face. As a friend, they are hard to get to know but are greatly valued. The reason for this is because we are serious-minded people. On a parental side, the INTJ goal is to raise intelligent children that are able to think for themselves, and make their own decisions. INTJs will always challenge them. The downside with parenting is INTJs will often not pay enough attention to the child’s emotional needs, often rationalizing that it’s not a big deal.

Famous INTJs: Lance Armstrong, Augustus Caesar, Katie Couric, Peter Jennings, C.S. Lewis, Donald Rumsfeld, Michelle Obama, John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Sir Isaac Newton, Thomas Jefferson,  Friederich Nietzsche, Niels Bohr, Stephen Hawking, Isaac Asimov, Ayn Rand, Erik Sati, Susan B. Anthony.

MBTI Personality Test: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp 

Feel free to post your results here and let me know how accurate they reflect you. This isn’t hocus pocus astrology… it’s an actual psychological test, the results are far less random and far less ambiguous. As far as the reliability, the MBTI test is almost always spot on, the downside is that people change slightly from year to year. You should retest yourself after about 9 months… you won’t deviate far from where you test at now (usually only 1 letter), but you still deviate slightly.

Human Emotion: What Is Its Foundation?

This is something I wrote when I was trying to figure out and understand human emotion, let me know what you think…

What is human emotion? Where does it come from and how does it play a roll in the definition of humanity? Emotion is very complicated, some people express it greatly and others don’t. Emotion originates, like all things, at the primal level of humanity. It is the tie created between people, places, things or ideas all for a benefit of some sort to the individual. In angry emotions, it is the breakdown of a positive tie when something interferes with that benefit. When you hear about somebody dying on the news, you most certainly wouldn’t react the same way as if you find out your mother just died, even though both are probably the same emotions. Why is this? Both emotions are probably sadness, anger, despair, confusion, etc, yet they both are most likely on complete opposite ends of the spectrum as far as level of intensity of said emotion. Well, it’s because of everything your mother has done for you that has created a beneficial tie. She fed you, sheltered you, clothed you, taught you, and so much more. She is a benefit that would be, for self-interest, invaluable to lose. This self-interest is also mutual. Your mother wants her offspring to proliferate as best as possible and be as great as possible (read The Moral Animal). Then to complicate these even further you add benefactors that are your relations. It is a spider web of human connection always on the basis of self-interest. You are interested in your relation’s self-interest almost as much as your own. Because as long as your relations are benefiting, there are increased chances that you will benefit as well. This all originates from the thought that we want what increases our chances to better ourselves as an individual in the human species and what will increase our chances of good genetic proliferation.

This is the foundation of some of my thoughts in understanding what human emotion is and why we have such a wide range of emotions. It gets far more complicated beyond this… such as why we might lay our life down for someone else, which tends to contradict what was stated above in terms of self-interest.

Maybe a simple explanation to this is that we feel we wouldn’t be able to live without the “benefit” of having said person in your life. But then you have to ask about those who lay their life down for strangers, or members of the military who continually put themselves in front of life ending hazards.

I actually have been working on understanding this for quite some time, most of these question have been explained in great detail. I will be throwing that into the book I’m writing that is essentially about evolutionary psychology but mostly just about understanding the things we do.

I’ll post sometime soon about the details of the book I am writing, obviously without giving too much away, *wink*. Just a taste, the name of it is called Brain: Dethroned by a Realist.

Paralyzed by Dream

This, at the time, was the most in-the-moment frightened I have ever been. It was some time in elementary school when my dream paralyzed me. I woke up, my eyes opened and I had absolute zero control over my body. I mustered all my strength, did everything I possibly could to get up… even just lift a finger, to no avail, nothing happened. It felt as if all my muscles were removed, I was naturally telling my body to do certain things and nothing was happening. I even tried to scream for help and I couldn’t do it. My mind was screaming so unbelievably loud yet nothing was being vocalized. If you can imagine what it would be like to experience this as a 10 year old, you would realize how unbelievably terrifying this ordeal could be. For anyone of any age it could be horrendous. After what felt like 10 minutes (probably 30 seconds), I was miraculously able to move again as well as scream.

I can recollect this memory from my childhood as if it happened yesterday. It is in my mind so vividly and still so real that it gives me goosebumps even now just typing this. Between that occurrence and now, it has happened  3 more times.  Obviously, something like this never gets old.

When I was little, I thought it was a very dark and powerful ghost holding me down and making it hard for me to breath as well as scream. It felt like a heavy bag of sand covering your entire body. What’s interesting about this initial perception is that in folklore this experience is created by a demon sitting on your chest.

Fortunately, since then, I have learned about this paralyzing instance. It is called sleep paralysis. According some Wikipedia, every person will experience this at least once in their life. I was surprised when reading this because it doesn’t seem like the word about it has really gotten out. It also says that certain studies report that it could be caused by: stress, environment/lifestyle changes, lucid dreaming, lack of sleep or alcohol.

The current perception of sleep paralysis is that the portion of the brain that controls the brain’s ability to go from conscious to unconscious during sleep, wakes up before the part of the brain that controls motion. So affectively you’re locked between the state of dreaming and being awake.  Very interesting huh? Still terrifying.

Has anyone else had this experience before? Please share!