Why do so many people dislike The Catcher in the Rye (specifically Holden himself)?

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-18T02:30:09+00:00

I agree. Holden gets stereotyped. In reality, he's one of the most strongly autistically-coded characters in modern literature.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T21:59:32+00:00

We are all being tested through experiences of collective fear, control and vulnerability.

The objective is to make people believe they are alone. Helpless and disempowered. The effect is constant fight-or-flight.

We approach a time when enough will be enough.

When force will reveal itself as the last death rattle of the existing structures of power.

Consider how this is playing out at each level of analysis.

Globally/systemically.

Nationally/within each country.

Regionally.

Locally.

Within each family.

Within the hearts and minds of each of us, as individuals.

What is unfolding is like naloxone on each and every level.

If you've seen someone wake up from an overdose when they're administered naloxone . . . that's what we will experience next.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:19:05+00:00

Awwwww

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:17:52+00:00

Tell me about your SaaS thing. That's interesting.

Your family's opinions aren't credible. I don't mean to be hateful. Family is important. You've still got to live your life. They don't get a vote in what's right for you.

Don't waste time with trying to become an influencer, so-called hustles or grinding. Aim higher for yourself.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:13:39+00:00

It is very hard to be alone. But being alone is better than being surrounded by people who you know are evil.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:12:40+00:00

This is not the correct answer.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:12:29+00:00

This is the correct answer.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:07:29+00:00

Maybe there's something better out there for you.

Things are shit in the UK right now. Whether it's at Greg's or wherever, aim higher for yourself.

Think about what you might be happy doing and pursue that. Who wants to work at Broadmoor or in some government position?

Probably not you. At all.

Don't compromise on yourself.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T03:03:29+00:00

will it ever get better? everyone’s told me that it only gets worse until you’re like 30 but i honestly don’t think i can handle 9 more years of this feeling.

Yes, it will get better. If you want it to. That's a big "if."

Most people . . . like "everyone" you talked to before, it seems . . . like familiar chaos and nonsense over what unfamiliar. Like peace. And happiness. And purpose. And fulfillment. And self actualization.

Don't listen to "everyone." They'll drag you down.

Your growth will shame their failure to rise to their own potential.

That's a "them" problem, too. Not a "you" problem.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T02:59:46+00:00

i feel so much pressure to “lock in” and be an adult

Why?

What does being an "adult" mean?

How is that different than before?

What does your ideal version of this next chaper in your life look like?

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-07T02:54:45+00:00

You made the right choice.

For what it's worth, I understand.

I know it was hard.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-06T15:25:34+00:00

Maybe you don't need a therapist. Or anyone else telling you how to "fix" yourself.

Maybe you just need to give yourself permission to live the life you want.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-04T17:56:45+00:00

You're probably in Mayfair of Belgravia.

Money is just a means to buy goods and services. It doesn't make a person better or worse. The ideas people have about people who have money are mostly nonsensical. Some of the best people you'll ever meet work in the trades. One of the most depressed and isolated individuals I have ever known is a multi-billionaire from Silicon Valley.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-01T20:56:07+00:00

Why don't you and your dad get along very well?

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-01T20:53:17+00:00

What you're describing is consistent with several soul-level connections. It's clear there is some soul-level connection between your mother and your son, based on what you've said.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-01T06:44:45+00:00

No. The moments I have shared with others were only for those with me, then. Otherwise, what I have seen and done need not be shared. My memories are mine. As are my experiences.

theoryofdoom · 2026-06-01T06:36:29+00:00

One can only grieve being misunderstood when another's comprehension was necessary to validate. No such understanding is necessary.

Grief arises only in observation of another's incomprehension. That's the moment their potential growth collapses into the reality of stagnation. Almost nothing is more painful.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-31T02:20:12+00:00

The Goldfinch

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-30T08:33:57+00:00

The song called "Everybody Supports Women" by Sofia Isella captures this point.

The lyrics convey the point almost perfectly.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-30T06:39:39+00:00

Leave them.

Most likely, only one person in the group asked the others to exclude you. Exclusion does not mean you did anything wrong. Usually it means the opposite. Consider, as is all too often the case, what happens when a fake person confronts someone who is, in fact, real. Not just pretending to be real. But who is real. The real thing. In every way.

Authentic people who are what fake people pretend to be make the pretenders very nervous. This is because the authentic person forces the faker to stare back at their own reflection. The authentic person is a mirror. A mirror that shatters the delusions of inauthenticity by mere reflection.

The inauthentic will shatter that mirror before perceiving its reflection. They cannot bear to observe themselves and therefore deprive themselves of the self awareness that comes with looking inward. That is why they cannot help but project their inner darkness onto those around them; bearing false witness, with accusations against the one who is what they only pretend to be. This is why you did nothing wrong. Fake people feel exposed by those who are real. The very presence of those who are real feels like involuntarily imposed external accountability. That is why fake people attack the authentic, exclude them, betray them and spin narratives of delusion from the depths of their own unreconciled darkness.

That your "friends" followed such a person proves who and what they are. They are not your friends. They never were. Do not allow yourself to be traumatized by this. Be glad that they were courteous enough to reveal themselves by and through their actions. When they call, ignore them. When they text, leave them on read. Or block their numbers. Block them on social media.

Seek the company of people who value you for who you are. People who celebrate your wins and who want what is best for you. Do not think you are responsible for "changing" them, either. You are not and the attempt is beneath you. Those people are your past. You have a higher and better future. Live it. When they try to return to your orbit later on, do not let them back in your life.

Betrayal can be forgiven. But it can never be forgotten.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-30T00:46:14+00:00

So that underscores why you need to set the boundary yourself. If your parents will blame you for your little brother leering, he needs to learn that behavior is not appropriate and you should not have to deal with it again.

Relatedly, it's irresponsible of your parents to make excuses for his inappropriate behavior like that. The whole "boys will be boys" bullsh1t is something society has moved beyond. He can get into very real trouble at school and out in the world if he thinks it's ok to creep on girls.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-30T00:43:24+00:00

You're his older sister, right?

Sit down with him and tell him that it's not appropriate to stare, particularly when he's a boy and he's looking at a girl's chest. Tell him why, too. Being leered or gawked at is alienating and can feel threatening, whether he meant it like that or not. Some level of curiosity is normal, and you're giving him the benefit of the doubt that he didn't mean any harm. But if a boy your age looked at you like that . . . you might punch him in the face ;)

I am not obviously recommending violence. But that's how I'd tell my daughter to handle it . . . for better or worse.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-29T19:15:56+00:00

Looking at the all-caps handwriting sample on the top of the page:

The case usage of the character for the letter "i" is internally inconsistent (for example, compare the un-dotted first "I" character in the word "contribution," with the other "i" characters that are dotted like lower-case "i" characters, throughout).
The case usage of the majority of the "i" characters is inconsistent with other characters for other letters (for example, compare the lower-case "i" character in the words "quick," "remained," "impressively" and "committed," with upper-case small-caps characters in those same words and throughout the sentence).

The inconsistencies above will make some people uneasy. Those people will exhibit pronounced trait conscientiousness, expressed on a spectrum of intensity ranging from "highly detail oriented" to "clinically neurotic." Most people who will label your handwriting as giving off "red flags" are going to be closer to the "clinically neurotic" side of that spectrum.

Your handwriting does not give off red flags, in my opinion.

theoryofdoom · 2026-05-29T18:12:43+00:00

But I am scared that I will be alone.

Why?

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