Unhappiness

  In a recent article titled US Mythology , I  reported that individuals 19-25 years of age were extremely unhappy.  Further, they exhibited financial insecurity, mental, and physical health issues,  loss of purpose,and relationship problems.  For a more detailed understanding of unhappiness, in-depth research related to character, environmental(,, social  class,,society, family and hereditary factors are required for an in depth analysis . However, this brief essay  only addresses  economics , sadism ,masochism and dependency  as contributing factors for young females..` 

A brief description of happiness. Centuries ago, Aristotle, Eppicurus and other Greek philosophers focused on  the importance of happiness for life.  Happiness, for these intellectuals , included man being able to apply reason ,virtue while pursuing pleasure and/or minimizing pain. Later,  Jeremy Bentham argued that for the conduct of practical affairs , it must include what is good . He defined good as pleasure and/or happiness.  ,

 Sigmund Freud added that meaningful and productive work and the importance of being able to love were also important considerations.  I add the development of the body  and mind., reason and contributing to social welfare .  In other words,  happiness, and virtue. Are related to a healthy mind -body, meaningful and productive work, significant unions  and social welfare involvement .

Recent conversations with Linda's son Buck are as follows.  Buck and Tonya run a senior care franchise in the Sacramento area.  Recently, Buck told me that he is now using AI for hiring and screening practices.  In fact, AI was extremely important in  correctly assessing the  sensitive needs of a prospective client.  That means that with AI, Buck will not have any employee or  labor disputes or issues.  He  won't have to worry about tardiness , absenteeism, lawsuits, unionization, etc.  AI is the ideal employee.  

A recent caregiver complained that fast food employees were making more than  her.  She also complained about the homeless and the cost of gas.  She's  older than 25 years of age and has her mother living with her.  Recently, she had health and unhappiness issues when her daughter, husband and their children stayed with her.  She has been healthier since they  left.  

Finances  obviously become a barrier and interfere with happiness.  The cost of gasoline, housing  maintenance, and food are extremely high when it comes to a job with minimum wage.  I recently paid  Seth $25 an hour to cut and remove some trees.  Seth lives at home with his parents.  It is also not uncommon for a group of young people to combine resources in order to rent  and share expenses ..

Having employment without a sense of meaningful purpose is a condition associated with capitalism.  Marx wrote that capitalism can interfere with developing a positive sense of self worth in  that the individual becomes insignificant ,a  number , a tool, a slave with wages.  It's not uncommon, especially in retail, to encounter unhappy employees.  Alienation, boredom without purpose becomes the routine and the norm for too many . And it’s not uncommon for those to turn to  drugs and alcohol for escape .

Being dependent on family  or others interferes with integrating and establishing a positive sense of identity and fidelity.  Unmet dependency needs results in a sense of   role confusion  and attraction to toxic limiting ideologies.  These young become  rebellious and misguided by nationalistic authoritarian ideologies .Also, they become easily  exploited followers without independent thought .  These factors interfere with an ability to develop intimate affiliations , inappropriate sexual practices and independent thought..  In other words, attachment , separation and individuation become compromised .

Once, state colleges were affordable for students  and families without a tremendous amount of debt.  One could easily get ahead by attending college and starting a career.  However, now is not the case.  In fact, some question whether going to college is worth it.  At  one time, entering the teaching profession was  viable .  Not so today, with  censorship of what's taught in the curriculum ,which books are okay ,and what bathrooms to use play a major part in interfering with entering that profession. The teacher shortage is going to have further implications and ramifications and interfere with the quality of public education in our Republic. Once our K-12 was a model for other countries, but not so today.

Sadism , acting cruelly toward oneself and/or  being insensitive toward others means that the individual has malignant or toxic  narcissism and is indifferent to sadism. This abnormal  degree of narcissism is not associated with love . With that being said, sadism is having mastery over another; making the object helpless; being in control over another , having the other to do whatever pleases  him or her , to humiliate and make another suffer.  This compensatory violence suggests being emotionally crippled, limited intellectually and  not interested about caring, respecting or loveing.  .

For the female, unmet dependency needs , and previous betrayals, results in a tendency for being weak, vulnerable , easily manipulated  and seduced from a more powerful  and assertive other. As a result , a female becomes attracted and longing for bold , outgoing  and strong personality types. Her dependency interferes with her ability to act and reason objectivity . She feels emotionally weak, suggesting that she has unmet dependency needs and wishes for  affection , protection , being taken care of and  love from a strong mother- father figure. Failing to develop adequate autonomous and  emotional independence interferes with  the ability to pursue freedom  and  self protection with safety .

An example illustrating sadomasochism and relating to unhappiness was found In The New York Times , April 14, 2024 article titled "Why We Need  to Talk About Teen Sex."  According to a leading  researcher in the field,, the following was reported: 1.  Females are currently being  subjected to assault while having sex  consisting of choking , strangling , slapping of body parts  2.  Females are  not giving permission to be choked or strangled while engaging in sex.  3. Although it is possible to experience pleasure from oxygen deprivation during orgasim , females are not experiencing more orgasms  4. Neck swelling, loss of consciousness, losing control of urinary functions, becoming cloudy,  depression , mood disorders.  TBI , and anxiety  are the result of  male assaultive behaviors . 5.  Females are reporting that sex is not pleasurable but  terrifying and they are scared and fearful of dying.

In conclusion, we are in an age of  sadism, masochism ,and hate , Within the last 20 years., the young have witnessed the Republic being at war; mass killings taking place in schools, places of worship and other locations; Jews being threatened because of  Israel’s war cabinet; policies ;  economic uncertainty; peer suicide, alcohol and substance abuse; abortion rights trampled, inordinate amount of sadomasochism found in novels, movies, TV, and video games; large number of adults unhappy with what's happening in this country and  a former president daily expressing sadistic verbalizations  with criminal charges, and  attacks  against democratic values and  institutions .These  irrational and toxic factors  in addition  with  inadequate parenting affect character development  of our young.  Males should be prosecuted for their assaultive behavior and female victimization should be addressed.  There is  too much sadistic  craziness occurring in our republic which  translates into  female vulnerability and unhappiness.

 Reference

 Fromm, Erich.  The Heart of Man , It's Genius for Good and Evil.