If the subconscious necessarily 'obeyed' the will of the 'I', neuroses and personality disorders would not be as chronically tenacious as they are.

But, in any event, I think that applying simplistic principles that define the interaction between the 'I' (the conscious) and the 'other' (all that is subconscious and beyond control of the 'I'), such that the 'I' becomes the 'supreme arbiter' of all we do or become, is the stuff of magical thinking.

It's also the underlying premise of those latter day, self-styled 'gurus' who profit from the innate need for many of us to believe that we can will all things good to us and all things not good away from us, by convincing their 'disciples' that they can (among multitudes of other claims) win all the time, that happiness is a destination and that they have a right to 'riches' (in any form that 'riches' may be imagined).

Yadda wrote on Nov 24^th, 2012 at 7:54pm:

The following is not directly relevant, but there may be some inter-connections.

Choice, it is that most human of gifts; it is what sets the human species apart from everything else on this planet.

Our capacity to understand that we can choose and our ability to act on that choice has seen humanity achieve things, previously thought impossible.

However, humanity has also evolved into a highly adversarial society, which is based primarily on a philosophy of, it must be good for me and I want it, now!

But, because what is good or right, is based on our own individual perceptions of life and our own heredity, consensus and agreement are becoming an increasingly rare commodity.

That said, there are times, often generally agreed by historians in hindsight, when human events come to a crossroad and we are now in the midst of one of those historic times.

Paramount amongst our choices, it is vital that we send a clear message that no individual, group or nation can use or threaten to use; Economic, Psychological or Physical force against any other individual, group or nation.

It is also apparent that we humans, our Politics & our Economics, are interlocked with the Environment
of the planet, whether we want or not, whether we like it or not, even whether we admit it or not and unless we act quickly, to live within our means, which means our Population must live within the means that the planet can sustain over time, then we will most likely destroy our environment & ourselves.

Of course, in the longer (planetary) term, the planet will undo the damage we may wreak upon it, but in the short-medium term, we humans & the planets environment are actually co-dependent on each other.
At present, we humans are in a headlong rush to Grow, which is reflected in our Population growth and Energy usage, over the past century or so.

The problem is that the planet is finite, as are its Resources, such as Energy (Oil, Coal, Gas etc), fresh water & capacity to feed the growing Global Population.

We are now exceeding the planets capacity to sustain us, even at current Global Population levels and unless we change our Political & Economic paradigm soon, we will push the planet too far and it will start to push back.

In short, the time has come when we are faced by stark choices, if we fail to sustain the Environment, and then the Environment will fail to sustain us!

At this point in time, we can not pass the buck, neither should we kick the can further down the road and nor can we simply print more bucks, as each of those alternatives will simply exacerbate future difficulties.

There are crucial decisions to be made and the choices we make now, will decide the future of humanity for a long, long time!

There is a need to say clearly and in a united voice that this world needs to be in better shape, to provide future generations of humanity a fair chance of survival!

Reconciliation with our past and future, information equality, fair Economic outcomes for all, an understanding that we all have responsibilities, as well as rights and that we are all interlocked in these future outcomes, are vital issues for our future.

In seeking new expectations from life, we will need the courage to traverse paths that do not yet exist and the wisdom of true leaders, who understand that short term personal gain, can not come at the expense of the best longer term interests of all, nor at the expense of failing to take the correct actions, when needed. 

The choice, as always, is ours.

So, understanding that we simply can not continue with the status quo, we need to seek the correct balance and we need to make sure that our decisions, our choices, are heard by all.

We should also remember that for every action or non-action, there are consequences and that all real change starts with you and with me, it starts with us!

NorthOfNorth wrote on Nov 25^th, 2012 at 8:47am:



NoN,

I am not suggesting that the "I" [normally] has any direct control over the subconscious.

Rather i am suggesting that it is possible, that the qualities and skills that the subconscious 'acquires' [and possesses], could be influenced by the habitual choices of the conscious "I".

???

Yadda wrote on Nov 26^th, 2012 at 9:43am:


I agree, we must retain the right not only to speak out, but to act against the use of Economic, Psychological or Physical force.

However, there are opportunities available to us, where we can act and we can do so, without employing similar types of force.

It is also worth noting that whilst Physical force may be the most apparent to the general Global Population, it is very likely that Economic & Psychological forces are most likely the most prevalent used and that is not widely recognised!

Yadda wrote on Nov 26^th, 2012 at 9:16am:

There's no doubt that the conscious mind has some control... Otherwise it would be impossible to, say, give up smoking at will.

Quote:




No argument.