Advertising and Suicide
A TV advert for a car has come out and is considered by the authorities who control such matters to be a bit risque. A representative of the advertising company said that the advert was aimed at people who were not conservative, who were individualists. Of course a real individualist would take no notice of an advert but nowadays the term is used as a general term of flattery. Most adverts work subliminally and in fact most advertising agencies have a better understanding of human psychology than many university departments.
There's an organisation in the USA for teenagers who are suicidal. Parents send their kids there when they detect signs that they may be getting depressed or obsessed by suicidal thoughts. The first thing they do when the kids arrive is to take away their access to heavy metal music. Invariably, the kids listen to this avidly and the woman who runs this organisation has found that this often leads to feelings of depression and suicide.
There's some contention about heavy metal music, particularly regarding the lyrics. I've read reports by psychologists, who should know better, that there is no evidence that people take in what they hear subliminally. Tell that to advertisers! Another aspect of heavy metal music is the beat. I've mentioned before (' Brain Waves') about how frequencies effect the brain through a process called entrainment. As I pointed out this can be constructively harnessed in order to quieten the mind or to aid learning. However, using certain frequencies can have a detrimental effect on the brain and induce depression, paranoia and other destructive characteristics.
Another issue that brings about suicidal tendencies is the lack of family structure. At one time a family would sit down for an evening meal and people would talk about the issues of the day. Eating together (and not in front of the TV) is very important to build a strong bond within the family. Nowadays, the 'family' often doesn't have a father and the mother sometimes has a problem relating to her son. Even where there is a father; there is often no real family relationship. Children are not given spiritual guidance and see drug taking as an escape or as a way of dealing with problems. Drugs may give a high but there's also the 'come down'. People who use drugs over a long term lose the ability to control their own moods and they depend on the drug to bring them up when they go down. Of course alcohol serves this function as well, but although alcoholism is a well acknowledged and recognisable problem, teenagers can smoke joints or take speed to excess and their parents would be completely oblivious.
