I think the questions you’re asking require the oversimplification of the real world to the point where even if someone gave you an “answer” it would be close to meaningless. Specifically, not everyones looks at changing geographic locations through a lens of pure economics.

Butt stuff was the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil this whole time!

Tbf if I were god I’d probably do something that insane.

I’d probably commission some art of Shadow the Hedgehog on a motorcycle holding a gun. The license plate on the motorcycle would say “ALL0FM3”. I feel like he’d appreciate that.

hugs

You’re a big guy.

But yeah I totally agree. I still feel mortal fear in my daily life, especially in dangerous scenarios.

But isn’t that what the ultimate high would feel like? In order to look forward to dying you have to be able to look forward to limit experiences and bad trips, which is insane.

I just hope that if I die in a violent accident I’m listening to “Last Surprise” from the Persona 5 soundtrack because I would really appreciate that.

Not everyone can live a “good” life by your definition of good, but they can live a good life by their definition of good.

Current generations realize that what older people are trying to sell them is a scam, and they’re working on building a new better reality based on their fresh perspective on what reality is.

You can look at religion through many lenses, but at the end of the day religion is just an unprovable fiction we choose to believe because it’s how we want the world to work. My belief that if you want to live a good life you should do unto others as you would have them do unto you is religious. Game theory and my life experiences support my belief, but it is ultimately an unprovable belief because of Hume’s Guillotine and the fact that my definition of “good life” is subjective.

It’s 100% possible that I’m just tricking myself into thinking helping other people is good and makes me happy, but I will still choose to believe.

Nah. But reason and logic are just human constructs that you’ll get to let go of when you die. The process of being born is indescribable for me. I think the process of dying will also be indescribable by definition.

What if dying feels like letting go of all your pain? I can imagine dying feels good. The best part about dying is you can’t be certain what it’ll be like. It could be the ultimate punchline, the ultimate letdown, or just utter nonsense as you fall asleep.

Just like life, dying is out of my control so I’m just going to go with it and try to enjoy it as much as I can.

Yeah. As someone who really likes thinking about metaphysics I’m really excited to die and see what it feels like. That being said I also really enjoy living and I’m not in a rush to die. It’ll happen eventually and I want to try to do as much as I can while I can.

Everyone should be excited to die, not just religious people. Being excited to die means you lived a good life that you’re satisfied with.

Yeah, I think a lot of modern Christians are unaware of how masochistic and sadistic they really are. They get so hung up on the idea that they have a “get out of jail free” card that it justifies all the rest of their behavior, even when that behavior is explicitly called out in their manual lol

I think you can “love” someone without tolerating their nonsense. It’s all about being willing to find a consensual way of interacting. Theoretically it may be impossible, but we can still try.

Yeah, you’d need to be able to see Fallen Destiny in the background.

It’s my belief that everyone is a masochist to a certain degree, and those who don’t realize it are in denial.

I drive a vehicle that burns gasoline and contributes to pollution. I purchase products that come in plastic packaging. I participate in an economy that can only exist by taking advantage of people in other countries where labor is “cheaper.” These are all things that I enjoy doing even though I know they’re inflicting suffering on people.

If I don’t do these things I pretty much won’t be able to function in society. And I certainly wouldn’t be able to contribute anything that I think is valuable.

One option would be to end myself, but that would inflict suffering on all my friends and family.

Another option would be to believe that the good I’m doing will outweigh the suffering I inflict on other people.

I’m interested in your thoughts on this. Do you think it’s possible to live a life where you don’t inflict suffering on anyone else?

You’re right, but you’re ignoring a crucial part of the equation which is the person who is suffering enjoys it or else they wouldn’t be doing it.

Haha, agreed. I used to love “going fishing” with my grandparents until I actually caught a fish, then I just felt terrible. I used to have nightmares where there would be fish hooks in my food.

Now “going fishing” to me just means hanging out by the water and being peacefully bored while other people enjoy the things they enjoy.

True, but not always true. Sometimes it’s the boss at work, or the bills on the desk, or the son you used to take fishing before he moved away for college.

Takes a wise person to willingly admit when they lack knowledge imo

No, but I want to give my landlord the opportunity (responsibility?) to see me as a person and not just an income source.

There was a great episode of This American Life where they interviewed a kid who took over managing one of his dad’s properties. One of the tenants was a couple who had lost a child, and they fell behind on rent (and on life in many ways).

One of the things that stood out to me was how difficult it was for the kid to put in the work needed to accommodate this couple. He worked his ass off coming up with payment plans and helping them budget. His big takeaway was that he didn’t ever want to get involved with his tenants again because it was too heartbreaking to be in a position where you’re supposed to evict someone that’s struggling.

Act three of this episode if you want to check it. https://www.thisamericanlife.org/323/the-super

Yeah for sure. You can’t logically prove that world view one way or the other, but it’s something worth thinking about and meditating on imo.

I broadly interpret “form relationships with people that make your life better and avoid shitty people” as “Do what makes you happy with the assumption that everyone is doing the same thing, and that the choice to pursue happiness is correct.”

I definitely get the sentiment of “avoiding shitty people”, but I do think that there is a time and place for it. I have some family members with some really hurtful world views and I still choose to engage with them when I know it will bring happiness for both of us.

But yeah, I don’t think my philosophy is logically perfect by any means. It is admittedly irrational, but it’s the best thing I’ve found for being able to live my life the way I feel like I should be living.

Unless you think that everyone is the same person and humanity is just a distributed consciousness. In which case anyone you end up with at any time is the person you’re supposed to be with. At which point the key to moving forward is trusting and forgiving “yourself”.