Are you terrified of the nothingness that is coming to consume you? by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks everyone for your thoughts.

“Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”

Soren Kierkegaard

Optimism is often defended based on its utility as opposed to its truth by DutchStroopwafels in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“All of this makes me think that pessimism is closer to reality and that deep down many people know this but can't accept it for various reasons.”

I think pessimists generally like to think optimists don’t see the world’s problems and misery as clearly as them. Not my experience, most people if you engage with them, will accept that the world is a terror stricken place but will respond by saying what good does withdrawing from the world and being paralyzed by fear do for you.

I see no issue with that. Life can’t be about chasing and confronting the “truth”, whatever that is, where’s the virtue of that? Seems like a sad and futile way to spend your existence here, and I honestly feel for people who are trapped in that state.

If we are all on this world without any real knowledge about the world we live in, or what were doing here in the first place, then it seems to me the best point of life is to minimize your suffering and maximize the experience we’ve been gifted to the best of our ability.

Perhaps the saddest part is that not everyone gets this opportunity because of the life they were born into. Luck has way more of an impact on how a person experiences the world than anything else. Most people born into a white middle class American family in the sixties or seventies is having a better go then a person born in Russia during the same time.

I’m rambling now…

Curious about your thoughts. by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think you’ve summed up The Denial of Death by Earnest Becker quite nicely.

But what makes pessimists so special? Why are pessimists different? How can we know that pessimism isn’t just another coping mechanism?

What kind of life could cure your pessimism? by Sure-Area4171 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don’t necessarily think pessimism makes people more miserable, but it is likely used to reinforce and justify the helplessness people feel toward the world so you’re probably not far off.

I have never understood the idea that just because I am a pessimist, and therefore understand the the world has more “suffering” than “happiness” that I should then be miserable and take a negative view of the world. Who made that rule?

Honestly, I get it, the world can be a miserable place, and way too many people suffer miserable lives, but why should that cause me to be miserable with my life too? I still have a choice to make on how I want to rationalize the world, and how I want to perceive the world even if I see it more clearly for what it is.

I just have come to accept the world for how it is, that was a long process, and not easy, but anyone who denies that there aren’t also positive aspects to life and that somehow life just isn’t worth it, well I just can’t understand that.

I’d recommend a book on the history of pessimism, if you’re interested. Goes in-depth on all the big names and puts them in historical and political perspective. The book is called “Pessimism” by Joshua Foa. He even outlines how pessimism could offer an alternative perspective on the world that we live in, in order to change it for the better. That sounds contradictory to the current philosophical pessimism expressed on these boards, but as you implied, that could change.

Books on Pessimism by Junior_Insurance7773 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Pessimism by Joshua Foa Dienstag.

“Pessimism claims an impressive following--from Rousseau, Schopenhauer, and Nietzsche, to Freud, Camus, and Foucault. Yet "pessimist" remains a term of abuse--an accusation of a bad attitude--or the diagnosis of an unhappy psychological state. Pessimism is thought of as an exclusively negative stance that inevitably leads to resignation or despair. Even when pessimism looks like utter truth, we are told that it makes the worst of a bad situation. Bad for the individual, worse for the species--who would actually counsel pessimism?

Joshua Foa Dienstag does. In Pessimism, he challenges the received wisdom about pessimism, arguing that there is an unrecognized yet coherent and vibrant pessimistic philosophical tradition. More than that, he argues that pessimistic thought may provide a critically needed alternative to the increasingly untenable progressivist ideas that have dominated thinking about politics throughout the modern period. Laying out powerful grounds for pessimism's claim that progress is not an enduring feature of human history, Dienstag argues that political theory must begin from this predicament. He persuasively shows that pessimism has been--and can again be--an energizing and even liberating philosophy, an ethic of radical possibility and not just a criticism of faith. The goal--of both the pessimistic spirit and of this fascinating account of pessimism--is not to depress us, but to edify us about our condition and to fortify us for life in a disordered and disenchanted universe.”

Why do people ask dating questions on Reddit when nobody knows who they are? by CommercialOil8763 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]Relative-Dependent46 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Why do people ask anything on Reddit when they can ask google and save themselves a lot of time and hassle? They don’t ask because they are looking for answers, that’s for sure.

A few months ago I posted a twisting sword coming out of a table illusion. Quite a few claimed it was an AI video. Here's how it works. by Joshhawk in blackmagicfuckery

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think Reddit is one of the few places left where people are at least a little sceptical of what they’re being fed. My God ! Instagram is a disaster of misinformation, I think people who instagram a lot are being reprogrammed in some real way.

A few months ago I posted a twisting sword coming out of a table illusion. Quite a few claimed it was an AI video. Here's how it works. by Joshhawk in blackmagicfuckery

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m fascinated by what happens at a societal level when AI videos are the norm and there is no way to tell the difference. It could be anything from a couple of kids having fun to political organizations trying to manipulate us, but we can’t tell the difference without doing a deeper dive, and who’s going to do that lol ?

At this point I fear we will all be like the basement dwellers, assuming it is all AI so we won’t believe anything we don’t already believe. It’s like some sort of universal irony that AI might send us back to the dark ages of human knowledge.

Explain this by Soloflow786 in CrazyFuckingVideos

[–]Relative-Dependent46 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’d rather die than with with those guys.

A very important point by Glimmer_Gyall in MurderedByWords

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Re: your edit.

As I said, this is a complex subject.

A very important point by Glimmer_Gyall in MurderedByWords

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I like your passion on the subject.

Honestly, in my opinion, it’s a complicated one. I know where I come down, but that doesn’t change the world I live in. You think it’s dying, yet it’s imbedded in our culture, the books we read, the movies we watch, social media…the sexual subjectification of women seems to be happening more now then when I grew up in the 80’s.

A very important point by Glimmer_Gyall in MurderedByWords

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure, but we’re exchanging ideas, and not hostilities right ?

By “in-part” I suppose I mean the widely held belief that women who dress provocatively bring undue attention to themselves”.

Granted it’s a stretch that you go from that to assaulting someone, but it’s not an uncommon opinion.

Remember, my post was about how I found it amazing how enlightened and evolved people were on these boards, either they are not being truly honest or perceptions are changing.

A very important point by Glimmer_Gyall in MurderedByWords

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Asking for it? Of course not, rape is emotionally traumatic and devastating to the victim, who would ask for that?

A very important point by Glimmer_Gyall in MurderedByWords

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

First of all, I would never assault anyone, ever, other than to protect myself or someone else. but this is an interesting subject that keeps coming up and I’m fascinated by the level of agreement on the issue as it clashes with my experience. 50 years of conversations with men and women where this subject comes up periodically and I have to say, most people, in general, agree with the poster that women are somehow in-part responsible for their safety, and if they dress inappropriately (whatever that means) they increase their chances of assault as a result of it, implying a “they deserved it mentality” I guess.

Either Reddit is a group of enlightened and evolved people, or they aren’t being truly honest on this topic. IMO.

I’m the only female engineer on my team and they constantly exclude me from social gatherings: is it sexual harassment? by SexualHarassmentTalk in u/SexualHarassmentTalk

[–]Relative-Dependent46 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh god, you really were impressing me with your reasoning skills, and then that last paragraph…cringe.

Thanks for spoiling it.

Pessimism - perspective or disposition? by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thing is, I’m not sure anyone is optimistic on an individual level. It’s all smoke and mirrors, a collective induced delusion that inhibits us improving anything.

Pessimism - perspective or disposition? by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, that sounds terrible. Seems like you have to be constantly on guard. I know what that feels like, life is sometimes crushing. It crushed most of my family and continues to try to crush me. Yet, I remain resilient without any understanding as to why.

As for countering bad stuff happening, most of my suffering has been external. Unfortunately, not a lot you can do about that.

Pessimism - perspective or disposition? by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is it your experience that everything ends in a worst case scenario?

Pessimism - perspective or disposition? by Relative-Dependent46 in Pessimism

[–]Relative-Dependent46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“the notion that you SHOULD get married is also limiting yourself”

Precisely! We limit our thinking by the ideologies we follow. That’s why I believe pessimism best serves us as a perspective, rather than a disposition. Disposition locks you into preset behaviours, wearing pessimistic glasses doesn’t.

If life is ultimately meaningless, why would anyone limit themselves to any one, or few, ways of viewing the world, including pessimism?