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Thread: Philosophy: Why Bother?

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    Default Philosophy: Why Bother?

    This topic as current as you, right here, right now.
    Every posting member participates in this forum.

    And we all dine, check the mail, do our job, etc.

    For centuries the American tradition was to work to create for the next generation a world better than their own.

    The trend held up fairly well, for a while.
    "If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace." Thomas Paine
    It may be comforting to imagine an infinite future which unrelentingly trends toward improvement.

    But astronomers predict that when our sun, our white dwarf star goes red giant, it will subsume Earth's orbit, and life on Earth will go from medium rare to well done.

    Even if we find refuge in another, younger solar system, that refuge will (on cosmic scale) only be temporary. For cosmic heat death is inevitable.

    Whether we'll still be biological by then, some bio/artificial hybrid, or whether fully artificial, the end will be near.

    Food or fuel would have to be produced artificially, and with the convenient energy flux of stars all gone, our power source would soon be exhausted.

    Therefore:
    is it not all for naught?

    Thus the topic question.
    What is your fundamental motive for doing what you're doing right now? "Why Bother?" if it's all ultimately futile?
    "It should be obvious to anyone why conservatives and libertarians should be against Trump. He has no grounding in belief. No core philosophy. No morals. No loyalty. No curiosity. No empathy and no understanding. He demands personal loyalty and not loyalty to the nation. His only core belief is in his own superiority to everyone else. His only want is exercise more and more personal power." smb / purveyor of fact 18/03/18

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    meanwhile I gotta pay the bills. so i log onto work

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    Yes.
    I suspect many approach their own lives like that a #2.
    They continue the routine of their lives, without understanding, or perhaps in your case not even considering why.
    "It should be obvious to anyone why conservatives and libertarians should be against Trump. He has no grounding in belief. No core philosophy. No morals. No loyalty. No curiosity. No empathy and no understanding. He demands personal loyalty and not loyalty to the nation. His only core belief is in his own superiority to everyone else. His only want is exercise more and more personal power." smb / purveyor of fact 18/03/18

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    I was given one lifetime. Despite a few "speed bumps," I have, and will continue to, enjoy it the best I can until it ends.
    Common sense is not a gift, it's a punishment because you have to deal with everyone who doesn't have it.

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    R6 #4

    I've considered that. But that seems to suggest hedonism is life's raisons d’ętre.

    But the irony of hedonism is, those that seem to seek it the most are those that seem to find it the least.
    I turned to drugs for mind expansion & pain reduction. What resulted was pain expansion and mind reduction. Carrie Fischer
    When was the most recent time you saw a happy heroin addict.
    "It should be obvious to anyone why conservatives and libertarians should be against Trump. He has no grounding in belief. No core philosophy. No morals. No loyalty. No curiosity. No empathy and no understanding. He demands personal loyalty and not loyalty to the nation. His only core belief is in his own superiority to everyone else. His only want is exercise more and more personal power." smb / purveyor of fact 18/03/18

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    Quote Originally Posted by sear View Post
    R6 #4

    I've considered that. But that seems to suggest hedonism is life's raisons d’ętre.

    But the irony of hedonism is, those that seem to seek it the most are those that seem to find it the least.

    When was the most recent time you saw a happy heroin addict.
    Well, since I really can't make much sense of your post, that, and the fact I've never even considered heroin (what that has to do with anything, I have no clue), I will continue to do the things I have an interest in and enjoy doing. Some of them include the occasional drive in my AC Cobra, car shows, playing pool (billiards) with my friends and the hunting/shooting sports. It's all good.
    Common sense is not a gift, it's a punishment because you have to deal with everyone who doesn't have it.

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    Quote Originally Posted by sear View Post
    This topic as current as you, right here, right now.
    Every posting member participates in this forum.

    And we all dine, check the mail, do our job, etc.

    For centuries the American tradition was to work to create for the next generation a world better than their own.

    The trend held up fairly well, for a while.

    It may be comforting to imagine an infinite future which unrelentingly trends toward improvement.

    But astronomers predict that when our sun, our white dwarf star goes red giant, it will subsume Earth's orbit, and life on Earth will go from medium rare to well done.

    Even if we find refuge in another, younger solar system, that refuge will (on cosmic scale) only be temporary. For cosmic heat death is inevitable.

    Whether we'll still be biological by then, some bio/artificial hybrid, or whether fully artificial, the end will be near.

    Food or fuel would have to be produced artificially, and with the convenient energy flux of stars all gone, our power source would soon be exhausted.

    Therefore:
    is it not all for naught?

    Thus the topic question.
    What is your fundamental motive for doing what you're doing right now? "Why Bother?" if it's all ultimately futile?
    I just woke up but to answer your questions...to much fiber and nature calls bro.
    You're Never Alone With A Schizophrenic!

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    Quote Originally Posted by sear View Post
    Yes.
    I suspect many approach their own lives like that a #2.
    They continue the routine of their lives, without understanding, or perhaps in your case not even considering why.
    That’s the single most important question to ask yourself at work and if you can’t answer it you probably need to find a new job. I constantly reflect on this question as it provides me direction and the discipline not to kill that asshole sales rep from Massachusetts.
    You're Never Alone With A Schizophrenic!

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    R6 #6

    Reportedly The New York Times is written at the 4th grade reading level. I try to keep it within reach of most posters & lurkers.
    hedonism (hęd´n-îz´em) noun
    1.Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses.
    2.Philosophy. The ethical doctrine holding that only what is pleasant or has pleasant consequences is intrinsically good.
    3.Psychology. The doctrine holding that behavior is motivated by the desire for pleasure and the avoidance of pain.

    [Greek hędonę, pleasure + -ism.]
    - he´donist noun
    - he´donis´tic adjective
    - he´donis´tically adverb *
    s #5 may make more sense to you, if you understand it's a responsive reply to: " I have, and will continue to, enjoy it the best I can until it ends. " R6

    * Excerpted from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Electronic version licensed from INSO Corporation; further reproduction and distribution in accordance with the Copyright Law of the United States. All rights reserved.
    "It should be obvious to anyone why conservatives and libertarians should be against Trump. He has no grounding in belief. No core philosophy. No morals. No loyalty. No curiosity. No empathy and no understanding. He demands personal loyalty and not loyalty to the nation. His only core belief is in his own superiority to everyone else. His only want is exercise more and more personal power." smb / purveyor of fact 18/03/18

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    Quote Originally Posted by sear View Post
    Yes.
    I suspect many approach their own lives like that a #2.
    They continue the routine of their lives, without understanding, or perhaps in your case not even considering why.
    Yes well to be honest some people can take this philosophy thing to seriously. Now between the two of us we can use philosophy to prove a ham sandwich doesn’t exist even if it’s toasted.

    Ultimately what it is all about is you must provide the meaning and significance of your own life yourself through your own experiences and perceptions.

    Now pass the joint and try not to drool so much on it.
    You're Never Alone With A Schizophrenic!

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    Quote Originally Posted by sear View Post
    Yes.
    I suspect many approach their own lives like that a #2.
    They continue the routine of their lives, without understanding, or perhaps in your case not even considering why.
    Maybe the meaning of life is that there is no meaning. It just is.

    The universe got along fine for billions of years without us. It will continue to do so after we've returned to star dust.

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    "Ultimately what it is all about is you must provide the meaning and significance of your own life yourself through your own experiences and perceptions." MH #10
    BUT !!
    One of the risks is those that don't ask the question, or when asked refuse to answer is:

    they can reach their death bed before it dawns on them. That's a tragedy.

    And the benefit of asking the question long before death is to present the opportunity of mid-course correction.

    Sarah Shays used to be a radio personality.
    But she could see the complications for those living in Afghanistan. So she decided to up stakes and try to help.
    She moved there, and started a business of making soap from material available in Afghanistan.

    The most comfortable rut is the one you're in.
    "It should be obvious to anyone why conservatives and libertarians should be against Trump. He has no grounding in belief. No core philosophy. No morals. No loyalty. No curiosity. No empathy and no understanding. He demands personal loyalty and not loyalty to the nation. His only core belief is in his own superiority to everyone else. His only want is exercise more and more personal power." smb / purveyor of fact 18/03/18

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    I agree with RB's response.

    This is NOT a dress rehearsal; it is the life I am going to live...and I intend to enjoy it and be as content in it as possible.

    If you want to think that is hedonism...and that "hedonism" is "bad" in some way...do so. In my opinion, you are the less for having done it.

    Lighten up, Sear. Your other posts indicate you are above this.

    Enjoy life as much as you can. If you are worrying about what may happen billions of years from now...you've got a major problem.

    By the way...your star-ending sequencing is wrong.

    Our sun is a yellow dwarf...and will expand to a red giant...and THEN go to a white dwarf.

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    So, nobody is worried about what kind of world we’re going to leave for Keith Richards?

    Sad.
    Coup has started. First of many steps. Impeachment will follow ultimately~WB attorney Mark Zaid, January 2017

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    Quote Originally Posted by Darth Omar View Post
    So, nobody is worried about what kind of world we’re going to leave for Keith Richards?

    Sad.
    ROFL..hilarious!
    If we have a nuclear war only cockroaches and Keith Richards would survive, The man is immortal

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