Do You Want Something More?

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

Change is long overdue. For those who consider themselves of intellectual value, please read this.

To start, I want to lay out a few observations. Bear in mind, they are just my observations.

Firstly, I want to comment on contrast.

Contrast is the only way in which human beings truly 'gain knowledge.' Through experience, essentially.

For example, if human beings have only known themselves to "exist" [be alive], then they have no concept of what not existing [being dead] is, but through contrast, if we could compare the two, we get a spectrum in the middle.

Just like we cannot suddenly be happy by knowing that there are others out there who are much less happy than we are. There is only what we are at this moment, that we truly know.

How does this relate to you, a normal BBS user? And what the hell does this have to do with anything?

If people in our society are born at the peak of prosperity, where is their incentive to achieve? You yourself, have you ever questioned your motivations? Or lack thereof?

If we are born into plenty, and we slowly, through teenage angst and life experience lose our sense of happiness, what incentive remains to spur us on to success? To uphold a sense of prosperity that we no longer can appreciate?

When I look and see the students of my school, I see bored faces with excuses for personalities and hobbies, made to pass the time. I see social activities created just to piss away our existence.

And when someone truly does try to step up and offer something new, a concept of change, there are many more out there who would gladly strike him down.

Humans have always been aggressive towards people who would dare try and be more than their own small piece of humanity. Think Jesus, though this has very little to do with religion.

What I want to offer to the bored minds and the hindered potentials is a reason to be passionate, and not about some superficial cause that really doesn't solve a problem.

I want to offer a way back to being truly alive, in a way that is more satisfying and vibrant than just living through the mind, which we are almost all doing, even though it is mostly subconscious.

Think back to your childhood. Do you remember a concept called innocence? Where everything was bliss? But a state of being that has been lost through contrast ?

Still have no idea what I'm talking about? Ask yourself this.
Are you comfortable with your own existence yet?

I want to offer you that comfort, and your full unbridled potential.

It starts through discussion.

[shadow699]

Quit thinking outside the box.

[American-Chinker]

At 1/17/06 10:10 PM, shadow699 wrote: Quit thinking outside the box.

thinking is unpatriotic!

[Premo2]

Whats with you and the long confusing posts?
Now i feel dumb, cause your grammar level puts mine to shame.

[Cripple-fight]

uh.....

sex?

[Rabbi-Indie-The-Rad]

go fuck a gooat!

all you fucking fuckers with your intelligent thinking, you can all just go fuck a gooat!

</sanjay>

[soccerbabe]

psh show off anyone can spout off like that im srry but it doesnt take a genius to formulate opinons anyone who gives any thought to anything can

[GreenLanturn]

Cult. :p

It is as it will always be a balance. Those having and therefore not having the drive to get and those wanting and because of that gaining much. I feel you must have both.

In most cases it seems like those that have gotten give to their kids in the idea of they not having when they were younger.

In most cases, the offspring aren't made to understand why they have things so easy or that they are forunate and not guaranteed such a life.

As one grows older, not understand hard work or struggle and wanting more as you say is their downfall.

Consequently they may ruin a good life for themselves and their offspring and a child of different circumstances is born. This child now wants better and learns to do what it takes and try harder to make a better life for themself and their children.

The gaps in the generations of families may differ for this to occur, but the cycle still continues somewhere.

[killa-teddy]

I like threads that actualy make me think.

[Leftover-crack]

At 1/17/06 10:09 PM, MidnightEscapeArtist wrote:

Still have no idea what I'm talking about? Ask yourself this.
Are you comfortable with your own existence yet?

I want to offer you that comfort, and your full unbridled potential.

this is easy:

"The hardest battle is to be nobody but yourself in a world trying to change you into something else." ~Anaynomous

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

At 1/17/06 10:10 PM, shadow699 wrote: Quit thinking outside the box.

Rather than responding with cynicism, letting the words bounce of your clenched mind, I think it would be awesome if you actually thought introspectively, read the entire post and thought about whether or not any of it rings true or sounds appealing to you, rather than trying to be the first to come up with a clever response.

At 1/17/06 10:11 PM, American_Chinker wrote:

At 1/17/06 10:10 PM, shadow699 wrote: Quit thinking outside the box.

thinking is unpatriotic!

Try to relate, please.
Once more, I get a sense of an idle mind behind these posts, just begging for something more concrete and real to live for. Call me crazy, I guess.

At 1/17/06 10:11 PM, -Cory- wrote: Whats with you and the long confusing posts?
Now i feel dumb, cause your grammar level puts mine to shame.

I've never been a normal person, to any extent. ^_^
If it is confusing then it is my fault, not yours.

At 1/17/06 10:12 PM, Fifer wrote: uh.....

sex?

No. Think about the acrid mind behind your ridiculous post there.
It indicates a banal level of thought. It indicates a generic response to an idea that requires anything more than a second of reading.

At 1/17/06 10:14 PM, Patch_The_Rad wrote: go fuck a gooat!

all you fucking fuckers with your intelligent thinking, you can all just go fuck a gooat!

</sanjay>

Is there not something stronger and more passionate in front of the screen than a mind that spouts off this trash?

Or is that what we have abased ourselves to. Clever, generic trash. It's disheartening.

At 1/17/06 10:14 PM, soccerbabe wrote: psh show off anyone can spout off like that im srry but it doesnt take a genius to formulate opinons anyone who gives any thought to anything can

But can they punctuate. *cough*

I'm not claiming anything over you, I just want to offer an idea that you may have previously thought unattainab...

wait a sec, I see where I lost most of you.

I'm not saying I have anything more than you guys don't inside my head, I just wanted to see if there was any interest in an idea that many of you may have thought "unreachable."

I'll try to write in a form that is easier to understand, with less big words and tricky concepts... erm... ideas.

*Rolls eyes* Is there not a few minds out there, among the legions of the brain-dead?

At 1/17/06 10:22 PM, killa_teddy wrote: I like threads that actualy make me think.

Then, I implore you, share your thoughts. Participate in your own human developement.

Green, I'm responding to yours seperately, as it actually forms a rebuttal.

[Rabid-Echidna]

At 1/17/06 10:09 PM, MidnightEscapeArtist wrote:

For example, if human beings have only known themselves to "exist" [be alive], then they have no concept of what not existing [being dead] is, but through contrast, if we could compare the two, we get a spectrum in the middle.

It's more often considered a passage of time than two separate things. Just as you start on one side of a street, drive to the other side, and can then know what it's like in the middle, I think of life and death as the same road. A very foggy road where I can't see what's ahead of me and my efforts to stop my car from slowly moving forward are futile.

Just like we cannot suddenly be happy by knowing that there are others out there who are much less happy than we are. There is only what we are at this moment, that we truly know.

Though it seems to be human nature to think something along the lines of "Wow, that's too bad," Then continue what you were previously doing and occasionally have that thought again. If that's your outtake on happiness, I suppose the ideal society for humans to live in would be a Bushman tribe somewhere in Africa like in "The Gods Must Be Crazy."

If people in our society are born at the peak of prosperity, where is their incentive to achieve? You yourself, have you ever questioned your motivations? Or lack thereof?

All people question their motives. People born at the so called "peak" of happiness can only descend into unhappiness once all the things they take for granted start slipping away for them, and they have to work to keep them. Starting from nothing however, would be a much more satisfying experience.

Humans have always been aggressive towards people who would dare try and be more than their own small piece of humanity. Think Jesus, though this has very little to do with religion.

People as a species are always content in some way to live their daily lives in a sort of routine. I guess they're right when they say that people fear change.

Still have no idea what I'm talking about? Ask yourself this.
Are you comfortable with your own existence yet?

Few people are truly comfortable with their existence. The best most people can hope for is dealing with the poorly thought out things of everyday life. Either that or becoming rich, and then there's those sameperiodic thoughts of those suffering because they don't have as much wealth as you.

It starts through discussion.

Philosophical thoughs. Fun.

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

At 1/17/06 10:21 PM, GreenLanturn wrote: Cult. :p

This made me smile, as I can see why you would say this, though that was never my intent. ^_^

It is as it will always be a balance. Those having and therefore not having the drive to get and those wanting and because of that gaining much. I feel you must have both.

Good observation. I've had both, at different times. Fair statement. I've had the drive, and then I lost something that no monetary prosperity could ever give me back. A sense of 'life', you could say.

In most cases it seems like those that have gotten give to their kids in the idea of they not having when they were younger.

A great observation, I've thought the same many times. They damage their children much more by providing with this caliber. At the same time, the system does work for some more than others.

In most cases, the offspring aren't made to understand why they have things so easy or that they are forunate and not guaranteed such a life.

I was definitely made to understand this, but it was a mental comprehension, not an intrinsic comprehension. What I mean is this: I never knew what it was like to 'not have', but I knew that I 'did have.'

As one grows older, not understand hard work or struggle and wanting more as you say is their downfall.

Wanting more, yes. But not 'more' in the sense that it can be provided by money, or being successful or powerful. More like subscribing to a different lifestyle, in a way.

Consequently they may ruin a good life for themselves and their offspring and a child of different circumstances is born. This child now wants better and learns to do what it takes and try harder to make a better life for themself and their children.

Ahh! It is a big loop now! A child is born without prosperity and thus, never learns to disappreciate it. Interesting. They now want to succeed along a different path.

But I feel that it is a flawed statement, because, though I would have loved to be filthy rich as a child, and I wanted money more than anything, I lost something along the way, and I believe that most people do not know they've lost this, but I have identified what I have lost.

Put it like this. As a child I would have sworn to god and greater that money could buy happiness. Now I know that isn't true, at least, not in all situations.

The gaps in the generations of families may differ for this to occur, but the cycle still continues somewhere.

I read a post on the BBS a while back, it was about a guy who's friend lost a brother. And the poster himself knew the brother as well. At first he felt completely shocked, but his post was about how he slowly started to notice all the little things in life again. He remarked that he felt "connected" with life and nature again. That is the feeling I seek, and what I remember from being a child.

Your comments are of excellent mental substance, but this is perhaps why you are so able to respond to my post. You have all the necessary tools to be a happy and satisfied person in life. You seem very well balanced. Perhaps if you went through depression for a while you would have a greater sense of what I mean, but even then, maybe not.

It's hard to say, but I really do appreciate your comments.

[GreenLanturn]

At 1/17/06 10:47 PM, MidnightEscapeArtist wrote: I read a post on the BBS a while back, it was about a guy who's friend lost a brother. And the poster himself knew the brother as well. At first he felt completely shocked, but his post was about how he slowly started to notice all the little things in life again.

I know what you're talking about and read the same thread. Yes certain things may trigger events/emotions we come to appreciate maybe not so much for the feeling or event, but the knowledge of at the moment or later in life.

Your comments are of excellent mental substance, but this is perhaps why you are so able to respond to my post. You have all the necessary tools to be a happy and satisfied person in life. You seem very well balanced.

Thank you. I have been through somethings that at the time I felt I should have experienced, but when I look back it adds to who I am and my outlook on life.

It's hard to say, but I really do appreciate your comments.

Anytime. I enjoy discussing philosophical points.

[Leftover-crack]

yeah I see what you mean, when you lost something that you hold dear, you tend to aprreicate the lil' things. really, I do like living so yeah.. just read my qoute.

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

At 1/17/06 11:00 PM, GreenLanturn wrote: I know what you're talking about and read the same thread. Yes certain things may trigger events/emotions we come to appreciate maybe not so much for the feeling or event, but the knowledge of at the moment or later in life.

I'm glad you read that post, it helps to communicate.

Now on to Rabid's post! This will take a long time.

Anytime. I enjoy discussing philosophical points.

I'll hold you to that! ^_^

[m0u5y]

You don't understand. We're all the biproduct of a failed laboratory test called the Neanderthals.

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

At 1/17/06 10:34 PM, Rabid-Echidna wrote: It's more often considered a passage of time than two separate things. Just as you start on one side of a street, drive to the other side, and can then know what it's like in the middle, I think of life and death as the same road. A very foggy road where I can't see what's ahead of me and my efforts to stop my car from slowly moving forward are futile.

Right. I see it as one extremity, say white, and another extremity, say black, and all almost all concepts are in the grey between the two. The fog is a good analogy for time. Limited visibility, but a sense that one must move onward.

The life and death comment was merely an analogy; an example of something that we can all relate to, existing, and what none of us can relate to, not-existing.
The point I meant about contrast, I will explain it later in response to a different section.
I love working in sections ^_^

Though it seems to be human nature to think something along the lines of "Wow, that's too bad," Then continue what you were previously doing and occasionally have that thought again. If that's your outtake on happiness, I suppose the ideal society for humans to live in would be a Bushman tribe somewhere in Africa like in "The Gods Must Be Crazy."

This is where you misunderstand me. I have seen "The Gods Must Be Crazy" and I must say, that is not how I would describe the ideal society, or anywhere close! ^_^
It's the landscape inside my mind that I need to change, and nothing external. There really is no "place" I could be that would make my happy.

For example, I was asked the question once, "If you could have anything in the world right now, what would it be?" and I said happiness. The other fourteen people that were asked said physical things, like a billion dollars and so on...
I'll explain why I think I feel the way I do at the end.

All people question their motives. People born at the so called "peak" of happiness can only descend into unhappiness once all the things they take for granted start slipping away for them, and they have to work to keep them. Starting from nothing however, would be a much more satisfying experience.

This is where the contrast argument comes in. If one has always been happy than one doesn't know sadness. If one has always known prosperity, and then loses their sense of happiness while in that state of prosperity, then the illusion is broken.

If having all these things doesn't provide happiness, especially when it used to, then what is one supposed to turn to. The answer is, of course, to attempt to revert to the way things were. And that is perhaps why I remember the state of innocence so vividly when others do not.

People as a species are always content in some way to live their daily lives in a sort of routine. I guess they're right when they say that people fear change.

Yes. And it makes perfect sense. If you are happy, stable and prosperous, why would anyone ever want to change that? But what if that system does not bring with it happiness and satisfaction, that is where the idea of change is born. I believe that the number of those dissatisfied with this kind of life will start to grow, because I have observed this around me.

Few people are truly comfortable with their existence. The best most people can hope for is dealing with the poorly thought out things of everyday life. Either that or becoming rich, and then there's those sameperiodic thoughts of those suffering because they don't have as much wealth as you.

This is where I will try to explain why I think it will be difficult to achieve happiness, in my case. Even using this thread as an example.

There are those capable of strong coherent thought, you and Green, and you both have an extremely stable and conscious hold of your happiness [on the surface anyway]. And then there are those who cannot really understand anything I am trying to say, and they are mindlessly happy. Unconsciously. And through their ignorance they have their bliss, to varying degrees, don't get me wrong.

I'm the latter, with the hold on my happiness broken.

It starts through discussion.

Philosophical thoughs. Fun.

I hate making typos in bold ^_^
Good discussion. I can rely on you for that. Thank you.

[Morextremist]

do what your parents tell you and never question those in power and you'll be happy.

[TheSovereign]

Being on this earth is odd. Why I exist? Well all I know that this whole planet is a fluke!

[MidnightEscapeArtist]

At 1/18/06 12:44 AM, Morextremist wrote: do what your parents tell you and never question those in power and you'll be happy.

Oh yes. I'll be ecstatic. Just ecstatic.