Why the heck are we so negative on ourselves?

[Lux-Vertas]

Humans are a weird species, we can use and improve tools, were Unbelievably Political, and wet a stones throw away from true unity yet more divided than ever.

We've survived Wars, Diseases, Global warming, the wrath of nature and yet we still survive!

we have more homes than ever, we are cultural and less prone to our raw instincts than the other species in our primate family.

And yet why the hell do so many of our species hate ourselves? I mean it's only a few idiots that mess up our day, and most humans want to survive unless they are really emotionally drained. I mean were not bad by nature! Now more than ever the "Lets treat others like we would like to be treated" is now more respected than it has ever been! And yet there are significant people who WANT us to become extinct, who WANT failure...

Humans as we know it won't live for ever, but we can Evolve! We can adapt and improve ourselves, and yet we have such a bad feeling us it's just anoying...



Ayhow: what your opinon on this "Humans are innately evil" Pseudo-Posoyphy?

[Chu]

Ouch. I'll give you my honest opinion on humans.

We don't deserve to live any more than any other species on this planet, yet we act as if nothing matters but our own well being. People are near-sighted and extremely selfish, which I'll give you is practically programmed inside of each of us, but I just feel that people should at least try to overcome these faults, rather than feed them and go on as if they're the only worthy beings in existence.

Basically it's the pride that drives me insane with humans. I can't stand it when people will willingly sit there and lie just to save face, or put someone else in danger to be safe. It's a fault that I have too, but I can't stand it. We're all afraid to say "I'm wrong." or "This is what's wrong with me..." and live in an alternate reality where we're the epitome of perfection and everyone else doesn't even deserve the crumbs off our plates.

However, I realize that there are some who aren't like this at all. But I kind of see the human race as I see the members of Gaia; there are some great people that would never think of acting selfishly or hurting someone, but there are jackasses that would do anything for self gain that completely overshadow the good people. I guess I have faith, but as a whole, I'm not very fond of people at all.

I'd also like to point out, however, that I never use these opinions to judge an individual. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt so everyone is kind of on a clean slate with me. Once I learn that a person is just as my perception assumes though, then the respect could never really be earned back.

[Lux-Vertas]

OK, Using the net to gage human Nature is like using A microscope to prove the Earth rotates around the sun!

I present to you the the Online Disinhibtion Effecy Seriously!


It's only a few Maggots that ruin the whole Bushel!

Yeah, some people deserve to be removed from circulation, but it's only those with the smallest brain and biggest mouth (I call it the "Tyranosaurus effect") so... we with the big brains need to yell out, preferably with a megaphone!

[Chu]

I'm sorry, I didn't properly explain myself. I don't compare real life to the internet, but I see similarities in how people look at the userbase of Gaia and how I look at people. There may be a minority of bad people in either setting, but I'm too blinded by that to be pleased by society as a whole.

[Weaseldale]

[Chu]

You're right. ^^ Anyone would most likely die to protect a cherished one, and that goes for animals as well. However, I've seen open-mindedness in enough people to believe that we're able to be conscious of the suffering that we cause and to regret it, so for people to go through life and act like they don't care - or worse, those who truly don't - is terrible to me.


My opinions are skewed because I don't look at life as a precious thing as most people do, so it's hard for me to understand caring more about one's life than anything else.

[Weaseldale]

I completely agree with that. It's not really the fact that we do it, but the fact that we realize what we're doing and just don't care.

[Chu]

Yay, I explained myself properly. T 3T Sorry for that - I've been kind of out of it.

[Lux-Vertas]

thanks Weaseldale for getting Chu to elaborate...

and I see your points (both of you) but it's a philosophical paradox of modern life:

It's the imperfections of the world that cause humans to drive themselves to ake it better, but most of the time it's a saturation point thing...

[Missa]

Hmmm. I've always seen it as...people always try so hard to be "perfect." And they try so hard make things in the world "perfect." But total perfection can't really be achieved because people are not perfect. Earth is not a Utopia.

I wish people would be grateful with what they have...but I think it's human nature to always want something more than what they've already got. People never seem to be totally satisfied with anything.

[Chu]

From what I've seen though, it's almost as if people are becoming less and less concerned with making the world a Utopia. Accepting reality may be a good thing, but once we've realized that we can't achieve perfection, we'll stop striving for anything worthwhile.

Then again, that makes me question how we deem anything perfect or worthwhile.

Things like this make me settle with the idea of living to make yourself happy, and nothing more. It may be selfish, but when everyone tries to make themselves a better person by their own standards and stop worrying about the rest of society, then as a whole they'd be happier. But that's stretching it a bit.

[Missa]

I think you make a really good point.

But some people don't know what they want in life. Even if they want happiness, sometimes they can't seem to find it, no matter what they do. Or they find something that makes them happy for just a little while, and then they're not happy and want something else. And it's this long, hopeless cycle.

Hmmm....maybe it's a little personal, but this really reminds me of my father. He has depression, so there's a chemical imbalance in his brain. But it is very sad to me. I watch him buy really expensive things and then he never uses them. I watch him try new hobbies that never stick because he's not satisfied with them. He's a very unhappy man.

I think he relies too much on materialistic things for happiness. So many people do that. If a $300 Coach purse REALLY makes one happy, then I guess it works for them. But I think happiness from those kind of things is ephemeral.

Sorry if this is off topic. I think it ties into everything, but, y'know.

[Lux-Vertas]

That's not soo off topic Missa, but the human mind is a weird one, we've tried to understand ourselves for... 300? years, and yet we still bicker over simple ideas!

[Chu]

@Missa: I mainly blame that on people being fickle.

I don't think you're being off topic either. I agree with you about material possessions, and I have something too.

My family members aren't obese, but the people I'm talking about other than my mom tend to get me food when I'm upset or sick. Back when we had money before, they'd get me some new CD, barbie doll, game, etc. They've learned to use material possessions to make them happy because they grew up with practically nothing, and while that type of thing works on them and most other people for the moment, it never worked on me. That's kind of where I got my opinion of people being selfish from.


@Lux: Just thinking about the brain makes my own head swirl. I'd give anything to understand it but I wonder where we'd go from there if that happened? Without something to entertain ourselves...

[Missa]

Lux-Vertas: Yeah, it's really...puzzling >_< And makes my brain hurt too, thinking about it. But I think that psychology is not as....scientifically rigorous as other fields of study, like physics. The brain is really complex. While something such as physics can be perfectly proven (A causes B), psychology isn't always like that. You can't open up someone's head and know exactly what's going on.

I was talking to my bf about this, and he claimed that it has something to do with how often new things overturn older ideas. Someone will be like "I think A causes B" and publish it, and then everyone accepts it as a new fact. And then later someone will be like "I actually think C causes B" and then THAT will be accepted as a new fact.

But since our technology has dramatically advanced over the centuries, it's going to keep advancing. Eventually, in the future, I'm sure that there will be a more exact science about why we are how we are.

And Chu: I see. :c But what do you mean when you say that's how you got your opinion of people being selfish? Like...did you see your family as selfish because they thought material possessions would make you happy like it makes them..?