Human nature

archangel

archangel

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I know that in todays society it is very easy to get isolated and divided from life......but as humans have we become very selfish in our quest for self fulfillment.......????
 
archangel said:
I know that in todays society it is very easy to get isolated and divided from life......but as humans have we become very selfish in our quest for self fulfillment.......????
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Possibly.
But sometimes it's through self preservation.
There's only so many times you can be told you can't / you mustn't / you have no right....etc.
Sometimes in life the only person who believes in you or can help you, is you; and others are best ignored.
Just my opinion, of course.
 
archangel said:
I know that in todays society it is very easy to get isolated and divided from life......but as humans have we become very selfish in our quest for self fulfillment.......????
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This will be a great thread.

I think as people go, we are a discontented species. Whilst that's driven us to evolve and improve our lot by innovating, it's also made us a restless and unhappy species not content with what we have but discontented with what we don't have.

That discontentment with what we don't have is IMHO the route cause of socialism.
 
ST4 said:
This will be a great thread.

I think as people go, we are a discontented species. Whilst that's driven us to evolve and improve our lot by innovating, it's also made us a restless and unhappy species not content with what we have but discontented with what we don't have.

That discontentment with what we don't have is IMHO the route cause of socialism.
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simon ess said:
That discontentment with what we don't have is IMHO the root cause of capitalism.

A statement as equally valid, and equally nonsensical, as that above.
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They both recognise discontentment with what we don't have. Capitalism says people should strive for what they don't have as individuals and to hell with anyone else, socialism says we should strive for what we don't have by working together (each participant in a society works according to ability and receives according to need).
 
ghoti said:
They both recognise discontentment with what we don't have. Capitalism says people should strive for what they don't have as individuals and to hell with anyone else, socialism says we should strive for what we don't have by working together (each participant in a society works according to ability and receives according to need).
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Indeed, totally accept that.

Nonsense in the sense of simplistic, and within the context of ST4's well documented views.
 
Capitalism means people can strive to improve themselves if they so wish and not necessarily selfishly. Socialism means dream all you like it won't happen no matter how selfish you are.
 
Is this just another thread about blinkered people airing their views from two extremes? How friggin tedious
 
new2me said:
Is this just another thread about blinkered people airing their views from two extremes? How friggin tedious
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When I started the thread it had nothing to do with right or left wing extremes......
 
Yv said:
, can we go back to archangels original question and not turn it into yet another ridiculous political debate and personal digs please.
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Well that killed that thread then, seems not :D
 
I've found that there are some people you keep putting yourself out for, time and time again, sometimes to the point that it detrimentally affects your own happiness and wellbeing only for the person you're trying to make happy to still be as miserable as sin and somehow make it your fault.

It's in these circumstances I tend to revert to selfish mode...... what I mean by selfish is that I do what I want and what makes me happy :)
 
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Russ77 said:
I've found that there are some people you keep putting yourself out for, time and time again, sometimes to the point that it detrimentally affects your own happiness and wellbeing only for the person you're trying to make happy to still be as miserable as sin and somehow make it your fault.

It's in these circumstances I tend to revert to selfish mode...... what I mean by selfish is that I do what I want and what makes me happy :)
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Brilliant post, I couldn't agree more :thumbs:
 
Is it just human nature though? Look at pretty much any other animal and see what they'll do for an extra bit of food, a spot in the sun (or shade!). Admittedly we're probably the only species that's screwed the planet up but we're far from the only species demonstrating selfish behaviour.
 
Nod said:
we're far from the only species demonstrating selfish behaviour.
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I think humans are faaaaaar more selfish, as it's rare that you'll see obese animals in the wild if at all (obviously, I could be very wrong about that, but I don't recall seeing any in my limited experience). Yes, they'll do things to get that extra bit of food, or more shade etc, but they dont have the luxury of just popping down the shop for snacks or a nice sunhat, but are wary of the changing seasons and the difficulty of getting food and reserving energy. There's also the need to maintain hierarchy, so what might look like bullying or greed will be a demonstration of status, which is needed for that species to survive. Domesticated and captive animals are different, because they've been 'ruined' by our selfish needs ;)
 
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Imo selfishness is present in most mamals to a greater or lesser extent , its part of survival of the fittest , if theres not enough food to go round first i'm getting mine, then i'm feeding my offspring - f*** the rest of you.
 
We don't know if it is selfishness in a wild animal that will let it's offspring starve, so it can feed itself. Maybe, it's looking at the bigger picture and thinking, "next year will be better" and hopes it's next set of little ones will have better fortune. If it allows itself to die, then it might leave the youngsters vulnerable and eventually extinction of the species, or at least it's family line. We just don't know ;)
 
Selfishness is human emotion, and a deliberate thought out act.
I've never subscribed to the anthropomorphism theory.

Animals are great survivalists and will do what is necessary to survive,
and that includes "cannibalism" either for food and "Infanticide" to protect the genes (lions specifically)
of an incoming Alpha.
 
Just because we can go shopping for our food, that has nothing to do with selfishness. It's just convenience. You'll probably find that for all the acts of selfishness in humans, there are also selfless acts and the majority of people will be guilty of both.
 
nilagin said:
Just because we can go shopping for our food, that has nothing to do with selfishness.
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No, what I'm saying is that we know there is an endless supply of food available, whereas many animals will get as much as they can from a kill for example, because it might be the only opportunity for a while.
 
Are humans selfish ?
Depends on your definition of the word.
I would call it more self preservation, you can only give so much to others then you have
to walk away and let them get on with it.
When things don't go as they want it will of course be your fault for being selfish
and not wanting to help, been there several times
 
I've worked bloody hard, got what I want in life. I don't envy guys who have more material things than I have and still try to help people who are less fortunate.
 
Same here Ade as long as they treat me ok
 
Gremlin said:
Are humans selfish ?
Depends on your definition of the word.
I would call it more self preservation ...
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Depends on your idea of "self preservation" then :p

Is doing everything to maintain a grip on vast amounts of resources that you will more than likely never need, while people around you struggle to feed themselves simply "self preservation" or something different altogether.
 
Humans are very, very, very, very complicated. Philosophers have been trying to pin down human nature for millennia.

Although a female friend assures me that "men are such simple creatures."
 
new2me said:
Depends on your idea of "self preservation" then :p

Is doing everything to maintain a grip on vast amounts of resources that you will more than likely never need, while people around you struggle to feed themselves simply "self preservation" or something different altogether.
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Wow I wish I had vast amounts of resources ;)
I work to earn the means to lead a lifestyle I enjoy, material things
mean very little to me
 
archangel said:
I know that in todays society it is very easy to get isolated and divided from life......but as humans have we become very selfish in our quest for self fulfillment.......????
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Quite simply, yes we have. I don't have an issue with the looking after oneself part, nothing wrong with that. It is the regardless of others part that saddens me. Saying that I also think the selfish tag is to quickly attached to some people in a warped reverse selfish manner, like through some dependency or guilt trip. We are complex animals ;)
 
Maybe this has been posted before

The world isn't always fair. In fact, there are many, many times when it's unfair and it feels like other people are out to get you. That's why it's important to remember the positive parts of life when you can. Take, for example, these random acts of kindness. Complete strangers helped each other out for no reason other than to be good people. This is the sort of kindness that really renews your faith in the world and other people. As you scroll through these, it'll become very clear that the world isn't the bad place some people try to make it out to be...
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http://www.viralnova.com/acts-of-kindness-random/1/
 
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