The painful reality of greed and selfishness...

Originally posted by Jeremiah65



Yes a shameless bump of my own thread topic!

second line

How do you give a post a thumbs down?

Shameless is right. Shameful that the mods allow this crap.

I believe this should be in the political section. Most of the thread is about politics. And to the OP, I resent being called names because I'm not of your political persuasion. You do not know me. I believe you created this thread to stir up crap. To me, it's trolling.

Originally posted by ConcernedConservative
reply to post by Jeremiah65

 

Why do you care so much what the next guy has??? Work hard and reap your own rewards.

Did you not read anything? Did you just decide this was a thread bashing Conservative republicans and you felt you needed to come in as the mighty defender? I do not care what other people have...I really-really care about what many DO NOT have...and there is a damn big difference.

This thread is about what is troubling the world and what might be done to fix it...and if you would have read...I bashed both parties and philosophies equally...they are both broken and neither work.

There needs to be a new plan.

reply to post by ChiefD



This belongs in Social issues and civil unrest...regardless where you think it belongs. Greed, selfishness, poverty...etc. are all social issues. Half of the problem is that these issues are made political.


And btw...I never called you a name and you do not know me either...Unless you are referring to the first post where I used the terms "nutjob" and greedy [email protected]. I also said in post one that I was going to be an equal opportunity offender

I had a clever retort in there for you but I edited it out. Not worth the time

Think of this...
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it"...Aristotle...

reply to post by sligtlyskeptical

Edit: Nevermind...I had a catchy retort but that is pointless. If you think it was an atrocious thing to do...you are entitled to that opinion.

Ok...I am going to try and rephrase something here as some of the later comers are somehow missing the point where I said I was an equal opportunity offender.

I am bashing both sides of the aisle...I am bashing all of us for being greedy and selfish.

Let's get one thing straight...I am selfish. I know that. I try to be better than I am but I generally slip right back into my old shoes...they are familiar and comfortable.

My point in this is that I see a lot of problems and no one asking the hard questions about what is wrong and what can be done about it. I said in post one that my goal was to get people to think hard...I fully expected some folks to fly off in a rampage.

It is what it is....I have a comfortable life, but I would like to see an end to suffering...It is a part of the "Noble Truths"...the extinction of suffering

ETA:
As you can see, I went back and edited some replies...I was guilty of "reacting" to what I was anticipating. I knew some people would not get halfway through the first post and not be offended. It was fully expected that way. If I can draw that emotion out and make people think about it...that is a start. Only when we are forced to look out our naked nature can we begin to take steps to overcome it.

Originally posted by Hefficide



I blame Madison Ave and Hollywood. In fact I honestly think that these combined forces have either accidentally or deliberately altered human psychology in a profound and deeply disturbing manner - one that threatens to change the course of the evolution of our species.

Sound hyperbolic and a tad insane? I don't blame you for thinking that. Even I take a step back from these thoughts and have the same reaction. But that doesn't negate my feelings that I am right on the money.

Trying to place blame on two of the most capitalistic entities like Mad Ave. and Hollywood is a bit hyperbolic and you might say a "tad" insane. However...

If it's blame were interested in, look no further than the www. to turn people into narcissistic, cloistered, withdrawn fools. We don't need human interaction anymore; we got facebook, pornography, wii, smart phones and the cloud to keep us connected to the web even when were out among other people, who are more interested in staying "connected" [social media] than real social interaction. Even ATS puts a barrier between us and our flesh and blood community outside the www. Is that healthy?

I used to think that social media might bring people together but actually it's a phony connectedness that actually fosters personal greed and selfishness. Don't get me wrong, Mad Ave and Hollywood are not blameless and I'm not defending them but ultimately they give the masses what they want because that's how profit is generated. They have rooms full of MBAs trying to figure out the next fad, personality, game, or diversion, to jump on; just like the nerdy web developers. I don't think that business is that much interested in social engineering as much as profit. I could be wrong though!!

This "greed and selfishness" question is way past being political; it's a cultural manifestation that was generated by the industrial revolution and technology. We simply don't need each other that much anymore.

All this while I sit in the dark, except for the light from a computer monitor....alone!

reply to post by olaru12


Not necessarily a full on "blame" thread. I had hoped to first tear down the two primary schools of thought to the very base elements to say "ok, this is not working" so we could hopefully think outside the normal limits we have been trying to use. If we continue to try and solve the problems the same way we have been...it begins to take on that slightly twisted definition of insanity..."Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result".

Trying to find a solution to the problems we face without first recognizing the real sickness...is akin putting band aids on a hemorrhage...it's not going to work

I am all for freedom as I stated in my first post. I think that within it is many of the answers we are seeking...but again...as you stated...it goes way beyond political views (but my personal views are as much philosophy as political).

There is another thread going right now talking about certain municipal restrictions on the homeless...I won't go there in here...suffice to say...this is not the answer either but it is very close to something I said back on page 1 "just let them die". "people don't want to see them"

This is where we are going if we do not get beside ourselves and take a hard look around. It is NOT ok...it is NOT acceptable.

The first thing I wanted to do was fire people up...hopefully make them question where they themselves stood on things like poverty, homelessness....opulence and wealth hoarding...

There is a price for our greed and selfishness and it is in the streets around you every day. If you can look them in the eye and sleep at night...that is you. But most people can't...they look away and then ask the city to do something about "those homeless people"...