Life After People (History Channel)

[saden1]

Originally Posted by JoeRedskin

As indicated above, this statement demonstrates, to me, a complete disregard for the different emotional make-up between people and is incredibly intolerant.



No, in fact, I do not find them mutually exclusive. Rather, I find them one in the range of human responses. It appeared to me, however, that you consider that those who approach it from the second part of this are mentally ill/apathetic unless they also accept your initial emotional reaction.



The subtle difference I was suggesting is that a truly apathetic person in the traditional "sinfull" sense of accidea would feel nothing and conduct no further thought on the matter ever. Neither 70chip or CRedskins fell into this category. Each had arrived at their conclusion by consideration of the nature of the question being asked and gave a basis for why they now chose to be indifferent.



Again, this goes back to your ultimate dismissal of religious thought. Those who approach these types of hypotheticals from a spiritual/faith based line of thought are dismissed as non-thought. Both 70Chip and CRedskins explained thier positions, it seems to me that you dismissed them both as "make believe place" believers.



An individiual who feels nothing is apathetic. A person who feels something and does nothing more is apathetic. Life, as humans, requires more than mere "feeling" it requires introspection and action. "The unexamined life is not worth living". Regardless of my introspection and self-examination, however, you dismiss my thoughts and feelings as apathetic or signs of mental illness. I find that offensive.

Regardless of how you rationalize indifference I wholeheartedly believe indifferent people to be handicapped. If you find my position irrational the feeling is mutual. Simply put some positions are better than others and in this case you believe yours to be better and I find mine to be better. I do tend to dismiss religious thought (an Oxymoron?) early and often because I find them offensive especially when it intimates "indifference is perfectly acceptable."

I really don't see the mish-mesh on my part but whatever. I'm not going to argue over something you're alluding to that I'm not cognizant of.

In my point of view I find both 70Chip and CRedskins apathetic, in yours they are not. That's perfectly fine though I suspect you find your definition of what apathy is palatable.

It takes two against one to be dismissive:

Originally Posted by CRedskinsRule

Saden, if you don't believe in heaven, then this shouldn't be scary anyways, since the whole point of it is 1000's of years AFTER people. Chances are 100% you won't be here to see it, hence, not scary.
And if you do believe in a new heaven and a new earth, then most of this is just modern day blah blah blah anyways.

Originally Posted by CRedskinsRule

I was not talking of dwelling on it, you never said you did that. I think to be scared of something you have zero control, and has no chance of occurring without foreshadowing and notice, makes no sense. If we get wiped out in the blink of an eye, your fear gained you nothing. If we have notice, than your fear will at least work towards trying to find a way to survive.

Originally Posted by 70Chip

I say we all have a toast to the end of mankind and the closing of the age. Once we're gone, it'll be like we weren't even here at all.

Originally Posted by 70Chip

Indifference is perfectly acceptable. This delusion of yours that you can somehow control the fate of the universe is rooted in your alienation from God. The abolition of physical man or physical nature is only tragic in a universe that has mankind at the very center. You're heirarchy is all out of kilter so you worry too much about things that are not your responsibility and over which you ultimately have no control anyway.

[70Chip]

Don't you people ever do any work at your jobs. I'll check this space on a Saturday and zilcho. But on a Thursday its like a graduate seminar in philosophy, metaphysics, and religion.

A few points:

Matty: God only reveals himself to people he really likes. Maybe you could try a new haircut or maybe get your teeth capped. God likes people with a little flair. That's why t.v. preachers are the way they are.

SmootSmack: It's not that you don't believe enough, it's that life has been too easy and pleasurable for you. You are too attached to the material. Sell everything you have, give it to the poor, and cast yourself down from a great height (say, the Cabin John Bridge ) . If you survive, you won't care what happens to the universe anymore.

The rest of you: God wants you to sell everything YOU own and send it to me. In exchange he has personally promised me he will relieve all your cares, ease every burden, and give you the courage to talk to girls for the first time in your lives.

Oh, and the Que Sera thing was not a statement of my views but rather a reference to an episode of the Simpsons in which Ned Flanders is turned out of his own bomb shelter by the rest of the town (and goes willingly).

Ned: "Shouldn't you all be getting in your shelterinis about now?"

Moe: "We haven't got shelterinis. We want in yours."

It's a New Testament version of the flood story in which the un-faithful take over the ark and set Noah adrift. And he meekly accepts his fate. Wicked smart those Simpsons writers.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by 70Chip

Matty: God only reveals himself to people he really likes. Maybe you could try a new haircut or maybe get your teeth capped. God likes people with a little flair. That's why t.v. preachers are the way they are.

Kinda how aliens only reveal themselves to trailer trash I guess.

[saden1]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

Kinda how aliens only reveal themselves to trailer trash I guess.

hehe.

[Trample the Elderly]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

Kinda how aliens only reveal themselves to trailer trash I guess.

Didn't Jimmy Carter see a UFO?

[MTK]

Originally Posted by Trample the Elderly

Didn't Jimmy Carter see a UFO?

Yeah but he didn't see an alien. There's a subtle difference.

[70Chip]

Originally Posted by Trample the Elderly

Didn't Jimmy Carter see a UFO?

The trailer trash rule has not been broken by this example.

[EARTHQUAKE2689]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

Kinda how aliens only reveal themselves to trailer trash I guess.

You only see those mysterious circles in corn fields so you maybe on to something there.

[CRedskinsRule]

Originally Posted by saden1

...
In my point of view I find both 70Chip and CRedskins apathetic, in yours they are not. That's perfectly fine though I suspect you find your definition of what apathy is palatable.
...

Apathetic

I don't see how anyone engaged in this conversation can be apathetic. The fact that you, 70Chip, JoeRedskin, and I have continued this discussion argues to the contrary.

apathy - A symptom of several mental illnesses, apathy is a lack of emotion or interest in things one would ordinarily consider important.
Glossary of Terms Relating to Bipolar Disorder

Neither 70Chip nor I said the end of the world was not a thing of interest (70Chips indifferent comment, again in the context of it being "scary", not to the concept in total), just that we don't let it scare us, or find it scary. I don't find spiders scary, but I do take an interest in them (particularly

this group

).

An apathetic person, to such a state as you are referring to, would, as JoeRedskin said, just say "eh whatever" to this conversation, if they were to have been somehow engaged in it to begin with.

Originally Posted by 70Chip

Don't you people ever do any work at your jobs. I'll check this space on a Saturday and zilcho. But on a Thursday its like a graduate seminar in philosophy, metaphysics, and religion.

This is far more interesting, than the aggravations/headaches of my work!