Humans

[PhoenixTears]

Yes, it's about us.
Discuss... (how to phrase it?) the mentality of humans. How humans think. What the common mindset is nowadays, how you think it could become better, etc etc.
I'll start. =D

Well, I've been thinking a lot (no, not because school is out) and I've noticed... this world is really much too complicated. Or maybe that's by my standards, I don't know. I've tried to be a law abiding citizen (only breaking rules here and there sometimes on accident and sometimes on purpose. Nothing too big though.) and I've lived my life this way, naiive and unknowing of what the actual world is like.
Here, I'll give an example.
When I was in third grade, the World Trade Center was attacked in New York by terrorists. Most students left school early that day, their parents fearing a school would be attacked next and thinking children would be safer at home. In my town, no, on my street. About a block down, there's a Jewish center. When the World Trade Center was attacked, my parents told me to not go down by there. I followed my parent's words and took them to be true but at that age... I did not understand why. I didn't know about Antisemitism, or the Holocaust. Even though they really didn't have much relevance since the WTC was attacked by terrorists that are anti-America and not Antisemitic, I did not understand my parent's fear.
So now, after about... the fifth grade... No, not then. It was after I met a certain person, they changed my entire view of the world. This person... his ideas were so different and radical. And it made me start to question my view on the world. The world that I had learned to look at through such... a small perspective. Such a parochial vision. I relearned a lot of it. I stopped being the little goody two shoes teacher's pet I was and started... rebelling? I guess. I can still be called a nerd, and I'm still... a teacher's pet, but I've... gone increasingly towards delinquency. I've adopted communism as an acceptable idea, I've rejected love and embraced hate. I've gone past the point of caring for the world I suppose.
And I still do. I suppose I act friendly enough, but I do care sometimes... it's... odd. And you know, when people compliment me, I don't know what to respond with...
I've also grown suspicious of people. That might have to do with me reading a lot of fiction, but now I'm thinking that some nice people I've come to known will actually back stab me in the future. I've come to disagree with people and think of people's motives in taking certain actions. Yet, I'm still naive, I never pick up on any of the stuff my classmates do. Or maybe they're the odd ones.

Another thing: prejudice and minorities. Currently in America I'd say... the majority of American people are Caucasian. So that would mean I am a minority. I don't know, but I don't feel like I've ever felt... prejudice before. Or have I grown up with it? I don't know. I do know that I myself am prejudiced. Well, I believe that comes with being used to being around people of the same upbringing, AKA middle classed Asian Americans. I tend to be more shy around African Americans, Caucasians, and other such groups...
Oh wait, you know what? Disney movies teach bad things to kids. They're very prejudiced. I don't remember what I was watching that made me realize that, but I did. And Walt Disney is prejudiced as well. =P

One more thing: I don't know... but society has indeed taken a turn for the materialistic, eh? As new things come out everyday, people continuously buy and the cycle keeps repeating itself. Entertainment...
Heh, I used to hate the book The Giver, but now, that world Jonas escaped seems very comforting to me.

Just some loose threads throughout my head. I'm sure to find more, but this is about it for now.

[Ashera]

I feel alot the way you do, PT. With my expirence, I have come to see alot of what humans do and in my personal opinion, I feel ashamed to even be human. Certain things have happened to me here recently to where I feel different from humans all together. Humans are so...evil, so vile, so...full of overwhelming flaws. They know nothing of "true" moral or wisdom. They see what they want to see and exhault such terrible actions. I wish humans could be better than what we all have become....

[Leonri]

I agree with some of that but...not all or as strongly. Rebellion is good. I laws/rules/authority is wrong/misguided they should not be obeyed. But distrust of other humans....I can't see that. No human is evil. Nobody wakes in the morning and says "I'm going to do something bad today". No one considers themselves evil. They may do acts that are but they have some way of justifying them. Stupidity and not evil are the root of our problems.

People are amazing, really they are. They just have so much compassion...seriously. Very few have any real hate or
vileness in them. We have so much potential......but we're not fulfilling it. We could be so much better....

[Stefan the SwordSaint]

Wow Leonri's second paragraph hit the nail on its head for me. Also the stupid vs evil thing.
"The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits."
Albert Einstein
Not evil just stupid

[Kiroshima]

Of course no one thinks themselves evil, wouldn't be much point in that.  But that doesn't matter, I think it is an accurate statement in calling a mass murderer evil.  You see, they have killed time and time again, it is both A) they don't want to learn their lesson and B) they can't learn their lesson, they've already dug themselves too deep.

I saw a bumper sticker in some shop once: "Artificial Intelligence is no match for natural stupidity."
Accurate much?

There IS a difference between evil and stupidity, but there are those that have crossed from one...to the other.  You can't say "Oh, they were just stupid."  Especially when you get to 1st degree murder, it was planned.  Some have already lost themselves.

And yet so little compassion as well.  Humans exist on both sides of the axis, for you cannot have light without darkness, nor darkness without light.  I don't remember where I heard this, but "It is always darkest before dawn."

When will the sun rise for us?  I wish I knew, and yet, I wish I won't find out.

Distrust isn't so bad, it is like pessimism.  If you constantly expect betrayal, you're never disappointed.
If you constantly expect bad things to happen, you are never disappointed, you can only be pleasantly surprised if something DOES go good for a change.  Advantages of thinking darkly lol.

Humans are amazing, amazingly evil, and amazingly kind, both simultaneously.  It is amazing all right.

"Ignorance is bliss."  I don't like it, but it is true in most cases.

[Stefan the SwordSaint]

It is true that humans can be bad, I wouldn't goes as far as to call the average human evil though.
"Humans are a wretched bunch, capable of turning a blind eye to anything that doesn't affect them or their kin" (or something like that) Now I wouldn't call that wretched, but its true for the most part.

[Leonri]

A lone serial killer may be evil,know it and kill 10 people but someone like Mugabe may make the lives of millions a misery and be convinced he's doing good, or the lesser of two evils.

We have yet to find a government system that works. We cannot solve the problems of the world until we do...

[Kiroshima]

Did he ask those people if they wanted to die?  O_o

I didn't say the average human.  I only mean it is their actions that make up their character.

But still, the ignorance part is something needing fixing.

Lol, there is no perfect government, there is always SOMEONE going to be unhappy.  SOMEONE will disagree, etc.  There will always be something wrong where there is right, tis the nature of the universe. 

[Stefan the SwordSaint]

mm looking for a quote ~

[Leonri]

Lol, there is no perfect government, there is always SOMEONE going to be unhappy.  SOMEONE will disagree, etc.  There will always be something wrong where there is right, tis the nature of the universe. 

 .....so far. You gotta have hope. Maybe there's no perfect one but each time we try we get a tiny bit closer to true democrcy...

[PhoenixTears]

I happen to be agreeing with much of what you guys are saying.
Just saying, it's what I happen to believe. And you know... I hate rumors. Once I hear something about another person, I don't try to get to know the person first. I wish I could, but then I end up becoming biased towards that person because of what I hear. I hate it.

The reason why there even exists two sides of a coin is the fact that you can't compare things unless they are the extremes. The extreme ends. Because there is hate, there is love, because there is love there is hate, and because things are good, there is also bad. If only good existed, you can't tell that is good, you would say it is the norm or the normal because there was nothing bad with which you are comparing against.

(This is probably due to my not wanting or owning a facebook unlike the many other in my school) But I tend to not learn of relationships until about... a month after their over. Even for my friends. And I'm dead serious. It's kinda scary how everything has become so... modern? "Technologised?" Hrm...

And even if I have become rebellious, it's not to the point of rejecting everything from society. I know that laws and rules were made to keep things orderly and to keep from reaching utter chaos and havoc. I can't help but feel that some of them are a bit unfair. But I still stick to them. It's how I was brought up and they way I've been up to now, and it's not something I'm going to change so easily.

Oh, and the entire, "Disney is prejudiced" came to mind during a biology class... O_o What were we watching in there?

StS, that quote about humans turning a blind eye is from Soren in FE9 when they are in Toha.

There is no true democracy because of the nature of humans. =P

[Kiroshima]

Laws are not meant to keep things orderly, that is just an additional benefit.  They are meant to protect the people they govern.  THAT is their primary purpose.

[Stefan the SwordSaint]

^^yep about the quote.  its true though.  Although i was actually thinking about an experiment done some years ago that drew people literally crazy.  There are laws now because of that experiment that you have to share the purpose of the lab with the people who are part of it because of it.

[PhoenixTears]

Laws are not meant to keep things orderly, that is just an additional benefit.  They are meant to protect the people they govern.  THAT is their primary purpose.

Even in a school?
... how is not wearing revealing clothing supposed to protect students?
O_o
Well, then again... they aren't really laws in school, they're called rules. But I use those words interchangeably so meh...

[Stefan the SwordSaint]

Rules are different then laws, laws are meant to protect a people and its county, rules are restrictions.