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The glass is half full. Of lighter fluid.

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Dcc001, Apr 10, 2011.

  1. Dcc001

    Dcc001
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    New Bitch On Top

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    I was having a discussion with a friend the other night, and it surfaced that he and I have somewhat diverging views on people and life in general.

    I am of the opinion that people are inherently good, and that they will almost always act in a compassionate way towards their fellow man. They only act differently under abnormal circumstances (not the topic of this thread). I've come to this world view because in all the travelling I've done, it's been confirmed over and over. Everywhere I've went complete strangers have shown me kindness, respect and compassion.

    My friend, poor lad, is in the middle of a job that is essentially the service industry. He has to work with untrained people earning minimum wage and his clients are never at their best. He subsequently does not share my view that the world is kind and good; he thinks it's full of mouth-breathing retards who have no work ethic to speak of.

    Focus: Are you an optimist or a pessimist? How do you think your outlook on the world affects your experience of it?
     
  2. DrFrylock

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    I was feeling optimistic, but after seeing today's threads, that may change...
     

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  3. rei

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    The glass is twice as big as it needed to be.
     
  4. Nettdata

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    Good people doing good things makes me optimistic.

    Stupid people being normal makes me pessimistic.

    I don't think I'm generally one way or the other, it depends on the context and the people involved.
     
  5. Binary

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    I have a lot of poor opinions about the majority of the population. People are generally ignorant, short-sighted, impolite, lazy...

    I don't think the majority of people are malicious, though. Even a lot of seemingly-malicious acts I think are driven a lot more by social myopia than a deliberate wish to be mean.

    I'm not sure that the two opinions in the OP are completely at odds with each other. I know a lot of stupid, lazy people that are genuinely nice.

    I'm cynical about some things - such as my opinion of the general population above - but overall I'm an optimist. I think that things will generally work out well if you try hard. Not that I won't fail from time to time, but the failures are short-term and not significantly destructive to my life. My girlfriend is exactly the opposite. Her assumption is that everything is going to hell and working doggedly may be utterly futile but is the only way to have even a prayer of success. We both work hard, I just do so with the expectation that it will bring good things, while she expects that hard work means probable failure, but less than hard work has is guaranteed failure.
     
  6. ghettoastronaut

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    I think too many people have this opinion. Not because the world isn't full of mouth-breathing retards, but because inevitably, a large chunk of people who run around saying "common sense is not so common" and other tropes as if they were somehow valuable insights into the human condition suffer from that very disease themselves.
     
  7. Frank

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    On people: I'm somewhat of in optimist in that I think people are for the most part not poorly intentioned even when doing 'bad' things. I do however believe that pretty much everyone acts purely in self interest, including when they help others (internal satisfaction, karma, etc...) some people view that as being pessimistic, I view it as being realistic since if you removed the 'feeling good' part of helping other people, I wouldn't do it. That said I don't do good things so it will come back to me, I do them because I believe I'm a good person and sacrificing some of my time or money will make me feel better than spending it on myself.

    On the future: I always say that this country is going to hell, the dollar will be worthless by the time I retire and you're a fucking moron if you're my age and put money in retirement funds because they will be worth nothing when it's time to withdraw. Then again I work for a company who's pension would make the teacher's union blush and put away a good chunk of change in my 401k, all talk no walk there I suppose.
     
  8. Devils Advocate

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    Why does it have to be one or the other? I'm a realist.
     
  9. lust4life

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    I've been called a pessimist, but I prefer to think of myself as an optimist with experience.
     
  10. kuhjäger

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    I expect the worst in everyone. I find that I am usually right, and then when I am wrong, I am pleasantly surprised.

    It sure beats expecting the best, and being disappointed all the time.
     
  11. vex

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    I'm not really sure how to answer this one without sounding like a douchebag.

    I wouldn't color myself a pessimist or an optimist. I'd definitely consider myself a realist. As far as getting what you want out of life, I don't understand how being a pessimist or an optimist helps in any way. To me, an optimist is a person who is hoping or expecting a better outcome than he should given the information he has. How can you make effective decisions if you're not playing with the facts?

    It seems to me like both camps are coming in to the game unprepared. I'd say that all that matters is the truth. You need to see the situation as it is and make adjustments as you go to try and reach your goals. You can't come in to the game with unjustified confidence in your shitty team. And you can't despair and believe that you're going to die alone because a couple women weren't into you.

    Optimism and pessimism is the equivalent of trying to see the world through a colored lens. Seems like a crutch.
     
  12. Racer-X

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    I tend to assume people generally have good intentions until proven otherwise. Even though I am generally an optimist I am still alert to people doing bad things. I think that people that always assume the worst are going to have worse day-to-day life than an optimist. An optimist may get fucked over occasionally but the pessimist is constantly fucking themselves with a shitty outlook. Now that I read that, it sounds a lot more new-age, hippy-ish than I intended.

    I heard a phrase when I first started riding motorcycles that I think applies here, "alert but not alarmed." I don't live my life in constant fear of what someone may do but I realize people can do bad things and I look out for it.
     
  13. ASL

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    I try to balance myself, yet find my attitude towards people is usually "guilty until proven innocent." I try to embody "good" values as a person, but I'm sure I can seem like an ass to people who don't know me.
    As far as life in general, I feel like working hard will get me where and what I want, and slacking will get me no where.
    Overall a casual indifference is where I stand, no big surprises either way.
     
  14. bewildered

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    I think people are pretty dumb in groups. Individually, people are going to do what benefits them and their circle/family the most, whether that fucks everyone else up or not.

    On a related note, someone just stole my fucking detergent from the laundry room. I left it there for 25 minutes, and this is the first time I have ever left it.

    People are myopic and selfish. I hope someone brings my green bottle of detergent, which is covered with clearance stickers, back to the laundry room one day while I am there so that I can tear him/her a new one.
     
  15. Dread

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    I once had my laundry basket stolen, but that was in college and it was my own stupid fault for leaving it unattended.

    About 3 years ago, I was doing laundry one evening and when I went downstairs to grab everything out of the dryers, someone had opened the machines that I was using and thrown about 90% of my clothes on the floor. I was pissed, but I shrugged it off and assumed it was stupid kids being stupid.

    Yet had I caught them in the act and smashed their skulls into the nearest wall, I'D be the bad guy.
     
  16. TX.

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    I'm a cautious optimist. I believe that deep down we all want the same basic things: to feel loved, respected and valued. When we don't feel that is when we start to do fucked up things to each other. I've been burned enough times to be a bit more guarded and reserved with my trust, but I tend to give people the benefit of doubt.

    If you're always assuming the worst in people you're going to dismiss them and miss out on a lot of positive experiences. I'd rather err on the side of trusting someone or expecting too much of them. Sure, I might feel disappointed and hurt, but I'd rather not go through the rest of my life only feeling contempt or apathy toward people.
     
  17. Misanthropic

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    When I was younger I was short term pessimist and a long term optimist. The class I was taking may have sucked, my commute to work was probably going to blow, and chances are I wouldn't be getting laid next weekend. But somehow, perhaps magically, everything would be ok in the end. This optimism carried me through the difficult times and prevented me from being a miserable person to be around.

    And things were generally ok in the end. I've had a damned good life. But oddly enough, now my position is reversed. Tonight, next week, next year - things are gonna be just fine. Long term scares the hell out of me, and not only because I'm a few decades closer to a dirt nap.

    As for people - I think my views on people in general are evident from my user name. But I start off by giving everyone the benefit of the doubt, and treating everyone as I would have them treat me. Golden rule, and all that. Every once in awhile I'm not dissappointed.
     
  18. Veovis

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    I think individuals are in general fairly good or at least attempt to be good within their view of reality.

    Context always will play a part, take Bob The Thief, bob is evil because he steals…….Bob is good because he steals from the rich to feed the poor.

    Bob thinks Bob is good, guy who lost his TV thinks Bob is evil.

    Now Bob might mean well, and Bob might be a complete dick, or maybe a blending of the 2 with good intentions. (yes I know this is a loaded example…)

    Now outside Individuals, I think PEOPLE are complete fucking idiots. You get a group of 5 people together for a single purpose and the overall IQ tends to drop to mouth breather status at best.

    I think overall lets say 87.63412% of people out there are good, as Obi Wan would say “From a certain point of view”, at least to their world they think they are doing good, even if it seems bad to the rest of the world.

    We’re not debating what is right and wrong, but whether people are good or useless.

    None the less you should see my awesome TV some rich asshole misplaced the other day.
     
  19. The Village Idiot

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    Porn Worthy, Bitches

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    As a rule, people are generally good. I say this because I've seen the worst humanity has to offer (when I clerked for a Judge in the criminal division). That may seem at odds with my experience, but since I've seen the worst (pedophiles, rapists, murderers, serial killers) it really is true. Most people just are trying to find their way through a fucked up existence, without trying to unduly hurt anyone. Are there assholes out there? Absolutely. But they are few and far between.

    Yes, I've gotten screwed over by people, but the vast majority have tried to do right by me.
     
  20. KillaKam

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    I've always tended to lean more towards the pessimistic side most of my life. It does make some days out to be pure hell...especially getting fucked over by someone or some tiny detail that usually isn't that big of a deal in the long run. It may be inherited from my father who is full of nothing but cynicism. Not sure....

    I've been trying to change course though, not worrying about petty bullshit all the time. Thankfully their are some good people in my life that bring out the better in me.