For me, that is the cherry on the fucked-up ice cream sundae: they have gotten absolutely EVERYTHING they wanted, and they are still quite obviously miserable. Which is cool, but, like, what was the fucking point?
Most people who are selfish and malicious are supremely unhappy in my experience. A lot of them think that somehow acquiring even more stuff will make them happier when, news flash, it never does. That’s why every study shows happiness goes up with income to about $75K and then stops rising.
Daniel, sometimes I look at all these people and of course I agree w you but I’m still like “look, I’m just a girl who wants to make friends with a wolf 🐺 and Natty Gann the shit out of my life.” What the fuck are the billionaires making all this money if they’re not trying to do that 24/7???
America, and really human society in general, has advanced on the backs of the kind and generous, mutual cooperation and understanding between all peoples, but the human condition means we will forever be fighting against the ignorant, the malicious, and the chaotic among us. We cannot give in.
The truth is that trying to be happy is the problem, because then along comes setting that as a target, then measurement to hit the target, then comparisons. And then, for some: "maybe I will be happy (in comparison to others) if I make other people less happy".
If you don't set it as a target and do not measure it, and merely experience it when it is there, then there would be fewer reasons to fabricate the desire to hurt others.
I was thinking about this today. We're in the Age of Assholes. That's what it takes to feel that you're with the people in power. You have to be an asshole. No exceptions.
No, it is the opposite. Because they are unhappy, they are selfish and malicious in an attempt to make themselves happy, but it is a bottomless pit of despair
Conversely, there is an essential misery to many of the sociopathic, insatiable money accumulators. Frequently, they are bores who fail to recognize they are idiots outside of the lane they fell into on account of luck or rich parents.
It’s demonstrably false. The evolutionary advantage of mammalian life rests on its capacity for selflessness and love. It’s the protection and safety of others that allowed us to survive and thrive beyond other species. We give that up, we die.
If we can all be adults for a second; there's a whole world of people out there who not only disagree but have solutions that are working for them and others.
But our insistence on adhering to traditions that serve robberbarrons has been and is actively contributing to our downfall.
I think a lot of jaded, cynical people have convinced themselves that the fight for to better their own lives in simply unwinnable, and their bitterness has led them to believe the only other thing they can do is drag others down to their level.
Most people are *not selfish and malicious*. We're trained to think they are by an outrage pornography media cycle that profits by the motto 'enrage to engage'. Most of us are just trying to make our way in the world. Log off. Drop out. Enjoy life.
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Also,
Number 415: A full-sized vehicle put together entirely with glue. No bolts, no welds, glue.
Check it out at:
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They just want everybody to be as miserable as they are.
That's why humor and joy are an important part of any resistance. It absolutely drives them crazy when we're happy.
But our insistence on adhering to traditions that serve robberbarrons has been and is actively contributing to our downfall.
Resist.
If I knew how to do both I would probably still be on twitter.
The force is always in balance.
Barely.
Not from being a petty miserable prick