Each of us creates the world we live in. We choose what to include in it and we also decide what to leave out.
Interested in the latter, we dug around Reddit and found a few discussions where people have been sharing difficult-to-accept truths that they know are correct but actively try not to think about.
So we put together the most popular entries, and I gotta say, it's not the easiest list to go through, but it's definitely intriguing and thought-provoking. After all, even if we refuse to acknowledge a fact, that doesn't make it go away.
Continue scrolling to check out what things are bothering people the most and the talks we had with social science writer and researcher Jeremy Sherman, Ph.D., MPP, and professor of psychology at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, Noam Shpancer, Ph.D.
This post may include affiliate links.
No-one wants to hear your shitty music in public, especially in class.
If only there were some sort of device that could be used to stop this from happening.. Wait a minute, there is! HEADPHONES!!
No, it's a brain, and not everyone has it.
Load More Replies...Those people are usually perfectly aware that you might not like it and completely don't care about it.
Agreed. No one else WANTS to hear your drama or the drama of people you know who might not be happy that their PRIVATE business is getting screamed into your phone in a crowded place.
Load More Replies...oh hell yeah, especially in the subway or on the bus. i once put my phone to full volume blasting some heavy metal while sitting next to a teenager(which i asked twice to put the headphones, that were hanging around his neck, on). that face was priceless...
I worked for a university library when I was in school, and one of my responsibilities was to walk the floors on the hour and record how many people were using each area of the library. In the middle of a large study area was a young woman typing on a laptop wearing earbuds that were not plugged in. I tapped her on the shoulder and told her she needed to plug in her headphones or turn her music off. The speed at which her expression moved from disgust to embarrassment was incredible.
Load More Replies...The boom box, cleverly designed as a beat up car sporting a can muffler, roaring past the house at 2 am. Heavy sigh.
Whenever I pull up next to another car at a red light and the other car has their windows down and their music blasting at eardrum-damaging levels, I always roll down my own window and sarcastically yell “THANKS FOR SHARING!” I get confused looks in reply XD
I love coldplay. And a lot of people have a problem with that.. just the fact I'm a fan. But it's fine, I'm saved by headphones!
According to Shpancer, refusing to think about something we know is true is a form of avoidance. "It may provide short-term relief from discomfort, and can sometimes help us keep from becoming distracted, but in the long term, a habit of persistent avoidance—a refusal to face your known challenges—becomes a bigger problem than whatever issue you were avoiding in the first place," the author of The Good Psychologist told Bored Panda.
This, let's call it practice, sounds quite similar to denial, but, as Shpancer pointed out, the latter is a refusal to accept or acknowledge the truth altogether. "The benefit of denial is that it may, in the short term, buy you some time to summon and mobilize your coping resources," he explained.
"When we hear bad, surprising news, our first reaction is often 'No, it can't be,' even if we have every reason to trust the source of the bad news. This momentary denial may allow us to 'catch our breath' as it were, before delving into the hard work of coping. Relying on denial for the long term is, however, unhealthy. Such persistent refusal to acknowledge and face facts erodes interpersonal trust and communication and leads to bad decisions. If you're falling, there's no use telling yourself that you've learned how to fly."
Just because someone is related to you doesn't mean they are a good person.
My mother and sister are my abusers. I remember seeing a Tumblr post about how great it is to have a sibling as you’ll “always have a friend”. I almost choked laughing at the naivety.
For me it was my father and sister. I hate those posts about 'sisters being special friends for life' or whatever. She's caused me a lot of stress and trauma over the years
Load More Replies...People say don’t cut family out they’re still your family. If your appendix ( a part of your body) hurts you cut that thing out!
I don't feel this deserves a downvote. Here is an upvote.
Load More Replies...Sometimes the best families are those you make outside your biological family.
Like the full version of the saying, 'the blood of the convent is thicker than the water of the womb'
Load More Replies...Just this week a friend of mine was complaining to me about how her horrible grandmother keeps trying her to get back in contact with her equally horrible father because come on we're family, etc. As she put it "they like the idea of me as someone they can abuse and manipulate, but they don't like *me*". So of course she's staying far, far away from those jerks.
These are usually the most toxic as they believe themselves to be excusable cause 'we're family'
One can grow a tumour and cut it out. Same with relatives. Cut the toxic parts out like a tumour.
She died when I was 18 and I honestly was glad about it. I said at the time she couldn't ruin my life anymore. Sadly what she did to me has left deep scars in me and 30 years later I'm still having mental health issues because of my childhood
Just because they're family doesn't mean you're indebted to them either.
Sherman, the author of Neither Ghost nor Machine: The Emergence and Nature of Selves, agreed, highlighting how human life is uniquely anxious compared to other organisms. "Just compare the range of worries a human could have compared to any other critter. No contest. To cope, we need denial, escapism, entertainment, but to survive we need all hands on deck in reality too," he explained to Bored Panda.
"I'm on a campaign I call 'optimal: see illusion, safe escapism or strategic gullibility', encouraging people to take their denialist flights of fancy but always with a return ticket to reality safe in your heart pocket. It's not how far out you go, but whether you remember to come back. The big difference between a death metal concert and an authoritarian political rally is what happens in the parking lot after. After the metal concert, people return to reality. After the rally, people think they've experienced something more real than reality. That's dangerous."
Voting Trump out of office won't magically fix everything. He is a symptom of a bigger disease here in the USA.
Yeah, but it sure made me FEEL better to help vote him out of office!
Feeling better now that the economy has tanked and we're on the verge of war?
Load More Replies...This comment goes beyond Trump to so many other US politicians: When it is more important to you to stay in power instead of governing, you are not the person for the job. When you are proud of blocking *any* legislation just to block it, you are not the person for the job. If you are not willing to learn the basics of working together, you are not the person for the job.
We recently voted out an ultra-religious-right-wing-whack job in aus.... and just having him gone has given people hope. Sure, many of the issues he (and his party) caused are kicking our arses right now.... but there at a sense of hope for many people that at least the current government is trying to make things better. I would imagine its the same in the U.S.
LOL I sure as hell hope you're not talking about ScoMo, and holding hope for Albenese???
Load More Replies...MRABAA doesn't have that great a ring, but I'll get behind it anyway.
Load More Replies...Voting out or in a president is not end all. We need to vote out undesirables in congress. President can't do much without a congress.
Vote. Vote in the "small elections" - where the basis of democracy is. Look at the local officials who stood up to Trump's bullying and refused to change votes in his favor. My local alderman became mayor and then became a powerful congressman. Voting counts.
Load More Replies...Voting that traitor out of office was one of the best things to come out of Voting for anything in this country.
How he managed to get into office is the part that boggles the mind. I thought the US had a lot of smart people. Trump and COVID has definitely enlightened me on that.
As you can see from the comments, one party has been using FUD (fear, uncertainty & doubt) for years to groom a base. It's was pointed out to this party in the early 2000s "if you don't give something back to the people, they will fall for the first demagogue who comes along." Trump was that demagogue.
Load More Replies...Yes, but he gave people the permission to say the quiet part out loud. So, all the shittiest, most racist, most hateful parts of America that had at the very least been kept at bay by reasonable minds, are now on full display and gloried in. Taking away his platform will *eventually* temper the rhetoric. As long as we don't bring in someone even worse in the future.
People think "Trump isn't the real problem" idea is a "hot take." And while, yes, Trump is absolutely a symptom of larger issues that began with conservative talk radio and Reagan in the 80s, continued with Newt Gingrich and republicans of the 90s, and then amplified through Bush II and social media, however Trump is uniquely dangerous. He literally put his VP's life in danger because he wouldn't participate in his coup. Among 1000s of other examples. Trump is a clear and present danger.
He would sacrifice anybody and everybody to get more power and ego feeding.
Load More Replies...One study of 2,000 adults across the United States, which was commissioned by global tour operator G Adventures, suggests that the average American spends 12 hours and 56 minutes escaping their reality each week. (That's roughly four years over a lifetime.)
The most popular forms of disconnecting from work, responsibilities, and everything else that drives them crazy came in the form of reading books (1 hour 34 minutes), watching movies (2 hours 37 minutes), and dreaming of vacations (44 minutes).
Life is easier for attractive people.
Attractive people don't have it completely easy though. Attractive women get harassed and even if they prove their merit by working hard, people will just assume that they got it because they look attractive.
Someone formed a hypothesis once that women who were a ‘7’ (their words not mine) were the ideal amount of attractiveness for business. Attractive enough for people to want them around, for men to enjoy looking at and flirting with but not so attractive that their intelligence or capability would be questioned. You rarely see a truly stunning woman in business. I don’t know where they all go?
Load More Replies...so true. and attractive people always say beauty isn't important... like rich people says money isn't important.
Lots of things aren't important but life sure goes better if you have some of them.
Load More Replies...I have a beautiful friend and all the moms in the school mom groups hated her because of it, sad and stupid. She does well in life but is constantly feeling hate from women, and harassment from men, I have seen it and what she goes through most people have no idea. They think their hate is so "subtle" and they manufacture reasons for it, meanwhile their husbands hit on her. I hated that school parents world.
Yes, but an attractive woman also gets more predators after her, more sexual harassment, more inappropriate behavior...
And if you're a beautiful woman you will ALWAYS have petty, nasty, bitc*s who hate you for existing and will let you know. .
Load More Replies...What in the world is happening in this picture? Is she getting reading to take off, like with a jet pack or something? Also this is a true statement.
geez, people will downvote anything on this site... take an upvote because some of the people here suck. at first look - yes, the metal rail does look like some kind of jet-pack spray.... you're not the only one!
Load More Replies...I used to be fit, but gained a lot of weight after sustaining feet/leg injuries. Tbh, I prefer being fat, I get sexually harassed WAY less.
However, as previously mentioned, this can't go on forever and we need to come to terms with the world around us. Jeremy Sherman thinks people can make it easier for themselves by focusing on what he calls ironic fallibilism.
"An ironic situation is one where you get the opposite of what you expected: you do the right thing and it comes out wrong or vice versa. An ironic attitude is recognition that despite your best effort, ironic situations are not entirely escapable. There is no sure-fire formula for living. Just when you discover the meaning of life, it changes."
"Ironism is not cynicism. It's the recognition that life is deeply tragic and deeply slapstick. Life is tragicomic," he explained.
We need to stop consuming animal products the way we currently are. It's absolutely unsustainable.
The amount of downvotes this post will receive proves the title of this post.
The key part of this is "the way we currently are", and this is very true. You don't have to be a vegan to not participate in the cruelty of intensive factory farming. It is possible to eat genuinely ethically raised animal products where the animal had a happy life - it's just really expensive. Killing is not inherently cruel - subjecting an animal to pain and terror before it's killed is.
Human ethics and animals; always a concerning combination of words and usually a red flag for me. Let's not combine facts with the ebb and flow of cultural and societal norms. The fact is however the animal protein is produced is irrelevant; over consumption is the issue. The over consumption fuels so many solvable problems we are facing today; whether it be the environment or general health of the population. People appear very quick to look at the "supply" portion of issue, point fingers and take sides; while the demand is almost always overlooked.
Load More Replies...I hate when people do that end part to a post, like "Jesus is the savior of souls, share this post if you agree. Only 2% will share." It makes me roll my eyes every time. I agreed with the first half then they had to get all high and mighty about it by trying to shame people they don't know.
Stop reproducing HUMANS for starters. I am dumbfounded by people who CHOOSE to have a child at this day and age. Wth are they thinking?!?!!??
This day and age has always been bad. Back to the beginning of time. It is hard to fight the need to procreate. Unless you're like me. I never wanted kids. But for those that do I would ask that you just raise them right. Meaning raise them to be productive citizens of society. Please.
Load More Replies...This is currently number five on the list, so the preemptive, "I bet all you unenlightened souls will downvote this" prediction didn't come to pass, but here, have a downvote just for that and nothing else.
Good news on this from the UK, our poxy "Government" (Quotes quite intentional) has screwed up our economy so much no-one can afford meat anyway!
I support it because you didn't say stop entirely. Regulating? Having animals in cruel conditions? Of course. We need that critically. I keep my own chickens for eggs and meat. I make sure they've got more than ample space, food supply, water and clean bedding.
Yes it will help switching to veganism but only temporarily. I believe that reducing human population will solve a lot of problems that are directly and indirectly affected by our numbers. Let's research the best way of reducing global population without harming people.
America is in a population decline, if that makes you feel better.
Load More Replies...The best solution is to reduce the world population. If we had 750 million instead of 7.5 billion, we could eat as much animal products as we want. I was born 66 years ago - world population has increased about 3x during my lifetime.
Indeed that is the truth that the virtue signalling don't want to hear.
Load More Replies...Wait, does that mean that the fact that it was upvoted proves it is false? I'm so confused!
"Fallibilism is a concept in philosophy and more than any other notion, fallibilism has given me peace of mind about dealing with reality," Sherman continued. "I think of the fallibilist mantra as 'no matter how confident I am in a bet, I remain still more confident that it is a bet. Life is iffy guesswork. Yoda is wrong. There's only try. One can make better bets. One can bet with high confidence. One can't escape betting."
Sherman sees ironic fallibilism as the antidote to two unworkable approaches that are often combined:
The first one is fundamentalist hypocrisy, or pretending you have the formula for living though you don't, can't, and shouldn't live by it. And the second one is cynical hypocrisy, or pretending there's no formula so you can do whatever you want.
"[Jerks] (I'm a psychoproctologist) employ both. Everyone should live by their supposed fundamentalist formula that they cynically don't think they have to live by. No deed is too dirty for saints like them."
Just because you've been doing something longer than other people doesn't mean you're better at it (driving, job role, sports etc)
Might be and "should" be r two totally different things🤔
Load More Replies...Not true. I was a medical transcriber for over 30 years and got very good at it. Halfway into my career, I was put in the position of trying to train someone who had never done it at all, and it’s not something you can learn in an hour, a day or even a week. She quit when she realized that.
Oh this depends very much from person to person. Some of my carers who've been in their jobs for years are appalling, some inexperienced ones are phenomenal. My father who drove for a living was a terrible driver, caused multiple accidents and even when the police had video evidence of he was on the Wrong side of the road, the fire brigade had to free the other driver who was airlifted to the hospital because of his injuries, it wasn't my fathers fault. In his paperwork for this one he stated it wasn't his fault as he'd driven hundreds of thousands of miles... When my father died I found paperwork for all these driving "accidents" he'd caused. He never learnt Anything from his first accident at 17 (resulting in a death) to his last one aged 70 when the courts finally took his licence away. There's a reason I changed my name by deed poll 😔
If he's killed so many people with his driving how was he not in prison?????
Load More Replies...It scientifically takes 10yrs to be an expert. This was written by a 22yrold who thinks they know everything and actually knows nothing.
And just because you've always done it that way doesn't make it the right way.
Especially parenting! "I raised 5 kids..." so what? They're all in therapy and one is in jail for S.A., Deb. The fact that u raised kids doesn't mean you were good at it.
Professor Noam Shpancer added that we should revise our expectation that life should be easy, and the attendant aversion to discomfort. "Hardship is not the end of the world," he said. "It is just the world. The default position for human beings is resilience. Normalizing the struggle is useful."
"Second, accepting reality tends to be easier when we take a long-term perspective, because the danger and damage associated with a failure to face reality are usually obscured in the short run and clarify only in the long run. When making decisions, it is, therefore, useful to consider not only your present self but the well-being of your future self as well. When you fail to deal with the facts of your circumstance, you in effect sell out your future self."
"You can achieve anything you put your mind to" is NOT true.
Not even close.
Genetics play a HUGE role in whether or not someone will be a good athlete, or a super successful scientist.
Can you be an "OK" athlete if you try really hard and practice really hard? Sure. Will you break world records or play for a professional team? No. You have to be especially gifted in the genetics department to do those sorts of things.
The same thing applies for mental pursuits. Not everyone is smart. Some people just don't... get it. You can try a million different ways of teaching a subject and some people just... won't... get it. Critical thinking (the ability to see a problem and visualize how to get a solution) comes MUCH MORE EASILY to some people than to others. Can you sit there and memorize things and get good grades and what not? Absolutely. Will you ever be a scientist who does extremely important research and solves the world's next huge problem? Probably not, unless you get hired because of nepotism are dragged along by someone who IS good at critical thinking.
Furthermore, much of what you CAN do is limited by who you know. If you're rich or your parents are rich and they know lots of people and have a large social network or a lot of people who want to please them for one reason or another, you'll likely find a job in whatever career you want to extremely easily provided you're not totally inept. If you're the first in your family to get a degree and aren't good at maintaining a social network you'll likely have an extremely hard time finding a job, even if you are the person best suited for the jobs you are applying for. Even if the job you're applying for is LITERALLY what you spent 5 years getting a PhD on, if you don't know somebody, you likely won't get that job.
It also should not be the case that people get jobs because of who they know or how big their parents’ bank account is. We need to work on this bulls**t and level that particular playing field.
Load More Replies...The opposite is true though; if you say that you can't, you are definitely right
Yep. You can only do what you can with what you've got. Unless you're rich.
I disagree with this one. There are people who have broken that standards. It takes tremendous hard work, practice and discipline, and knowing what you're doing. It's not impossible but not many people have that kind of drive at everything that's hard to get into.
I totally agree and have proven it again and again. Contrary to the comment by Auntriarch, many told me I can't and I proved them dead wrong.
Load More Replies...And it always depends on a bit of luck. Having the person who sees what you can do at just the right time for instance.
But at the same time there are totally inept people whose parents are wealthy or own businesses and they put that incompetent inept person in a place of importance.
That last point is the one a lot of people really need to get to know. Your social circles, largely born into, effect a whole lot of where you end up in life. If you are trying to level up economically, you need to spend a significant amount of effort networking with people "above" you.
Finally, we must constantly work on educating ourselves and seeking knowledge that can provide answers to questions we sometimes can't even articulate. Shpancer believes that history is the subject to start with, as it "shows what happens to those who deny the facts, and about the scientific method, which shows that in refereeing competing truth claims, following the evidence is our best bet.
"'Facts,' said John Adams, 'are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.' The evidence wins out in the end. Don’t you want to be on the winning side?"
All children are innocent, but they’re not all good. Some people will grow up to be f*****g assholes regardless of what they’re exposed to.
Oh yeah, there are some shockingly evil kids out there. I've met a few.
To add to this, you might not actually like your kids. I know a lot of people have a hard time with that but it's the truth. Especially once they start getting older. People are people and while you may love them because they're yours, your kids can embarrass you, you can be ashamed of them and you can be polar opposites in terms of who you are and not want to be around them. It's something that doesn't get talked about enough because when people think of being disappointed by their kids, they think of it in terms of them not becoming successful at a job. But more often it's because they're fat, whiny, play games all day and never go out, don't make anything of themselves, no boy/girlfriends...sometimes it's hard to lie about that because you don't want to scar them for life or something. But it's a reality. Most kids feel like their parents are the embarrassing ones but, thankfully, they usually don't realize when their own parents don't particularly like them.
I wouldn't even say 'All children are innocent', I knew I was doing wrong since before I was 4yrs old. My parents were great parents and did the best they could. I was just wired differently and enjoyed upsetting & hurting people (including my parents).
TBH, I believe these trials comes packaged with the soul. In Indian culture we have popular examples like prahalad - who is born to a perceivable evil king, but grows to be a devotee to lord Vishnu. Noatyer how hard the king tries to banish his kids heart and thoughts of lord Vishnu, either party doesn't budge. Such are these things. I have twins 5yo and both have their own ideology and inclinations. They go to same class, same school, loved the same, and yet they are what they are.
A child in the daycare where I worked had serious behavior issues, and was virtually uncontrollable. We tried to award him for every fifteen minutes of good behavior. During naptime, the other teacher and I were talking about potential issues with this treatment. I was afraid the other children (3-5 years) would be jealous if he got more rewards than they. One little girl was awake, and heard me. She said, "Don't worry, teacher. We'll be ok. Kids like him, you just have to live with."
Money can actually make your life happier.
Up to a certain point. If you have 100 million or 500 million, then it might not make much difference.
If you can't find a way to be happy with that much money, something is SERIOUSLY wrong with you
Load More Replies...The only people that say it doesnt are those with so much money they dont have any day-to-day struggles. Money remains one of the main causes of divorce (for example)
Money solves problems. Money buys options. For most people, money is the thing that could help take the weight of their problems off of them because lack of money is what is causing ALL of their problems. Money CAN buy happiness but it's how you use the money. What happens, though, is some people get money and think spending it is what will bring happiness. Then you sit in your golden seat on a private plane and wonder why you're still unhappy. *Materialism* doesn't necessarily buy happiness the same way that a shopping spree is a temporary high. But not having the weight of medical bills, being able to send your kids to the best schools, being able to take the time to try new things and find out what you enjoy, being able to do charity, not having crushing debt and having a secure place to live all contribute to real happiness. Money ABSOLUTELY can buy happiness when used correctly.
It can make my life comfortable and give me the time I need to pursue things that make me happy, therefore yes, it will.
Apparently there is a tipping point, after which more money ceases to increase your happiness. And yet, there are people who continue to amass more $$$ than they could ever spend in a hundred lifetimes . . .
According to Freakanomics, in the USA it is $75,000. There is little to no happiness gain beyond that. Just more stuff.
Load More Replies...I think it's more accurate to say that enough money removes many roadblocks to happiness.
You need to have your views challenged.
Being around and positively engaging with people who disagree with you is one of the healthiest intellectual practices we can do.
So many people need to take this in and accept it. Particularly on here, a corner of the internet that assumes abuse and institutes silence and bans if 10 people downvote you. I make it a point to consume news and opinions that i know i'm prone to disagree with. Much of what i disagree with is conservatively slanted, but there's a considerable amount of liberal content that is equally offensive. Understanding the thought process, the logic that allows people to arrive at their conclusions doesn't mean you have to agree with it....but doing so allows you to more effectively engage, and combat bad information and opinions. We've become so used to hearing bad faith arguments from horrible people, that we seem to assume anyone with a differing opinion is guilty of doing so and thus people yell insults, ignore and dismiss everything just because they "don't like it" It's exhausting, and it's frankly horrific to see just how divided everyone has become on every single issue.
Three cheers for teaching critical thinking and constructive engagements.
Challenged *respectfully*. Also, facts need to be mutually acknowledged and people's identities aren't opinions. But given all that, yeah, true.
I debate. Sometimes we get topics we hate and have no idea what to do with. But that's life. It allows us to expand our horizons.
I am lucky, I have a really good group of friends with a huge mixture of views, some quite diverse (brexit/remain, tory/Labour, religious/atheist etc). We can have great debates, real intellectual conversations about the issues and we always stay great friends having listened to each other, respected different views and usually agree to disagree but sometimes minds are changed. I am truly grateful for those friends.
Having an opinion doesn't make you right.
This is basically 80% of the internet. I have an opinion, therefore I'm right.
Ugh. I've had to tell this to more than one person - you disagreeing with me doesn't make you right & me wrong - it means with have a difference of opinion. Worked with a guy you found a "new life philosophy" which he explained in great detail. I didn't agree, so he kept telling me I "just didn't get it". I kept telling him I understood exactly what he was saying, I just didn't agree. Back to me just not getting it. I finally snapped "Jon - I get it! I just happen to think it's a load of f*cking horsesh*t and you're a gullible fool for buying into it". Well, at least he quit talking to me for a while.
Opinions are like assholes. Everyone's got one, and they all stink. Well, some worse than others, anyway.
Why didn't it censor the word "a*****e"? BP, what is you doin'?
Load More Replies...
The more children you have, the more you contribute to environmental decline. Literally nobody likes hearing this because HUMANS MUST REPRODUCE YADA YADA.
Most true for Americans, and to a lesser extent the other "western" countries. There were 1 billion people on the planet in 1800. In 1950, there were 2.53 billion, 1980 4.43 billion, 1999 6 billion, 2011, 7 billion, today we sit at 7.95 billion, and will reach 8 billion people by next year. We can't effectively sustain the human population now, 1/3rd of food production ends up wasted, while 1/4 of the global population doesn't have enough to eat because getting it everywhere is a logistical nightmare, and yet a large portion of the population continues to think the only way to solve the big problems of the world is to stay the course, continue unchecked expansion and hope that solutions will be born along with the rising population. We've been playing this game for 40 years with the climate, and we're almost out of time. Yet the mindset seems unchanged.
Seems to be the case for humans that we won't start to change until things become very much extremely painful. Even then we're more likely to just start blaming others rather than change ourselves.
Load More Replies...Having children is harder on the environment, but we have to accept that solutions to the climate crisis have to be within the realm of humanity's capacity. Committing species suicide isn't a rational solution, it's up there with genocidal thinking as a solution to a perceived problem. In this case it IS a solution, but it's pretty sad and defeatist. Things that are more in keeping with positive goals might be redistribution of wealth, carbon neutral home heating and cooling, carbon neutral mining, electrification of transportation and industry, carbon neutral electrical generation, carbon and greenhouse gas neutral food supply (as in lab grown protein). If our solution to climate change is all people stop having children we might as well drink the kool-aid and be done with it.
Exactly! I read an article once about how the greatest threat to the human species is actually birthrates and infertility. Fertility rates are going down. Yes, some families are having lots and lots of kids. But if in general, people start having less and less children, the gene pool gets minimized as well. Leading to more infertility and genetic issues. And eventually a much smaller population that cannot be maintained. Birth rates ARE going down. Yes, having less or no children lowers your carbon footprint. But I mean wiping out humanity all together would completely wipe out any further carbon footprints. That doesn't make it the answer.
Load More Replies...If you do more than replace yourselves, we're all in trouble. And so are your grandchildren.
One of the numerous reason I am not having children. I like my fur babies and plants.
There is population decrease and a labor shortage. Reducing the population and reproduction is not the solution to global warming. A better impact would be things like taxing carbon removing livestock and other things
Just because you love someone it doesn't mean they will love you back. No matter how hard you try to get them to, they just won't.
Just reading you say no matter how hard you try to get them to love you is a huge red flag in my mind. You cannot make someone love you and no one ever should try
Too bad it takes people decades to figure that out. I just simply don't understand why people insist on dating people who are clearly shitty bottom of the barrel sewage people. It's not evident that is one thing.
Love is a two way street, all else is obsession, desire, want, control... etc
This one was a very hard lesson to learn for me. Glad that these times are over and I've found the person who loves me back ❤️
Everyone's a hypocrite. Even you.
Technically true... but comparing the hypocrisy of someone that generally tries to do the right thing to that of, for example, catholic church leaders.... is not a fair nor accurate comparison. Your playing with words to create false equivalency there.
I'd love a world without hypocrisy. Or, at least one where people were self-aware enough to work on their own hypocrisy.
Oh yeah, I let myself off the hook for doing stuff I harshly judge others for all the time. It takes a lot of conscious effort to catch yourself doing it and more to try and change your ways.
Yeah but the idea here is to minimize it as much as humanly possible. Not go "well everyone else does it and I am a useless piece of s**t that has no life so might as well do it too."
Some are more hypocritical than others and their hypocrisy hurts others and the nation (i.e. most republicans in Congress).
I guess to counter some people in here:
Not every "real talk", "tough to swallow pill", or "harsh truth" that you have to offer someone is going to be accurate to them, or their situation.
Sometimes you're actually a f*****g d**k that is incapable of considering their perspective or feeling empathy towards them. ¯ _(ツ) _ / ¯
Exactly. Just let people be. Maybe things will work out for them. Maybe it won't. At least they tried. This is a huge problem with long distance relationship communities. You could have one minor question, seeking a boost of optimism. Then people want more information about the relationship. They use that information against the op and base dooming "opinions", some irrelevant to the op's main issue, on their own past experiences that could have been much, much different of a situation. I don't even bring it up anymore. Don't need to.
Context and perspective can change a lot of narratives. The world isn’t black and white, it is a whole spectrum of colors, not just gray. If you listen to someone and try to get them thinking about their problem without all the emotion, quite often they will come up with their own solution—-and not something outlandish either, but something that will, or at least could, actually work.
Load More Replies...I'll be honest this sounds like the person who wrote this is super butt hurt by a person/a few people in their life. Wow the sour is super strong with this one.
There's going to be a day where you are totally forgotten by everyone.
On the flip side though, you would not believe the number of people who feel you had some influence on decisions they made, that changed their lives—-hopefully for better, but sometimes for worse. Found this out when I got older and happened to bump into people I used to work with, or go to school with, years or even decades ago. It was usually something I said to them, about whatever they told me, that I had completely forgotten about—-btw, all of them turned out better. It would kill me to find out I unwittingly said something to someone that made their life worse. There is trickle down from everything we say and do. Hard to believe we can have such an impact, what with thinking we haven’t accomplished much in our lives. but we do.
Doesn't matter. Everyone remembers Adolf Hitler. So, anyone can be an AH and still be remembered - just not the right way though. Just wanted to be remembered for the good deeds as long as one lives. When we do good, we feel good, that's the only take away. So, it doesn't matter if we're remembered or not. Our feel good factor when someone remembers us, is just our ego feeling good about itself.
Things are going to keep getting worse on our planet and we are in for some serious human tragedy.
Here's the thing, the planet is going to be fine, it's been around 4.5 billion years. It's the people who are F***ed
And when we are all gone the planet will heal itself over time...
Load More Replies...If you look back through history, there has always bad times, world wars, slavery, the complete collapse of political systems, economic depressions etc. It ebbs and flows.
Future wars won’t be about oil, or any of the resources that are considered important now. Future wars will be over drinkable water, food, shelter from the elements, mere survival. So many people don’t understand this. Droughts have caused mass migrations in the past. When millions of people come into your country or city, start getting manual labor jobs that don’t require education or specialized skills, they’re not going to know the current pay rate, so they’ll work cheap, which will then drive pay rates down (not the immigrants’ fault, btw, but the fault of greedy, unethical, cheating business people). That will breed hatred in those immigrants—-who are only trying to feed their families—-and violence will inevitably erupt. All over access to resources needed to survive (unless you’re born to wealth, you need a job to earn money to buy those resources). The largest source of clean water is the Himalayas. We should be looking at which countries are vying for control of that region. What’s going to happen with the refugees from both US coasts (and all coastal areas around the world) when the ocean levels rise and coastal cities are uninhabitable? What will happen if we end up in another Little Ice Age like we did at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries, when someone called it “1800 and froze to death”? Sit down, clear your mind of biases and denial, and have a good think about all that. Then tell me you still believe Climate Change is a hoax and/or nothing to get worried about.
American politicians have been saying that since the late sixties! every few years they say the world is going to end in a few years.
Absolutely true, the decade of the 2020s are predicted o be pretty hellish
A prediction is not ‘absolutely true’. It’s a guess, an opinion, nothing more.
Load More Replies...Maybe it is time for the human species to go extinct, instead of us destroying all life on this planet for greed.
Your spouse/child/home/job/vacation, etc. is not nearly as important to anyone else as it is to you.
I started unfriending people because I was just sick of seeing their kid's face every day. Ok, you have a family now, but nobody outside your closest circle cares. Literally. Nobody. Else. Cares.
Tbh. I got rid of FB all together a few years ago, and I'm very selective on who I will follow on other platforms. I have an Instagram, but I don't use it. Honestly, I'm not sure what goes thru peoples minds. It's like they feel they need to one up each other and show how they have the perfect, happy family and they're doing better than the other family they're friends with? Idk, it's weird, and rather annoying. Also, why do people insist on putting their entire lives online? People need to start living their lives rather than taking pictures of weird s**t and attempting to prove they're living a life they're not. Like you said, no one, not one person, gives a fvck. And yep, I just ranted about it bc I hadn't really thought much about it until your comment. Lol
Load More Replies...
You can't control what happens to you, only how you react to it.
You can also hold anyone who causes those things accountable for it.
This one is kinda BS. You can't control exactly what happens to you, no, but you do have control over the situations you put yourself in. If you hang around bad people, bad things are gonna happen to you, even if you're not bad yourself. WHO you make friends with and hang around matters. It matters a lot more than most people realize.
OK. This is an age old adage that I've always known but consistently ignored. "Everything bad only happens to me," turns out to be nothing more than a state of mind. Once I grasped that fully and recognized it as fact, did my days seemingly get much better.
Not really. You may be able to control how you act out your reactions, but your reactions are pretty much uncontrollable.
This is some TERRIBLY DANGEROUS ADVICE!! Exceptionally r******d. You control YOUR ACTIONS and YOUR ACTIONS lead you to the out outcome. Good or bad.
This is going to be a GIGANTIC social and mental health issue very soon. Judging by the number of CHILDREN bring treated for anxiety and other MOOD disorders, we are raising an entire generation that don't know how to respond to the things "life" throws at them. The "appropriate"response when you are angry is to lash out at everyone. The "appropriate"response when you are sad is to talk about hurting/killing yourself (or to actually engage in self-harm. That's just two issues that are EXPLODING in the "under 20" age bracket.
That there are people who won’t like you or agree with you and you won’t be able to change their mind so you just have to deal with it
Of course. Some people believe what they believe. I don't believe in God. No Christian is gonna convince me otherwise. Just like I can't convince them the idea of God is absurd.
We can, however agree civilly to disagree, and chat about other things.
Load More Replies...I have been fine with this for years. I had to work in industries that meant I faced this daily. But most people think that if someone else either IS different or does things differently that they are WRONG. I never used to believe that but I have less faith in humanity now. Younger people are better than those my age tho..
I'm me and I don't need anyone's approval. You have your opinion and unless I ask for it, I don't care what it is. Don't like me or something I have or did, I don't care. Don't like the way I did something? Then do it yourself....for free and only if you can actually do it better.
I never lose any sleep if I find out someone doesn't like me. More people should take that stance..
You still a line "well, there ya go" and move on-- stolen from Bobby Collins, the great NY comedian
That all gods are man made, start taking responsibility for your own actions and stop thinking that some magical being is going to come and help you out.
I'll disagree with this. Religion if practiced as intended has benefits for mankind. It's the misapplication, manipulation, exploitation, abuse by current or former "leaders" in religions that often create harm in the world. I'm sorry you have had a negative experience with religion. Hope you keep an open mind towards the actual texts and teachings in religions, rather than the "religious" humans you have interacted with.
Load More Replies...Religion if practiced as intended has benefits for mankind. It's the misapplication, manipulation, exploitation, abuse by current or former "leaders" in religions that often create harm in the world. I'm sorry to those who have had a negative experience with religion. Hope you keep an open mind towards the actual texts and teachings in religions, rather than the "religious" humans you have interacted with.
Already said: Just what commies say for the fall of communism. Was not practiced as intended.
Load More Replies...It's not that simple. For many religious people, it's not a "magic being" - it's belief in a purpose to life and an openness to something bigger than our small selves. I think people who write off spirituality close off the door to awe and wonder. Just my opinion, of course.
See, I always thought most religious people believed “The Lord helps those who help themselves”. I can see the wisdom in that. No knight in shining armor, no cavalry, no supreme being is going to swoop down and save you. You have to save you. Wouldn’t you think a god (if there is one) is going to be more impressed with you—-and maybe also be more apt to throw some good luck your way—-if they see you trying your damnedest to get yourself out of a difficulty, than they would feel about someone sitting around doing nothing, letting their situation become even worse, because they’re waiting for someone, some deity, to do it for them? If I was their deity, it would p**s me off to see such intentional helplessness out of people who could damned easily get up off their asses and do something to make their situation better! It would certainly not make me want to send them some good luck. It would more likely make me send them an a*s-kicking. Now, before you get triggered, I know full well there are people who truly and honestly are helpless. If I were a god, I would help them. But I’m not talking about them. I am talking about people who could help themselves but choose to make someone else do all the heavy lifting instead. (Sorry to vent.)
Two people I know refused to get vaccinated because God would save them. One of them almost died.
Load More Replies...And you’re not better than me because you go to church! I’m looking at you Kara G.
I know I'm not better because I attend church, but it doesn't make me worse either. I do realize that my beliefs are to guide how I live my life, not to try force anyone else to live by them.
Load More Replies...Just because you have an option doesn't make what others believe wrong. You are not an all knowing being.
In the end, faith in or faith not in, any form of the supernatural is a choice. Either argument leads to the beginning of time as we know it. Either there is or there is not a prime mover unmoved. Having said that, I know that God is, and I (hope that I) live the way He wants me to. It's very hard sometimes, either because I'm not sure what I should do, or because I don't want to do what I know I should. My actions, whether positive or negative, reflect on me, not God. He gave me the choice, and some times, I choose wrongly. I can say oh sorry, and do the same thing over and over, but that isn't repentance. Repentance is truly being sorry and doing the work to change. Too few understand repentance, and too few of us truly repent.
F**k u. If the man made being is helping someone get thru this shitty world and even attempt to do good then LET THEM BELIEVE. Not every religion is evil. Not every religious person is maniacal, or naive, or bad. Unless they're killing in the name of.. then let it be.
Your skin color / sexual orientation is the least interesting thing about you.
Are you telling me my neon purple skin is the least interesting thing about me?? Oh well then.
SO true. AND what genitals you were born with. And your preference for pronouns.
Although, it's respectful to call people what they want to be called. If they ask you not to call them something, and ask you to refer to them a certain way, you should respect that.
Load More Replies...yeah, it is the least interesting thing about me, yet people are mad at me becase of that least interesting thing...
Sorry, as long as people are killed because of skin color or sexual orientation, as well as thrown out of family homes because of sexual orientation, this is BS.
While it is perfectly fine to be proud of, and derive much joy from, that which makes you unique, you must not lose sight of the larger number of ways you are just like everybody else. I am human. I share that with the entire population of the planet. I am a woman. I share that with half the population of the planet. I am an older woman. I share that with a sizable portion of the world’s population——a portion that will only grow larger as we live longer lives. I am white. I share that with a good sized portion of the population. I am educated. I share that with another good sized portion of the population. See what I’m getting at? I love all the things about me that set me apart, but I know I share so much more with every single person who is, has ever, and will ever be alive. I like that.
Are you saying that all lives matter? because apparently, it is racist now not to define people by their skin color.
Is that why minorities are working so hard to segregate themselves these days?
whaaaaaaaat? you haven't heard of jim crow and apartheid? that stuff is still around in spirit man.
Load More Replies...Beauty is only skin deep? Nothing new in that concept. Yet look at how it divides. We are such flawed beings.
Capitalism as it’s currently implemented doesn’t work and only increases the wealth of the wealthy at the cost of the poor, the oppressed, and the world. We are literally destroying our ability to live on this planet, and we’ll need drastic societal change to barely survive the coming era.
Fun fact: social capitulation, a rare system used in some insignificant island nations and small Asian countries (tu mi au, xibi San ma) in which the basic necessities of survival are provided but to live comfortably you need to work. It’s an interesting system that seems to work well and I’d be willing to give it a try. An interesting blend of capitalism and socialism
Couldn’t hurt to try. Problem is, we’d need to get those who are reaping the benefits (in other words, stealing food out of everyone else’s mouths, even though they, themselves, have consumed more than enough already) on board with the change, which means a drop in their profits. Because history has shown us, time and time again, that they’re the very people who will work to dismantle, to weaken, to downright sabotage that system, then convince us, or rather, gaslight us into thinking it was never going to work anyway and we should just return to what we have now. We’ll need more than just a system change, or even a political or social change. We’ll need a total change of mindset, of personal philosophy, of attitudes. We’ll have to evolve, to move forward and leave all the knuckledraggers behind to perish. Big order.
Load More Replies...It's not the system, it's the greed. It has worked the same in communism and socialism. Those in power are greedy and will fix the rules in their favor.
Capitalism doesn't work, Communism doesn't work, Fascism doesn't work and all for the same reason - human nature..
This is probably worded in correctly. It's not that capitalism as implemented doesn't work, it's that capitalism as implemented works perfectly but isn't giving us the result we want. In other words, it's the wrong model. While people will argue socialism vs capitalism ad nauseum, in reality I think what China is essentially proving is that a hybrid model is most likely the most effective and efficient way to go. The trick is to figure out how, where and what to socialize, and the equivalent for free market/capitalism. We sort of do that now, but poorly. It would be complicated to set up and you have to customize your model to your culture, but if you have travelled to China 50 years ago and see it today you would be shocked at how fast and how much things have changed and modernized. It's the main reason they are beating our pants off, we just don't want to admit it.
Such a bad, misinformed take. Capitalism, aka, free markets isn't the problem. It's just a system. People are the problem. They are the source of greed and corruption, not the system. Socialism isn't a better system, corruption still happens, greed still exists. The difference between the two is that a free market can withstand greed and corruption and still function, socialism cannot and will always collapse and result massive human suffering. That's why you can't name a socialist country that you'd rather live in than America or another western capitalist democracy.
"we’ll need drastic societal change to barely survive the coming era." This is a scare tactic to get people to give up their freedoms. "Capitalism as it’s currently implemented" is shackled by innumerable regulations, so maybe we should unshackle it just a little. The most free countries in the world are also the most environmentally clean. Don't take my word for it, look it up.
Finally FUUUUUUCKING FINALLY something that is actually at least somewhat intelligent. I don't usually feel clickbaited by boardpanda.
There is always someone better than you
If that attitude could be achieved, what a peaceful place the world would be.
Load More Replies...I just want to be the best “me” I can be by being better today compared to yesterday. A work in progress.
I dont agree with this if Im grasping this correctly. No one is better than anyone else. People may be able to do things better than someone else like running faster or longer than someone else or some other tasks but it doesnt mesn they're better than them. Im just as much of the problem as the man behind bars. He did with his business what I do im my heart. Doesnt mean Im better than him because I dont commit crimes
And "participation" trophies only teach a child that they can do the bare minimum and still be rewarded.
So many of these are negative... So how about the truth that one of the best ways to be happy in life is by helping other people. People don't want to do it, because helping other people feels like you're losing out, but it's true
This is part of my mail .sig: "You're not a sucker to have integrity and treat people with respect." - Barack Obama
I help random people. Someone dropped some cash? I tell them. See a parked car and a wheel lack pressure, i tell them. Someone looks like they are trying to carry something to big for 1? I help them.
I'm just tired of helping people, then finding myself in need and those same people can't be bothered to pay it back. It makes it really hard to want to help the next person when the odds are higher that they'll take my aid and leave me to suffer or figure things out alone.
That's the point. Helping others is not about the rewards you may see coming back to you. Helping others without receiving anything in return is the reward. Seeing someone happy, being there, even for a stranger, is what makes the world a little better.
Load More Replies...Helping others triggers a release of oxytocin, a feel good endorphin.
I get such a buzz when I help someone or do something nice for nothing in return. I don't video it either to show people. That feeling after you've done it is reward enough.
Reminds me of a saying. If you are a giver, you better have limits because takers do not.
Well yes, there are always limits to everything and setting boundaries when necessary is healthy. It's not good to go to extremes, to give everything and end up suffering or, on the other side, to be selfish and just always take without returning or passing on the good deeds of others... So yeah, just don't go to extremes.
Load More Replies...I work in the field of addiction treatment. I frequently tell my clients that in order to build healthy self-esteem, you must do esteemable acts.
Sometimes, you are the toxic person
Yeah. As my Dad put it "if you're the common denominator in all your problems, then you're the problem". I knew a guy who was like that. He just couldn't seem to grasp that his own terrible behaviour was the root cause behind why he kept losing jobs, couldn't seem to maintain long-term friendships, and was on bad terms with his parents. He lost my friendship as well in the end because he kept trying to hit on me and wouldn't take no for an answer. No doubt he's currently telling someone what an awful person I am. He did that with everyone else who decided they'd had enough of his c**p.
Load More Replies..."After several failed relationships I realized the problem is them, not me." I mean sure, maybe. But most likely you're missing something about yourself.
Truth. I at least keep it to a minimum and I always apologize to people (as long as they aren't supreme douche bags) because I'll feel bad.
You need to check yourself and ask "Am I in the wrong in this situation?"
Actually, I have been told by many people that I'm not toxic. I'm a very loving, relaxed, compassionate individual and I like to resolve people's conflicts and make their lives better. I mean, feel free to argue with me, but I will just smile and think you're an interesting, amazing creature that's full of wonders and untapped potential.
No matter how nice you are, people will still just be assholes to you just cuz.
I've dealt with people at work who tried so hard to get me upset. Like really reaching. There are people who will just try to get a reaction out of you, make you feel bad for doing your job, or even just being somewhere. What they really hate is calmness and positivity in their presence of negativity.
Those are people who either hate themselves or something about their lives. Those people are how the saying, "misery loves company" evolved.
Load More Replies...Probably because you’re not as nice as you think you are. We’re human, we f**k up and do totally wrong s**t. A LOT. Certainly a lot more than we’ll ever admit to.
True. But being nice does increase your chances of not too many people being arseholes to you
That's why you gotta learn to defend your self and your space. Be nice as a cherry pie on Sunday, but have your boundaries and don't compromise.
We don't know everything and probably never will.
There may have been a time in history when one person could have known everything about everything that was known then. But reliable and verifiable information has grown to such proportions that no one person—-even our best minds—-could possibly achieve that. So how about, instead, we concentrate on knowing a little about a lot, and know a lot about a little (like know how to work, pay bills, get along, turn on the TV, take care of a baby, etc well enough, and also know a lot about a particular subject, like the law, or medicine, or history, or something that will either allow us to have careers in that field, or just bring us the joy of learning everything about something new?
Man needs a challenge, or man couldn't be - Dave Mason "Can't Stop Worrying."
We NEVER will. Even IF we don't get ourselves killed we wouldn't be able to have enough time to learn everything even if we lived for 1,000 years.
Your friends and family likely talk tons of s**t about you behind your back
...and the kind of sh*t they talk actually tells more about them than about you.
And friends and family don’t talk about you as much as you imagine. Most people aren’t thinking about others.
Sometimes bad things happen to good people. Sometimes good things happen to bad people.
The world is made up of nice people and assholes. Sometimes assholes can be really nice people, and sometimes nice people can be real assholes. We’re primarily one or the other—-and not the one we think we are. Because it’s not up to us to choose which we are, it’s up to everyone else to make that final decision.
I heard about a novel whose title I've sadly forgotten, which was the story of two different men. One was an irredeemably horrible person who lied and cheated and treated people like garbage, and the other was kind and generous and fair in all his dealings. He dies miserably in poverty while the lifelong jerk passes away peacefully in old age, wealthy and comfortable and surrounded by a loving family. The moral of the story doesn't exactly need to be spelled out. (I need to find out what that book was called and who wrote it. I think it was originally written in French or something).
All the time bad things happen to good people. All the time good things happen to bad people.
That's why I don't believe in karma I know total assholes who are terrible people and have the best "luck" today someone who needed somewhere to stay cuz he was homeless and stole from me won $380 at the casino and while walking out threw a $20 iin a slot and won another $100. Third time this month except the slots
You can’t love someone into loving you
SO many people need to understand this! For others' sake and for themselves as well.
You also can’t love someone ‘better’. Just because you love someone, they may not overcome their issues, deal with their stuff, trust you fully and be whole. Your love can’t necessarily fix their scar tissue. Also, love is not enough. Need love but it also has to work. Sometimes two people just can’t work together.
THANK YOU! I commented something similar on one of the posts above that talked about making someone love you
That people need to stop putting their trust in god to do things and do it themselves
My dad once told me a story. "A guy is in his house when it starts to flood. He starts praying for God to rescue him. Neighbor pulls up in his truck to get him out of there. "No, God will save me." It keeps flooding. Some random strangers show up with a boat. "Nope. I'm going to pray through this." Finally the guy has to get up on his roof and he's praying and waiting for the water to start to go down. A rescue helicopter shows up. "No thanks. God is going to lower these waters." Of course he drowns. Gets to heaven and asks God "Why didn't you save me?" Well I sent a truck, a boat, and a helicopter. You just had to get on!"
Isn't that in the Bible? Faith without action is nothing, action without faith is nothing? Or something like that.
Load More Replies...I once had someone tell me, "Go ahead and pray if you want to, but do it while you are rowing to shore." That has stuck with me my entire life.
Yes in fact even religion says the same. In the Bhagavad Gita chapter 6 verse 5 says you yourself are responsible for your upliftment and you must take actions. Others can show you, but you have to do it. Reference: https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/chapter/6/verse/5
I was always taught that God helps those who help themselves-- and the answer to your prayers might very well be "No"
Well, even in the Bible, it says "God helps those who help themselves." I was raised Catholic, but I'm a Moralist now. Eventually, people will realize morality is doing what is right, regardless of what you are told and religion is doing what you are told, regardless of what is right.
Everyone you love will die. Everyone you hate will die. Everything ends.
Don't stress, Relax, Let life roll off your backs Except for death and paying taxes, Everything in life is only for now! Each time you smile... It'll only last a while. Life may be scary... But it's only temporary!
The cost of love is grief. its an endless cycle, and no matter what you do, there will always be grief. The more you love something, the more painful it will be when it leaves. The less you love, the more depressing your life will be. You will inevitably feel pain either way, so don't make things worse by trying to stop it from happening.
The rate and price of medical advances makes me worried that everyone I hate won't necessarily die. The first part, very true tho.
Corona may never go away and be in our lives forever in some capacity.
Or some other vaccine / antibiotic-resistant pandemic. I think COVID has definitely demonstrated rather graphically what I've feared has happened to people over the course of the last 30 year though - people have become more selfish and more prone to f*cking each other over, even for something as simple as a toilet roll - and far more opinionated and entitled when presented with something relatively simple that they could do to prevent getting infected or spreading an infection (like wearing a mask)
I'm glad that COVID had fatality rate "only" about 2%. I know, 2% is still a lot, but it wasn't like black plague with fatality rate of 80% and long span when you are infective, but with no symptoms. Funny story, one person who graduated medical college told me that I cannot compare COVID and Plague, because one is viral and the other is bacterial. Honestly, who cares? It is a disease, that gets transferred from person to person.
Load More Replies...Covid is a d**k. I had it and I can tell you wouldn’t recommend. Humanity needs to get itself under control and please, can we wear masks on airplanes. Please.
Sometimes I think maybe the humans are the virus and Covid is the antiviral...
My grown daughter and her family have had it 3 times, I've had it twice
Just like the flu. Stop leaving in fear, stop inoculating kids with a genetic altering device that is unproven and unnecessary-- do the REAL science. BTW-- your masks are USELESS, except as a desire to show conformity
Here's to hoping! I love me a good Corona Lite with a lime on a hot day on the lake...✌️
No matter what you do you polluted the planet
Everyone is responsible for the destruction of the planet. Every, single one of us. Every second, of every day. All of us have a negative impact, and much of it is avoidable. Most people are simply too lazy, apathetic or shortsighted to accept this. Most people are content to lay fault at the feet of someone else, and reason out that until those nefarious "others" clean up their act, there isn't any point in doing anything to change themselves. It is one of the most idiotic, self serving and enraging things being perpetuated.
But we should still try to do our best not to harm this amazing planet and all her creaturess.
Everything pollutes in a way. However, nature has the skill to recover and regenerate up to a point. Including ourselves. It's how much above the regeneration point we contribute what matters. And this point is not a fixed value, it depends on the conditions where you live. Anyway the less we contribute, the better.
Dump wanted ever more pollution - drilling in national parks and the arctic, eliminating food safety guards, allowing unlimited pollution of waterways - all to make a buck for his cronies and enablers. 'Environment? what about it, I will see you goobers all have cheap gas.'
The only person responsible for -you- is -you-.
So parents should just leave their newborns in the woods or something?
Based on many works of literature, a child left in the woods or jungle often turns out to be just fine.
Load More Replies...Realising that is a big part of becoming an adult. For a while you keep thinking someone's going to come along and make you eat your vegetables or give you a big lecture for drinking/smoking/spending too much time playing video games, but then you realise that's not going to happen.
The only person you can rely on 100% to help you is you. The rare Good Samaritan aside, a lot of people may be just fair weather friends, offering to help you when you don’t need it, and telling you that, if you ever do, just give them a call and they’ll come running. Then when everything goes to s**t and you actually MAKE that call, it’s like they fell off the face of the Earth, and all you’re left with is YOU.
Also - you are not responsible for another's happiness. My ex completely believed his happiness was my responsibility. I tried to explain what a f*cking cop-out that was. So, basically, if you're not happy it's MY fault. Well, yes. Several marriage counseling sessions & a few thousand dollars later and he still didn't really believe it. I got A LOT out of those sessions - and left him.
That's not really true; in a compassionate world we would agree that we are responsible for each other's well-being.
So protect yourself from evil, government, politicians, criminals, elitists, - all the same thing
Americans don't want to hear that Columbus murdered and enslaved people.
It's not that they don't want to hear it. It's that they were taught a GROSSLY different version of the story. Though some probably would prefer to keep believing that old lie.
This is so very true. I graduated in BFE rural America ages ago, but only in the last 10 years have I heard the truth about who this man really was and what really happened. American history is so outrageously full of bull***t and they just keep shoveling it into the faces of kids even when the kids already know the truth.
Load More Replies...It's not like the slavery and genocide brought in by Columbus was the only slavery and genocide that ever happened in the area.
Who was taught this different take? When i was in grade school, 30 years ago it was made clear that Columbus wasn't first, wasn't even looking, and was one of many, many, many people engaging slavery and widescale genocide.
I was, but maybe it was because I was from a state whose capital is Columbus
Load More Replies...It just makes people feel better to pull others down to their level.
Load More Replies...they don't want to hear that nelson mandela was the founder of the terrorist MK arm of the ANC that committed 100~200 terrorist attacks on everyday people including children and trains stations etc. but i guess now that the ANC have been in power for a while we can see how well a terrorist organisation runs a country...
Thirty three y/o American here and ligit: in the education system we were NEVER taught the truth in history, only pieces, and even those pieces were watered down and chosen delicately. I will always remember my 5th grade teacher who had a whole semester on teaching about the Holocaust and the facts that were provable. She was Jewish, her husband was German. I actually got educated that year, the system did not fail.
No one really gives a s**t what your eyebrows look like.
But if being and looking groomed and neat makes you feel good and happy, go for it. Not everything is about others´ opinions.
Ak-shully...brow thickness, opacity, and distance from the eyes are some of the many facial details that people don't notice consciously, but play a role in how attractive we find faces. https://academic.oup.com/asj/article/25/4/348/189896
Let me apologize up front, because I fully recognize how shallow this is of me, but I actually do care. But, it's almost always the people that have messed with their eyebrows that bother me, not the ones with natural eyebrows. I find over-thinned eyebrows and drawn on eyebrows very odd and distracting. Same goes for lip fillers, face lifts, and other "enhancements". Maybe it's because I don't have many friends that have had this kind of work done, so I'm just used to the natural look, but I struggle with trying to look past all of that and just see the person.
I give a s**t what my eyebrows look like. I don't give a s**t about what anyone else thinks about my eyebrows. What a bad post.
It's speaking about vanity. If you dont get that, maybe look in the mirror?
Load More Replies...LOL. - the eyebrow cult. All those druggie 'models' with caveman eyebrows, all the cool people trample themselves to get to eyebrow clinics (I have seen them pop up, near nail palaces) to ape their betters.
I don't know about this, but I have heard many people say "Did you see how long her eyelashes were? They're gorgeous!"
Load More Replies...You are always replaceable.
Oh, thank god. I’m starting to wear out. They’d better replace me soon before one of my internal components breaks.
I'm sorry but management has decided to discontinue your model. You won't be replace. Just retired. Thanks for your 50yrs of sacrifice. Here have a slice of this $10 Walmart cake, which btw came out of your last paycheck.
Load More Replies...Hardly. My parents would seriously disagree with you. In fact, pretty much nobody is replaceable. That’s how human kind has survived.
My biggest issue with this idea is when companies like Amazon don't care about employee churn, assuming there will always be more people to hire. Well guess what - that's not the case. It's even more marked when it takes years to educate people, for example doctors and nurses, and business like the health care industry treat them like they're disposable and replaceable. That thinking only goes so far, then the reality implodes. We have to change this way of thinking.
Disagree. People just assume everyone is replaceable until they are replaced with someone who is subpar for the task in comparison
Can they replace my spine? My back hurts, and I think I need a new one. And maybe a good left knee. And my thumb kinda hurts.
You aren't special.
I like this perspective more 👍. The one in the post is negative and demeaning.
Load More Replies...Everyone has something unique about, something that makes them different to everyone else on the planet. Everyone experiences life differently to everyone else, has a different childhood (even in the same household), a different experience of work, etc. All these things make us unique... make all of us special. Suffice to say, I strongly disagree with this.
Yeah, me too. I guess the point should be: No matter who and how you are, you're not more or less valuable.
Load More Replies...Im pretty sure am special, i spent an hour today talking to a frog 😂
I actually disagree that, everybody is special in their own way, just not to everyone
As long as we fail to protect and provide for all children in our society, we will continue to suffer the crimes of the damaged adults we produce. We have no right to expect any different, and we deserve everything that we get.
👏 yes! We punish, judge and blame harshly those who fail, mistake and go astray in life. But WE made them. It was us (parents, family, friends, neighbours, coworkers, society) who conditioned them and shaped them into what they were or are or will be. We all fail when everyone else fails. We are all accountable. My humble way of seeing this. If it wasn't us, then we were somehow lucky to be born in good surroundings. But that doesn't make us better or in the condition to push down those who weren't lucky. The world needs more empathy and understanding. My naive opinion. Feel free to downvote.
Racism is universal, as in anybody can be racist. The recent attempt to redefine it is laughable. If you assume things or judge anyone based on skin color, good or bad things, you’re a racist.
You’re confusing prejudice with racism. Racism is the belief that race A is intrinsically better than race B. Prejudice is an assumption about a race in the absence of fact (or based on hearsay). humans are prejudicial by nature (we make quick assumptions to survive), but we have to be taught to be racist.
When you die, it could very well be nothing. Just blackness, like before you were born.
"Blackness" makes it sound like you're still experiencing something, even if that something is nothing, but it's a lot harder to imagine not experiencing anything at all, to just not exist. At all.
The downfall of many celebrity and quasi-celebrity males over the past few years, as a result of sexual assault, is just the tip of the iceburg. Sexual assault is real, it has been going on for centuries, and the news shedding light on the matter is a good thing.
China is always expanding their influence and the Chinese communist party treats people terribly.
We are not all equal, in any sense.
We are all different, not better or worse, just different, but we should all have equal rights.
Nobody cares that you are Vegan
Other vegans do, i don’t usually about what food i like but i love going to vegan fairs, its nice to reccomend food products and exchange recipes. I guess its the same with gluten free or diabetic
Life isn’t fair and you aren’t owed a damn thing.
You can’t make everyone happy
the fact that the two presidential candidates are old men who should be in nursing homes is depressing
There needs to be an age limit on who can run an how long they can serve
Two terms and over the age of 35. Bernie sanders looks like he's almost dead, and he would have created the most beneficial change the US has seen in 60 years. Here's the thing, when you're young, you might be well informed about a very narrow range of issues, hell you might even be the leading expert, but that doesn't mean you have the life experience to see the big picture, or wisdom to see how things actually work in the real world. Not how they should work, or you wish they would work. Evidence of this is the fact that so many continue to view the presidency as "THE" most important factor, when reality is that he's one piece of the puzzle. Yes, it's an important piece during times of crisis, or for forcing short term goals (executive orders) but to have lasting change....he needs the support of congress, and the senate, and the majority of people ignore lesser governmental elections (2018 saw a record turnout of 49.6% of REGISTERED voters)
Load More Replies...there are 330 million people in the US, and this is the best we can do for candidates???
No matter what you do you will never be more popular then cheese.
No one is at the wheel. There is no one leading the planet, just powerful people, companies, and countries all struggling together against everyone else for power, money, and control.
Just because you’ve been with someone since high school doesn’t mean they’re right for you. Don’t base your future on childish dreams
Both of the world's current super powers (China and USA) are committing genocide on undesirables near their borders. Nobody can do a damn thing to stop them. The future of the world is bleak. Oh yeah, Climate Change is happening, and the evidence points to us going down the *worst case scenario* path, which means a nightmarish world for the next thousand years.
* Some people will never find a long term partner and that's okay... * ... because even if you live your life surrounded by people and love, you will die alone. Being married or with a LT partner, having children, having lots of relatives... All in all, it's no guarantee / insurance against ending up alone. * People fall out of love for no reason and sometimes there's nothing you can / should do about it. * Not everyone wants children, even the ones who will have them anyway.
Good things don't come to those who wait. They come to those who take them. Be patient in your efforts, don't wait apathetically for the things you want to come to you.
Important distinction. Patience, persistence, and discipline versus patience alone.
The people who bother you the most in your life probably do so because you’re the most similar to them.
I’m not sure about this one. Sometimes the things that drive you the most crazy are the opposite to yourself.
Old Russian Proverb: “Show me what you hate and I’ll show you what you are.” Too bad certain Russians aren’t more self aware.
The eradication of the most devastating diseases that we fight today (i.e. cancer) will have potentially devastating unintended consequences. Humans weren't meant to live forever, and a "cure for cancer" will have interesting effects in the economy and society as a whole with a world already overcrowded with people. Before I get killed on this, I don't mean for this to sound cruel or heartless.
Nah I get it. We're living it now. Years ago people were dying in their 30s and 40s. Now we have 50-60-70-80-90 year olds out here working and driving or just living off some kind of support.
The democratic and republican parties are the same party. They want the same things. Any differences you may find in them is only to keep you distracted from taking the power away from the already powerful.
This may have been true at one time, but it is emphatically not true now. Case in point is the recent Republican platform in the state of Texas. They are embracing full, unadulterated fascism, and I don't use that word lightly. At this moment in the US, the two parties could not be more different.
That you need to uplift others to improve society and the world
but everyone is more focused on crushing those around them to ensure their current, or potential, position in the world.
The world does not owe you anything and government is not going to take care of you.
Then they need to stop taking my money and expecting taxes when they don't do a thing for me.
Do you use the roads/highways, do you require the assistance of the police/firefighters, etc at any time? Those are all tax funded, no taxes = no public services
Load More Replies...Just because you don't agree with someone on a personal level doesn't mean you can't be friends. I personally don't agree with a lot of the things my boss says, but he's an awesome boss and a mentor for me.
We learn by listening to others' perspectives, not by villifying them.
Healthy relationships require a lot of work. Sometimes more, sometimes less. But in total – a whole f*****g lot.
That most people probably don't hate you just because you're black/gay/etc. They hate you because you're really an a*****e.
That's called an assumption. This is part of the problem being highlighted here. As identity politics spread and popularize, everyone views every topic, every comment through the lens of identity. "I am _____ and this is my opinion, if you disagree with me, you're disagreeing with me because i am ____ ." It's becoming increasingly rare to be able to judge certain people based on merit without being labeled hateful.
Load More Replies..."You're going to die and you have no idea when" Stop pretending that you're invincible. Acknowledge the fact of your own mortality, and then start structuring your life in a more meaningful way.
Costco has tubs of 7lb Nacho cheese for sale at $6.50 a piece. 7lbs of Nacho Cheese works out to about 2,800cm^3 . A typical bathtub has a volume of 160,000cm^3 . Here are your volumes based on weights (approximately) and how many bottles you would need to fill up the tub:
1. 120lbs = 50,000cm^3 means you need 40 tubs for 255 dollars
2. 150lbs = 70,000cm^3 means you need 32 tubs for 208 dollars
3. 200lbs = 90,000cm^3 means you need 25 tubs for 162.5 dollars
4. 250lbs = 110,000cm^3 means you need 18 tubs for 116 dollars
See the trend? The fatter you get, the more cost effective it becomes to bathe in cheese.
Prophets had no excuse. If you claim to have a connection to god and hear his voice, then the time period in which you live doesn't excuse what you do or prescribe for society. Otherwise, it means your god was limited by the spirit of the era, meaning he isn't omnipotent. Or that god was just wrong. People respect prophets too much.
People crave answers and understanding, religion gave people those answers and understanding, now that we have figured out evolution and genetics etc to a level where it shows that religion is probably wrong (no magic beardy guy on a cloud starting the human race with 2 people) religions need to step back and say yeah at the time (thousands of years ago) religion made sense and gave answers but over the thousands of years since we have grown and learned and religion is probably mostly wrong, obviously feel free to keep all the thou shall not murder etc ideas but all the seven days 2 people etc, just grow a pair and admit you were wrong
Mashing the upvote button so hard! I've seen so many of my fellow agnostics/atheists completely trash religion online without recognizing the contributions it has given us (society, law, community) or that it was people doing their best with what they had at the time to try to understand the world and that this practice eventually led to science.
Load More Replies...Your employer steals from you more than the government does
And I steal right back by not working for hours and getting paid. Ha.
I occasionally take home equipment I have declared to be scrap! Just because it no longer has any value to the business doesn't mean it has to go to the landfill.
Load More Replies...Either you will have to deal with someone else dying or, someone else will have to go through you dying.
You are as insignificant to most people on earth as a stranger you pass on the street is to you.
There are a LOT of violent people out there and we aren't really doing much to change that. There are a lot of people hurting each other through sexual violence. And no one is ultimately making any effort to change that. Despite the fact that Reddit doesn't want to hear it, there are a LOT of people who are attracted to young people. Throughout history, and today. And until we actually acknowledge that, we are never going to stop people from being abused. The best solution for gun violence in the US that everyone could agree on is targeting the causes of violence. Now there will be issues on specific methods which people will debate, but you would be 10 times more effective in getting movement in that area than by trying to fight the brick wall of gun control vs gun rights. And politicians are never going to do this unless citizens tell them to change focus. Educated people have beliefs too, education alone is not a magic solution to issues.
Lengthy program/class that's mandatory to own a fire arm. You'll have to prove to professionals you can mechanically operate it. Prove to professionals you're mentally capable of making rational choices while possessing a gun, make it tedious. We treat lethal firearms the same way we treat a freaking dirtbike any more.
I hate to point out the obvious but 80% (or more) of the crimes committed with firearms in the U.S. are by folks who are not legal to own a firearm - let alone buy one - and these suggestions will not stop them. Further, there are more "mass shootings" than the press mentions because: they do not have enough deaths, they are not done with the right weapon - pistol vs ARs, or they are done by the wrong people. In other words, they do not support the media narrative of "angry white people". There have been over 50 mass shootings - four or more people shot - since Uvalde yet they are just a mere blip on the radar of the media! 104 people shot and 22 shot in mass shootings in the last 10 days alone! 47 people shot and five killed in Chicago during the last (Juneteenth) weekend! Here is a crazy idea that has worked in a lot of parts of the country - raise the kids NOT to resort to guns to settle arguments. Educate kids to settle disagreements other ways than resorting to ANY violence!
Load More Replies...They argue the constitution guarantees the right to own firearms, it says nothing about making it easy to do so. Mandatory 60 day waiting period, handguns limited to those over the age of 28, certification in gun safety and proficiency (must be recertified every year) psych exams every 3 months, all at cost to the owner. Add to that limits on ammo, mandatory jail terms and hefty fines for anyone breaking any of these restrictions.
But the causes of violence vary too much to use resources for all of them. There is no way our government will spend money on mental health, spousal abuse, police violence, so called stand your ground laws, etc. The main gun advocates already blame mental health as a reason, yet mental health funding is in no way a priority. Making sure people are held accountable before even getting the firearm is just the easiest way to go. I don’t understand why this is such a horrible thing to ask.
So unless we acknowledge that pedos exist, violence will continue? What a weird flex that is.
Not everything revolves around you Edit: I don’t give a f**k what planet you are or what space object you identify as stfu lmao
Having a culture that is so focused on getting high or drunk squanders much of the time in our youth that we need to develop into thoughtful, pragmatic, and mature adults.
It's our fault the world is not the way it's supposed to be. We didn't start it, it's just the people that came before us didn't fix it, and now it's our responsibility. Expecting politicians, athletes, and celebrities to influence positive change is b******t when so many of us don't take extra steps to contribute positively in the world.
It's our responsibility to fix it. While they obstinately stand in our way trying to keep us from fixing it. Show both sides, c'mon.
When it comes to the environment and climate change, we keep expecting high technology to fix it (green energy, better batteries, electric vehicles, more efficient heating and cooling, etc.). We want to have our cake and eat it too. But the truth is, the problem has become so huge at this point, the only way to truly fix it is by radically changing the way we live (more primitively - to have far less individual impact) and by choosing to have far fewer children and letting the population drop. How's that for a truth nobody wants to hear?
- Mental illness is not an excuse for shitty behavior - Your problems are generally the consequence of your own action - If you live in the Western developed world, you are a lot more shallow and materialistic than you'd like to admit - In terms of looking for a partner, your looks and money are huge factors. Possibly even more important than personality
True that mental illness is not an excuse for shitty behavior, but in reality childhood trauma and the effect it has on the brain's development is very real.
All violent people are crazy. But not all crazy people are violent.
I don't love the word crazy being used in the context of mental illness
Load More Replies...Mental illness can be an excuse, depending on the situation. But I find it interesting that you're complaining about "shitty behavior," not being assaulted or stabbed or something like that. That's a pretty low bar. I guess if someone said something mean or thoughtless, and then they said, "Sorry, my mom kept me locked in a closet for 14 years so I have trouble relating to people," you'd say, "That's no excuse!" I mean, even courts of law make some allowances for mental illness.
1 - Actually, sometimes it can be. A better understanding of mental illness would go a long way. 2 - Very rarely. It wasn't my actions that caused an inflated housing market, poor job market, high cost of living. 3 - Shallow? Probably not. Materialistic? To an extent yes, but only enough to be comfortable. 4 - In looking for, maybe. In KEEPING, hell no! But I think it's becoming less of an issue each generation as people start to interact on social media more.
No matter how much time, energy, love, etc. you put into someone, the only way to ensure you get results from that effort is to put it into yourself. Everyone else is a calculated gamble.
Your (our) mother(s) will put us down one day. And never pick us up again.
Being computer illiterate is not something to be proud of and should not be accommodated. Especially with the boomer crowd that literally demands to be hand held through copying and pasting. You cant ask them to think or learn because 'I just don't understand computers'. Well you're just fine with your iPhone and Facebook and surfing the net. You can learn this new system YOU requested instead of demanding IT do it for you simply because it runs on a computer. Also, USE BIRTH CONTROL. This is the worst possible time to be bringing babies into the world. We're already overpopulated and strained for resources. Itll only get worse as time goes on. No, having a baby wont fix all your problems. Itll just amplify them and bring in an another innocent sufferer. If you want kids that badly, think about the 400,000 in foster care instead of demanding that only your genes are good enough.
I agree about being computer illiterate; however, I am a boomer and am not computer illiterate. Please stop stereotyping an entire age group. I have worked at more than 30 places in my life, each of which required that I learn a new program or use a different platform. Don't forget: Boomers invented Microsoft, Apple and the internet. We used tech before many of you were born.
Half an upvote for birth control. Let the earth heal. Just because you can have children doesn't mean you should. Leave computer illiterate boomers alone, their almost gone anyway.
Your dog will probably die before you
we have no chance of mitigating climate change to a point where billions of people will have died by 2050
You might not ever find the love of your life. Yes, you may marry. But it might not work out. You might end up divorced, lonely, and unfulfilled at 60 years old. It is technically a possibility, it is not impossible. Don't worry, I'm not talking about myself.
Or worse, you might. I was lucky enough to find the love of my life. She was my everything. Then last September, after 22 years of happy marriage, she died. I've never been so lonely or depressed and I wonder if it would have been better if I'd never met her. (I'm 50, she was 60 if that matters.)
Anything about someone's dream. The MLM will never make you money, Britney. Although your parents say so, you cannot sing, Amy. You are not the smartest person in the world, Brandon. (Names random)
there are no absolute truths
“Everything is permitted. Nothing is true.” – Ezio Auditore da Firenze
Sorry, the circumference of a circle is 2piR and that is absolute in any universe in which circles can exist.
No one and nothing matters in reality.
That world peace is impossible
Just because it hurts you doesn't mean it is wrong. To all the snowflakes.
Yep ...and opinions are like assholes, everybody's got one....
Load More Replies...Who needs this kind of negativity in their life? Most of this stuff everyone knows, but we don't talk about, because it's better to focus on the good things in life.
Very poor choices here. Sad and bitter. This is disappointing. Do better. Also - "there are no absolute truths" ... IS an absolute truth. Who approved this garbage?
It's an accepted fact that depressed people have a more realistic understanding of the world. Are you advocating delusion?
Load More Replies...#88 Don't take internet listicles to heart, life is way more gradient than that.
I just want to add........That boys and men who are having sex should all be using condoms. If you don't, you will certainly get either an STD, or a child, or both.
We are, all of us, walking over an abyss. We don't look down, we may not even see it. But when we come to a hole and get a glimpse, it can shake up our world so we never quite recover from it.
Yep ...and opinions are like assholes, everybody's got one....
Load More Replies...Who needs this kind of negativity in their life? Most of this stuff everyone knows, but we don't talk about, because it's better to focus on the good things in life.
Very poor choices here. Sad and bitter. This is disappointing. Do better. Also - "there are no absolute truths" ... IS an absolute truth. Who approved this garbage?
It's an accepted fact that depressed people have a more realistic understanding of the world. Are you advocating delusion?
Load More Replies...#88 Don't take internet listicles to heart, life is way more gradient than that.
I just want to add........That boys and men who are having sex should all be using condoms. If you don't, you will certainly get either an STD, or a child, or both.
We are, all of us, walking over an abyss. We don't look down, we may not even see it. But when we come to a hole and get a glimpse, it can shake up our world so we never quite recover from it.
