I think “Phillip” really nailed it with his surprisingly self-aware commentary--the internet basically offers a cheap simulacrum of a fulfilling human existence, and for many people (especially men) it’s just enough to ward off the pain of existence. It’s a voluntary Matrix.
I think “Phillip” really nailed it with his surprisingly self-aware commentary--the internet basically offers a cheap simulacrum of a fulfilling human existence, and for many people (especially men) it’s just enough to ward off the pain of existence. It’s a voluntary Matrix.
I also thought he explained that pretty well. But those at that level of existence still know they’re losers and should hopefully still want to advance right?
That’s where you have to ask what’s rotten at the core of modern life. In the natural world, losers just die quietly. I think a crowning achievement of human civilization is the big tent: everyone has a right to not only live but to pursue their best life. Monogamy was a huge step in this direction, and I think most of the big religious traditions have some fundamental belief in the equality of mankind before God. But fewer and fewer young people practice or even learn about these religious traditions, and so it’s not surprising that more and more of them are just giving up. If there’s no deeply held conviction that a normal life is worth living, that it’s just as valuable and rewarding as the glamorous (but unattainable) one you can see on YouTube, then suicide-by-irrelevance becomes a reasonable option.
And women! Three of my four children are thankfully married with children. My eldest did forgo a few serious relationships for his career that he now regrets.
It seems to me like young women want to marry a bank account and young men someone who looks like a playmate (showing my age)!
It's understanding that "the pain of existence" is part of living and permits those experiences that make life ultimately worthwhile. We've mostly expunged religion and morality from our everyday life. How'd that work out?
Yes, exactly--I commented on a previous article that secularization has left the younger generations (that includes myself) completely adrift on the sea of life. Why are we here? Why bother with the struggle of living a good life? Religious traditions and institutions certainly have their flaws, but there’s a reason that the Bible is the most successful book in human history. (and I’m not even a practicing Christian)
I think “Phillip” really nailed it with his surprisingly self-aware commentary--the internet basically offers a cheap simulacrum of a fulfilling human existence, and for many people (especially men) it’s just enough to ward off the pain of existence. It’s a voluntary Matrix.
I also thought he explained that pretty well. But those at that level of existence still know they’re losers and should hopefully still want to advance right?
That’s where you have to ask what’s rotten at the core of modern life. In the natural world, losers just die quietly. I think a crowning achievement of human civilization is the big tent: everyone has a right to not only live but to pursue their best life. Monogamy was a huge step in this direction, and I think most of the big religious traditions have some fundamental belief in the equality of mankind before God. But fewer and fewer young people practice or even learn about these religious traditions, and so it’s not surprising that more and more of them are just giving up. If there’s no deeply held conviction that a normal life is worth living, that it’s just as valuable and rewarding as the glamorous (but unattainable) one you can see on YouTube, then suicide-by-irrelevance becomes a reasonable option.
"...suicide-by-irrelevance..." Powerful phrase...very apt for the lives of quiet self-ignominy these men appear to be "living".
And women! Three of my four children are thankfully married with children. My eldest did forgo a few serious relationships for his career that he now regrets.
It seems to me like young women want to marry a bank account and young men someone who looks like a playmate (showing my age)!
It's understanding that "the pain of existence" is part of living and permits those experiences that make life ultimately worthwhile. We've mostly expunged religion and morality from our everyday life. How'd that work out?
Yes, exactly--I commented on a previous article that secularization has left the younger generations (that includes myself) completely adrift on the sea of life. Why are we here? Why bother with the struggle of living a good life? Religious traditions and institutions certainly have their flaws, but there’s a reason that the Bible is the most successful book in human history. (and I’m not even a practicing Christian)