Why are humans so self destructive?

[Cort Haus]

Playing too much Civ (like enough for most people to get good at it) could be self-destructive though, if it gets in the way of other priorities. It's not something society encourages. In fact, if society ever got to hear how compelling it could be, it would probably try to ban it.

[Dis]

computer games/internet doesn't really get in front of other priorities for me, but it doesn't exactly motivate me to do something with my life.

[Blake]

Dis, that's because of what contentment is.

People are content when they have their basic needs met.

Food, shelter, love and activity for the mind.

Those are the only things any animal other than humans need. And they are the only things humans need too.

Modern society attempts to impose upon us a lot more things, tries to convince us that we need all those things to be content. Most people actually buy this and thus keep pursuing all those things and thus never find true contentment, the simple joy of being, not wanting for other things.

Next time you see a dog or something, ask it what it means to be content, what a happy life is. The communication might be a little difficult, but at least the dog's head wont be filled with nonsense. In fact you can figure out what you need to know through observation alone, even without being questioned, the dog will wisely provide the answer through it's actions. It does what makes it happy, what makes it content.

Okay?

Obviously actually living in this society does involve some compromises but you can figure it out for yourself :P. The less you want, the happier you are, etc etc.

[ZEE]

:zen:

[Wittlich]

I consider self destructive behaviors as a type of mental illness, if you will (not necessarily "crazy", but having to do with the mind and thinking process)...There is something missing or lacking in a person's life and because of this, they are basically not happy with themselves - so they act-out - more times against themselves and their "lot in life" rather than against others...although there are those cases as well.

[notyoueither]

Re: Why are humans so self destructive?

Originally posted by Dis
I don't get it. I try to figure out why I self destruct good things in my life, and can't figure it out. It seems to go against evolutionary theories and self preservation doesn't it? Humans should put survival above all else. So why the self destruction? I'm not talking about suicide and the like, but self sabatage, and self destructive behaviour in general. Is this evident in the animal world at all?

Self selection.

[Wittlich]

Dis, it might simply be that you are still looking for the certain "niche" in your life. Trust me, once you've found it, you will stop self-destructing your relationships (I am assuming that this is the core reason for this thread).

But then again, I am no expert....I've only lived my life for these past 45 years. So hopefully there is some insight for you to think about.

[SlowwHand]

It just gets worse and worse. Just accept it. You're old. Beat up. Pathetic. And guess what? Today was better than any of the days ahead.

[Wittlich]

[Dis]

Originally posted by Wittlich
Dis, it might simply be that you are still looking for the certain "niche" in your life. Trust me, once you've found it, you will stop self-destructing your relationships (I am assuming that this is the core reason for this thread).

But then again, I am no expert....I've only lived my life for these past 45 years. So hopefully there is some insight for you to think about.

wasn't specifically about relationships, more about not having a job.

[Wittlich]

Originally posted by Dis


wasn't specifically about relationships, more about not having a job.

Ah, well concerning a job/career...have you found your niche yet in the workplace? If not, then keep looking. I am not saying to quit your current job (bills still have to be paid after all) - but keep your eye out for the job that you really, truely want and then jump on it. If you don't get it. Don't worry. It's not the end of the world, there will be others to come along that will also fit your criteria to a T.

[Proteus_MST]

Originally posted by Blake
If you think I'm babbling nonsense, think about self-destructive behaivours.

An excellent one is over-eating.

Someone who is living in the wild, must work hard for thier food. They must wander far and wide to gather it, they must painstakingly hunt or trap game. They expend energy to gather their food, and their food is low in fat.
Their hunger serves them well to motivate them to catch food and the food they eat gives them energy to live. If they get too fat, they can no longer run down prey or walk as far, so they get less food, and get lose weight.

Contrast this with the modern society.
Anyone living today in the west can get an abundant amount of food requiring practically no effort at all. The food which tastes best, is higher in fat and sugar than anything which can be found in the wild.
If they let their hunger guide them, they eat a lot of food and expend little effort.
The result: they get fat.

If someone masters their hunger, so that they eat as required to sustain their body in a healthy state, then they eat in proportion to their energy use and don't get fat.

Therefore in a way it is similar to addiction for other substances (like drugs [including legal ones like nicotine])

You see what I mean?

Hm I think it is not hunger at all but rather their pleasure center (Nucleus accumbens septi and adjacent regions).
Fat food or food rich on sugar (i.e. better tasting) gives you more pleasure while eating it.

Therefore someone "weak" enough always tries to get the food that gives him the most pleasure and would occasionally also ignore signals from his body that it has eaten enough (but instead go on with eating) and would also eat, although he/she isn´t hungry at all, just to get the pleasure from the fat/sugar content of the food.

Originally posted by Cort Haus
Playing too much Civ (like enough for most people to get good at it) could be self-destructive though, if it gets in the way of other priorities. It's not something society encourages. In fact, if society ever got to hear how compelling it could be, it would probably try to ban it.

Yep,
I remember this author (don´t know his name anymore)
who missed the deadlines for his last book because of Civ IV and finally destroyed his CIV DVD because he realized that the temptation to üplay the game would be too great if it would be left lying around

[Blake]

Originally posted by Proteus_MST
Hm I think it is not hunger at all but rather their pleasure center (Nucleus accumbens septi and adjacent regions).
Fat food or food rich on sugar (i.e. better tasting) gives you more pleasure while eating it.

It's both, there is really little distinction for the sake of this argument, though. Taste serves the same purpose in the wild - eat a lot of fatty/sugary food when you can. Being a slave to that instinct, means you get fat. But it's a legitimate instinct for the wild, because such foods are scarce and putting on fat reserves a useful thing for the winter.

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Blake
Modern society attempts to impose upon us a lot more things, tries to convince us that we need all those things to be content. Most people actually buy this and thus keep pursuing all those things and thus never find true contentment, the simple joy of being, not wanting for other things.

....

The less you want, the happier you are, etc etc.

I'm might be in agreement with this aspect of Blake's philosophy. I have lived a fairly non-materialistic life - partly to save money to buy a modest flat in this incredibly expensive city that I love, partly because I couldn't be bothered to go out and spend it, and then eventually through the circumstances of collapsed income.

I don't really want 'stuff' and feel much better for it. I do crave a basic bio-survival security that I don't have at the moment though. The cost of accomodation remains high, which requires a certain level of income. That in return requires an overall level of economic activity. A general collapse in demand for 'stuff' is not really compatible with general survival under capitalism.

[Lorizael]

While it's not a bad idea, it's not the only idea. Society imposes much more than just materialism on us, and much more than just society's impositions can make us unhappy.

You have to remember that Blake is coming from a Buddhist background here, so he's going to be focusing on the whole "suffering comes from desire" thing. But you can desire more than just objects. You can desire people, ideas, emotions, etc.