Our Way of Life Against Theirs?

Discussion in 'Philosophy' started by jshine, Jun 10, 2008.

  1. Hey, I'm new here but I've been looking around a lot and I decided to post something that I wrote a couple months ago.
    I appreciate comments, feedback, arguments... anything :)




    Our Way of Life Against Theirs?

    Do you constantly try to justify your thoughts or actions? “It's alright that I got drunk last night, I went to all my classes” or “I'll accept that I spent four hours on Facebook because I exercised for an hour afterward.” Do those sound familiar? Well, I frequently try to justify my thoughts and actions too. Not only do I try to justify them for myself, but for others. My friends, other college students, other Americans, other countries, politicians: everyone.

    So many different opinions and ways of life exist: Is it immoral to eat meat because as a result, we are indirectly murdering animals? Do animals have rights? Are terrorists who sacrifice their lives for political, religious or patriotic issues considered immoral? Would it have been legal to murder Hitler and prevent the death of millions of innocent people? Should the government be allowed to keep secrets if they believe it will protect us or increase our happiness? Is homosexual marriage wrong? Does homosexual marriage take away merit from traditional marriage? If homosexual marriage was allowed, would all unconventional marriages be allowed like polygamy, incest or bestiality? Is slippery slope ever a valid argument?

    Today I was asked to ponder the statement and life philosophy of a friend of mine: "Our way of life against theirs". After much thought, I could not come up with a meaning or explanation, but I did decide that I dislike the sentence. Why does it have to be our way of life against anyone? Is it possible to live in a world of difference with love, compassion and understanding?

    Since I believe all people are essentially good, I think we can. Yes, sometimes people make bad decisions, but we are all inherently good people searching for ultimate happiness. Since we are human beings, we have downfalls and contradictions such as religious disagreements starting war and people fighting murder with murder (groups murdering abortionists to combat the murder of babies). However, we all have the potential and capacity to "be the change we want to see in the world".

    To be a change in the world does not mean converting others to your way of life and beliefs. The change that I want to see in this world is this compassion, love and understanding; acceptance of everyone's way of life.

    We are all more similar than we can ever understand. What human being does not want to be happy? Do you really think anyone would make a choice to intentionally make themselves unhappy? No matter how much we disagree with a choice or way of life, it made someone, somewhere happy and we should therefore accept it even if we disagree.

    Do not get me wrong, I am not condoning murder or anything of the sort. The rule, or possible exception, to any choice is if the benefits (like happiness) outweigh the harms (unhappiness, death, etc.) or if the ends justify the means. Agree or disagree, it is always possible to observe why someone made that decision and chose that way of life. We still must always stand up for our beliefs if the ends do not justify the means, but peacefully solving a problem is always possible somehow. Fighting will get us nowhere. "An eye for an eye makes everyone blind."

    Many scenarios and issues threaten society with many different possibilities for a way of life. Abortion, euthanasia, animal rights, terrorism, etc. have more than two arguments or opinions to each side. However, I believe that each opinion is formed in order to create a better way of life. For example, are people with pro-choice views considered baby murderers? I am pretty sure the main goal of pro-life activists is to murder numerous babies. Not. Many people have completely opposite views but the main goal is usually to make the most moral decision.

    We might not ever understand other people even if attempted. It might be difficult to grasp how someone can live in a third world country, be starving and striving but smile more than any American. It might be difficult to understand why terrorists commit suicide and kill thousands to prove a point. We might not understand how our parents' generation thought huge hair and large reading glasses in their yearbook pictures could ever be attractive. I will never understand how wearing a belt around your torso is a fashion statement, but the point is that each person is entitled to his or her own way.

    It is so cliché to say that this is <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region> and we have freedom, but do you take advantage of it? Even more importantly, I ask you to ponder: Do you entitle everyone to their freedom by accepting their way of life? It is not our way of life against theirs. We are humanity sharing the only world we will ever have; it is just THE way of life.
    <o:p> </o:p>
     

  2. Very nicely written. :) I full-heartedly agree.
     
  3. Who's to say we are inherently good?
     
  4. what you say is 100% correct except that you've left out one major key to these problems

    it isn't necessarily that these ppl have they're opinions because that's just what they think. to use your example of the abortion issue - many pro-life advocates are there on behalf of their religion or religious group. this group feels themselves superior to all other - so while the group does whatever else it does, it also provides it's members that feeling of superiority.

    you can convince a person to compromise, change their opinions, tolerate others rather easily - because people really are inheritly good.

    however - these groups of all kinds who consider themselve superior usually feel part of that superiority is in their unwillingness to change in general. they will not budge on anything - you will never change they're prescribed group thought - even when half of them no longer agree and are merely conforming.

    this is because while ppl are good - organizations are inheritly evil - the fewer ppl in control and the more ppl they are controlling - the higher the chance for corruption. this is why communist dictatorships are so corrupt - one in charge of all.

    you will never get ppl to get along until they realize the only group they all belong to is humanity and nobody is better than anybody else. that may never happen, though, because we have egos which make us almost obsessed with being better than our peers in all ways - we want better abs, better tvs, better religions, better children than somebody else. many ppl are antsy and irritated unless they can grasp onto something which makes them better than somebody else.
     
  5. there is no evidence to support my views are better than yours. we are all limited to individual perception. and thus never more right than the next guy.
     
  6. I believe human beings are just inherently selfish. Everything we do, even things like giving to charity, helping others, we do it because it makes us feel good. Even love, we love because it fulfills some deep want inside of us. Everyone on this earth is just trying to make themselves happy and more complete. Some people are useful to society, and what makes makes them happy also benefits others. Some prefer violence, control, manipulation etc., and thats what keeps the rest of us down. "Evil" is just one type of selfishness.
     
  7. just lil ol' me

    i think it's the only thing that gets me by sometimes.
    it's hard to believe all the time because some things are fucked up but i just do.
    it's definitely just an opinion with no proof though... as is the other side.
     
  8. i agree with most of that.
    except there are people who never want to conform and aren't judgmental.
    it's rare though.
     
  9. yeah but our views are formed by education and learning other people's opinions. discussions like this fuel intellectual conversation and debate and ultimately help us form other new opinions (in agreement or disagreement) with whatever was stated.
    you can say the broad statement you replied with in every situation; it's not gonna go anywhere interesting.
    the first thing i learned in one of my philosophy classes at university is to disallow relativism because you can never argue and you'll just end with "you have your opinion and i have mine"

    what's the fun in that? ;)
     
  10. evil is relevant in our world but that doesn't mean we inherently evil.
    as children, people don't think about how they're going to be murderers (99/100 kids) and children are so innocent and caring.
    no shit this is a fucked up world and there is a lot of evil... but at the root of it all... it's goodness.

    just my 2 cents though.
     

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