Life After People (History Channel)

Suppose I tell you that 90% of Americans will die of a mutated swine flu a month from now. Would this new found knowledge frighten you? My hearth aches at the thought and I can't help it. This is a normal and expected reaction. Indifference which is essential your position is not acceptable. If we all die off tomorrow, a month, a year, millions of years, or billions of years from now it's all the same. The grim demise of mankind and even the universe at large should be a frighting prospect irrespective of timetable or and lack of control.

Does this all make sense?

Indifference is perfectly acceptable. This delusion of yours that you can somehow control the fate of the universe is rooted in your alienation from God. The abolition of physical man or physical nature is only tragic in a universe that has mankind at the very center. You're heirarchy is all out of kilter so you worry too much about things that are not your responsibility and over which you ultimately have no control anyway.

Indifference is perfectly acceptable. This delusion of yours that you can somehow control the fate of the universe is rooted in your alienation from God. The abolition of physical man or physical nature is only tragic in a universe that has mankind at the very center. You're heirarchy is all out of kilter so you worry too much about things that are not your responsibility and over which you ultimately have no control anyway.


Excuse me? I am afraid this not an illness that afflicts the godless. Go do a personal survey without using a loaded question and you'll have the answer. Perhaps you're emotionally retarded? Check yourself dude, apathy is caused by mental illness.


p.s. Control is not in play.

You know, we will have to disagree. If a mutated virus started causing the type of mass extinction, yes I would be afraid - once it was occurring. But the concept of a virus mutating when no sign of it occurring, is irrational. To say that it is the same if we all die tomorrow or billions of years from now, to me, is irrational. I cannot fathom your position, seriously, I have enough things which are in this world now, that cause "legitimate" fear and enough belief in man's spirit, that I could never see myself being scared of a future event that may but most likely will not occur in my children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's children's lives (31 generations, approx 1800 years).


I know you don't understand but hope you would at least respond with "damn, it would suck hard if 90% of us die in a month."

I know you don't understand but hope you would at least respond with "damn, it would suck hard if 90% of us die in a month."

Implicit in CRedskins earlier statement that it would sadden him if he found out that an unknown man died is that he would agree with the sentiment "it would suck if 90% of the people died in a month". However, and as he stated earlier, refusing to fear that event or worry about it is not a failure to grasp its magnitude.

It causes you pause, fine we get that. Fair enough. Do you get that, even though it causes us pause, the unknown future is not something I will spend a moment on as the here and now present more than enough challenges.

By the way, apathy is not caused by mental illness. I'd find a link to prove it, but I just don't feel like it right now.

Implicit in CRedskins earlier statement that it would sadden him if he found out that an unknown man died is that he would agree with the sentiment "it would suck if 90% of the people died in a month". However, and as he stated earlier, refusing to fear that event or worry about it is not a failure to grasp its magnitude.

It causes you pause, fine we get that. Fair enough. Do you get that, even though it causes us pause, the unknown future is not something I will spend a moment on as the here and now present more than enough challenges.

By the way, apathy is not caused by mental illness. I find a link to prove it, but I just don't feel like it right now.

Kudos to CRedskins for at least feeling sad. Are my post not clear enough as to my position from the get go?

Acedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acedia) used to be a deadly sin until it was merged into sloth. You know what's really sad? Christians advancing apathy as a virtue.

Acedia is still a the actual root evil and no one (even given the "que sera" from 70Chip), is argueing for it or, IMO, exhibiting its symptoms. In leveling your various assertions of sinful behavior and/or, mental illness, you continue to assert that your emotional reaction is the only legitimate way for a human to consider and deal with the hypothetical physical destruction of humanity. However, the alternative to this ultimate sadness you seem to require is the acknowledgment that, while sad, it is beyond our control and we will not spend more than a moment thinking about it. This is not acedia.

Someone who approached this issue with acedia would have nothimg more to say than, "ehh so what".

"Sloth (or acedia) is a kind of spiritual laziness (as opposed to mere physical fatigue or depression). It means not making it a priority to do what we should, or change what we should in ourselves. Some people might call it apathy, which means a lack of feeling." Seven Deadly Sins - Sloth/Acedia (http://www.whitestonejournal.com/seven_deadly_sins/sloth.html)

You, in a very patronizing and emothionally elitest fashion, confuse apathy with an introspective resolution on how to deal with the destruction of our physical being.

When I was a child, death and events out of my control scared me. They scare me still, but, as an introspective adult, I recognize them for what they are - either inevitable or events beyond my control and for which the self protective purpose of the fear instinct is inapplicable. I feel, understand, and accept the emotion, then, with thought and care, I move beyond it.

If I and others have practised this process throughout our lives and need not be struck with deep introspection each time a variation on this theme is presented, that is not laziness but a recognition of an already solved problem for which deep thought is not required. With experience, I need not conduct intrusive surgery to determine if each cut has caused internal injury.

In fact, the assertion that it is natural to feel overwhelming sadness and that those who don't are clearly apathetic can, itself be a indication of sloth. Surrender to emotional responses is easy and requires no thought or introspection. That is a failure to make "it a priority to do what we should" and a true spiritual laziness.

All but the truly apathic will experience emotional responses, it is how we deal with them that determines our vitality.

Wow did this thread take a giant toke off the ol' bong or what.

^^ Ah well, it happens.

It is the type of subject one would discuss at 2:00 in the morning after a few hits.

saden1, don't bogart the roach dude.

Acedia is still a the actual root evil and no one (even given the "que sera" from 70Chip), is argueing for it or, IMO, exhibiting its symptoms. In leveling your various assertions of sinful behavior and/or, mental illness, you continue to assert that your emotional reaction is the only legitimate way for a human to consider and deal with the hypothetical physical destruction of humanity. However, the alternative to this ultimate sadness you seem to require is the acknowledgment that, while sad, it is beyond our control and we will not spend more than a moment thinking about it. This is not acedia.

Someone who approached this issue with acedia would have nothimg more to say than, "ehh so what".

"Sloth (or acedia) is a kind of spiritual laziness (as opposed to mere physical fatigue or depression). It means not making it a priority to do what we should, or change what we should in ourselves. Some people might call it apathy, which means a lack of feeling." Seven Deadly Sins - Sloth/Acedia (http://www.whitestonejournal.com/seven_deadly_sins/sloth.html)

You, in a very patronizing and emothionally elitest fashion, confuse apathy with an introspective resolution on how to deal with the destruction of our physical being.

When I was a child, death and events out of my control scared me. They scare me still, but, as an introspective adult, I recognize them for what they are - either inevitable or events beyond my control and for which the self protective purpose of the fear instinct is inapplicable. I feel, understand, and accept the emotion, then, with thought and care, I move beyond it.

If I and others have practised this process throughout our lives and need not be struck with deep introspection each time a variation on this theme is presented, that is not laziness but a recognition of an already solved problem for which deep thought is not required. With experience, I need not conduct intrusive surgery to determine if each cut has caused internal injury.

In fact, the assertion that it is natural to feel overwhelming sadness and that those who don't are clearly apathetic can, itself be a indication of sloth. Surrender to emotional responses is easy and requires no thought or introspection. That is a failure to make "it a priority to do what we should" and a true spiritual laziness.

All but the truly apathic will experience emotional responses, it is how we deal with them that determines our vitality.

That is an impressive post. There is no way I would have ever come up with such an eloquent way to describe your thoughts with spot on analysis. Bravo Joeredskin

Indifference is perfectly acceptable. This delusion of yours that you can somehow control the fate of the universe is rooted in your alienation from God. The abolition of physical man or physical nature is only tragic in a universe that has mankind at the very center. You're heirarchy is all out of kilter so you worry too much about things that are not your responsibility and over which you ultimately have no control anyway.

Excellent post. Problem is, those that don't believe in God see this as a bunch of bull-honkey. Kind of like when the world was believed to be flat. Several people came up with theories / evidence that it was round (Ptolemy, Eratosthenes, Galileo Galilei of Pisa...the latter being the first to put it on paper i believe) but no one listened until after Columbus actually made it. Because when you have yourself as the center of your universe, you have a fool as your leader. I often struggle with control issues, and therefore lose sight of what I really should be doing. That being said, Saden does not have delusions that he can control his own fate, he has a lack of knowledge, or belief, that life after his demise even exists. To put it simply, if you don't believe in an after life, things on the planet, including the planets ultimate destruction, seem to be bigger than what they actually are. We (as in 70chip, myself and several others) believe there will be life after we leave this world. Therefore we do not worry ourselves, or even slightly concern ourselves with something so insignificant in our minds.

(makes me wish I had the speaking ability of joeredskin, cause I don't feel what I was trying to communicate came out well, but I guess it will do)