What do you do when someone you dislike viscerally just received the worst news imaginable? I could be an ass and revel in it, but that’s harsh even for me. I feel for the guy, even if I can’t stand him. The news he got is enough to push a normally sane person to suicide. I’d be looking for the nearest bridge if it were me. It got me thinking – I don’t look for the nearest bridge, myself, because I lack that solidity of a reason. Mine would be much more nebulous and hard to pin down. Society is a shitty thing. I dunno why our species puts up with it.
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You can hate someone and still feel sorry for them. I think what you’re feeling is evidence of an advanced way of managing emotions which many humans lack. For example, take road rage. Person A cuts Person B off, flips him off, screams all sorts of nasty stuff. But does that justify Person B killing, ending the life, of Person A. It’s surprising how many “civilized” humans can’t understand what’s excessive when it comes to anger and retribution. So yeah, if this guy got a brutal blow from karma, I think it’s right of you to put on the brakes and say, That’s a bit excessive.
As for nebulous suicide vs. having a specific reason, I personally believe the nebulous kind (chronic, inexplicable obsession with dying) is much more valid than a knee jerk emotional reason (getting dumped, losing your job or money, etc) simply because situations can change for the better just as quickly as they change for the worse. But if it’s a slow sinking battle with a formless enemy, then you’re pretty screwed. Not that any of this matters to someone who’s dead.
Some reasons don’t have the potential to change, objectively and scientifically speaking. You could sleep around behind your spouse’s back, contract AIDS and spread it to both your wife, and your extramarital partners. You could get a nasty gambling habit and bet away your life and home without your family even knowing what’s coming. People have all sorts of ways to cut off any path to reprieve. Once you fall into a trench like that, there’s no getting back out.
Heck if I know. I once heard someone define the phrase “good grief” as what you feel when someone you despise dies. Always liked that definition. As an aside to AXYZ’s reply, isn’t it odd that humans will wage war against one another with the intention of maiming and killing each other, then hold trials to punish war criminals. Hmmm. Never quite saw the logic there. I guess my point is it’s natural for us to despise, even hate, and wish misfortune upon one another, but it’s also wise to keep it in check as much as possible, because “there but by the grace of god go I.”
@once you perfectly summed up why so many veterans are screwed in the head: we send them off to kill and maim strangers, and then we bring them back home and expect them to suddenly assimilate back into polite society where you hold the door open and say “no, after you” to strangers. Society is definitely one big tangle of conflicts. Agreed, the feeling of hatred or potential for violence is a natural part of being human. It’s just like you said funny how society randomly decides when it’s ok and when it’s not. I guess the solution would be careful counseling and management of these impulses so each person can decide what’s right and wrong. But then we would be harder to control by the governments and advertising executives.
I think maybe people believe in “karma” or whatever they call it. Or bad luck. Celebrating another’s misfortune will only bring misfortune to you. Who wants to jinx themselves?