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Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

nytimes.com

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Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#61

Post by sjclemmy »

rm_-rf_slash wrote: post #47
sjclemmy wrote: post #16

It's odd, the world is the safest and most stable that it has ever been. There has never been a better time to be a human being, and yet, the media and certain politicians would have you believe that there is disaster after disaster, terrorist plots afoot around every corner, feeding your fear day after day. If ever there was an example of the devil at work, then that's it(and I'm not even religious). Uncertainty abo…

I think you are dangerously wrong. Never before has there been a point in time where: -A determined individual with the right equipment could shut down the information network our society almost exclusively relies upon. -Weapons created for war could destroy the conditions for human civilization across the entire planet. -Everyday consumption keeps people complacent while the artificially low costs contribute to and…

i don't understand your point. I'm not discounting any range of horrific tomorrows. I'm just reading The Periodic Table by Primo Levi (an Auschwitz survivor) and the future that worries me is the rise of fascism.

But you are still living in a world that is objectively the safest it has ever been for a human being.

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#62

Post by ChefDenominator »

komali2 wrote: post #52
ChefDenominator wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well how about that: an instant down-vote!

It's not going to help if you bring up downvotes, check the site rules.

There is nothing special, unique, or new in those rules. I don't care abut Internet points and am well aware of the standard Internet community circle-jerk echo chamber, and HN is no exception.

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#63

Post by petra »

lifeisstillgood wrote: post #26
shp0ngle wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you are rich and already in the top class, then maybe. But it's not terribly good for the middle class.

But it is terribly, terribly good for the middle class. Penicillin, socialised medicine, low violent crime rates (#), no need to hunt our food, no need to build our own shelters or rub sticks together to make fire. The finest actors of this and past generations wait for me in my living room while I pee, something that past kings could not even achieve, I travel vast continents in the time it takes for a long sleep, I…

>> If that does not make us happy, that's a different issue.

Why ?

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#64

Post by agumonkey »

sjclemmy wrote: post #16

It's odd, the world is the safest and most stable that it has ever been. There has never been a better time to be a human being, and yet, the media and certain politicians would have you believe that there is disaster after disaster, terrorist plots afoot around every corner, feeding your fear day after day. If ever there was an example of the devil at work, then that's it(and I'm not even religious). Uncertainty abo…

Uncertainty about the future maybe, but our experience and training into dealing with randomness and chaos is near zero.

I find the modern world a bit absurd now. The industrial revolutions have diminishing returns since a few years. We're chasing pokemons instead of dealing with the important things (social structures, education, health). Things are done but still at the surface only.

Economic and quatifiable indicators might be higher than ever, but I'm not sure existences are better.

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#66

Post by forgottenpass »

komali2 wrote: post #50
forgottenpass wrote: post #34

For as prolific as he is, the Dalai Lama doesn't pop up on my radar much. But here he is in the NY Times opinion pages sharing monism. This speaks to a broader human truth: We all need to be needed. There's an old but relevant perspective on life. We value ourselves by how much we can contribute to the lives of others. Still though, I'm left wondering, what combination of forces summed up to this particular writing c…

I don't understand how "meaningful work," when the Dalai Lama says it, means "40 hours into the system." My understanding of Buddhism is "meaningful work" or "meaning" can be slaving away 60 hours a week at your own company, sitting on concrete tinkering away at a motorcycle, or even living on a mountain shaving your head and relinquishing all possessions. The idea is to "find meaning," that is, only do things that f…

I don't understand how "meaningful work," when the Dalai Lama says it, means "40 hours into the system."

Look to the paragraph where people outside the workforce are implied to feel superfluous. Perhaps the people outside the workforce are the most self-actualized of us all. But that possibility is ignored, both in the op-ed and by the reader. Not even the idea that they have the opportunity to be.

I'm going to butcher the sentence I quoted earlier. Perhaps you think it changes the meaning, perhaps not. That's not the point, see below...

"Leaders [] must create [] opportunities for [] work"

My point is, it's a well-worn political trope to call on leaders to increase employment opportunities. If that wasn't the point, why use language that is so similar, or at least could be confused for it. Why not call on leaders to segue our society to one where people can focus on meaningful work that typical job time commitments get in the way of?

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#67

Post by johnwheeler »

sjclemmy wrote: post #16

It's odd, the world is the safest and most stable that it has ever been. There has never been a better time to be a human being, and yet, the media and certain politicians would have you believe that there is disaster after disaster, terrorist plots afoot around every corner, feeding your fear day after day. If ever there was an example of the devil at work, then that's it(and I'm not even religious). Uncertainty abo…

I don't know if he's the originator, but Penn Jillette said one of my favorite quotes:

"Everyone always thinks the world is getting worse, but the world is always getting better."

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#68

Post by zardo »

sjclemmy wrote: post #38
wefarrell wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're referring to safety from physical harm you're correct. But I'd argue that the erosion of many social safety nets has left a lot of people less economically secure.

In a comment thread on a forum I am offering a non-nuanced binary view. How economically secure does a hunter gatherer or subsistence farmer feel, with no medicine, lots of superstitious practices and complete dependence on the crops/weather... etc.

That depends on the person's beliefs.

Whether or not you experience the feeling of security is just as much about your internal representation of the world as it is about the external world.

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#69

Post by antarrah »

johnwheeler wrote: post #67
sjclemmy wrote: post #16

It's odd, the world is the safest and most stable that it has ever been. There has never been a better time to be a human being, and yet, the media and certain politicians would have you believe that there is disaster after disaster, terrorist plots afoot around every corner, feeding your fear day after day. If ever there was an example of the devil at work, then that's it(and I'm not even religious). Uncertainty abo…

I don't know if he's the originator, but Penn Jillette said one of my favorite quotes: "Everyone always thinks the world is getting worse, but the world is always getting better."

Not really in every aspect. Frank Sinatra was replaced by Justin Bieber. How is that better? :)

Re: Dalai Lama: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded

#70

Post by wozer »

sjclemmy wrote: post #16

It's odd, the world is the safest and most stable that it has ever been. There has never been a better time to be a human being, and yet, the media and certain politicians would have you believe that there is disaster after disaster, terrorist plots afoot around every corner, feeding your fear day after day. If ever there was an example of the devil at work, then that's it(and I'm not even religious). Uncertainty abo…

As the Dalai Lama writes, to feel needed is a basic human need. For more and more people, this need is NOT fulfilled.

So, no, this is not the best time to be a human being.

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