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Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

nautil.us

51–60 of 109 posts

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#51
post #47
post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And remain voters were drip fed state-sponsored pro-EU propaganda as well. The EU spends tons of money for promoting itself.

As a british citizen, I had heard nothing about the EU outside of what british media told me. Had I not left the UK and actually seen the EU I would only have their opinion and that opinion is mostly controlled by one person.

>As a british citizen, I had heard nothing about the EU outside of what british media told me.

A lot of the journalists in those media where wined and dined courtesy of Brussels, and there are several EU and state sponsored campaigns to promote EU across member states.

This is just an example: "The spending is part of a near €3 million war chest this year funding 84 projects across Britain and the EU with the aim to “channel criticism into a useful, constructive and positive driver for European integration in the long run”." https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/eus-3m-war-chest-to-fund-...

"Ten out of 84 programmes the European Commission is funding around the bloc this year to "challenge euroscepticism" directly involve Britain, according to research".

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#52
post #2

> Empirical studies have shown that older people are better than younger ones in terms of control over emotion, knowing themselves better, making better decisions that require experience, and having more compassion and empathy towards others. These are the things I include in wisdom. So are things that are components of wisdom that can increase with aging. How does this explain Brexit? https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfro…

You are assuming Brexit is unwise.

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#55
post #11

> Empirical studies have shown that older people are better than younger ones in terms of control over emotion Is this a puritan/evangelical thing? What's wrong with displaying emotions? Why is the ability to control them seen as "better"?

Not only evangelical.. "The wisdom only enter the wise" (Talmud approved!) As I understand this one, one would "intellectually" work on itself to get a "emotional" wisdom as the reward of his aging process. Personally I feel more and more angry with time, I suppose it is not a good thing.

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#56
post #26
post #2

> Empirical studies have shown that older people are better than younger ones in terms of control over emotion, knowing themselves better, making better decisions that require experience, and having more compassion and empathy towards others. These are the things I include in wisdom. So are things that are components of wisdom that can increase with aging. How does this explain Brexit? https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfro…

> How does this explain Brexit? Brexit is a political decision. It's not inherently good or bad, some people with so and so interests find it good, others with so and so interests find it bad. Similarly, some people think other people voted that "against their own best interests", other people think that they voted according to their interests just fine, and that the condescending ones don't really know better. Count…

an opaque process of decision-making (complete with several non-official-bodies, non-accountable to anyone, that nevertheless convene and take decisions that affect all member states)

Can you specify what you mean by this?

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#58
post #14
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course it's seen as better. Do you lose your temper and get angry after every setback or inconvenience? This is so self-evident I'm surprised it's even discussed.

Does "emotion" only equal "angry" and "having a temper"? Is this also a puritan/evangelical thing? What about displays of love and tenderness? And even so, the answer to your question is most of the times "yes", at least in my case, as in I do prefer to spill it out in the heat of the moment instead of keeping it all inside. It's not wrong having "emotions" and displaying them, I though that this was established sinc…

> It's not wrong having "emotions" and displaying them

I agree, it's not wrong, which is why we sympathize with emotional displays in children, the mentally disabled, and people who have suffered great loss. Those responses are involuntary, or nearly so.

The problem is that emotions will lie. As someone who has fought battles with depression, irrational exuberance and other unbalanced states, looking back at how I misinterpreted reality and acted on false certainty is embarrassing.

As I've gotten older, I have strengthened an invisible muscle which allows me to clamp down on my involuntary responses so I can evaluate them more rationally before choosing whether to embrace or extinguish them. I consider myself very fortunate to have had the time to make progress with this, and I am always happy to see others do the same.

When you bottle up a feeling that you later realize to have been based on falsehood, it doesn't hurt your psyche any longer. It just fades away, with only a glimmer of gratitude left behind that you didn't make a foolish choice because of it.

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#59
post #56
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How does this explain Brexit? Brexit is a political decision. It's not inherently good or bad, some people with so and so interests find it good, others with so and so interests find it bad. Similarly, some people think other people voted that "against their own best interests", other people think that they voted according to their interests just fine, and that the condescending ones don't really know better. Count…

an opaque process of decision-making (complete with several non-official-bodies, non-accountable to anyone, that nevertheless convene and take decisions that affect all member states) Can you specify what you mean by this?

Bodies like the Euro-group, a non-official body that "although it can impose tough conditions for bailing out struggling member countries or rescuing banks, it publishes no official minutes, has no headquarters, and the people who function as its secretariat have other day jobs".

Re: Yes, We Get Wiser with Age

#60
post #32
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just because someone examines the same facts as you and comes to a different conclusion, it doesn't mean their choice wasn't based on facts.

How is that funding boost to the NHS going?

How was the emergency budget that was going to have to be called immediately after a Leave vote?
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