Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Aaron Swartz commits suicide

tech.mit.edu

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

221–230 of 583 posts

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#221

Post by corporalagumbo »

jacques_chester wrote: post #117
gfunk911 wrote: post #110

I've thought of suicide. Not "seriously," but it's crossed my mind. Sometimes life just seems so hard. My reaction to this is that he was a brilliant guy, and it was such a waste. Such a pointless waste. It makes the idea of giving up myself seem so wrong. Rest in Peace Aaron. I'm sorry it had to end this way.

> I've thought of suicide. Not "seriously," but it's crossed my mind. If it happens again, get help. I'm quite serious.

It's not your job to give this sort of advice to people here. It's not some sort of mental disfigurement to think about these things you know. He and everyone else has the right to explore and experience unhappiness. And anyway, by fixating on a peripheral detail of his post you derail the conversation and force him into a rather supplicatory posture. Not cool.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#222

Post by jacques_chester »

droithomme wrote: post #210
jacques_chester wrote: post #33

This is terrible news. Depression is treatable. If you find that you are thinking about suicide, even speculatively, seek help immediately . You are not alone and it will get better.

There is a mental illness here and the mental illness is thinking that his suicide is unrelated to the massive witch hunt against him by the US Federal Government hellbent on his personal destruction at any cost. Those who deny that that had anything to do with this, and it was only a "brain disorder" or other such claptrap are truly insane. I've had students who for years were systematically abused and tortured by a…

None of these strawmen remotely resemble anything I've said.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#223

Post by ck2 »

icelancer wrote: post #180
daeken wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who's suffered from mental illness for most of his life, I disagree. While I have things largely under control these days, it had nothing to do with the professional help that was offered/forced on me; in fact, it was a huge impediment. Receiving help is not a panacea, and I can't blame anyone who's dealt with it for a long time for completely lacking hope. I don't think suicide is the answer, but I can at…

Absolutely. The idea that all suicides can be prevented "if only he would have gotten help" is such a trite and simple answer to a complex question. Other comments like "What a waste" and "This didn't need to happen" are borderline insulting. Whether someone realizes it or not, those are incredibly disrespectful comments.

I have no illusion that therapy is magically going to stop all suicides.

But might help get someone to next week or next month or next year where they might feel different about life.

This is one of those things where you don't "do nothing because you cannot completely solve the problem".

I do disagree though - suicides of the young/healthy are often a sad waste, depression needs perspective which you cannot find by simply looking in the mirror.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#224

Post by corporalagumbo »

jacques_chester wrote: post #167
madaxe wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I value my freedom and clarity of mind far more than I do some subjective "happiness", induced by drugs or lengthy stays in facilities, as is the normal treatment for depressive disorders in the UK. The system is not there to help, it's a kafkaesque self-sustaining bureaucracy. I do agree that suicidal thoughts aren't altogether healthy, but I'd also argue that blithely wandering through life without the merest shred…

Ah yes, I remember this. I thought the way you do. I don't need the pills. Depression has taught me deep this and profound that. Well let me tell you something. It's bullshit. That there might be a difference between 'objective' and 'subjective' happiness is triply-silly Cartesian dualist bullshit. You are absolutely embedded in the world, your happiness is not an abstract value that floats around on its own. And you…

Okay, now you are just embarrassing yourself.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#225

Post by jlgreco »

vor_ wrote: post #216
option_greek wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no need to speculate. The DOJ bought by corporate interests is directly responsible for his suicide. They are more worried about protecting corporate interests than worrying about the spirit of law.

Don't be ridiculous. Nobody is directly responsible for Swartz's suicide but Swartz. That's what suicide is.

Responsibility is a nebulous concept. The extent to which a clinically depressed person (if indeed he was) can be said to "be responsible" for their own suicide is pretty debatable.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#226

Post by misnome »

jacques_chester wrote: post #117
gfunk911 wrote: post #110

I've thought of suicide. Not "seriously," but it's crossed my mind. Sometimes life just seems so hard. My reaction to this is that he was a brilliant guy, and it was such a waste. Such a pointless waste. It makes the idea of giving up myself seem so wrong. Rest in Peace Aaron. I'm sorry it had to end this way.

> I've thought of suicide. Not "seriously," but it's crossed my mind. If it happens again, get help. I'm quite serious.

Some of the first sensible advice I've read in this thread. I'm slightly disgusted by the sheer quantity of comments on how suicide can be "right" and how he was "pushed into it".

Suicide is never, never the answer, it can just seem like it sometimes when you are very, very low.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#227

Post by nostrademons »

puppetsock wrote: post #52
pbateman wrote: post #26

A tragedy that this caring young man has taken his own life. My heart goes out to his family. This feels a bit inappropriate but at the moment I hope that some members of the US Attorney's Office are wracked by guilt.

You're being a bit unfair. It's equally inappropriate for me to speculate about his motives, but I recall there being an undercurrent of melancholia in Aaron's writings even pre-indictment.

I still remember a comment he posted on an "Ask PG & other rich folks: how has your life changed since getting FU money?" thread a few years ago (pre-indictment):

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1511204

"In the short-term, my life was much worse. I spent a lot of really painful time struggling to come to grips with my situation.

"After that was over, things went pretty much back to normal. There's now a low-level fear all the time of losing all the money (something PG's written about recently) and I'm constantly worried I've invested it badly. I didn't make any dramatic life changes so people don't really treat me differently.

"The biggest thing is that it provides a sort of mental backup -- when I'm feeling bad about myself or about to do something risky, I can tell myself not to worry.

"My sense is that it bears out what the happiness research says: dispositional factors are much more important than situational ones. PG was an abnormally happy person before he got rich and he's still abnormally happy. I was pretty miserable before and I'm still miserable. (The reasons are more complicated but the result is I prefer my misery.)"

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#229

Post by PoliticsJunkie »

jacques_chester wrote: post #135
madaxe wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perfectly possible to think about it but never act. I don't think there's been a day in my life in which I haven't contemplated the ramifications of offing myself. Each and every time, I reach the same conclusion - it would be pointless. Null isn't a value, so I'd rather strive for happiness, even if my mood usually lurks around -1.

I don't mean to seem rude, but please, seek help. This doesn't sound like a healthy way to think and feel.

stop it.

Re: Aaron Swartz commits suicide

#230

Post by kamaal »

rdl wrote: post #172
petercooper wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

True, I didn't realize white collar crime had a financial motivation. So, it was even less serious than that.

Well, white collar just means generally "conducted using computers, paper, etc." vs. guns or sticks or fists. So defrauding people via the mail is white collar, or ponzi schemes, etc. There is usually a financial component, but the FBI 30k foot overview is "lying, cheating, or stealing". What aaronsw is alleged to have done was a white collar activity (except that he did sneaky wiring closet stuff), but not what peop…

Scariest part of about these things is, these are victimless crimes. Barely anybody is harmed by them.

At the end its all about some prosecutor increasing his kill count.

Post reply on HN