The piece on lack of meaning covers the loss of meaning in a day-to-day sense (loss of one's career, kids leave home, etc.), not the existential-like (philosophical) loss of meaning ("toxic nihilism" a la The Grand Inquisitor; there's no inherent meaning in the universe) as indicated in your opening line. These are distinct, and for many "thinkers" the latter's impact is profound. Also, re the former, there's no grounding in biology or a philosophical theory of boredom (Schopenhauer, Nietzsche): Meaning comes from challenges; when life is "comfortable," challenge-meaning go out the door, and we just fill time.
The answer might lie in how people mistakenly think “meaning” is a puzzle to be solved. Do you mind if I give that answer a name? I’ll call it the “null” hypothesis, the testable answer that meaning is not a puzzle to be solved.
What’s the alternative? I’ll call it the “omega” hypothesis. By that I mean that alpha is our species origin and omega is humanities destiny. The omega hypothesis is the testable answer that meaning is a puzzle to be solved.
In the justice system, the defendant is innocent until proven guilty. In science, the null hypothesis is confirmed by default and refuted by exception.
In the justice system, the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. In science, an explanatory hypothesis is refuted by default and confirmed by the “beyond a reasonable doubt” exception. And omega is an explanatory hypothesis.
Did Homo sapiens descend from two lineages, or did Homo sapiens descend from a single ancestral population that lived in Africa 300,000 years ago? I’d say the latter. But I digress.
We live in a social system. A social system is a life system comprised of more than one animal. Regardless, a life system is comprised of interdependent parts, and every life system is independent of other life systems. A human social system is a socially and economically autonomous group of humans. A Paleolithic human system was a hunter-gatherer band comprised of roughly a handful of families.
For thousands of generations, the meaning of life for the individual Paleolithic Homo sapiens was to serve the band-sized system at the expense of its subjects. In our generation, the meaning of life is to serve our global system at the expense of its subjects. If we did, then the system would be healthy, but the system is unhealthy because most of its subjects are serving parts of the system at the system’s expense.
Ergo, the null hypothesis is refuted, and the omega hypothesis is confirmed.
I’m glad that you think big, but it would be better if you thought BIG.
I am the nihilist of which you write, and I hardly consider myself sad and cowardly. I understand that a world of nihilists is not the best by any stretch. But YOU must understand that there are some people for whom the greater spectacle of life is a sham and who understand mysticism and divinely-given "purpose" is a fallacy. For me, my purpose was my wife. That purpose ended when cancer arbitrarily attacked and killed her. There was no meaning in that. For 36 years 2 months and 23 days we were together facing the world. We both found meaning and purpose in the everyday things. Without her, I can't seem to find it. I have taken the (hardly cowardly) step of realizing my part of this reality is passed. It takes grace, courage, and dignity to reach such a conclusion and to not blindly scrape and claw to hold on to a life that you no longer find meaningful. I do not and will never believe in self-annihilation - that is unfair to those left behind in my eyes. But I will calmly and patiently await my fate without a delusional belief that this life matters in the least. It mattered for me while she was here, but it no longer does. I find it insulting that because I don't see life the way you do that you feel free to cast aspersions. I have nothing against those with purpose and meaning - I had it for decades. But you are foolish to think that everyone must maintain that view until their last breath.
Life's meaning can only be found in the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and your Creator. In doing so, you become Born Again in Christ (Romans 10:9-13), and is the only way for your multi-dimensional soul to become eligible to enter Heaven upon your expiration or when the forthcoming Rapture occurs.
The piece on lack of meaning covers the loss of meaning in a day-to-day sense (loss of one's career, kids leave home, etc.), not the existential-like (philosophical) loss of meaning ("toxic nihilism" a la The Grand Inquisitor; there's no inherent meaning in the universe) as indicated in your opening line. These are distinct, and for many "thinkers" the latter's impact is profound. Also, re the former, there's no grounding in biology or a philosophical theory of boredom (Schopenhauer, Nietzsche): Meaning comes from challenges; when life is "comfortable," challenge-meaning go out the door, and we just fill time.
The answer might lie in how people mistakenly think “meaning” is a puzzle to be solved. Do you mind if I give that answer a name? I’ll call it the “null” hypothesis, the testable answer that meaning is not a puzzle to be solved.
What’s the alternative? I’ll call it the “omega” hypothesis. By that I mean that alpha is our species origin and omega is humanities destiny. The omega hypothesis is the testable answer that meaning is a puzzle to be solved.
In the justice system, the defendant is innocent until proven guilty. In science, the null hypothesis is confirmed by default and refuted by exception.
In the justice system, the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. In science, an explanatory hypothesis is refuted by default and confirmed by the “beyond a reasonable doubt” exception. And omega is an explanatory hypothesis.
Did Homo sapiens descend from two lineages, or did Homo sapiens descend from a single ancestral population that lived in Africa 300,000 years ago? I’d say the latter. But I digress.
We live in a social system. A social system is a life system comprised of more than one animal. Regardless, a life system is comprised of interdependent parts, and every life system is independent of other life systems. A human social system is a socially and economically autonomous group of humans. A Paleolithic human system was a hunter-gatherer band comprised of roughly a handful of families.
For thousands of generations, the meaning of life for the individual Paleolithic Homo sapiens was to serve the band-sized system at the expense of its subjects. In our generation, the meaning of life is to serve our global system at the expense of its subjects. If we did, then the system would be healthy, but the system is unhealthy because most of its subjects are serving parts of the system at the system’s expense.
Ergo, the null hypothesis is refuted, and the omega hypothesis is confirmed.
I’m glad that you think big, but it would be better if you thought BIG.
I am the nihilist of which you write, and I hardly consider myself sad and cowardly. I understand that a world of nihilists is not the best by any stretch. But YOU must understand that there are some people for whom the greater spectacle of life is a sham and who understand mysticism and divinely-given "purpose" is a fallacy. For me, my purpose was my wife. That purpose ended when cancer arbitrarily attacked and killed her. There was no meaning in that. For 36 years 2 months and 23 days we were together facing the world. We both found meaning and purpose in the everyday things. Without her, I can't seem to find it. I have taken the (hardly cowardly) step of realizing my part of this reality is passed. It takes grace, courage, and dignity to reach such a conclusion and to not blindly scrape and claw to hold on to a life that you no longer find meaningful. I do not and will never believe in self-annihilation - that is unfair to those left behind in my eyes. But I will calmly and patiently await my fate without a delusional belief that this life matters in the least. It mattered for me while she was here, but it no longer does. I find it insulting that because I don't see life the way you do that you feel free to cast aspersions. I have nothing against those with purpose and meaning - I had it for decades. But you are foolish to think that everyone must maintain that view until their last breath.
Life's meaning can only be found in the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and your Creator. In doing so, you become Born Again in Christ (Romans 10:9-13), and is the only way for your multi-dimensional soul to become eligible to enter Heaven upon your expiration or when the forthcoming Rapture occurs.
In the words of the Dalai Lama, "My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness."
What would Jesus say? "Randy, listen to the Dalai Lama."