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The Forum > General Discussion > Do people take life for granted?

Do people take life for granted?

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Humans seem to take life in general for granted. Life though does not last forever and every time you disrespect someone else it might be the last time you ever see or hear from them.

Many are suffering internationally from the actions of others, whilst some seem to think that nothing bad will occur to them at all and they can waste their life away on whatever they want.

Where does one draw the line? How do people get the balance right? Life for me is very important and respecting others is vital, but what do you think?
Posted by NathanJ, Friday, 16 July 2021 6:14:03 PM
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Hi Nathan,

I think life is very fragile, and other than from those who know and love you, your life is not considered to be of much value. I'm being a bit reflective, as a mate of mine in Sydney aged 72 went into Hospital a couple of weeks back for a "simple procedure"...they turned his life support off on Wednesday.

As Buddha said; "For without death there cannot be life."
Posted by Paul1405, Saturday, 17 July 2021 6:24:48 AM
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Our 'standard of value' used to be human life. Not any more. Now we are subjected to rants about how humans are ruining the environment. Humans are no longer seen as part of nature.
Posted by ttbn, Saturday, 17 July 2021 9:28:02 AM
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Good Morning Nathan,

When you're young you take life for granted,
but the older you get, the more precious
you understand life to be.

Albert Einstein told us:

"There are only two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle,
The other is as though everything is a miracle."

I think that is is true. After all the happiness in
our life's depends on the quality of our thoughts.
Posted by Foxy, Saturday, 17 July 2021 10:05:01 AM
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Paul 666.

#...As Buddha said; "For without death there cannot be life...#

More culturally significant:

Jesus said this, freshly recorded in scripture from the Roman Empire.

He that loves his life (Soul, Ego) in this life will loose it in the next. (Eternity).

This is of course, an anathema to Buddhists, the religion of pacifist liberals.

Coincidentally, with its mass of adherents in Burma, running ragged and lopping off the heads of Muslims. Such a loving lot!

Dan
Posted by diver dan, Saturday, 17 July 2021 11:59:11 AM
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A child under 15 dies every five seconds around the world – UN report, but this does not apply of course in Australia.

I do find people in the western world take life for granted.

I do also find there are many across the globe who do not respect others though either and take the other persons life as if it has no value.

That is where I am trying to get the balance right and find out what others think. There are people facing difficulties in Australia yes, but in reality it's nothing compared to many people overseas.
Posted by NathanJ, Saturday, 17 July 2021 1:58:15 PM
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DD, does it puff you up to call me by the devils number? Like some Christians, and some Muslims, and some others, some Buddhist are Buddhist in name only. Of the roughly 500 million adherents, how many do you consider "pacifist liberals". You are very quick to label others, how do you label yourself? I'm interested.
Posted by Paul1405, Saturday, 17 July 2021 4:45:50 PM
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Dear Nathan,

Indeed, one needs to find the correct balance and this can be difficult.

Life (in the biological sense) is important, but it is only a means, not an end unto itself.

I observe that while in some countries the tendency is to consider life to be cheap and err on the side of disrespecting it, in Australia the tendency is to err on the opposite direction whereby every effort is made to keep human bodies breathing at all costs, regardless even of the value that the inhabitants of these bodies (or those who used to inhabit these bodies) still derive from it.

Surely it is vital that we respect all others (and not just humans) because in essence all is God, so we should strive to see God in all others. This does not mean, however, that we should neurotically keep blood flowing and lungs pumping air in overdue bodies which no longer serve their dwellers. We can still respect the body's indweller even while the body is returned to the earth.
Posted by Yuyutsu, Saturday, 17 July 2021 8:37:51 PM
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The continuing lockdown lunacy shows that our politicians have no respect for our lives, particularly the lives of Victorians and New South Welsh. No deaths, just a few cases not requiring anything but common sense by the sufferers. We are stuck in 2020 while the rest of the world is getting on with life. Unbelievably, a woman giving birth with all the discomfort that entails was ordered to wear an effing mask .
Posted by ttbn, Sunday, 18 July 2021 10:18:32 AM
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Paul numbers...(at the moment , contorting your number domicile is seen as a snide way to punish your ideas).

And since OLO is all so often a war zone for testing the strength of ideas, then “all’s fair in love and war” fits reasonably well!
It’s good to unbalance the enemy. Evil always progresses from a bad idea, so bad ideas should be called out!

Your questions:

“DD, does it puff you up to call me by the devils number?”
No, it amuses me....and

“You are very quick to label others, how do you label yourself?”

This is a difficult question, since it has a lot of dangling ends to it to make clear it’s intent.

I don’t label myself. But I take a core belief system built on a Christianity, surrounded by cultural norms I’ve been educated into, through life’s experiences in my living environment in Australia.
I have a concept of my culture which I fiercely defend. Good V Evil. Fundamental!

Lastly:

“ how many (Buddhists I understand), do you consider "pacifist liberals".

Obviously people (be whatever they profess to be), are not the pacifist type when they lop the heads off their opponents.
Christians have a long history of chopping the heads off their enemy too.

It’s a brutal world we live in, with much brutality not defined by religion.
Although the Old Testament holds plenty of brutal accounts between its covers.
As does Islam of course.

To be fair, I offer you the opportunity to re-domicile Diver Dan with a fitting tag related to. Your impression of my views.
I’d like you to do it justice though, with thought.
Maybe I should care more what people think of my views!

Dan.
Posted by diver dan, Sunday, 18 July 2021 11:12:09 AM
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Yuyutsu.

Should we look at what Plato thinks on this very subject, as he assembled the laws for his new republic?

He was very unforgiving of the wealthy and their introspection of fighting off the effects of disease while feverishly attempting to lengthen their span of life. Something the poor were unable to do.

His view was to stay prepared for death whenever that time was. Allbeit not excluding the ability to patch up more minor and short term conditions, particularly in the young and otherwise healthy.

I think we will eventually have to accept the death among certain groups as inevitable with Covid-19, as he suggested from 2.5k years ago.

Dan
Posted by diver dan, Sunday, 18 July 2021 11:42:52 AM
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Dear Nathan,

Whenever I see those commercials on television about
children dying every few seconds around the globe
due to the lack of medicines and immunisations and
the pleas for help. My heart goes out to them. Why
are these things allowed to happen? Surely instead
of spending money on wars, and conflicts humanity
could better invest in getting rid of poverty and suffering?

We seem to have the wrong priorities. What is spent on
weapons of death could be spent on medicines and the
prevention of disease. Taking lives for granted?
I guess many rich countries do try to protect their own.
And they give as much as they can to foreign aid - but more
could certainly be done if we got our priorities right.
Saving human life instead of killing it.
Posted by Foxy, Sunday, 18 July 2021 1:06:07 PM
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DD, you ask for "a fitting tag" from me, about you. Well I see you as a modern day 'Educated Nazi', and please don't take the word NAZI with all its evil connotations, although that is difficult to escape. The old school was in your eyes philosophically correct, but to crass to implement national socialism correctly, not like you, they lacked the necessary education. Besides they were bloody losers and who wants to be associated with losers. When you say; "read Plato’s Republic" its not that you want me to read such, but rather want others to known you are a cultured person who not only can read Plato, but understand it, certainly a cut above the rabble. You far right elites like to believe your outlook is based on hard facts, well "facts" as you interpret them, being always cynical but believable. Cynicism allows you to distance yourself from any perceived way-out hard and fast philosophy, but still maintaining the general thrust of that philosophy.
Posted by Paul1405, Monday, 19 July 2021 7:37:34 AM
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I am amused to see above the same basic clash of views being enacted as under my recent article on Barty, which so far garnered a recent record of 84 contributions!

https://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=21520

I think the basic contest is between those of us who attempt to stand for an all-inclusive, win-win, 'no loser'approach to life and those who are convinced that life is intrinsically a war and the task is to be on the side of the top dog winners.

These positions are so deeply ingrained that no rational discussion can change them for such'true believers.' But perhaps an inner crisis can.

I love the serenity prayer:

'God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can
and the wisdom to know the difference.'

To this I add my prayer:

'God grant me the serenity to know that I cannot change others; the courage to change myself
and the wisdom to remember this!
Posted by Andris, Monday, 19 July 2021 11:38:08 AM
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Dear Nathan,

In further answer to your question -
"Do people take life for granted?"
I'm reminded of this beautiful poem:

"One night I dreamed a dream
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life,
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand,
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it,
"Lord you said once I decided to follow you,
you'd walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest
and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why, when I needed
You the most, you would leave me."

He whispered, "My precious child,
I love you and will never leave you,
never, ever, during your trials and testings,
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you."
Posted by Foxy, Monday, 19 July 2021 3:28:43 PM
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"Life for me is very important and respecting others is vital, but what do you think?"

I think respect is a 2-way street.
You have to give it if you want to get it.
Posted by Armchair Critic, Monday, 19 July 2021 5:04:46 PM
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How true Foxy.
Posted by Andris, Monday, 19 July 2021 6:26:21 PM
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I think a lot of people would be a dam sight happier if they did take life more for granted. Going through life gently, being kind to those you touch , & most of all enjoying the things you do is the recipe for a happy life. A happy life brings a little if it to all you touch.

Meditating on your navel, trying to find some grand meaning in the cosmic scheme of things is the way of misery. Your parents enjoyed a moment of passion, or your mother achieved her dream, getting pregnant. That is why you are here, not to solve the miseries of life, or the problems of the world. That way lies madness.

Lighten up folks. If you can say you have never done anything to harm anyone, & with your happiness spread a little light & warmth around you, you will have made your bit of the planet a better place. If everyone did just that, it would be a better world. Just don't get involved in do-good works for the sake of it, the unintended consequences are always otherwise.
Posted by Hasbeen, Monday, 19 July 2021 8:55:24 PM
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.

Was it just a dream ?

.

I dreamt last night that I had lost my attaché case with important documents in it including my passport, wallet, and mobile phone. I had no money to pay the taxi. The young driver was kind and understanding. He left me not too far from the square in the city centre where I wanted to go, and I walked up the street the rest of the way.

I don’t know why, but I was wearing my old coat, a very old coat that was worn out, with a big patch on the bottom that was not quite the same colour as the rest of the coat. I walked slowly around the circular square past a row of restaurants and cafés. A young waitress was cleaning in front of a tiny restaurant that opened out onto the footpath. Inside the restaurant, at the back, three older people were busy preparing salads and other dishes.

I noticed a wooden cane object curved at the top leaning against the wall and asked the young waitress if it was hers. She said yes and took it. She looked at me and I told her I had lost my attaché case with everything in it. She took me by the hand and led me into the little restaurant. Her hand was rough and firm. I felt the warmth of her humanity.

There were just a few small tables and chairs and only one client. She took me to the left-hand side of the restaurant and sat me at a small table that was almost completely occupied by a very large vase with a voluminous plant.

She brought me a little wicker bread basket full of bread, and a glass of water. Not a word was spoken.

Shortly after, the head of the restaurant came over to my table and asked me if I wanted anything else. I saw the frank, open look on his face and felt his humanity too.

.
Posted by Banjo Paterson, Monday, 19 July 2021 11:10:53 PM
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Dear Banjo,

Most people do help each other. I don't
think any decent restaurant owner would
turn anyone away that they thought was
desperately in need of a meal. When I
worked for the Department of Human Services
in Melbourne's CBD (not far from Flinders
Street Station and the City Square). I would
often be approached by homeless people asking
for money. I never refused them. I gave what
I could. And if I didn't have anything to spare
I'd tell them I'll be back on pay day to help
them out.

I got to know many of them - and they got to know my
pay day.
Posted by Foxy, Tuesday, 20 July 2021 9:40:12 AM
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cont'd ...

Dear Banjo,

"To leave the world a bit better
Whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or
a redeemed social condition
To know that even one life has breathed better
Because you have lived
This is to have succeeded."

(Ralph Waldo Emerson).
Posted by Foxy, Tuesday, 20 July 2021 10:41:49 AM
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Andris,

I was not part of the discussion you were having.

Also one could talk about this matter in regards to abortion. For example there have been cases where a women has felt her pregnancy was terminated and later found out it wasn't. One person affected by this situation I saw on television, rushed into a hospital (so she was not seen by the media who were filming her) and later said "it was meant to happen", later having a child.

People who have lived (via these situations) have also been interviewed on radio and have said they are not upset with their parents and are happy they are lucky to be alive.

Another issue to consider is voluntary assisted dying (or euthanasia), whatever term you use. Some take life as something that should go on forever, regardless of the impacts on the person in question. So in that context it could be argued some people are also taking life for granted as they are not respecting the rights of free choice in this area by others, when a life is medically put at a basic level, "beyond repair".
Posted by NathanJ, Tuesday, 20 July 2021 3:27:47 PM
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