Journal HanzoSan's Journal: Different ways of thinking 12
From my experience there are two types of people in this world. Individualists who do whats in their best interest, these people are simply doing whats logical. Then theres idealists, or people who follow their heart,their emotions and generally do things w hich may not be in their best interest but which in their opinion is in the best interest of the world as a whole.
Do people always act in their own best interest? This has been used over and over again to attempt to understand people, and I'd say most people do follow this thinking pattern. The problem is alot of people do not follow that pattern and to everyone else these people seem like aliens, illogical, crazy, etc.
A great example is this, we have one person who will do a job because they want the money, perhaps because they enjoy the job, but they will only do this job if something is in it for them. They are not capable of understanding how its possible to do something when theres nothing in it for them.
Then you have people who do everything for the people, or for someone else and nothing for themselves, the polar opposite, these people usually end up homeless or they take a job as a teacher, join the military, etc.
I think the reality is that some people in this world are only capable of thinking about "self" and doing things which benefit "self". In a way this is a very logical viewpoint, but they also lack the emotion involved which could allow them to do things for the world in general, to better humanity, and to make great sacrifices.
This is my opinion at least. And there you have it, this is why we have people who want to redistribute wealth, help the poor, feed the hungry, educate the youth, etc. From a pure logic point of view its stupid, its creating competition for your job or field, its taking money directly out of your pocket, its taking from you to give to"them". So why do people do this? Because to some people in this world, the individual is not as important as the whole. Meaning humanity is more important than "self".
This explains why people will do illogical things such a give food off their plate and starve to feed someone else, or why people will risk their life to save a person.
Now, I'm not illogical to the point where I will die to save someone else, but I understand the point of view that its more important to help the world than it is to help myself. What do I have to gain by doing it? Nothing. Is it in my best interest? No. Is it illogical and stupid? Perhaps considering I wont be alive forever so anything I do which benefits the future technically should not matter to me since its a future I most likely will not live to see.
So why do dedicate their lives to improving the lives of others?
Why... (Score:2)
Well, in some cases it's because they are religious, and are taught that whatever good they do in this life, will help them in an after life.
In other cases, people just feel good by helping others... Who says you can't volunteer at a soup kitchen, and be a millionaire?
And what about doctors? They dedicate their lives to improving the lives of others.
There are probably as many motivations to people wanting to help others, as there are t
Re:Why... (Score:2)
I guess in some cases you may not live to see the results, but saying you won't see any, ever, is sort of a pessimistic(sp?) thing to say.
subject line (Score:1)
From my experience there are two types of people in this world. Individualists who do whats in their best interest, these people are simply doing whats logical. Then theres idealists, or people who follow their heart,their emotions and generally do things w hich may not be in their best interest but which in their opinion is in the best interest of the world as a whole.
I would suggest your matrix either needs to be condensed to "egotists" and "altruists", or expa
Re:subject line (Score:1)
You've made a few errors.
Progressive tax schemes are often thought to be the most beneficial to society, since those who have "extra" cash support those who hae less cash. However, many problems exist within this idea. First, above we see that egotists seem to out number the altruists, so we run into the problem that punishing success.
First you are assuming that success is determined by the amount of money a person has. This leads me to believe you are an egoist yourself. Second you are forgetting that