Food for Thought: Ignorance is Bliss?
I'm finally UNBUSY you guys! No sports until the summer! Isn't that GREAT? So I'm trying to return to form guys. I miss my once-daily rants about life or whatever it was that intrigued me. So, here's some (hopefully) quick food-for-thought.
You guys are familiar with the term "ignorance is bliss," right? That statement never really made any sense to me until last year, and now it's such a truth about the world that I must now share it with the world. In case some of you guys never really thought about it, here's the down-low.
Say, God forbid, your parent would become stricken with a terrible illness and will be fated to die. Now, when your parents break the news to you, you'll never be the same person, trying to watch such a key figure in your life pass on in such a cruel way. You'd be miserable. But what if you were never informed to begin with? Technically, you WOULD have a major burden lifted off your shoulders, until your parent becomes seriously ill and you are left with questions and you'd be most likely more distraught than you would have been knowing from the get-go your parent was dying. Does that make sense?
The logic behind the saying is, "sometimes it's better not knowing." That's how I believe America and many other countries live, and it is the root of our problems. It's not that people DON'T care about families in poverty, it's that they dont' know. Why don't they know? They separate themselves from all the ads in newspapers or on TV because it is a sad reality to cope with, and deep down we all know that people are suffering in other places because of our own greediness. We don't want to deal with that, our logic is "it's better to not even think about what's going on over there. Keep myself uninformed and I'll have a clear conscience." It sounds logical, and it's actually the first stage in grieving. Denial.
It's a short-term bliss. Here's the flaw that people don't catch. See, while we try to ignore all these problems that other people deal with, or many times even our OWN demons, they eventually catch up with us. Because then we'll see the programs on television with these poor kids, or we'll snap from madness after succumbing deeper into an already severe depression, which could lead to suicidal results. It's destructive and self-destructive. Ignoring our problems doesn't make up for things. Sure, life's a bitch. Things aren't fair. But deal with it. If we're going to expect things to just fall into our lap, well, we're eventually going to lose everything we have. Think about how hard our ancestors worked to get us here NOW, and look what we're doing. We care abou short-term gratification, and pretty much nothing else. We're a hard-to-please bunch. But I strongly believe in karma, and karma's a bitch.
So, with my own opinion aside, what do you guys think? Would you rather live a happy life not-knowing, or a burdened, yet weathered life? I say the second, because I believe our toughest experiences, all the shitty happenings in our lives, shape who we are. That's when our true convictions and loyalties are tested, during times of peril. Or so I believe.
You guys are familiar with the term "ignorance is bliss," right? That statement never really made any sense to me until last year, and now it's such a truth about the world that I must now share it with the world. In case some of you guys never really thought about it, here's the down-low.
Say, God forbid, your parent would become stricken with a terrible illness and will be fated to die. Now, when your parents break the news to you, you'll never be the same person, trying to watch such a key figure in your life pass on in such a cruel way. You'd be miserable. But what if you were never informed to begin with? Technically, you WOULD have a major burden lifted off your shoulders, until your parent becomes seriously ill and you are left with questions and you'd be most likely more distraught than you would have been knowing from the get-go your parent was dying. Does that make sense?
The logic behind the saying is, "sometimes it's better not knowing." That's how I believe America and many other countries live, and it is the root of our problems. It's not that people DON'T care about families in poverty, it's that they dont' know. Why don't they know? They separate themselves from all the ads in newspapers or on TV because it is a sad reality to cope with, and deep down we all know that people are suffering in other places because of our own greediness. We don't want to deal with that, our logic is "it's better to not even think about what's going on over there. Keep myself uninformed and I'll have a clear conscience." It sounds logical, and it's actually the first stage in grieving. Denial.
It's a short-term bliss. Here's the flaw that people don't catch. See, while we try to ignore all these problems that other people deal with, or many times even our OWN demons, they eventually catch up with us. Because then we'll see the programs on television with these poor kids, or we'll snap from madness after succumbing deeper into an already severe depression, which could lead to suicidal results. It's destructive and self-destructive. Ignoring our problems doesn't make up for things. Sure, life's a bitch. Things aren't fair. But deal with it. If we're going to expect things to just fall into our lap, well, we're eventually going to lose everything we have. Think about how hard our ancestors worked to get us here NOW, and look what we're doing. We care abou short-term gratification, and pretty much nothing else. We're a hard-to-please bunch. But I strongly believe in karma, and karma's a bitch.
So, with my own opinion aside, what do you guys think? Would you rather live a happy life not-knowing, or a burdened, yet weathered life? I say the second, because I believe our toughest experiences, all the shitty happenings in our lives, shape who we are. That's when our true convictions and loyalties are tested, during times of peril. Or so I believe.
Ignorance is great when you don't know you are being ignorant. That's why most children are so happy and care-free. I look back on how much happened that I didn't know about when I was little and shake my head. I rather know so I can at least do something. Even if it's not much.
I can't say any more without saying the same thing as you. Good blog.
GreenDayCookieFairy, May 25th, 2007 at 07:28:54pm
Ignorance is blissful when you're the ignorant one. However, when you're living with the problem and others are ignorant to it, you don't get to share in that bliss. I think alot of American and developed European countries share the same problem, we're much too centralized like you said. We aren't aware of the world around us, but ignorance is no excuse. Regardless of if we know that were destroying rainforests or that poverty is killing children, its still happening. And we're the ones to blame. Great blog, as always.
Kurtni, May 25th, 2007 at 11:47:33am
Burdened, yet weathered life. Because I think that the more you know the more you are free. Freedom lays in knowledge. If people got educated better then we would be emancipated more. No one can fool an educated man and therefor (if all human kind would have knowledge), we couldn't be fooled anymore by the system and whatnot. Besides if you know, you care, and caring is one of the solutions to a problem. If you care you will have the desire to change.
worn-out astronaut., May 25th, 2007 at 08:42:45am
thats a good point. but ignorance being bliss has helped me through my life. say you look in the mirror and someone UGLY looks back. then you go to school and noone really talks to you, they have better things to do. then you go to your nans after school like you do everyday and she talks to the television and has forgotton who you are?
you could think about it and be that f*cked up 14yr old in therapy. or you could draw a picture and watch the simpsons and sing a song and pretend that your pretty and popular and home lifes good. just as long as your alone and theres no mirrors then you havent got the chance to hate life. you might still be f*cked up but its buried nice and deep and when your old enough to cope with things, you can bring them up to the surface, bit by bit.
helped me anyway.
Lyddy r teh Snaily, May 25th, 2007 at 05:29:02am
Wow, great blog.
I suppose I'd rather know. If I did choose the first choice, I'd feel bad after it. The whole time I'm out with my friends, having a great time, my parents are at home with a deadly illness. I'd much rather number 2 because I could be trying to help them through it, making their last days the best days.
:]]
dramamine;, May 25th, 2007 at 04:08:21am