Is there anything more important to you than your own life? Would you sacrifice your life for it? What is it? Have you ever actually been in a life-threatening situation? What was it? How did you feel? How did you handle it? Have you ever compromised your dearest principles due to fear? If so, what was it all about, and what happened? Have you ever had an epiphany (secular meaning)? What was it? Did it change anything for you?
Good questions Adam, For me the first question boils down to, "Would I continue to value my life if I chose to let someone else die in my place?" Aside from a few no-brainers (saving my wife, falling on a grenade to save my buddies, etc.), I can imagine a number of situations in which I'd probably trade my life for the lives of strangers. But in nearly every case I seem to be thinking of trading my one life for at least a few other lives. I can't say at this moment under what circumstances I'd make a one-for-one trade with a stranger (my life for another life). Since I'm the "cat's meow" in my own mind, a single stranger would have to make a very convincing argument to have me exchange my life for his. As for your second question; yes, once on a trip to Boston my wife wanted to visit a fabric store in Chinatown. Returning, we walked down some vacant streets lined with old brick clothing factories. That is, the streets were vacant other than a group of people ahead of us. As we got closer I could see that it was a group of ten or so Chinese kids (probably around the age of 15). Getting closer, I realized that they had one Chinese kid up against the wall and they were taking turns, each winding up and kicking the bloody guy for all they were worth. I told my wife to get back to the store as fast as she could run. She began to protest, but I pushed her so hard that she started running. I parted the sea of Chinese kids, stood next to the bloody kid and simply growled, "Get away from him." That's all I said. I didn't even raise my voice. I could see the question forming in the kid's faces, "What now?" To my relief, they started walking up the street, leaving me with the kid. I said, "Come on," and started to walk the kid back towards the store, but at some point he ran away. It turns out that my wife saw the whole thing from down the street. She turned out to be more difficult to deal with than the Chinese kids. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Some years later, on another trip to Boston I mentioned the story to a cop that I'd met. He said, matter-of-factly, that the kids probably backed off because as an outsider, I (or my corpse) would have brought the police into their tight-knit neighborhood. He also said that I probably made things worse for the kid. Instead of getting it over and done with, they'd certainly catch up to him and administer the beating all over again. Oops... In retrospect, it was stupid of me to get involved. For some reason it never occurred to me that a group of pencil-wristed Chinese kids might represent a threat to me. I mistakenly had it in mind that if it came down to a fight these little guys would queue patiently and wait their turn for me to pop them. I never considered at the time what ten little knives might feel like in my own back. Silly me. The only other life-threatening situation I've been in was the time my mentally ill father stabbed me with a knife. But, since I've already been through this in an old post I won't bother to repeat the details. I will say that I've come to realize that I actually had the complete experience of having been murdered, even though I didn't die. Since no one experiences death itself, it's fair to say that I had the complete murder experience (fear, blood, etc.). Obviously, I would have passed on the experience if given a chance. Have I ever had an epiphany (secular meaning)? Yes, when the doctor lifted me out of my mother's womb. I still haven't gotten over that moment. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Michael
I would sacrafice my life in any situation in which I felt my death would advance my beliefs more than anything i might accomplish in the remainder of my life. I contemplated going to the occupied territories last summer, to work with the International Solidarity Movement and would have if I hadn't had unforseen problems getting the travel money The only life threatening situations I've been in were accidents, and I reacted to them with a great deal of fear. I have never compromised any of my principles due to fear nor have I been in a situation where I might be tempted to. If I was I'd like to think I wouldn't, but I don't think I can really be certain. I've never had an epiphany, things come to me slowly. good questions.
I'd gladly sacrifice my life if i could save someone else. As long as i wasnt saving a murderer or something, id have no problem with dying for someone, especially the ones i love. I havent yet been in a life threatening situation, not that i can remember... I've never abandoned my principles due to fear. Never have, never will. Epiphiny... AHH!!! big word! now im confused lol
I am selfish but understanding: if my death can save several others or a person of great importance (I do not mean social status), I will probably make the ultimate sacrifice. Life-threatening ? Often. So often, in fact, that I react calmly in any situation now. Well, almost any, anyway. Fight or flight reactions still pop up now and then... ;-) Never compromised my principles due to fear yet. Epiphanies ? Often. Not many big ones: rather, a lot of small ones that combine together to bring the "big picture" in focus. Most of them were when I was younger; around 15, 16 years of age. I still have some now and then, the most recent being 'no matter how talented I am at basket-ball, I will never play in the NBA'. How's THAT for an epiphany ? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I personally don't have the greatest concern for my life, I don't exactly find great pleasure in it. I decided to continue it for a while in order to try to enlighten myself further and try to create some change in this world I hate. My friend who introduced me to this board is with me on this one. On this recent New Years Eve I was driving a few friends home pretty late at night, in one of the right lanes on the freeway, a big Chevy 3500 Duallie comes speeding by in the left lane, then just swerves across all lanes right in front of me and comes to a stop in the grass on the right. That was a life threatening situation but I didn't think much about it because yet again, I welcome death pretty much these days. I'm not trying to sound like a hardass or anything, but I don't have very many fears, once you stop fearing death and pain, nothing is really the same. Nothing has the same effect it used to. I've never had what I would consider a epiphany, but I've had several enlightening thinking sessions and a few conversations that have really left me satisfied and intrigued. Being a teenager who has changed the way he thinks over the past months, I have realized some things about the way I used to act and look at things. Thats about it.
I'm too tired at the moment to answer all the questions asked, but i know that I would definitely not sacrifice MY life for a stranger! Perhaps a family member - even then, only immediate family. I don't see why I should sacrifice my life. It was given to me, I'm keeping it.
I would sacrifice my life to save my daughter's. Her life is more important to me than mine. I was in the middle of a gunfight once. Some guy got shot in the shoulder next to me. We were just walking down the sidewalk at night. I guess I felt completely instinctive. I immediately dove behind a car. I pulled a girl down that was with us. She was just standing there. She said later she thought they were just cap guns because guns sounded so much boomier in movies. The guy that got shot was in complete shock and kept trying to tell jokes and tell people to go get him a beer. I had adrenaline pumping but I was surprised at how calmly I took it. I am not sure I have principles that are all that dear. So I guess I have never compromised them. I had kind of an epiphany once. I was in new mexico in the middle of a mountain stream on a rock staring at the stars. It sounds cheezy but I kind of had a revelation. I realized for one thing that everything I had been fed was largely bullshit.
I would sacrifice my own life for any other form of life. Even a squirrell. I have no value on my life. Life is life to me. I would give my life for Hussein, if it really came down to it. Mostly, I wish to die while stopping some form of pollution or desctruction of nature. I stood on my friends 15 floor balcony railing. That was when I realized that life is life, and that I existed. I had understood before that I existed, but it was just one of those moments. I fealt invincible because I could do whatever I wanted at that point. I used to, but I was dumb then. I guess the only thing that I fear now is people. People are incredibly dangerous. Fear is a product of potential pain. So, I dont really care for fear anymore. I would like to sky dive independant of my parachute and then try to grab it in mid-air. I was building a house for these unfortunate people in Mexico, and my friend threw me a hammer. He threw it a bit hard, and I moved out of the way. The hammer slid down the roof while picking up speed. As it neared the edge of the roof, it was increasing speed. Then when it got to the very brink of the edge, it miraculously stopped just as another worker walked out of the door underneath the point where the hammer would have fallen. I truely thought that God existed at that moment. I was so convinced, but I finally just gave up the whole God thing.
xev My questions are all about what people find important, what they would give up, and why. They delve to the very root of all philosophoical endeavour. Very simple really. I'm sure you could have figured it out eventually.
Adam: Sure. Yes. Yup. Sushi, freedom, and beauty. Yup. Idiot male pulled a knife on me. I actually have no idea whether I would have been killed or not (small blade), but it was terrifying and quite exhilerating. After a situation like that, you feel much more - vibrent? I can't quite put it into words. At the time, I wasn't thinking, just reacting to block the blade and fight back. No. I've had quite a few over the years. I don't know if any really "changed my life" in a huge and drastic way, but I've learned some rather interesting things from them. *Edit* As for the movement of this thread, I felt that surveys and whatnot are more appropriate here, since the philosophical content is somewhat veiled.
me, i'd giv my life for love for liberty and peace.............. A piece of Ger-man-y, a piece of france, for a piece of hash i'd give my pants and for life i'll give up strife in one sweeped swoop i'l take a knife to-the-apple-of-my-fruit tho-bornby-u; i'll give up life if you give yours too.
Re: xev I agree with you Adam, Philosophy ,analyses of the principles underlying conduct,thought...this is definately a philosophical question..... DaMenace123, I would like to know why you are giving up on life!
Yes. The life of one of the members of my family or my fiancee. Or at least an attempt to save that life. Yes. When I was 6 or 7 got run off a neighborh's property with a gun. It wasn't pointed at any one of us though, so that might not count. I was scared and I ran. Hey, I was 6. No. Not that I know of, or at least not anything that induced major changes in my life. I've had startling realizations about myself before though.
