Foo wrote:The adage 'Ignorance is Bliss' exists for a reason.
Remaining ignorant is easy. Keeping clued in to current events, especially digging beyond what's served up on a plate in newspapers and on TV, is a noble intellectual pursuit.
And that's all I have to say on the matter.
aye :icon14:
and keeping up with the news does have a bearing on daily life, because a lot of people are paying attention to it.
it's advantageous to have both a rough idea of what's going on in the world, and a rough idea of what is generally perceived to be going on in the world.
I agree with Ryoki - if you don't keep up with events and prefer ignorance over the mild discomfort you get from knowing what is happening in the world, then you don't deserve the right to vote.
Our founding fathers thought so too - but you obviously don't have any regard for the principles they espoused. Much easier to pay them lip-service and not have to think about them, than to be reminded that your personal philosophy doesn't quite stack up to such notions.
I like news.
It's like a drug.
I must get my daily fix, or I'll start feeling uneasy.
Plus it bonds people, gives them something to talk about, especially sensational stuff, like 9/11.
I guess you (iluvq4) are right in your assumption that people need it to get a better grasp on life, but I don't see that as a necessarily bad thing or weakness.
iluvquake4 wrote:Reading about world events that are irrelevant to your daily life is about equal to reading celebrity gossip. Unless you have some sort of systematic plan to change the world in your favor, it's pointless to read all the 'bad news'.
the tragic part is, you probably think you're some kind of pragmatist/realist for saying this
iluvquake4 wrote:It can be a noble intellectual pursuit if there is a plan of action, however most of the time it just results in people being depressed or paranoid of those who engross themselves in the subjects.
I bet you know the television listings for every reality show better than TV Guide.
I prefer to selectively get my news information, repeatedly hearing 'suicide bomb this' '4 killed in a roadbomb that' and '10 dead albanians the other' gets very tiresome and incredibly boring. I'm currently living in a home without a TV license (a trend I intend to continue when I move out) and thus use websites to inform me of current affairs which I can read at my leisure and not have to sit through 20 minutes of depression in order to hear about what's going on.
phantasmagoria wrote:I'm currently living in a home without a TV license (a trend I intend to continue when I move out) and thus use websites to inform me of current affairs which I can read at my leisure and not have to sit through 20 minutes of depression in order to hear about what's going on.
It's good, ain't it? I'll not bother with a TV license when I shift out of this place either. I even bought a VGA converter for my consoles.
Haven't read this whole thread but I have a few suggestions. Rather than abandoning news altogether, indefinitely, try taking breaks from news reports from time to time and favour certain more impartial online news sites to more sensationalist TV news reporting (with it's anxiety inducing, attention grabbing music).
Also, avoid reactionary blogs that seek to rally an ideological base while simultaneously getting a rise out of those who might disagree with inflammatory language. Even the most disgreeable of positions can be presented in a way so as to not induce such reactions.
Reality is good to know, aslong as it's relevant. Knowing the details of a war or political scandal or that so and so killed this or that person in a far away geographical location will not typically change your day to day meager little existance. To think it has anything to do with you, or that your knowing matters, is pure fantasy, of course the news channels, papers, advertisers, and sponsors want you to feel a part of the constant melodramas of such inconsequential events in order to keep you watching or reading.
Last edited by iluvquake4 on Wed Sep 20, 2006 8:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
iluvquake4 wrote:Reality is good to know, aslong as it's relevant. Knowing what is happening in a foreign country or that so and so killed this or that person in a far away geographical location will not typically change your day to day meager little existance.
...until that so and so in a far away geographical location flies an airplane into your buildings and you wonder why it all happened?
You are implying that someone from a far away geographical location is responsible for the building collapse -- others in this forum will argue with you on that point (such as Freakaloin), though the news wants you to think it's 'so and so' from 'such and such'.
You are supporting my point. Not only is the news information often inconsequential to your daily life, it's also often misleading or propagandistic, but you'll keep grazing up more to feel in the know, giving you a false sense of security that knowledge is power, even if the information being dished out to you is pointless or misdirecting.
Last edited by iluvquake4 on Wed Sep 20, 2006 8:59 pm, edited 3 times in total.
iluvquake4 wrote:I don't see you doing anything about it. Baaaaah.
You are implying that someone from a far away geographical location is responsible for the building collapse -- others in this forum will argue with you on that point (such as Freakaloin), though the news wants you to think it's 'so and so' from 'such and such'.
You are supporting my point. Not only is the news information often inconsequential to your daily life, it's also often misleading or propagandistic, but you'll keep grazing up more to feel in the know.
The point has been made previously that to feel "in the know" can indeed be some work...but not usually alot. There are many ways to educate yourself about "the immediate environment around you" and whatever other esoteric bullshit you which to rant about, such as the warning signs of a tornado or for when THE TERRORISTS INVADE AMERICA like those Russian fagg0ts in that bad movie with Dolph Lundren.
You can sit there and be stupid if you choose to be. That is your right and I'll fuck the ugliest woman in the world to defend your right to do so. I simply choose to pay attention.
And how is the weather up your ass? Lots of headroom?
Being in the know makes you cool at trying to swear like a macho-man and attempt to insult people. I should read the news more to be so cool and self-righteous, saving the world with my sacrificial time, posting in game forums with my knowledge about things that really mean nothing to me or that I have no first hand clue about. But hey, why not, it'll make feel important, special, agreeable to the group, and superior to anyone that questions my petty appeal to 'facts' that I read or heard about from others.
Last edited by iluvquake4 on Wed Sep 20, 2006 9:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
iluvquake4 wrote:I guess being in the know makes you cool at cussing and attempting insult people. I should read the news more to be so cool.
No, actually...you should read the news more to be a member of society.
There's a reason they invented something called "The Free Press".
While it might be a wasteland of bullshit there are alot of real issues in life that you'll probably one day have to deal with....such as the warning signs of prostate cancer.
Like I said...sit there and scratch your swelling crotch while rocking in your chair or you could perhaps attempt to be someone interesting to talk to.
You know...instead of editing your posts with new and improved sentences...you could just make another post.
Oh..and in one of those posts...why don't you attempt to address my point that I simply choose to pay attention?
Don't you have any interest in things that are not in your "immediate envrionment"? You know...astronomy or quantum mechanics? Perhaps the law of gravity? Or maybe for you gravity is too far away to pay attention to?
I lost interest in having a serious conversation with you when you started cussing and attempted to insult me. In real life most people avoid people that insult and cuss a lot - we often call them mental patients. Something to keep in mind, people don't like that -- typically. It took my insulting you back in order for you to even calm down and act half-way serious. If you act that way in real life, you must have a lot of problems relating to people. I have work to do. I'm done for now.
Holy fuck you sound just like this religious nut I know who also called swearing "cussin".
FFS you cave dweller if you got out of your basement you'd realize that alot of normal converstation includes "cussin" and insulting banter.
Perhaps you shouldn't pay attention to the news...perhaps you should learn about the outside world through direct experience? Cause it sounds like you need it.
Do you actually believe that the world outside your window is unimportant?
The people I know, in real life, don't swear/cuss at each other and try to insult each other. I've been around a lot of people in my life and the only people that swear a lot and insult others tend to have mental issues. I'm not a religious person. Having traveled a lot and meeting a vast amount of diverse people leads me to the conclusion that what goes on outside my window will always go on, continue to go on, and tend to repeat itself, therefore it's pointless to worry or think about it.
Last edited by iluvquake4 on Wed Sep 20, 2006 9:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
