“The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.”
Reference Bible 1Ti 1:11 according to the glorious good news of the happy God, with which I was entrusted.
What did Jesus say would cause genuine or real happiness that could last for eternity !
like a puzzle piece there is that perfect piece that completes the picture . And that piece is found At
Reference Bible Mt 5:3 “Happy are those conscious of their spiritual need, since the kingdom of the heavens belongs to them.
Reference Bible Lu 11:28 But he said: “No, rather, Happy are those hearing the word of God and keeping it!”
Reference Bible Mt 5:7 “Happy are the merciful, since they will be shown mercy.
Byington Mt 5:8 Happy are the clean in mind, because they shall see God.
Byington Mt 5:10 Happy are the persecuted who have been persecuted on account of righteousness, because the Reign of Heaven is theirs.
Reference Bible Mt 5:11 “Happy are YOU when people reproachYOU and persecute YOU and lyingly say every sort of wicked thing against YOU for my sake. Reference Bible Mt 5:12 Rejoice and leap for joy, since YOURreward is great in the heavens; for in that way they persecuted the prophets prior to YOU.
There are many good things to be happy for . But most of all the one that gives life is a happy God he keeps giving it to those he takes delight in
Happy are those people !
I say, babies are the happiest people in the world, they have no worries, just weh weh and get what they want
I totally agree! The happiest people in the world are content with their lives, are responsible, respect people, and enjoy challenges. Besides, they are at their best every day.
When you take total responsibility for your own happiness. You will then have the respect and peace you need in your life. Even if you came from a pile of garbage its up to you to make and change your life.
I totally agree but what makes one person happy is not the same as some one else
All desires are different which means you can not measure happiness by others and their success in this world. For it is limited and control.
As an example people may play the game monopoly in a families home.
You have the rich in that game . Yet when the game is over it is reality that all it was is a game.
This world system is the same it is limited .all the success in it will change. And reality will also set in also
You never owned anything . As said you can not take it with you.
I use to hear some one say I have all I need ,I have money a home, a car, family, but do you know what was missing? They could not buy their health. They was sick in and out of the hospital with bags of medicine.
That is in God's department we have to look to him for the cure to bring complete happiness.
in fact happiness is just a minute thing. living in this world, the most factor is like what you told accepting.
According to Forbes, it's Norwegians.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopher … untries-2/
Of course if you ask any Norwegian, the happiest person in the worlds is Forbes.
Don't they also have the highest suicide rate in the world, or am I confusing them with the Swedes or US Army Reserves. I can't keep them straight for some reason.
(replying up here because of the crunch)
"When I refer to Oprah's "feel good doctors," I am not denigrating them."
That was me denigrating them, I'm familiar with figures of that nature and I have NOT watched Super Soul Sunday or any Oprah-related program, but if I'm wrong about the contents I'd be really shocked. What you speak of sounds faaar from anything that would be acceptable viewing for me, I'm not looking for reasons to get more upset than I already am. I don't like 'self help' doctors. I believe they are ignorant, the question is are they doing it on purpose or faking it for money?
Check it out a few times to see what it is.; you cannot judge it without viewing. I have found some very interesting authors on her show. I don't need to agree with everything, but there is usually food for thought.
I used to feel off-put by Oprah recommended products. I don't want to be part of the herd, mindlessly following a celeb. But this show has interested me on more than one occasion.
Many self-help doctors are in it for the publicity and......... the celebrity. Self-help doctors, for the most part, are not ignorant. Many have doctorates in education such as Drs. Laura and Ruth while others have doctorates in psychology. Such doctors are very savvy in promoting their brand and are up on their game. They know that they will become rich in appealing to the largest audience.
However, there are some, like Dr. Phil, who are quite sincere in helping their clients. Dr. Phil had 30 years counseling patients before he become famous as a result of meeting Oprah who launched his career. According to sources, Dr. Phil has a net worth of $80 million dollars. Everything is a brand nowadays. In order to be widely successful, one has to be a good marketer. If one is not a good marketer, he/she will not be widely successful. To say that these doctors are ignorant is false, they are far from ignorant. One can say that if they can market their brand and make millions, they are extremely savvy.
The Philippines is on the list. We get stricken by typhoons, tsunami, volcanic eruptions, crocodiles in government, and poverty and you still see Filipinos smiling. Horrible!
I see my author score dropped to 82 and I am still smiling! Weird race!
Heheh!
I can agree with this... being in Philippines right now.... they keep their streets so, so clean, they behave themselves better on the roads than I have seen in many other Asian countries. They can be in poverty yet be looked after by family. They can be rich, yet look after those in the family are left poor for one reason or another.
A great country to be in....happy to be here.
People who live on the beach... until a tsunami hits.
Rich people, until they realize money can't buy them happiness.
Poor people, until they are so heavily taxed, they can't pay their bills.
Powerful people, until they don't get their way.
Beautiful people, until their shimmer wears off.
Talented people, until they become cliche.
Content people, until they... oh... they are content. They choose to be content at all times.
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Phil 4:12
Your words remind me of the scripture at
Reference Bible 2Co 4:7 However, we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the power beyond what is normal may be God’s and not that out of ourselves.
2Co 4:8 We are pressed in every way, but not cramped beyond movement; we are perplexed, but not absolutely with no way out;
2Co 4:9 we are persecuted, but not left in the lurch; we are thrown down, but not destroyed.
Reference Bible 2Co 4:10 Always we endure everywhere in our body the death-dealing treatment given to Jesus, that the life of Jesus may also be made manifest in our body.
Reference Bible 2Co 4:16 Therefore we do not give up, but even if the man we are outside is wasting away, certainly the man we are inside is being renewed from day to day.
Yes we can be content,
Reference Bible 1Ti 6:8 So, having sustenance and covering, we shall be content with these things.
Why be content?
King James Version Ps 145:16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.
We are waiting for this promise!
2 Peter 3:13 Byington 2Pe 3:13 but in accordance with his promise we expect new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness resides.
I read content people as - those writing good copy that gets lots of views lol. This reminds me of a funny story. My first husband was Dutch, and well versed in the English language.
At a multicultural European board meeting he agreed with a comment, saying, "I conquer!" Everyone was perplexed. He meant concur, but had never heard the word pronounced before.
I read content people the same way--those people who write for a content site.
I think we are spending too much time on HPs. We will probably never be content.
haha! Can you imagine the thoughts going thru their heads?
Happy was the young man who asked me to review a description of himself to a potential employer.
He described himself as a "well-manured young man."
Well that is the good thing about it all you chose. Even the choice to be happy.
Did you get the spelling, K&T ? That was the only reason I wrote the posting.
My pad skips and replaces letters . Some time I type fast. When I should proof read .
But Most people understand if they can tex .
You still didn't get it! Mannered, manured......try Google each word.
People with the combination of five factors: having a high level of health(physical, mental, and emotional), intelligence, wealth, power, and education. THOSE are the people who are happiest. CASE CLOSED!
I would think that the happiest people in the world would be those few cultures that remain that have not been heavily influenced by government, technology, education and religion!
Wicca is a religion. Does it not make you happy?
Imagine there's no heaven. Its easy if you try................................
Wicca is a spiritual path. What I practice does not have a religious group dictating how I conduct my rites with coven members. We are eclectic in our believes. We do not follow certain traditional Wiccan paths.
What I was talking about was organized religion. Those who push things upon others and destroy cultures. Never had a witch knock on my door to try and convert me, nor do I recall an witches arriving at some pristine, untouched island or location and try to sell Wicca to the natives there.
Those who have experienced great sadness.
Also those with regular bowel movements.
In my opinion, happy people aren't those who have billions in their account, have 10 concubines, 4 estates and duplexes or all the riches of this world but those who are content with what they have, understand patience and love and are being loved in return
That's true. I saw a documentary on this... it was called "Happy."
http://www.thehappymovie.com/
However, I have a friend who is Dutch and she is not a very happy camper.
She has lived in America for many years though, so maybe that is why she's so irritable.
I think the happiest people are those who devote a great amount of time to their family and friends, and thus get enough time to nurture and enjoy their relationship. They are the one who are optimistic about their future.
After some turbulent events about five years ago, I decided I preferred living on my own and would no longer enter into relationships. Ever since I made that decision, I feel supremely happy and totally content with my life. I may not be rich but I have enough to cover my needs and things I want to do. It took me decades to find that freedom is the most important factor in my life, but now I know this, I will never, ever compromise my freedom again.
Well in my view I'd say people who truly believe in Jesus Christ and has felt and found his love and forgiveness for all their past and present sins and trespasses. If we truly have an understanding of Christ of trials and temptations we will have a better view and response to life and no matter what bolder is thrown at us we should have that inner joy and happiness.
That will and can surpass all depressions, oppression etc. Not just happy in the sense of laughter or putting on a fake smile. But rather an eternal joy felt within that no matter what. U can hold your head up high and say hallelujah anyhow when life troubles comes your way. I am striving to be like that i haven't reach their 100% but by God's help i will be one of the Happiest persons in the world.
Thank you ladyfiddler I appreciate your comment !
I think those that make up their mind that happiness is a choice and discover that it comes from within are among the happiest people in the world.
Yes, I do believe it is a choice to be happy.
I believe those who have their own moral compass and don't rely on others to judge whether or not they are good people are happiest.
I read an article once that said that the one thing happy people do that others don't, is lie to themselves. I believe this is true. The lying occurs at some subconscious level where they process information. They understand the fragility of life, the reality of situations, and on and on, but they "lie" in what they tell themselves about it. Analytical people tend to find this very difficult to do. Laughing inside my head and thinking "Hey, why not just lie to myself about it?" makes me ironically feel more true to myself than telling myself to have a positive attitude about things.
I don't know if I am lying to myself, but some days I feel very off - views are off, sales are off, customers want to return everything and there is no hope...go back to bed; today is going to be a bad day, where everything goes wrong. Hide!
Other days it feels that I am on the right path. I just need to hunker down and keep moving the train.
I think happy people are those that are on the right path for themselves. Doors open, good things happen, these things may seem only good to them, and like nothing to others, but it makes them happy. When one is on their path, the one they were meant to follow with their dreams to fulfill, then one is truly happy.
I used to know a woman who did that. She'd be extremely rude to people and then say, "They'll get over it." It saved her from the trouble of saying she was sorry she was rude. It didn't take long for her to lose friends. Not sure what lie she told herself then.
She might have been happier than all of us ! I don't know. I just wish I could lie to myself just a little. It would make things so much easier
This also reminds me of a study they did on intelligence. The researchers tested peoples IQs in the 1970's, and then asked them how smart they thought they were. Most people thought they were pretty smart. Then they gave them their results...
Once those who were below the 100 mark were told they weren't very smart at all, they began to under achieve relative to their previous achievement levels. People tend to achieve at levels they think are appropriate to their perceived competence.
I would expect it works both ways. The researchers concluded it did more harm than good to give people their IQ scores.
I can't quote the study, but I remember that one group of teachers, at the beginning of the school year was told that her students were exceptionally bright. The other group of teachers were told that their students were below average. The groups of children in the study were all of average intelligence. Of course, as you might have guessed, the students whose teachers thought they were dealing with exceptionally bright students, acheived higher standardized test scores and the students whose teachers thought were below average performed below average. I'm sorry I can't remember the exact details of the study, but it's interesting to think about.
The happiest people in the world, are those who make it a point, every day, to bring joy to someone else.
Wealthy people, successful people, people who live life on THEIR OWN terms, and ONLY CHILDREN!
The happiest people are those who smile inside and love themselves inside 24 hours a day and pass both of these onto others. :-)
Have a nice day!
I like your positive reply! We all can learn from it ! Thank you Examiner.
You are welcome. I have learned since I started here. :-)
I'd add...
"...or those who choose not to because they have someone/something in their life that makes them choose to not to and be happier (while not being resentful)) for the choice they make that is right for them."
People's circumstances do not always allow for the same as others. Yet that is not saying it is bad to be without the conveniences others have. Some people can be happy with out the money and all the glam of this world. As long as they have shelter, a hot meal, and people that love them that is rich with in itself
Those that have it all have to worry about it being taken away, losing it in taxes, or worse robbery. Old saying never put all your eggs in one basket ! Because this system has failed before , namely the great depression. Something greater is coming.
Yes and I notice you show Oprah ! yes she is a successful woman in this life time. But have you listed all the pain and sorrow she has been through, that includes people that wanted to sue her, what about unhappiness about her weight? While many paint this picture of happiness! she battles her own trials and problems that money can not buy.
WTF - Are you kidding? Oprah is infinitely happy. She has Super Soul Sunday with all of the greatest feel good doctors on the planet, sitting with her for hours at a time, communing over how good it is to be alive. Oh and never mind your weight; let's all say yummy platitudes that get you through the day as one of the richest women on the planet, that needs for nothing and can have the joy of gifting anyone she chooses the greatest goods America has to offer.
What ever are you talking about??? Oprah is fine and FINE.
+1
Opera, is an example of excellence.
"Happy, joyous, and free."
Thank YOU, there are some who are totally..........AMISS! There are people who rationalize being poor and unsuccessful if that was a good thing, ABSURD at best and SAD at worst!
Solaras, +1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!!!! Oprah OWNS it! There are some who do not get it. Oprah has IT ALL and MORE. Why are people so envious of those who HAVE IT! It is analogous to the crab in the barrel mentality. There are THOSE who DON'T want and HATE for others to be successful, especially if others are MORE SUCCESSFUL than they are. It is further analogous to some who hate highly intelligent people, calling them nerds.
My advice: DON'T HATE, CREATE!
I am happy to see the positive in any situation .but really let's be realistic money can not buy everything.and so the rich can not buy their salvation ,they are just as everyone else. As the bible says.
But she is INFINITELY MORE HAPPY than an extremely impoverished or homeless person, C'MON NOW! Money BUYS and TALKS! Again, a person is struggling ISN'T happy at all. WEALTH= HAPPINESS, the MORE wealth, the MORE HAPPY!
Well I have known rich people and they are not happy so that believe does not fit all.
How many rich people take their life because of unhappiness.
Their money could not save them.
I am not aware of anyone who has taken their life because they had too much money. However, hundreds in Greece have taken their lives for a lack of money, once their retirement benefits were cut, and they could no longer afford to live in a home and also buy food.
I do not like to name names but there are many unhappy rich people. Robbin Williams just prove that point. And there are many more, Don Cornelius, Ana Nicole , many have turn to drugs to escape the pressure , and yet the drugs kill them instead. These are real.
OH BOY, OH BOY, there are MORE UNHAPPY poor people than there is UNHAPPY RICH people. You SEE it everyday, c'mon NOW! Stop glorifying poverty and being poor, there is NO POSITIVITY in these things!
Oh how could I forget Whitney Houston, and superman Reeves , Marilynn Monroe . There is old and a new lists . To add the stress of trying to live Rich is as real as being poor ! That people turn to drugs to cover it.
You may enjoy your wealth that you work hard for ,for there is nothing wrong with hard work. And there is nothing wrong enjoying the fruits of your labor.
But what is wrong is when you try to belittle people that do not have your circumstances .
And that is not because they did not work their potential, it could be they are handicap, their resources are not what you have.
Some people been given opportunities by their families, some by scholarships, some by donations.
But that is what is good enough for them.
Some people are not aware of their strength . Until they do let's always encourage never throw stones.
You are so right, we should cite some positive examples like Michael Milken, and Ivan Boesky! I bet they were really happy being rich in prison.
So you actually acknowledge that there ARE unhappy rich people, Robin Williams being a giant famous example, when before you acted like you didn't know what Kiss andTales was talking about. Of course there are more unhappy poor people than rich people.
There are FAR more 'poor' people than rich people.
There are probably more happy poor people than rich people too, depending on what happiness means to you.
Poor people who are in their right thinking minds AREN'T happy. The rationalization that poor people are happy is just delusional thinking. No one is happy living at a subsistent level, struggling from day to day , really NOW!
Robin Williams had Parkinson's disease and Lewy body dementia which causes, "progressive decline in mental abilities, as well as visual hallucinations, which generally take the form of objects, people or animals that aren't there." It is likely he was not in his right mind when he took his life.
Ana Nicole Smith was emotional disturbed long before she married any money. She made up a new name for herself and told people invented stories about herself and family that appalled her relatives while she was still in high school. She later left her well paying job at Walmart to become a stripper.
Marilyn Monroe was also disturbed prior to becoming a celebrity. Her mother was forcible removed to the State mental health asylum; Marilyn became a ward of the state and was placed in a series of foster care homes.
Don Cornelius was born with a congenital brain disorder. 15 years before his death, he used his money to have a surgery to correct the condition. However, in the last year of his life, he was now suffering seizures regularly, and was finding it difficult to cope with them as he aged. He was found by his son, who had rushed to see him when his father told him he did not think he could take much more of the pain. Curiously, although Cornelius shot himself in the head, there was no gun residue detected on his hands when he was autopsied.
Phillip Seymour Hoffman was a drug addict long before he found celebrity, although he had managed to stay recovered for 25 years prior to relapse.
I think you will find many more drug addicts on crack an meth among the lower classes, because it is their form of escape to feeling good about life. Many of the drug addicts that are successful, were addicts prior to achieving success. Success affords them the ability to go to nice recovery spas, and kick their habit.
+1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. It is futile to present a logical argument to those who rationalize the poverty lifestyle. Remember what the comedian Ron White stated. You cannot change those who believe that poverty is good and use wealth to explain every failing. Such people either no clue, have an extremely myopic, and/or delusional mindset. It is like rationalizing the importance of study to a D to F student.
While such people love to detail the foibles of the wealthy. Let us present a counteragument, that is how being poor and/or impoverished cause people to do certain things. Poverty causes poor parents to force their children to work in order to supplement family income: noted examples: (1) Joe Jackson, a poor steelworker, pushed his children to work early in order to make ends meet. The Jacksons worked from childhood, not because they wanted to but because they were seen as extra income by their poor parents. This resulted in Michael Jackson having no normative childhood which he continuously searched for. (2)Judy Garland's mother, who was poor, forced Judy into show business as a way of making ends meet. Judy also had no childhood. (3) Jodie Foster was the sole support of her family.
There are poor children who go into crime as they feel that there is no hope in the legitimate world. Many strippers and prostitutes come from poor to impoverished families; they take such jobs because their socioeconomic background precluded them from obtaining decent education. There are poor children who harass and shake down other children for such items such as sneakers and jackets. There are women who are mugged because the mugger wants the money to feed his family. There are also poor children who shake down other children for money. Solaras, these distractors have a hatred of the wealth in that anything negative they did, they EXAGGERATE it while overlooking the same if it occurs among the poor.
P.S. What the distractors fail to or won't realize nor acknowledge is that wealthy people add to the economy through the creation of jobs and businesses. Also they have the monies to create institutions for the common and social good. Poor people are unable to do this. Wealthier people have more political clout through their economic influence and leverage while poor people are powerless. Simple mathematical logic. Well I guess that the distractors fell asleep in logic class as well as history and economics classes. Solaras, again an intelligent voice. Nice discussing things with you.
THANK YOU. When will people realize that money means freedom from financial woes which lead to other psychosocial, even psychological woes. Being socioeconomically poor means never having enough, being OWNED/a slave, constantly worrying about the rudiments. Solaras, anyone who makes such a negative remark should be MADE to be homeless and in socioeconomic penury for SIX MONTHS TO ONE YEAR, THAT will change their tune in a hurry! "MANY" rich people commit suicide, really now, just a rationalization of the poverty mindset and mentality that many people unfortunately have. There is so SUCH MUCH HATE against the successful, affluent, and wealthy in our midst. I smell.........ENVY in that remark, DON'T you, Solaras?
These threads are always so... interesting. How do we decide who is the happiest? Do any of you personally know these rich and famous people? Why do we decide that someone who is not rich and famous cannot be happy. That's ridiculous. Money does not buy happiness. It buys things and opportunities. And then they want more. Look at how many wealthy people have addiction problems. Rich or poor, addiction is about wanting more, not feeling fulfilled. I think happiness comes in many different ways and means something different at various stages of our lives.
Remember the Big Stock Market Crash! Who jumped out the windows to their death? It was the average Joe, the poor families who struggled, who survived and who found ways to stay happy!
Are you remembering the Good Ole Days of the Great Depression? That's when my mother grew up in New York City; I can share some happy stories from the old neighborhood in Brooklyn with you.
Yes, that happy time when fathers got sick of seeing their hungry kids and imploring wives and jumped on a boxcar never to be seen again. When mothers prostituted themselves for a bag of groceries from Sloppy Joe down the street, and men stood on the street corner trying to sell apples that no one was buying because they could not afford 5 cents for an apple. Good Times indeed.
Look at all these happy people on Christmas day 1931 - they are waiting on a breadline, where they appear to be enjoying a laugh riot.
Ironic, there are some who would, no doubt, call those people "layabouts."
Greed is wanting and taking more than my fair share.
Selfishness is disregarding the needs of my neighbour and putting my own wants first.
Up to around the mid-1880s, children could be punished severely, sometimes by death, for stealing a loaf of bread....because they were desperately hungry. A mother or father could be imprisoned and deported (to the "Colonies") for desperately stealing a small amount of food to feed his/her family.
While those who usually had plenty, but wanted more because of their greed, were the ones casting judgment and punishment on the poor.
Each of us can look to our individual circumstances and decide what, for "me," would make me really happy.... and it's most unlikely to be anything material in nature.
Indeed, greed is taking more than you, or 5 generations of your descendants, could ever spend in a lifetime, and hoarding it in bank accounts in the Caymen Islands. Greed is refusing to pay your fair share in taxes, and ultimately cutting your own nose off to spite your face. Who on this planet can afford to buy your goods, if the American consumer is destitute.
I don't like poverty, and I don't think the impoverished lay about, dancing happy jigs as is often depicted in black-face vaudeville.
This iconic image pretty much sums up my idea of the joys to be experienced in poverty.
Make no mistake; "happiness" like this can't buy you money.
For sure, despite what I have said above, an un-hungry stomach, a comfortable and safe place to put my head at night and good friends around me for support would be the ultimate happiness.
+1
I would only add, a good family, to what you said @jonnycomelately
Family to me is the center wheel where things are conceived, or not.
Solaras, there are THOSE who glorify being poor and impoverished. These souls even rationalize "how happy" they were being poor. Solaras, be STRONG, there is no use in explaining socioeconomic logic and reality to such people, it is an exercise in UTTER FUTILITY. Those people are IN DENIAL, IN FANTASYLAND, and PLAIN JUST DID NOT KNOW ANY BETTER. To them, it is better to have such fantastical ideas about being impoverished and poor than to FACE what it is REALLY like being poor. If being poor was so good, why do so many people want to escape poverty, make sacrifices to become middle class and better. The logic of some people really astound me Solaras.
Oh yes Solaras my dear, those same people were probably asleep during history class. In poor neighborhood, it is a proliferation of crime which is unheard of in wealthier neighborhoods. Being poor makes parents take their children out of school, hindering those children's chances of socioeconomic success thus condemning those children into poverty; makes mothers sell their children into nefarious forms of crime in order to make ends meets; children going to criminal activities because to them, that is the only way for a better life;inferior health care, food, and housing. What are those people 'thinking"? Oops, they ARENT'!
Yes that is what I am talking about ! No one is saying this is a good thing to be poor. But it is a bad thing to look down on the poor . Because the rich can be poor one day ,all that can change by your Government.
Oh YEAH, they sure waz happy, being on the breadline and in Hoovervilles, after being thrown out of their homes. Living in cars............going from place to place to place........Sure, waz happy, OH BOY! Believe that and there is a bridge in Brooklyn for $5.00 for sale!
They was alive when many became sick . Again this could be you in the future. So do not judge it wrong.
There is no such clear definition of 'happy people'. I strongly believe your thoughts make you happy. So, if your heart is content then you are happy. If you love yourself then you are happy. In a nutshell, its positive vibes or feelings which make us happy.
Again, the HAPPIEST people in the world who those who have socioeconomic OWNERSHIP. They have complete financial freedom. They do not have to worry about being 1-3 paychecks from poverty and homelessness. If one is 4-5 paychecks from poverty and/or homelessness, there is a little bit more security.
Now if one is AT LEAST 6-8 paychecks from poverty and homelessness, now that is socioeconomic security-having monies with savings in addition to investments! Wealthy people have power and influence; they also have a VERY HIGH quality of life. Economics is the MAIN LEVERAGE as to whom is the HAPPIEST. Money does buy happiness, believe it or not.
The majority of people are socioeconomic slaves of one sort or another especially the impoverished, poor, and lower middle classes. To a lesser extent, the solidly middle and upper middle classes, even though they have somewhat more leverage, have very little socioeconomic freedom and leverage as the wealthier socioeconomic classes DO. All these classes are steps away from poverty and/or homelessness if their socioeconomic bottom falls out. They are still socioeconomic SLAVES even though they are loathe to acknowledge this, oftentimes living in socioeconomic rose colored worlds. SLAVES aren't really happy, they think that they ARE; that is the delusional thing about it but that isn't reality!
+1 And a serious deficit of cash causes strain on one's health and relationships. Constant stress actually causes brain damage; the brain cannot regenerate itself. People who are constantly wondering how they will pay their mounting bills are not able to really relax and be happy. When you cannot meet your basic needs, one becomes desperate, irritable and depressed.
THANK YOU, an intelligent answer and an intelligent, savvy person. Why are some so myopically clueless regarding the principle of even simple economics? Those people really gall me! Again, thank you for your intelligent response! Really, the people who contends that economics DOESN'T matter in the ratio to happiness NEED an education!
+1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!
It's amazing that the human race survived before we invented money, huh Solaras?
Ummmm... Are you suggesting that it is an option to dress ourselves in squirrel skins and live off the land (owned by ConAgra), picking berries and trapping raccoons for dinner? It's called trespassing, and you are not allowed to take up residence in National parks either.
All land is owned now; you don't just get to go live off of it. If you want to live without money; you will need some to buy yourself land to live on, and tools with which to hunt and garden.
Regarding how we survived before money; well that would be the cavemen, because we have been using some form of money for 10,000 years. How did we survive before that? By being the most aggressive primates that killed off their competition.
Solaras, educating some people regarding civilized standards of living is an exercise in utter futility. It is analogous to a Roman educating a Hun regarding the benefits of art and culture! Let such people keep their poverty mindset. A poverty mindset ensures poverty living. They simply refuse to learn. As my late father stated , some people are VERY HARD to learn. Unfortunately, we have such people among us.
Solaras, you and I live in the real world when economics matter; I really do not know nor care what world our distractors live in. Maybe they need a dose of reality-they should be forced to be penniless and homeless for ONE YEAR. After a year, they will CHANGE their tune that it is SO GOOD to live in poverty and want! Remember the adage, there are TYPES of people to stay away from........repeat that mantra.
Also, further remember what the comedian Ron White said about the same people...... You simply CANNOT educate them. Let them wallow in their poverty consciousness...........in other words, let them .....SINK, you and I will be....FINE. It is total astounding that grown people really do not know nor care to know the principles of elementary economics. Well, these are the people who will be always at the socioeconomic periphery of society; being on the outside, looking in. Yes, these are the people who should be homeless, especially in the winter months, for a while. They(perhaps) WOULD learn then or maybe not. They could probably adopt homelessness as a normative lifestyle, hmmmmm.
"Ummmm... Are you suggesting that it is an option to dress ourselves in squirrel skins and live off the land (owned by ConAgra), picking berries and trapping raccoons for dinner? "
Interesting, I didn't say any of that, that was your invention and I'm not sure where it came from. The point is, happiness can exist outside of being 'rich', although both the terms 'rich' and 'poor' would have to be thoroughly defined. Having a conversation without doing so is pretty useless.
I would have to agree that people won't be too happy if they can't afford a minimal level of sustenance. Every organism has an inherent need for food, water, and shelter. But of course, you can have those things and be considered 'poor' by someone's definition. There are civilizations that exist that do not live in our modern economic system, as did humans before the advent of it. If they were all 'miserable' I'm certain that would lower their breeding success and they would cease to exist.
Health problems like depression and suicide have likely increased with modernization. Part of it has to do with lack of ignorance, which is why I said on another post that happiness will increase with delusion or naivety. Many people are depressed BECAUSE of the attitude you and GM push; people feeling like failures for not being successful with with wealth and status. I'm not saying living off the land is a resolution to this, I'm just stating facts. Rich people are NOT exempt from falling victim to aspects of modernization that lead to depression or 'unhappiness'. If anyone here believes that some celebrity must be happy because they smile on the camera, they are very, very naive.
If R.Williams wasn't dead right now, I'd bring him up and you'd claim he was happy. It is their JOB to appear happy to the commoners. We don't know anything about these people, and you are just indulging in a fantasy.
You are the one indulging a fantasy. Please go back and read through all of the posts here; the ones stating as fact that money causes people to become drug addicts and commit suicide. Then we were given lists of unhappy successful people who killed themselves in spite/because of their wealth. Their money had nothing to do with it - all those listed had underlying conditions that led to their suicides.
I never stated that you had to be wealth to be happy. I said that money does not cause people to commit suicide or become drug addicts. Having money is not a bad thing. Money makes everything possible - lack of money causes strains on health and relationships. Money gives you access to the best doctors, lack of money gets you a fraction of the health care that people actually need to be healthy. That's tough for poor people whose children have serious medical conditions that they can't afford to treat. Or those whose cancer recurs, but since they have not paid their last round of staggering treatment bills, Sloane Kettering refuses to treat them again.
Neither of us promoting that you must be wealthy and have status to be happy, but we also don't accept the ridiculous notion that having money is bad for your health or makes you want to kill yourself.
Solaras true of the words you speak but my statement was not that money caused their sickness , my statement was money did not save the situation. It was not the cure to the problems . Money has it place . But it not the answer to everyone's happiness.
"You are the one indulging a fantasy. "
Uh, why?
"the ones stating as fact that money causes people to become drug addicts and commit suicide."
In my opinion they got confused with FAME and wealth. I think being in the public eye is insurmountably stressful. Micheal Jackson for example. I never endorsed that line of thinking. This thread is about who is the 'happiest', and I know at least GM is suggesting that the more rich/powerful you are, the happier you are. If money was so important for happiness, then you think it would stop people with giant amounts from suffering the same way the normies suffer, but it doesn't.
Being rich doesn't allow you to by a decent marriage (my guess would be this would cause many riches unhappiness). There is MORE to happiness than being physically healthy, and sometimes dissatisfaction in a relationship or ideology leads to bad health (stress), and expensive doctors can't do diddly to help you with that.
And, you perpetuated the logic that celebs who smile on camera are happy by logic of 'they have money and I haven't seen them look sad so they are happy', and I pointed out the ridiculousness of that. It is your preconceived ideas about what happiness is that is a denial of reality. The celebs that drugged out or killed themselves are shoved in our faces, we won't learn about the non-famous richs that are depressed. And, there's FAR less richies than poor people. That should tell you something.
This fantasy among others:
"And, you perpetuated the logic that celebs who smile on camera are happy by logic of 'they have money and I haven't seen them look sad so they are happy', and I pointed out the ridiculousness of that. It is your preconceived ideas about what happiness is that is a denial of reality. "
This is not something that I think or have ever stated. Also, I never said that money inoculated you from ever experiencing life's ups and downs, but it sure helps cushion the blows.
I have been very rich and pretty poor. I can tell you for a fact, that I am much happier when I have money, than when I do not.
When my car is breaking down, I am happy to be able to have it repaired. Not being able to have it repaired makes me unhappy. Sitting on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck makes me UNHAPPY. Buying a new car that is under warranty and unlikely to breakdown for several years makes me HAPPY. Being able to afford simple things in life makes people HAPPY. Money buys all kinds of happiness.
HELL YEAH, MONEY BUYS HAPPINESS. Solaras, Melissa and K&T exemplify the culture of poverty and failure. It is an utter waste of time educating them. Leave them to their morass. One loves to quote illogicality and the other has an utopian premise. Melissa and K&T epitomizes the average poor person who is happy in his/her impoverishment, hating and disdaining the more successful!
A robber said to a victim ! Your money or your life!
Some people will not depart with money.
Money should never hold that kind of power over people.
You are amazingly adept at presenting inverse logic in your argument, my dear. Well, if the robber was not poor and had wealth, he/she would not be ROBBING! You do TRY, I give that to you.....but you continuously FAIL my dear! So stop, this is not your forte! No matter how hard you try to dismiss wealth, it just does not work, my dear one!
Among others? What others? Don't be shy.
You stated:
"WTF - Are you kidding? Oprah is infinitely happy. She has Super Soul Sunday with all of the greatest feel good doctors on the planet, sitting with her for hours at a time, communing over how good it is to be alive. Oh and never mind your weight; let's all say yummy platitudes that get you through the day as one of the richest women on the planet, that needs for nothing and can have the joy of gifting anyone she chooses the greatest goods America has to offer."
Your logic: I've seen Oprah with feel good doctors talking about positive things. She gives people gifts. She's the richest woman on the planet. She has access to the greatest goods.
THAT is your argument for her happiness. Not just happiness but 'infinite happiness'. You immediately bought into the fakeness of 'self-help' doctors and their white-washed smiles. To have that type of profession, it wouldn't surprise me if they were happy if they are anywhere near as ditzy as they appear.
Again I will reiterate, it is their occupation to smile on the camera and appear to be happy. Our society has an obsession with a fake 'happy' exterior shell. It is a requirement for social acceptance and even more so for TV personalities. You can't tell who's happy and who isn't. You know nothing about these people. Their success is derived from being giant fakes. My sister is driven by this same attitude and glorifies success in having a deceptive, pleasing exterior while it is rotten on the inside. Many of the most successful people in the world, I'd wager are sociopathic, because that kind of attitude is what helps people claw their way to the top, without qualities like empathy to get in their way.
Our society's constant striving for 'happiness' and money are what creates stress and mental illness in many people. People feel like -failures-. You can still HAVE money to tow your car and suffer from this stress. What do you hope to achieve by telling people that their unhappiness without a lot of money is justified?
Ouch, I smell......I smell........HATER. The hater and negater antenna is in full gear here! There are none so blind as those who refuse to see. Poverty does not buy happiness. Being poor is a pathological way to live. Wealth affords a better way of life both mentally, physically, and psychologically. Melissa, don't play psychological games. That is what you are doing, continuously using psychological bait. YOU KNOW BETTER, get real here!
People, at least intelligent people, want socioeconomic success. Only those with a morbid poverty consciousness want to remain the same socioeconomically. Don't hate on the wealthy. They are to be emulated. I give it to Oprah and the others who are making theirs and others lives better. All you and K &T are doing, are making useless, self-serving platitudes on the virtues of poverty. That is OLD and DESTRUCTIVE thinking! GIVE IT UP!
Hating and jealousy are a toxic way to live. Instead of hating, make YOUR OWN life socioeconomically better. Rationalizations and platitudes about poverty are totally baseless, even useless at best and detrimental, even toxic at worst. The culture of poverty and being poor is not pretty at all. Poverty means lack; no one wants lack.
It seems to me that we are all talking theoretically here. Who amongst us is "poor" or "impoverished?"
We all have computers, access to the Internet, education that allows us to write a reasonable argument, the time to discuss and respond. This is heaven! compared with the lives of truly desperate people.
VERY TRUE INDEED, +1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000-it's GREAT and REFRESHING to see you here, Jonny. It is a respite from the religious forum threads.
Nope, sorry, I still believe in the arguments I've presented here, despite your CAPS, photos, name-calling, and emotional outbursts. I'm interested in direct refutations to what I've presented, not misrepresentative strawmans about what I'm saying.
TV is the WORST medium to present happiness of a celeb. Things like a celeb committing suicide are profound indicators of a person's happiness over cued gleaming white teeth in front of the camera and PR-team moderated rhetoric.
Again, there are none so blind as those who WON'T see. Believe in your poverty laced philosophies. That is YOUR business, not mine. See how far your poverty/failure mindset and psychology will get you? I'll......WAIT.... You are the one with the illogical premise, that rich people are somehow lacking while poor people are not.
Also I remember the unhappiness that racism brought to Oprah on her show one season . I remember a pacific person white told her not to touch him. Was that something to be happy about people hating you rather you are rich . I remember the O J case rich people mind you . How sad. And what about the many others who come up in tabloids with more divorces then average Sad. Money did not buy happiness then. Sad you can not see what we see!
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, utter balderdash! Jealousy is toxic my dear. Improve your life and stop hating and worrying about wealthy people. This is getting OLD.......and TIRED. Why don't you improve your socioeconomic life, stop hating on the rich. They AREN'T thinking about you!
And guess what ! I been living just happy and find with out them ,or your so called rich status
I did not need them coming here and I do not need them now I 'm strait. But maybe you should ask the people that came to a New reality from unforeseen situations, about what it means to be rich. And I will guarantee they will not say money did the Job it was the heart that moved them to love their neighbors
Some where you lost that.
First of all, I am not looking to be antagonistic with you. However, I feel you keep misinterpreting what I am saying. This may well be my own fault.
When I refer to Oprah's "feel good doctors," I am not denigrating them. What is wrong with them helping people to feel good? Have you watched Super Soul Sunday? These people are spiritual, as is Oprah, and they commune over what is the right direction for the soul - what brings true happiness and what is an illusion of happiness. I think she is well on the path to finding spiritual joy. I would not hold her up as an example of celebrity misery, which was what brought me into the conversation in the first place.
Having piles of money allows Oprah to give gifts to the poor, the needy and those in need of a special grant to achieve their life's desires. Is it not a better feeling to give than to receive?
I don't imagine Oprah's life is without pain or misfortune, however she has worked hard to be able to achieve a life that can give to others and to personally enjoy financial freedom to do anything she pleases. That is the kind of thing that makes people happy. Not all of the time, but a lot of the time.
That what is it all about. Having the wealth not only to make one's individual life better but to make other's lives better also. Also it is having enough money to socioeconomically safeguard one's descendants. Having the wealth means economic leverage for one's communities.
It was great discussing this with you. No hard feelings at all. I want everyone to have a good socioeconomic life without struggle. I feel that this one day will be possible in the United States, if not in my lifetime but somewhere in the not so distant future. Let's hope, shall we. This old curmudgeon humbly apologize to you for her actions. God bless and have a Blessed Night. We all have the potential to do great things and to make A MARK on this world.
Yes, a good socioeconomic life for all; unfortunately it has been going in the wrong direction for several decades. We may no longer have a middle class soon. And then it will be sad for .01% to have 98% of the wealth and the rest of us living like they did in the "Golden Age."
You are right. The middle class as we know is being slowly decimated. If this continues, America will sadly enter a New Gilded Age for the very, very few and the Dark Ages for the majority.
Well...we can now be comforted by the knowledge that many will find happiness in abject penury.
Money is the root of all evil and a distraction from true happiness. So it has been written. And after all, isn't the good of the few outweighed by the good of the many (those gratified with destitution)? I can now look forward to the times when everyone is penniless, evicted and unable to afford birthday or Christmas presents for their children.
Good times ahead.
Reference Bible 1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all sorts of injurious things, and by reaching out for this love some have been led astray from the faith and have stabbed themselves all over with many pains.
Not the root of evil.
Because the bible does say money can be a protection.
Reference Bible Ec 7:12 For wisdom is for a protection [the same as] money is for a protection; but the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom itself preserves alive its owners.
Wisdom is more valuble then money.
I would agree - wisdom is more valuable than money; but as the quote says money has its value too in protection. Clever - and that seals the deal. Money has its value, and often preserves the lives of it's owners.
Eloquently and succinctly stated indeed. Good night to you ladies.
Now that you good folks are all tucked up nicely in bed, maybe I will get a word in edgeways.
"Poor people are unhappy, believe it or not." Some poor people might be unhappy, but it does not follow that all poor people will be unhappy. I see people all around me, in a culture that has lots of tradition, lots of superstition (called religion, btw), lots of mouths to feed, not much cash which has to be shared out amongst the millions. Yet, I see them heaps more happy than the average Australian or American citizen.
" Wealthy people are happier because their quality of life is better." Some wealthy people are happier... but it does not follow that all wealthy people will be happy.
Also, it does not follow that simply because a person or an industrial company is successful and owns heaps of money, he/she will be a miser, corrupt or mean and uncaring. The possession of heaps of money, all at one time, can have the power to construct something that will be extremely valuable to the community, whereas the same amount of money coming in drifts and drabs lacks that executive ability.
Being "poor" is relative to what the observer enjoys, not necessarily in poverty. Poverty is being really down on your shoe leather to the point of having no shoes, socks, warm clothing, food in your belly and no intimate friendship to share you life with. If you want to know what that really feels like, go and live the life, just for 2 weeks.
Hi Johnny:
This was one of my original points:
"Being "poor" is relative to what the observer enjoys, not necessarily in poverty. Poverty is being really down on your shoe leather to the point of having no shoes, socks, warm clothing, food in your belly and no intimate friendship to share you life with. If you want to know what that really feels like, go and live the life, just for 2 weeks."
Someone was lauding the happiness of the most impoverished of the Great Depression, and I had to take exception. That was a bleak time, and not one with a sense of community. There was so little to go around, one could hardly find a way to share at the expense of their own families.
My mother still cries when she thinks about the hardships; the men without a way to even think of or find a way out of their family's poverty, and the bleak image of men begging on the streets with an apple as their excuse for asking for a handout. Times were so hard for so many years; it came to a point where no one thought it would end. A near decade of hardship in cities, and farms without soil from the dust bowl.
It took a world war and 30 millions lives lost to make people optimistic in this country again. And that is how the world turns...
And this point:
"Also, it does not follow that simply because a person or an industrial company is successful and owns heaps of money, he/she will be a miser, corrupt or mean and uncaring. The possession of heaps of money, all at one time, can have the power to construct something that will be extremely valuable to the community, whereas the same amount of money coming in drifts and drabs lacks that executive ability."
I completely agree with.
+1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 to Solaras. Solaras, you are right on target as usual. You have presented an intelligent synopsis of the situation at hand. What you have presented are the bare socioeconomic facts! It is quite perplexing that Melissa and K&T fail to acknowledge this fact.
@ Melissa and K&T, let's live in the real world, okay, not the fantastical utopia! I am going to interject that money is commensurate to happiness. One needs a certain amount to money to have a civilized standard of living. Wealth means unlimited financial freedom, widen variety of life choices, higher quality and variety of services such as education, health/medical, and dental services. Wealth means better quality of food and living in a better neighborhood.
Wealthier neighborhoods have lesser incidents of crime than poorer neighborhoods, just saying, hmmmmm. Socioeconomic wealth is highly commensurate to happiness. That is why one tries to attain a tertiary level of education and beyond. That is why poorer children push hard to become socioeconomically successful. NO ONE in his/her logical thinking mind wants to be socioeconomically poor and struggling! Smart people want to be as SOCIOECONOMICALLY WEALTHY as possible! It is absurd, even insane, to want to be socioeconomically poor. No one wants to be a .......FAILURE!
Understood and you explained very well ! I will add an example to what you mean. If I am sick .then money would provide the best Doctor. true! But on the other hand it depends on the doctor not to mal practice
Like people who have money to buy cosmetic surgeries.and they foul up.
True money can pick some beautiful choice neighborhoods , but you could be living next door to serial killer .
that may be rich as you ,or a burglar who looks for opportunities .
Reference Bible Mt 6:19 “Stop storing up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break in and steal.
Reference Bible Mt 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
To be rich has it advantages but their is still the fine print that has it cautions and problems.
And problems means unhappiness.
What convoluted logic you present in your synopsis! Still drinking THE kool aid! There is NOTHING wrong with wanting to be socioeconomically wealthy! Can you ABSORB that fact?! Being poor AIN'T glorious! Please LEARN this! Poverty isn't beautiful. Boy, you have inverse logic! A savvy 8 year old knows BETTER than to downgrade being socioeconomically successful. Being socioeconomically poor is INFINITELY MORE PROBLEMATIC than ever being wealthy is! Poor neighborhoods are cesspools for crime, not wealthy ones! There are more pathologies associated with being poor and being impoverished! When will YOU EVER LEARN?!
To gmwilliams if that is your happiness then so let it be. But what makes others is not based on your opinions or your analyst. I do not live my life unhappy because somebody got something I do not have.
Life is to short to focus on what may be available to all in this system.
Jesus was not poor yet he was not rich. He was born the Son of God rich in understanding and royalty
Yet he did not use that power to flaunt or throw it in people's face. Instead he fed the poor, he healed the sick, and raised people who had died back to life. He used what he had to show love. There is no love in trying to make people feel you are inferior because of money. Money means nothing as billy dee said or success if you have no one to share it with. Money can not buy true love. Fake friends ,fake relationships, and fake situations people think money will buy. When it is gone so it goes too!
I hope the best for you but you can not tell people what makes them happy when only they can answer that for themself.
I believe that every person has a right to success. I do not want to see poor people in this world. Everyone should have a life of socioeconomic dignity, not socioeconomic want. I do not want others to suffer and go hungry and have the worst of services because of socioeconomic lack. I want all humans to have a high quality of life. No human should live an inhuman existence because of poverty. God created abundance and wants everyone to have such abundance. If I had my way, everyone would be successful and have a life of worth. I want to see EVERYONE become SUCCESSFUL!
You know that's not possible, right? Not without some pretty terrible human rights violations.
I am happy to hear you say that you want all people to have success ! Because that is what I mean.
But the reality is humans do not control everything . Jesus proved that. Because he said the ruler of this world is coming and has no hold on him .
But he does for those that live here.
New World Translation Lu 4:5 So he brought him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the inhabited earth in an instant of time.
New World Translation Lu 4:6 Then the Devil said to him: “I will give you all this authority and their glory, because it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.
Reference Bible Mt 4:9 and he said to him: “All these things I will give you if you fall down and do an act of worship to me.”
New World Translation 1Jo 2:16 because everything in the world—the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the showy display of one’s means of life—does not originate with the Father, but originates with the world.
People worship satan not being aware they are ! So money still has a place that it should not be president over other things namely love.
What a NEGATIVELY GREY way of looking at things. Everyone CAN be successful and ethically also. Your premise belongs to the Dark Ages. The world has abundance and enough for everyone to achieve success and not be in poverty. There is NO EXCUSE for anyone to be impoverished and living a less than a full human life! You do indeed a very dim view of humankind. Poverty is an inherent pathology, not a normative lifestyle.
" I am going to interject that money is commensurate to happiness. One needs a certain amount to money to have a civilized standard of living."
I believe that this is a severely a simplistic view. So many other factors are involved.
Happiest people are those, who are mentally retarded. They don't have to care for the affairs of the world. They are just happy and busy in their own world. Otherwise, no one is happy? Could it be?
I find your comment offensive. There are professional actors with Downs Syndrome.
Einstein and others had learning disabilities, yet look at what they accomplished.
I have a family member, whom you have labeled, can read, write, use a computer, and carry on an intelligent conversation.
There are others whom you have labeled that live on their own, and hold down jobs.
I have worked with these people in a hospital. They showed up for work and were on time. They did their jobs correctly. They took pride in their work. I guess some people better hope they never go to the hospital because these people prepare the meals that you will eat, and clean the rooms that you will be admitted to.
The ones that are mentally retarded are the ones that make comments such as the one I am replying to.
By the way, my relative, even as a child, will tell you that she is no different than anyone else.
I used that M R word years ago. A child, with your label, spoke up and said, "Excuse me, I am not mentally retarded, I am mentally challenged."
I am, that’s who and I’ll tell you why…
It’s because I'm awfully grateful for the air in my lungs and the legs that I stand on; the roof over my head and the food on my table. The facts that I'm not surrounded by a life threatening epidemic or a terminal illness (yet) are all reasons alone to smile every day. And maybe, just maybe I'm also grateful that the people who fill my day with love and laughter all have their hearts beating.
Maybe I'm retarded, maybe I'm ignorant to the world and her troubles, but sometimes I think ignorance is bliss.
I don’t live in a Disney movie, I'm not rich or beautiful, but I'm far from being a miserable deluded old fart. I am verging on the edge of bankruptcy and am getting nowhere fast with writing, but I have hope and keep struggling on. If I didn't surround myself with the reasons that I'm happy, I’d probably be in another realm by now.
Except for the bankruptcy, I second that. :-)
"The perfection of wisdom, and the end of true philosophy is to proportion our wants to our possessions, our ambitions to our capacities, we will then be a happy and a virtuous people."
- "The Enemy Conquered; or, Love Triumphant" by Mark Twain
I agree. One's own personal philosophy, whether it be Buddhist, Taoist, or whatever and a positive view of themselves will bring about contentment in life.
Babies, delusional/naive people, rich people, poor people .........
Overall, Happiness is a choice. You have to choose to be happy in this world we live in. Its not necessarily who? Its more like how and why?
I guess happy people are
Content
Realistic (and optimistic)
Don't try to control things that they can't
Open to change and don't resist it too much
Have a inner confidence/accept their flaws
Depends on their inner core, inner personality and inner values/beliefs to be happy (They don't put their happiness on other people, materialistic things, and situations. They know that they are the only ones that can make themselves happy)
Emotionally, financially, socially mature
Know how to be both independent and interdependent (and vice versa)
Also happiness is subjective. It depends on the person, and every individual has a different definition of happiness. That definition can change with age and is constantly being defined
"delusional/naive people"
+1000000000000000000
POWERFUL people, in fact, THE MOST POWERFUL people are THE HAPPIEST, no doubt about it!
They OWN it!
"Again, there are none so blind as those who WON'T see. Believe in your poverty laced philosophies. That is YOUR business, not mine. See how far your poverty/failure mindset and psychology will get you? I'll......WAIT.... You are the one with the illogical premise, that rich people are somehow lacking while poor people are not."
I am not blind just because I refuted you and you resorted to strawmans and insults. You live in your own little world.
If you and K&T were penniless and homeless for AT LEAST a year and in the winter months, you two would change your tune regarding socioeconomic wealth. You two would come to the intelligent realization that socioeconomic wealth buys happiness and most of all, freedom from want. You both have it twisted, very twisted. If you two were suddenly penniless and homeless, the view that you hold on socioeconomic wealth would be moot. You both would have a REALITY CHECK and a good one too!
Grow up the both of you, socioeconomic wealth is the main thing that counts in this society! Both your arguments are laughable, inane, and totally fallacious. Melissa, you live in New York and you know better than to have a negative opinion about money. In New York, the more money, the better. At least with money, one does not have to worry about being displaced because of gentrification and can be at ease at the constant rise in living. How NAIVE! I know that K&T is like an innocent child who is clueless about the world, she can be overlooked but you, as a New Yorker, knows that money talks and talks volumes. Stop this inanity.
The fact is you do not understand my argument. You are still tackling strawmans. My wants and desires do not necessarily correlate with my health.
Melissa, I understand the STRAWMAN very well. But, I am not sure of how you are referring to the STRAWMAN in this thread. Perhaps you could enlighten me, and others.
It would help me to understand your argument. I have no need to be right, or prove anyone wrong, I just like being able to follow along with understanding.
I never argued that I, myself, do not prefer to have money or that removal of money equates with happiness. I argued that money alone doesn't create happiness, it is one tiny piece of a complex puzzle. Humans in the modern world are stressed, as knowledge often comes with a price.
I am against the idea that money correlates with happiness. You would probably find more happiness with someone with a 'reasonable' amount of money and security with their job and relationship, as opposed to a mega-rich person lacking one of those elements. I think happiness would also correlate with ignorance and naivety. I would wager that members of societies we would consider oppressive, primitive, or archaic would be happier than us (blissful ignorance). Notice that this doesn't mean I endorse them, in fact, it is why I stand up against the idea that everyone should stop thinking and just be happy.
Gottacha'! I know you were not arguing the STRAWMAN. I just did not understand how or why you were using the term in your comments.
I am over 50 my dear far from a child ! And believe me I have seen and looked at both sides .
The wisdom of it all is not the money , not what you own or have , it is how you keep living even beyond the years we have . Because what good is to own the world and loose your life . You can not enjoy it then, you can spend it then , you can even see it then.
Me I choose life over money and materials any day. The gift God gave is life. No money was attached to me .I could not have been born at all. Instead I was allowed to inter into this world . My riches God supplies and that is what makes me happy. So you do you and I will stick to what makes me truly happy gmwilliams.
Peace to you both and any who followed along the thread! Good night !
Why do you have to be convinced? You do not have to live that life. And why are you so obsessed with the subject?
Is it fair you ask all the questions and no one else can?
It is definitely not the powerful as they are always seeking others to be more powerful than. It is those at peace with themselves and their beliefs. Unfortunately that is not very many of us!
We are always seeking for the answers to things, but some do not have any valid answers. Try asking what God is? What he/she looks like? Why if he exists there is no peace on Earth? etc. etc. We realy do not know, but there are those that say otherwise!
Who said I was poor! Who said Malissa is poor ! You do not know our status, you guess!
The wisdom of God is this Ec 9:11 I returned to see under the sun that the swift do not have the race, nor the mighty ones the battle, nor do the wise also have the food, nor do the understanding ones also have the riches, nor do even those having knowledge have the favor; because time and unforeseen occurrence befall them all.
Very true we can not control a day and what will happen in it.
So we can not say who will be rich today and poor tomorrow .
Who live today may die tomorrow because unforeseen things are real.
There are rich robbers ,Robert Wagner in the sitcome it takes a thief, what about white collar crime ,blue collar , Martha Stewart and her situation ,rich people steal,So that does not fit your words. We do not agree ! We do not see the same view ,I totally disagree with you. So that is all
You and Melissa can continue this ad infinitum conversation between yourselves. Ciao amicas.
The same to you gmwilliams the same to you!
" There is NO EXCUSE for anyone to be impoverished and living a less than a full human life! You do indeed a very dim view of humankind. Poverty is an inherent pathology, not a normative lifestyle."
How can something be 'inherent' AND abnormal? You can't even keep your definitions accurate. A pathology does not apply to not being rich. I think you know better than that. If you don't like me dismantling your arguments you should probably stick to the hub questions where you can easily delete your opposition as you did me before.
A pathology is abnormal. That is why it is a pathology. Stick to your poverty laced philosophies, dear. You are quite adept at glorifying, even deifying poverty. Poverty is a pathological lifestyle; that is why there are/were various programs instituted to combat, if not eradicate, poverty. You and K&T are birds of the same feather. I am DONE with the BOTH of you.
Pathology exclusively applies to diseases so again, you are unsurprisingly wrong. Plus, you called it 'inherent'. That seems to insinuate that it is perfectly normal.
"the science of the causes and effects of diseases, especially the branch of medicine that deals with the laboratory examination of samples of body tissue for diagnostic or forensic purposes."
Self-delusion and self-deception seem to be 'inherent' to most people. Plus, cognitive bias. I don't know why this subject upsets you so much. I don't know what you're hoping to achieve.
I know and am well versed on the medical definition of pathology. I was using it contextually. I am trying to educate you and K& T to reality. Poverty is socioeconomic lack while being socioeconomically wealthy is good. Poor people are unhappy, believe it or not. Wealthy people are happier because their quality of life is better. When one is poor, he/she lives in a second-rate neighborhood, receives a second-rate education, have little or no medical care, if there is care, it is of an inferior quality, consume non-nutritious food, see where I am going. Listen to some tapes on the culture of poverty by Malcolm X.
Good God woman, an elementary school child KNOWS this. You know this but refuse to acknowledge this, playing this charade. You know that poverty is bad but insist on somehow whitewashing it. Poverty is a socioeconomic pathology, like it or not! Read some books on the culture of poverty and you will see how inherently evil it is. GOOD DAY!
I agree with your last premise. Humankind is still at an unevolved state. Humans have an adeptness of rationalizing evil and negativity, even accepting it as quite normal. This behavior explains many of our social, spiritual, and psychological pathologies in this world. Much of humankind still exists in a negative state of awareness and socioeconomic poverty is an outgrowth of these components. If people were truly evolved, socioeconomic poverty would not exist. That is my take on this. I have studies and read books on social class and observed people. Also do some analysis of the situation at hand. Melissa, it was nice discussing this with you and no hard feelings at all. Have a Blessed Night.
Digressing much.
Continue with the thread.
The happiest people are those with a CONSTRUCTIVE and SOUL-CENTERED purpose.
The happiest people are the KINDEST and MOST FORGIVING.
The happiest people in the world are those who are not addicted to/dependent on substances, including alcohol, nicotine THC and drugs or meds of any type. The natural high produced by exercise and a good diet of no white sugar and no white flour is the best. The happiest people also get plenty of sleep.
The happiest people may be the youth. The older you get, the more you have to manage your body. Keep exercising and sleeping well, is my advice to stay happy… and, of course... don't worry.
(So, don't listen to the news.)
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