Fear of Losing your own Morality in the face of Adversity

[Kurshok]

Does anyone else here sometimes feel fear of losing their of grasp of their own sense of morality in the face of personal and global adversity? If so, how do you deal with it? Prayer? Therapy? Talking to loved ones?

[Zerg Rush]

Objectivity, the courage to judge own actions, and common sense are the best alternatives to self-indulgence.

[Kurshok]

On 8/26/2021 at 5:52 AM, Zerg Rush said:

Objectivity, the courage to judge own actions, and common sense are the best alternatives to self-indulgence.

Thanks man. I've been going through things for a while. Struggling with my own beliefs, wanting to be accepted by others, wondering if I should censor my own beliefs to get approval from my family and acquaintances in a sadly vain hope they'd hang out with me more like they used to when I was younger. Been having a lot on my mind to think about, with the world as a whole, and its effects on my mental well-being and how that carries over into my social life.

[Shadow]

I would say morality should and can not be absolute unless you feel that a moral code is fluid and open for any interpretation as  easily as biblical stories and phrases. For example, is it good or bad morality to lie? To kill? If so then you can't ever lie about anything, even if it's to save another's life. And you could never join an army or become a cop, as you would be required to kill. Obviously no one can be that strict with themselves that they can't kill an attacker that immediately threatens a loved one. So there goes absolute morality, so why even have it if it's so pliable and shapeable. And so thus morality isn't subject to struggle since you can make it up as you go along to suit your own circumstances and lifestyle. So maybe instead of worrying about what is moral or not, just focus on what is important to you and what makes YOU happy and not worry about whether it fits into a personal moral code or someone else's interpretation of moral code.

With regard to other people, you seem to be saying you need to change to appease them, or be who they want you to be. I disagree. The only way in life to have truth is to be who YOU are and others will accept or not accept you. That's not your problem to solve, that's on them. If others haven't figured out how to accept you for who you are, it's their puzzle, their issue, their loss, right?

[Xolvix]

It's a good question I think. As someone who pays maybe a little too much attention to news (both local and world events), it's very easy to become bitter about the world. You continually see people in power act like total dicks and get away with it, you see people break the rules that others are obliged to follow and get rewarded for it, and eventually it gets you to wondering why you're trying to be a good person if it's clear that humanity rewards certain types of person, mostly psychopaths and sociopaths.

Eventually it can get to the point where you're so worn down by it that you start to judge if doing the "right" thing most of the time and trying to be a good person is worth it. Why try to follow a zero-waste lifestyle when big polluters will nullify any impact you or even hundreds or thousands of people like you will accomplish. Why bother worrying about self-improvement if you think we're heading to a state of societal collapse because things aren't getting any better? Why not just stop giving a crap about anyone anymore and instead embrace greed and nihilism?

So yeah, I do sometimes fear losing my grasp on my own morality. But I think what keeps me going and prevents me from falling into a downward spiral is both my upbringing and my family. My value system is generally strong enough to withstand too much temptation to be a dick, and my family is important to me and I don't feel like compromising my values when others depend on me.

Edited November 21, 2021 by Xolvix

[Nort]

I find that wanting to be liked by other people, will often just get you into trouble - sometimes really serious trouble. Often it won't even end up with you being liked. I have sort of given up morals. I still have them, but I just don't bother with people enough to reflect on them anymore. That makes me a social outcast, and I prefer it that way. At the end of the day, I will have contributed to the death of a living animal or two, and so will everybody else who isn't a vegan, and in the face of that, is any form of living really moral? There are no prayers or therapy that you can resort to, that will bring the things you've killed, and continuously kill on a daily basis, back to life. Virtually nobody is "moral". The little things that we do between fellow human predators, can't make up for anything. We're just kidding ourselves. We're all evil. We're born evil. Some of us are just more evil than others and prey on their own kind, which again, are predators, and so would that really be evil?

...so to me, "morals" don't really make any sort of sense. It's just dogma told by religions and similar institutions.

Sorry if this upsets you.

[Xolvix]

This is my interpretation of course, but for me, the point of morals is to strive towards becoming a better you. Treating others better, the environment better, living a more wholesome life. Goes hand in hand with ethics I guess, to the point where I rarely understand the difference between the two terms.

Anyway, point is that morals are an ideal. Some people reach that ideal more than others, but it's a good idea to strive towards because at the very least it makes you a much nicer person to be around. If you've given up to the point where you're happy with being a social outcast, to me that just means your interpretation of what morals are is different to mine. It doesn't upset me.

I should mention that I am not a religious sort, so morals for me are just a way of apply my conscience to the real world. I am also not evil. I make bad judgement calls sure, but if we consider those to be evil, then the word has no meaning. Perhaps you're thinking more of nihilism?

 

Edited May 15, 2022 by Xolvix

[Anderson]

If we settle on apatheism or any other form of related atheism than we can move on to something meaningful.

Edited May 15, 2022 by Anderson

[Nort]

11 hours ago, Xolvix said:

This is my interpretation of course, but for me, the point of morals is to strive towards becoming a better you. Treating others better, the environment better, living a more wholesome life. Goes hand in hand with ethics I guess, to the point where I rarely understand the difference between the two terms.

Anyway, point is that morals are an ideal. Some people reach that ideal more than others, but it's a good idea to strive towards because at the very least it makes you a much nicer person to be around. If you've given up to the point where you're happy with being a social outcast, to me that just means your interpretation of what morals are is different to mine. It doesn't upset me.

I should mention that I am not a religious sort, so morals for me are just a way of apply my conscience to the real world. I am also not evil. I make bad judgement calls sure, but if we consider those to be evil, then the word has no meaning. Perhaps you're thinking more of nihilism?

 

My experience is that the more I want what's best for people, the more I critique them, tell them what to do, and end up very unliked. The more things upset me. The less I care what happens to people, the more pleasant I am to be around. People like to think that there are no dangers, that they have no follies, and that their decisions are great and just, and so I just don't argue that anymore, and it keeps me out of a lot of trouble. That's how you "become liked".

...but overall, I'm just not occupied with people anymore. I spend my days managing my health and fitness around the clock. I don't have time for moral choices. The only moral choice is that I eat meat every day, from animals with a brain the size of mine, and so I'm just 100% a killer and have already failed being a good person.