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>He ignores the fact that some of us aren't happy unless we are doing something that stands to make a double-digit percentage of humans on Earth happier, cleane
by paraschopra 14y ago
>He ignores the fact that some of us aren't happy unless we are doing something that stands to make a double-digit percentage of humans on Earth happier, cleaner, safer, healthier, or more efficient.
That's precisely what I'm arguing is not a healthy attitude. If you're unhappy now, I don't think you will be satisfied with what you have done and would be able to die peacefully _once_ you get featured on Time magazine proclaiming how you reduced poverty in Bangladesh. By then, your goals would have moved to something even bigger. By all means, improving state of humanity is a noble goal but being unhappy because you haven't been able to make sufficient progress towards it is an unhealthy attitude.
- sneak 14y ago"not happy" != "unhappy"
- aes256 14y agoActually it's the dictionary definition of unhappiness.
- sneak 14y agoYup, human emotion reduced down to a one bit status in a field. Thanks, HN!
- mindcruzer 14y agoWell, actually: "For instance, there are two different un- prefixes in English: one meaning 'not, opposite of', the other meaning 'reverse action, deprive of, release from'. The first prefix un- 'not' is attached to adjective and participle bases while the second prefix un- 'reverse action' is attached to either verb or noun bases." (From wikipedia) Since we're talking about an adjective base here, "not happy" === "unhappy".