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But it's like modern life offers you a multiple choice question that looks something like a) accomplishment/career b) startup and dents in universe c) family and community d) altruism and nobody tells you that there's actually a viable hidden option e) nothing in particular
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You can't really "waste" a life. That's... not a concept that applies to natural things. Go to a wilderness areas. There's dead and decaying things, and abundant and scarce things, but not really "wasted" things. Waste is a concept that only applies to designed things.
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For something to be wasted, it has to first have a designed purpose. A default "use" that can then be undermined by "misuse" or "waste." The belief that life has such a designed purpose if only we were wise enough to decode it is a category error. All religion is based on it
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And "doing nothing" is not the same as an empty life. Being alive at all is being real, and reality has content to it whether or not you have designed intentions relative to them. In fact you can work very hard and have an exhausting life doing nothing, if you're poor enough.
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The so-called Meaning Crisis in a nutshell: The Purposing will continue until morale improves. Angst is the result of trying to force yourself to have a purpose when none of the available ones fit you. Because you think you can’t not have one.
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You have to make a living, which can be challenging, but having a higher calling beyond that is kinda optional. It’s like wearing a tux to a black-tie optional event. You can, and might even be encouraged to, and appreciated for it. But regular formals will do.
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And to extend the analogy there are entire functional cultures with no notion of formal ceremonial events and clothing. Purpose is a case of culture playing dress-up. Progress is a kind of party scene. Go if you enjoy that sort of thing or to support someone you care about.
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But if you do go, don’t be a party pooper. You don’t have to be useful or interesting at a party but interfering with those who are is bad manners. Purpose is like that.
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'doing nothing' is plausible, but how healthy do you find the option to be? It seems like a relatively bigger problem in recent decades, bc having kids + being part of a rooted community was an (even more) dominant mode till recently
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do you see society-scale, healthy solutions to the 'doing nothing' path? With all probs we see in life satisfaction for the 'doing nothing' groups, I have a hard time seeing health solutions that can work for society as a whole
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I love spending time 'doing nothing'. ócio (~idleness, not quite right translation) has a fairly positive connotation in my home culture (Brazilian -> Iberian -> Medit.). But I am not seeing path to meaning of 'doing nothing' w/o community or altruism (not in society scale)