Friday, February 13, 2009

Funny... Kinda Sorta

Here’s one of the funnier things I’ve come across today (all links, however meaningless, left intact)…

Meaning of Life is in need of a "expert on the subject"

I am an expert on the meaning of life... it is 'Duh', because the answer is in the fu**ing question! the meaning of life is life itself...duh -God

Is that a joke? Can anyone be a expert on the subject of the meaning of life? Other than experts on the religious explanations of the meaning of life? Correct me if I'm wrong. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Andypham3000 (talkcontribs) 18:06, 21 August 2008 (UTC)

I thought that was hilarious too, but this article does need some serious attention, preferably from someone with a background in comparative philosophy or religion. --NickPenguin(contribs) 21:31, 21 August 2008 (UTC)

I don't know how I found myself on this page, but that tag just struck me as one of the funniest things I've seen on Wikipedia in years. Antandrus (talk) 03:34, 12 September 2008 (UTC)

Yes, Wikipedia could make an even greater contribution to the world if it could provide a forum for a genuine expert on the meaning of life. Millions might benefit! (On the other hand they might be reverted....)

But to address the actual issue: If we had a tag that said "experts" (instead of "expert"), it may have seemed less humorous. Each section needs an expert on that section's topic(s) - philosophy, comparative religion, psychology, cognitive science, physics, etc. If you take a look at the sorry state of this article a year or so ago and compare it to the remarkably improved quality that we have now, you might conclude that the placement of that tag could possibly have been the single best edit this article has ever had. -DoctorW 21:23, 19 October 2008 (UTC)

How about the body a psychotherapeutic literature as being a claim on the idea of being 'expert' in the meaning of life. I'm going to add some contributions made by the prominent Psychotherapist and Psychiatrist Irvin Yalom, about the difference between "the meaning of life?" and "the meaning of my life?". —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rob2000 (talkcontribs) 19:18, 13 December 2008 (UTC)

The original article ain’t all that bad, assuming you’re “in” to this sort of thing. I’m much more of a “42” person, myownself, and I’ve never, ever lain awake at night asking myself “Why am I here?” Unless I was someplace I didn’t really want to be… in the purely physical sense. Life may have some sort of larger meaning but it’s not something I concern myself with, seeing as how there are other, more pressing issues in this temporal world. IMHO.

Nope. I think we’re here to live well and be as good to each other as we can possibly be. Other than that? Nothing much beyond “You live. You die. Game over.” My attitude tended to really annoy The Second Mrs. Pennington, seeing as how she used to be into those metaphysical things. She may still be, for all I know.

11 comments:

  1. "I think we’re here to live well and be as good to each other as we can possibly be. Other than that? Nothing much beyond “You live. You die. Game over.”

    Damn Buck, I'm right there with ya, though I'm an atheist. Yourself?

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  2. Agnostic, tim... if'n ya wanna put a label on it. Which means I acknowledge there's a higher power, but I don't know what his/her name is. I riffed on this elsewhere, and it went something like "his name could be Bruce, for all I know... but I like to think her name is Phoebe, coz I'm down with the concept of The Goddess." Or sumthin like that... ;-)

    Not exactly a mainstream POV... but it's me.

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  3. You're a fellow Hitchhiker!!

    Where have you been all my life? ;-)

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  4. " I’ve never, ever lain awake at night asking myself “Why am I here?” Unless I was someplace I didn’t really want to be…"

    Now THAT is the funniest thing I've read today - as in, it made me laugh out loud. I had kinda skimmed the other part because of the metawhatever but my head was in "serious mode".

    But, on topic of comment discussion... a quote I use because it is true to my beliefs:

    "we are spiritual beings having a human experience"

    I'm coming from a Christian POV in that I believe in God - I don't worry about what form God is or what anyone choses to name the Diety - I happen to be comfy with God... and I believe Jesus is who he said he was and per the Bible I own, Jesus says the greatest commandment is to "love thy neighbor as thyself" as said before me "Be good to others".

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  5. I try to be a good person and raise my girls to be good people. I figure I'll find out about any possible afterlife when I'm dead, or I won't find out, because there is none. And I don't worry about it in the slightest.

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  6. Daphne sez: You're a fellow Hitchhiker!!

    Where have you been all my life? ;-)


    You knew I was in England when the madness kinda-sorta began, right?

    Ann sez: "we are spiritual beings having a human experience"

    That nicely sums up my general approach to things, as well.

    Christina sez: And I don't worry about it in the slightest.

    Hear, hear!

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  7. "Why are we here?"

    "Because we're here. Roll the bones."
    Great Rush tune from 1991. Written by Neil Peart, who would soon lose a wife and daughter in a short period of time.

    As for me, I would offer that in the middle of the night, we all have to answer to ourselves and ultimately to God. Some people are going to choose their own way with or without God, and that doesn't make them good or bad.

    Roll the bones.

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  8. Buck,
    I do agree with your assessment.

    If there is a reason it would be to be remembered well, after we have departed.

    So we had all better start being nicer to each other.

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  9. So we had all better start being nicer to each other.

    Truer words... not yet spoken!

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  10. Why are we here?

    To take care of, and be kind to, each other.

    That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

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  11. We're in agreement, yet again. Williams aside. ;-)

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Just be polite... that's all I ask.