Constant bliss means zero growth. I think growth is more important.
Constant bliss means nothing bad to which to compare the bliss. So is it really even bliss? I mean, I suppose in the scenario, it is—the machine makes it so. But going in, before getting hooked up, I know that it isn't real. Not really real.
This life is a blend of pain, bliss, and routine. That seems to be the way it is supposed to be, and that is good enough for me.
For almost all of my life, it would have been an easy, "Hell no, I wouldn't go in." And I would have felt contempt for anyone who wanted to go in.
However, at 75, I can understand the temptation of no pain and not having to deal with the challenges of getting old. And there are many people who have it much worse than me. I would still say no because there are things I really want to get done before I leave this world, but I no longer feel judgmental toward people who would like to be able to choose a bliss machine.
Agree with 'What IS a name' & Christopher below say -- BUT with this warning -- the sufferings, grief & pain of this Life are no silly Joke, easily endured. Now 70-yrs young! I lost my HS sweetheart & wife of 47.4 yrs & mother of my 8-kids/21 grands -- at Very-Rich Life & Love that came with it all! The past 16 mths was a Hard road to travel...still is. There are Great & Tragic Mysteries in the unfolding of God's wise providence for our Lives...[or the Road of "the blind chance randomness of meaningless materialism!" for others lol!!]. ;-(
Many "Blame & Hate God" for no "Bliss Machines" for any & all human whims...without any free Will, Agency, NO rational humans who Can/DO make Real Moral Choices -- to truly Love/Hate. Yet their Deterministic Bliss-Machine only spits out butterflies & rainbows of happiness...no real freedom or consequences of bad or Evil choices -- no Yearning to make Better & Progress a fallen world.
No, G-Leibniz was right...of all the trillions of Iterations-Possible...God created "the best of all possible worlds' -- just the right amount of free-will/order, beauty/ugliness, goodness/evil, color, music, art, imagination, Love...in a Perfect Balance -- since "God is good & loves Mankind".
Robert Nozick raised this question. I raised it myself in a philosophy class to see how other students would respond. Only one student of about a dozen said she'd enter the machine.
I agree with those who prefer to improve themselves and world rather than just passively enjoyed virtual experiences. From a pragmatic POV: Who controls the experiences? The wrong person in control could be extremely scary. (See the Black Mirror episode, "White Christmas." If you are always plugged in, how will you protect yourself against things going wrong in the outside world?
Hey aeveryone, new here, but going to just jump write in: I liken the bliss machine would be like death, and worse, if it takes people/energy etc to maintain. I would say: Imagine a sailboat that is well stocked by magic, and no worries... it still needs to go somewhere... and thus, when this bliss machine has no mission, no place, no making it seems to me a waste of time and energy and I'd say nah, sounds like death.
Great question. Temporarily, it might help to reset your wiring in much the same way microdosing does - so yes, if it has a specific utility that might improve my overall quality of life, I may agree to it for a set amount of time.
But not permanently, and not if it requires my having to undergo or agree to anything invasive.
If there are no Eternal Sunshine-esque side effects, and the system contains no ridiculous invasive Transhumanist digital ID bodysnatching IoB tech, and I get to go to Candyland or some such shit for twenty minutes, and I come out feeling like I took a vacation for a year, I'm down. Let's do this.
Ugh. I feel for you. I have been suffering from sleep apnea recently and woke every twenty minutes last night gasping through snores. Today I can hardly stay in my chair.
Sorry to read of your sleep apnea. I have been down this road. Not to say anything that would dissuade you from seeking medical attention but I do have two ideas that might be of interest. You can roughly and inexpensively quantify the severity of your sleep apnea with an O2 sensor with overnight recording capabilities. Search Amazon for EMAY Sleep Oxygen Monitor. The app will produce a useful report. For some sleep apnea can be mitigated by sleeping on your side. Search Amazon for ApneaShield or similar. The monitor can measure whether side sleeping has a positive effect. Also some have had success with Breathe Right strips.
Thank you so much. I'm trying to avoid CPAP but it might be unavoidable. The EMAY Sleep Oxygen Monitor is probably a worthwhile diagnostic before going down the long road of sleep study and CPAP. // Okay, so, I owe you some back: If you're a chronic insomniac or work late shifts, this probably won't help. But otherwise, I have found the following most helpful: Sun and blue light in the early morning, blue-blockers after dinner (they're cheap glasses on Amazon). Try to exercise early in the day with the sun. Try to keep your meals sufficiently far away from bed time. No late snacks. No booze. No indigestion. Cannabis and Delta 8/9 gummies can help in a pinch, but kills deep sleep and is not a long-term solution. If you're unable to sleep, don't let your adrenal system kick in from frustration. Accept it and allow yourself to read an engaging book (keeping those blue blockers on). You might find your thoughts meandering. Finally, try noise cancelling headphones with different types of white noise. (Good luck, MCL, and sleep well tonight.)
Thanks Max. I have tried many of these except for the gummies with mixed results. After many years of experimentation including a CPAP I did discover something with very good results. It was revealed when I had a vacation about ten years ago on a chartered sailboat. I was working at the time with the insomnia in full force. On the first night of the charter and for the rest of the week I slept well. It was startling the change in environment was so effective. For 10 years I couldn't puzzle out why the vacation had such a positive effect on my sleep. At the time I was working in product development for a computer company with high stress days spent either in meetings or on a laptop. Then one day many years after the vacation I realized the key to those good nights of sleep was spending the entire afternoon outside, especially right after lunch. I realized that spending time on the laptop after lunch has the same impact on my sleep as taking an afternoon nap. Doing stuff outside, like yard work, biking, or hiking has the opposite effect. It's like a battery that has to be charged up with sleep power to enable a good nights sleep. Indoors with a laptop would not charge the battery. Outside doing yard work from 1pm to 5pm charged my sleep battery. During the winter in Massachusetts it is not easy to spend all afternoon outside, but the realization was very helpful.
Have not read any of the cells reader’s comments but the answer is hell no, with the sole exception that if if we’re suffering from a terrible illness such as terminal cancer and I was suffering immensely, I might go for it. But otherwise, this is tantamount to death. The fight, the striving, the uncertainty of life, the stress even, the exhilarations, the triumphs.
And even the defeatS. Not trading them in willingly.
Constant bliss means zero growth. I think growth is more important.
Constant bliss means nothing bad to which to compare the bliss. So is it really even bliss? I mean, I suppose in the scenario, it is—the machine makes it so. But going in, before getting hooked up, I know that it isn't real. Not really real.
This life is a blend of pain, bliss, and routine. That seems to be the way it is supposed to be, and that is good enough for me.
Wisdom is crystallized pain. No pain, no wisdom. I’m a hard pass to the bliss machine 🦋
For almost all of my life, it would have been an easy, "Hell no, I wouldn't go in." And I would have felt contempt for anyone who wanted to go in.
However, at 75, I can understand the temptation of no pain and not having to deal with the challenges of getting old. And there are many people who have it much worse than me. I would still say no because there are things I really want to get done before I leave this world, but I no longer feel judgmental toward people who would like to be able to choose a bliss machine.
Well, I'm sure glad you're still getting things done, Joyce.
How would eternal bliss exist without anything to weigh it against? It's a hard pass from me.
Agree with 'What IS a name' & Christopher below say -- BUT with this warning -- the sufferings, grief & pain of this Life are no silly Joke, easily endured. Now 70-yrs young! I lost my HS sweetheart & wife of 47.4 yrs & mother of my 8-kids/21 grands -- at Very-Rich Life & Love that came with it all! The past 16 mths was a Hard road to travel...still is. There are Great & Tragic Mysteries in the unfolding of God's wise providence for our Lives...[or the Road of "the blind chance randomness of meaningless materialism!" for others lol!!]. ;-(
Many "Blame & Hate God" for no "Bliss Machines" for any & all human whims...without any free Will, Agency, NO rational humans who Can/DO make Real Moral Choices -- to truly Love/Hate. Yet their Deterministic Bliss-Machine only spits out butterflies & rainbows of happiness...no real freedom or consequences of bad or Evil choices -- no Yearning to make Better & Progress a fallen world.
No, G-Leibniz was right...of all the trillions of Iterations-Possible...God created "the best of all possible worlds' -- just the right amount of free-will/order, beauty/ugliness, goodness/evil, color, music, art, imagination, Love...in a Perfect Balance -- since "God is good & loves Mankind".
https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780195399301/obo-9780195399301-0359.xml
Great work…The Bliss Machine has (http://www.theblissmachine.com) always dug the concept🤔😎🤩😂
https://open.spotify.com/track/1QhREMSltBC3Vr3GGqnPmQ
Good thing... We have only "12 years"
Robert Nozick raised this question. I raised it myself in a philosophy class to see how other students would respond. Only one student of about a dozen said she'd enter the machine.
Yes, indeed! When I put this on social media, about only 5 percent of respondents said they would enter.
I agree with those who prefer to improve themselves and world rather than just passively enjoyed virtual experiences. From a pragmatic POV: Who controls the experiences? The wrong person in control could be extremely scary. (See the Black Mirror episode, "White Christmas." If you are always plugged in, how will you protect yourself against things going wrong in the outside world?
Hey aeveryone, new here, but going to just jump write in: I liken the bliss machine would be like death, and worse, if it takes people/energy etc to maintain. I would say: Imagine a sailboat that is well stocked by magic, and no worries... it still needs to go somewhere... and thus, when this bliss machine has no mission, no place, no making it seems to me a waste of time and energy and I'd say nah, sounds like death.
Brave New World
Matrix
WHO
Great question. Temporarily, it might help to reset your wiring in much the same way microdosing does - so yes, if it has a specific utility that might improve my overall quality of life, I may agree to it for a set amount of time.
But not permanently, and not if it requires my having to undergo or agree to anything invasive.
If there are no Eternal Sunshine-esque side effects, and the system contains no ridiculous invasive Transhumanist digital ID bodysnatching IoB tech, and I get to go to Candyland or some such shit for twenty minutes, and I come out feeling like I took a vacation for a year, I'm down. Let's do this.
If not, hard pass.
Yep, you have to go all in. I definitely see what you're saying.
That's a hard pass then. :)
Would a ten minute session be good therapy for chronic insomnia?
Ugh. I feel for you. I have been suffering from sleep apnea recently and woke every twenty minutes last night gasping through snores. Today I can hardly stay in my chair.
Sorry to read of your sleep apnea. I have been down this road. Not to say anything that would dissuade you from seeking medical attention but I do have two ideas that might be of interest. You can roughly and inexpensively quantify the severity of your sleep apnea with an O2 sensor with overnight recording capabilities. Search Amazon for EMAY Sleep Oxygen Monitor. The app will produce a useful report. For some sleep apnea can be mitigated by sleeping on your side. Search Amazon for ApneaShield or similar. The monitor can measure whether side sleeping has a positive effect. Also some have had success with Breathe Right strips.
Thank you so much. I'm trying to avoid CPAP but it might be unavoidable. The EMAY Sleep Oxygen Monitor is probably a worthwhile diagnostic before going down the long road of sleep study and CPAP. // Okay, so, I owe you some back: If you're a chronic insomniac or work late shifts, this probably won't help. But otherwise, I have found the following most helpful: Sun and blue light in the early morning, blue-blockers after dinner (they're cheap glasses on Amazon). Try to exercise early in the day with the sun. Try to keep your meals sufficiently far away from bed time. No late snacks. No booze. No indigestion. Cannabis and Delta 8/9 gummies can help in a pinch, but kills deep sleep and is not a long-term solution. If you're unable to sleep, don't let your adrenal system kick in from frustration. Accept it and allow yourself to read an engaging book (keeping those blue blockers on). You might find your thoughts meandering. Finally, try noise cancelling headphones with different types of white noise. (Good luck, MCL, and sleep well tonight.)
Thanks Max. I have tried many of these except for the gummies with mixed results. After many years of experimentation including a CPAP I did discover something with very good results. It was revealed when I had a vacation about ten years ago on a chartered sailboat. I was working at the time with the insomnia in full force. On the first night of the charter and for the rest of the week I slept well. It was startling the change in environment was so effective. For 10 years I couldn't puzzle out why the vacation had such a positive effect on my sleep. At the time I was working in product development for a computer company with high stress days spent either in meetings or on a laptop. Then one day many years after the vacation I realized the key to those good nights of sleep was spending the entire afternoon outside, especially right after lunch. I realized that spending time on the laptop after lunch has the same impact on my sleep as taking an afternoon nap. Doing stuff outside, like yard work, biking, or hiking has the opposite effect. It's like a battery that has to be charged up with sleep power to enable a good nights sleep. Indoors with a laptop would not charge the battery. Outside doing yard work from 1pm to 5pm charged my sleep battery. During the winter in Massachusetts it is not easy to spend all afternoon outside, but the realization was very helpful.
These comments are fascinating...
Have not read any of the cells reader’s comments but the answer is hell no, with the sole exception that if if we’re suffering from a terrible illness such as terminal cancer and I was suffering immensely, I might go for it. But otherwise, this is tantamount to death. The fight, the striving, the uncertainty of life, the stress even, the exhilarations, the triumphs.
And even the defeatS. Not trading them in willingly.