Taking Philosophy Memes Seriously

[@unsolicitedadvice9198]

CORRECTION: I have confused MC Hammer and Sir Mix-a-lot. Sorry about that - it’s not my usual area LINKS AND CORRECTIONS Support me on Patreon here: patreon.com/UnsolicitedAdvice701?Link& Sign up to my email list for more philosophy to improve your life: forms.gle/YYfaCaiQw9r6YfkN7

[@sarahrah420xx]

That’s okay I’m sure their opinions on butts are the same

[@practicalsurvivor693]

@@unsolicitedadvice9198 I totally understand, I wouldn't have known if it didn't happen when I was in high school 😅

[@mycrazylife1111]

MC Hammer / Sir Mix a Lot Crossover: You can't touch this...and by this, I mean my big butt... I like big butts, and I cannot lie, cuz I'm too legit to quit... Yup, I went there.

[@KingOpenReview]

Yeah, MC Hammer is the one known for his ability to avoid physical contact.

[@doompoison2365]

I think MC hammer is wrong here, science has a rigid definition and if one is not in adherence to it, they are not pursing science. unlike culture, identity, or ethics science is an objective process, theres no room for subjective interpretation. It either is, or it isn't.

[@mahadevraamesh1582]

"I drink the water, I go to a place to undrink the water, I wash my hands, I leave, and then I have to drink more water.”

[@idrinkwater1124]

You called?

[@Sonny_McMacsson]

You really can stop any time you want. If certain people find out, they'll try to force you to keep doing it. It could even involve charges (d.e.).

[@3looy]

One must imagine sisyphus happy

[@lormador8493]

depressing

[@mahadevraamesh1582]

@@idrinkwater1124 yes I did

[@GodlessCommie]

Diogenes had the best answer to the problem of “Washing dishes forever” in just not owning any dishes.

[@louyou6614]

paper dishes

[@novapulses]

@@louyou6614too much disposable waste though 😭 also paper dishes may need to be rebought- idk

[@PeterGregoryKelly]

Big sky thinking at the scale of the kitchen sink.

[@ThePhantomrunner]

Still have to wash hand,so no hands????? Lol

[@Bleepbleepblorbus]

Bread bowls

[@CaptianTwug]

I forget where I saw it, but it one of the most beautiful perspectives I've ever seen on the whole "washing dishes forever" thing was someone saying that having to wash dishes forever implies the abundance of home cooked meals. In the same vein, an infinite cycle of doing laundry implies an infinite supply of clean clothes and fresh sheets.

[@pbjmochi8400]

Doing laundry is also better than continuously buying new clothes. Fast fashion is the source of so much waste!

[@hojetsala5178]

This is a good rephrasing I think. Its hard to see the point of clean dishes sometimes, but fresh sheets are a joy and well worth the effort.

[@AdSoyad-rp1vm]

​@@pbjmochi8400 I hate fast fashion, it looks cheap, is cheap but they get worn out very quickly and cost much more in the long term.

[@Sapphire-Lily]

I like to view washing the dishes in the lens of "This is an infinitely reusable item and that's really cool"

[@lunasesa6200]

my philosophy teacher in uni said that philosophers tend to be loners because no one wants to listen to them 😭

[@yining200]

MC Hammer is not the one with propensity toward generous behinds. He is actually the incorporeal one.

[@unsolicitedadvice9198]

Ah - I’ve been let down by my lack of hip hop knowledge

[@peggyjaeger9280]

Can't touch this!

[@TheOzumat]

@@unsolicitedadvice9198 the tweet is real though!

[@haph2087]

I think he mixed him up with Sir Mix-A-Lot.

[@TheeCoolKid]

Funniest way of saying, he made the song "u cant touch this"

[@ZenoDovahkiin]

"Testing some one with a situation where their actions have little impact, such as giving them the one ring."

[@sashagornostay2188]

Not little meaning, but little consequences

[@soulguardian11]

the fact that my 2 favourite things: memes and philosophy are now present in one video on my fav channel is just so convinient

[@mw9688]

Shame we will crave more in time.

[@Nzargnalphabet]

16:37 I actually do agree, I myself was in that pit of intellectual superiority thought, and my autism did NOT help in that regard, but more recently I found that expressing my interests and letting others get me hooked on their interests, and just having a good time with them even if we aren’t doing anything serious, especially if we aren’t doing anything serious, I found that to be such a healing process, having friends you can be truthful with in all angles I need, that was nothing short of true magic, as cheesy as that is.

[@jkid1134]

Fellow autist, I implore you: if you understand enthusiasm and trust to be healing, consider cinicism and isolation damaging. Try to avoid repeating whatever wounds you found yourself with.

[@ashtar3876]

There's nothing cheesy about having some friends you can talk real with

[@MeanBeanComedy]

The best thing to do to overcome that is to find even smarter friends. Or friends who can sing, dance, act, play an instrument, play a sport, ride a unicycle (etc.) much better than you. It keeps you humble to lose competitions in addition to winning them.

[@beanstheclown]

Yeah, I'm autistic too and thought I had it all figured out. Then my worldview shattered and had to rebuild from scratch. Now I'm ar the point where I think I have some things figured out, but I'm willing to believe I'm wrong. It definitely helped to find friends that I could actually talk with as well, and who could disagree with me and still be friends.

[@Respectable_Username]

IMO it's a matter of positive nihilism vs negative nihilist. Negative nihilists say "there is no inherent meaning so life is pointless" while positive nihilists say "there is no inherent meaning so let's enjoy life and create our own meaning!" I'm very much of the positive nihilist camp. As far as I'm concerned, the most important goal in life is to increase overall happiness, which itself necessitates minimising overall suffering. And that includes my own happiness, in the "put on your own oxygen mask before trying to help others" sort of way! But that's not a goal bestowed by any outside force but rather just me personally believing that people are good and deserve good things. You are a person and therefore deserve good things, including being compensated fairly for your work (join your union!) and spending time in community over your special interests. Life does not have to have inherent meaning for those things to be true and worth fighting for ❤

[@doomakarn]

I think the reason we struggle with not caring about what other people think is that in order to disregard someone's opinion of you, you have to essentially not respect it - and this can be difficult or even morally dubious when you are dealing with loved ones who are people you are supposed to respect. It's easy to disregard the opinions of strangers, but not so much when you've made a commitment to considering and valuing another person.

[@CAMSLAYER13]

A family members opinion isn't necessarily any better than any random persons. You may be more inclined to listen to them but they are just people at the end of the day, how certain are you that your opinions are completely correct?

[@doomakarn]

@@CAMSLAYER13 Loved ones aren't "just people" they're people you've chosen to prioritze above others. That is what it means to form a friendship, or to consider someone family - that is what it means to have a close bond. On an additional note, loved ones know you & know things about you that strangers ordinarily wouldn't. They fundamentally have higher odds of providing a more valuable opinion than a random person would.

[@aielianna]

I think it’s less not caring at all but just knowing your own standards for what you consider to be a valuable opinion. When you have those standards, it doesn’t matter who the opinion is coming from but what value the opinion provides you.

[@CAMSLAYER13]

@doomakarn i love my family and all, but that doesn't mean they have reasonable opinions on everything and their advice isn't always very good

[@fabiosonhandogrande1697]

​@@CAMSLAYER13Still, it makes sense why it would be harder for some to ignore what they think of them, compared to randos

[@f4wneyes]

the meme about annoying people with philosophy felt too personal 💀💀 i've recently started studying a topic i'm not familiar with for a summer course, and everytime i find something interesting i look at my dad with the expression of "hey dad, did u know...?" and i think he's getting really tired of me at this point

[@ringinn7880]

I feel that. Not with philosophy just in general

[@alvenkaiser4549]

I think every nerd has done that at least once in their lifes.

[@spawel1]

"hey dad did you know that oil/gas/methane are conspiring to destroy the earth as we know it?"

[@Rhirhii103]

0:52 I have OCD and my main compulsion is doing EVERY SINGLE action multiple times until my brain decides it “felt right”. Even opening apps on my phone, multiple times, over and over again. it does indeed drive you mad 😭😭 it’s like muscle memory now.

[@sevengnomesinatrenchcoat]

SAME it's the worst

[@spaghettiisyummy.3623]

Oh my FUCKING.... EVERY SINGLE ACTION?

[@Justjustinp]

I love your ability to analyze these short memes with such effortlessness. I absolutely have fallen in love with this channel. You have intellect and wisdom that has come from a great deal of study and thought. And that’s something that feels so lacking in the current day. I also love how you view things from multiple perspectives. You come across as having very little bias. And it’s so refreshing.

[@fittlea8248]

I love these lighthearted videos. Philosophy sometimes can be quite depressing. Hope your Philosophical Journey improves your life and others lives even more!

[@wellberightback4861]

"And then you might end up in an existential crisis" - Unsolicited Advice; said with the most casual tone when talking about doing the dishes This is golden

[@brulsmurf]

I like the sound the trolley makes. Sometimes I just walk around the parking lot with it.

[@cameronjadewallace]

Same. Even if there were no humans left anymore, and it were just me, I'd still return the cart, (or trolley, as it were) just because I prefer organized stuff... Except my bedroom. My bedroom is an organized chaos because it's the only thing that's mine, the only thing I can actually control. It's still a mess, but I understand the mess.

[@ringinn7880]

Ok. but would you prefer to go the path where you run over one person or the path where your trolly runs over four people without you?

[@Aelinbunn]

​@@ringinn7880 See the problem here is playing god, dictating who should live and who should die. If I must kill, to 'save', I am doing little more than justifying murder like a sick little pawn who thinks themself a 'human'. Regardless of whether in the end a person believes 1 person's life worth less than 4, and that murder *and* 1 person's life is more morally justifiable than 4 people's lives and bystanding, in the end you are playing with life. And playing with life is sick.

[@nakellold]

​@@AelinbunnSo you would let 4 people get killed?

[@Aelinbunn]

@@nakellold dont try to strawman me brother

[@oxymoronclaws5596]

Man this was a great video. As much as I enjoy watching the actual "lectures" you do in your channel, this more casual, conversation-like style of video hits in a different way. Like listening to a friend rambling, which I enjoy doing. Keep it up, you're doing an amazing job!

[@JoffreyGeenen]

The thing I liked about this format is that you, the educated philosophy nut, is reacting to normal day to day stuff and then reacting with profound ways of thinking, I would legit love to see you do ''reaction'' video's to things on the internet, some with serious topics and some not so much.

[@K_wazi69]

I am a simple man so I see Unsolicited Advice post I click.

[@unsolicitedadvice9198]

Haha! That is very kind of you - thank you

[@judgebean]

i never knew i'd need a video on discussing philosophy memes very seriously, but here i am. this actually made my day a lot more joyful, thank you :)

[@LexFrelsari]

This is it. My favorite Unsolicited Advice video.

[@klosnj11]

2:36 this part hits so hard. What happens when Sisyphus is finally done? How does that somehow seem more brutal? For thousands of years, this torture is all he had and now even that is gone. (Tom Cardy's song Level Clear starts playing in my head)

[@-jason1912]

It seems more brutal because having nothing to do, i.e. boredom, is literally the worst thing that can happen to one's brain. It basically boils down to vsauce's YT original abt choosing to shock yourself rather than not doing anything. Atleast thats how i think abt it anyway

[@chrisflanagan7564]

​@@-jason1912 he wouldn't have nothing to do, he would have escaped Hades and returned to Earth... That's the point, his task is get boulder up hill in order to return to life, not just because he'd be bored in Hades without the task.

[@-jason1912]

@@chrisflanagan7564 really? I thought pushing the boulder was just his punishment; he wouldnt go back to earth even if he did push it up the hill successfully. Am i wrong?

[@chrisflanagan7564]

@@-jason1912 it's part of the compulsion. Sisyphus does a lot of outwitting the gods, and they eventually just put him in an impossible position. He can go free if he gets the stone up and over the hill, but he can't because it's cursed boulder, but also he can't outwit it, which is how he kept tricking them before. and then along comes "we must imagine Sisyphus happy" as we try to outwit the task. If Sisyphus was able to accept his situation and be happy then he would no longer be compelled to roll the boulder and escape the underworld.

[@KristofskiKabuki]

I don’t understand why anyone would say this. If he no longer had to push the boulder up the hill every day he could instead a) sit down and have a nice time and/or b) choose to work on something with lasting impact and effect that he found fulfilling. Or, like, he could just find another rock and start pushing that up every day instead. Whichever it was would be his choice though.

[@coruscaregames]

3:37 when asked by my professor about such a ring that only worked once, one person said "I would empty its power then and there, because it would inevitably tempt me and I would still get a valuable ring out of it", one person said "I would overthink everything and not use it in the end", and I said "I'd like to use it to perform an act of good that would require invisibility, but realistically I'd end up forgetting about it"

[@BlackholeNaptime]

I'd scream "THE ULTIMATE HALLOWEEN SKELETON COSTUME!"

[@Respectable_Username]

"... but realistically I'd end up forgetting about it." Ah, a D&D player I see 😉

[@coruscaregames]

@@Respectable_Username I have a game every Saturday :> Sometimes I'm the DM :>

[@Saiyanking72]

Last guy just like me frfr

[@jurajojo2543]

About the last meme, school often teaches philosophy but doesn't really get us to picture how any of these philosohical notions help us in any way. It's easier to understand what science did for us, than what quotes, that often feel like you could come up with while taking a shower, did for anything.

[@yvonnerathbone4261]

Existential Comics has one titled "We must imagine Sisyphus happy". A miserable Sis gets to the top of the hill and unlocks an achievement like a video game, his first apparently as he looked quite miserable before. But now he's excited, he's given a sticker as a reward and he thinks it's so cool! It looks so good stuck on his boulder! And most importantly, it looks even cooler when the boulder is rolling down the hill.

[@kuza.the.artist]

Is it better to have a pointless task or no task at all? I think having a pointless task is better because there’s a level of comfort you can feel with routine. Like, knowing what to expect the next day feels better than not knowing. The latter seems worse to me personally… but then I guess not having a task, tasks you with finding out what to do which can be fun and scary. Giving life that spice. Me, personally I think I’d choose the boulder. lol

[@AspynDotZip]

That’s why not having a job is difficult for me mentally. Even if all my bills are paid and i got food in the table, I’m not driven to explore a bunch of new things like before, so i end up just kinda sitting at home doing nothing

[@thatfly5360]

Reading this comment made me realize this is exactly what I am struggling with. So now I have a direction to look for a solution to my problems. I know this comment wasn’t for me, but I think it will really help, so thank you.

[@Ms19754]

For me both are equally bad and lead to dispair. No purpose in general is the problem. Having a task might distract you for a while (this is what we often do in our daily lives - distract ourselves from the fact that our life has no meaning). And 0% chance of making any progress or living something unexpected is an absolute nightmare. Good thing is, we always have our imagination and internal life to keep us "living", even in the most constraining circumstances.

[@GAarcher]

*"Free will is a myth, religion is a joke. We are all pawns controlled by something greater. MEMES! THE DNA OF THE SOUL! They shape our will, they are the culture --They are everything we pass on. Expose someone to anger longer enough, and they will learn to hate."* *MemeSoon, that fucker in Metal Gear Flacid*

[@sillythewanderer4221]

If religion == joke. Then joke == religion. Assuming the first to be true then your comment because it is a joke, it is also a religion ;)

[@Iv.Btz.]

​@@sillythewanderer4221, that's, in fact, incorrect. When you say "I'm a human" you do not imply that any human is you. The "is" in that case describes belonging to a certain class rather than equivalence of things.

[@ethan7849]

@@sillythewanderer4221 consider that religion is a subset of joke, not the same as/equal to, e.g all religions are a joke, but not all jokes are a religion

[@sillythewanderer4221]

@@ethan7849 i am aware, and that is why I said "assuming the first to be true" like a rectangle

[@sillythewanderer4221]

@@Iv.Btz. i know, like a square and rectangle.

[@aidanfrazier9399]

The thing he said about being charitable towards other’s ideas was just what I needed to hear. I fall into that “I’m so smart” trap almost all the time and it creates a subtle narcissistic contempt for others and myself even though I can tell that, despite being smart, I struggle to thrive in many aspects and can really stand to learn from others. The way he said it made smth click and I could tell right away that it was a perspective that would bring me a lot of joy and growth

[@EmL-kg5gn]

Has anything changed since you heard this? I’m really curious! I was pushed out of the I’m smart trap when I became one of those people that others assume is stupid. Idk why? But I got a taste of my own medicine (perhaps an overdose haha) and I resented it. Turns out it sucks to be written off but what actually changed me was realising I was learning. I get to learn so much because people explain things to me! From their examples, good and bad, I learnt how to level the playing field and include people in topics or conversations that they (or others) think are beyond them. It’s so fun! We get to learn together and they often have new ideas or questions. Now I think there’s many kinds of intelligence. Every person has a unique mix and every combination allows new possibilities. So yeah, if you haven’t tried it yet this is my 5 star review. Let yourself be “dumb” and have fun learning!

[@byereality7492]

Honestly this has become my new favorite channel. But i cant get over the discussion of the role of disgust in morality when I stumbled across this channel because I was listening to a bunch of essays about Evangelion 😭

[@looney_lovegood7776]

i can't, this is too iconic😭😭

[@unsolicitedadvice9198]

Haha! That is very kind (I didn't know there would be any interest in this - I partly made this video because it was so hot last week that I couldn't focus and fell behind on my research schedule)

[@HuBriS06]

@@unsolicitedadvice9198 Are you, to any extent, a nihilist? I pray you don't mind the question.

[@user-dy1vf7lu3i]

@@unsolicitedadvice9198Research schedule for uni or like for yourself? Just outta curiosity cuz it’s cool

[@4rgone]

This made me laugh at work and everyone looked at me as if I were a madman. Thank you and please do this again.

[@thexenocide6013]

"why do i care if i'm hungry" i think is more of a suicidal ideality crisis more than an existential one

[@Svevsky]

It's a scary thought. I once asked myself how I would react if my doctor told me that I was terminally ill, and I realized that I would feel relieved. But I'm sure that's fairly common

[@borkabrak]

3:08 Wow. You made Sisyphus even MORE depressing. I'll applaud after a good cry.

[@Pebble-With-a-Pen]

i think my favorite take on the whole "everything is meaningless and the only constant is suffering" idea, is actually from a dnd show/podcast, called "Fantasy High." So, there's a character in the show, and one of their main struggles is looking for a divine and/or philisophical answer for the question "why do bad things happen to good people. (spoilers for the end of season 1 below the cut-) and the answer that they eventually get to that question is this: "People are fractal images of the universe. You are as we are. Bad things happen to good people because things happen all the time, and it is up to people to determine whether they are bad or good. In the same way that you heart feels, and your mind thinks, you mortal beings are the instrument by which the universe cares. If you choose to care, then the universe cares, and if you don't, then it doesn't." to which they respond, "Cool. I care." It's a wonderful, compassionate take on the intimidating, enormous nature of reality, and I think about it a lot.

[@crstph]

yes!!! yes i fucking love this moment. and the fact that the DM majored in philosophy really shows

[@davidrw61]

Someone (I'm not sure if it was or wasn't Carl Sagan) once said that sentient life is the universe's way of understanding itself....

[@vickibamman8333]

I love this. I watch other meme readers; they react, make a quip, and move on. You actually take time to explore the implications of the meme and a lot of related ideas.

[@mikeking9373]

"That butters my biscuits." Thanks from Canada for that wonderful phrase. It was great to fly with your head through the memes presented. Thanks for the ride!

[@piperjaycie]

That doth butter no parsnips! (Think it means That doesn’t help/get anything done)😂

[@graphixkillzzz]

10:00 "if you have to tell people you're the king, then you're no king." -Tywin Lannister you can think of yourself as whoever or whatever you will. but ultimately, to everyone else you will be what you do.

[@mqryamansari]

You MUST make more of these like a philosophy version of meme review!!!!!

[@merebear143]

Never seen this channel before so I did not expect this to go as deep and be as genuine as it was. I’m used to really clickbaity titles so having this video be exactly what was advertised (to a t) was quite the novelty. As an agnostic I found your approach to the dichotomy between omnipotence and altruism quite compelling. Your references to more classic philosophy made me wish I was still in the habit of reading Russian literature. It’s been a while since I watched a KZbin video and came out feeling like I had mentally engaged in a nuanced conversation. I think I’ll check out the rest of your channel now. Thank you for the quality content.

[@MrHodoAstartes]

3:30 Decision? There is no decision here. The decision of whether you are an unworthy animal unfit for human society has been made well in advance. To return the cart that you profited from so that it may serve your neighbors next is merely an expression of your intuitive baseline understanding of the categorical imperative. You ought not be making a choice. Doing the right thing is easy, costs you basically nothing and improves the life of everyone, including yourself. To question is to lay bare your corruption.

[@XRatedPoetry]

1:09 A Bowl is most useful when it is empty

[@hunthebug]

“An astonishing commitment to honesty”😂 24:30

[@kagakudoragon]

2:58 “Is it better to have a pointless task, than no task at all?” --- Firstly, we should define “better” so that we have a tangible metric to evaluate the two options 1.) For example, if “best” refers to “most stimulating” then repeating a task over and over would be the better of the two. When people are bored, in general, or even in extreme scenarios like whiterooms, the brain searches for something, anything. 2.) Alternatively, if we define best as “Minimally Necessary” • Then the “best” scenario would be to do nothing, as that is the least intensive thing to do. You’re not wasting energy on something pointless. --- Whatever the case, both seem to be comparably bad, leading to monotonous existences

[@foogriffy]

i think this is a false dichotomy. the 'best' way to exist would be to oscillate between the two states as needed. work begets rest, rest begets work. you can't stick to either one for too long. we're creatures of change

[@Agro50]

A very creative video idea!! Unexpected. I myself am very active on the forum. Haven't finished the video but I hope one of my memes gets featured!! You should turn this into a series!!

[@LasayRedJr]

11:19 "At the root of most fear, Is what other people will think of us." This phrase alone change my mind forever about thinking what other people throught of me.

[@icefang111]

Your point on disgusts part in morality was interesting to me. In various progressive circles I am in/adjacent to "don't let disgust colour your ethics" is a more and more common saying. Sort of an acknowledgement that so much inconsistency in what we find good/bad comes from what we find disgusting rather than a basis in any actual harm done. It's an encouragement too, to look at things we are taught to find disgusting but are otherwise benign once really considered beyond that initial gut reaction. In being able to recognize that reaction and seperate it from ones wider ethical stances, we can see solutions (and what truly even needs fixing) more clearly. Or so the argument goes.

[@MrDeldris]

Incest is probably the ultimate example of this. It's treated as one of the ultimate crimes one can commit because of the risk to any hypothetical children they may have. But if you take a step back and just examine 2 people who decide to be in a relationship, is there anything really inherently unethical? What if they can't have kids because the woman had a hysterectomy in the past and kids are just not possible? What if they actively just decide to not have them? With today's technology, you could even get a test to see if your hypothetical children would be at the risk everyone says would be there. To me, this is one of the clearest examples of morality almost completely being determined by disgust. Nobody bothers to find out if an incestuous couple has plans to have kids or not first, they're just disgusted and treat them like lesser humans.

[@Nzargnalphabet]

10:48 in respect to the line of thinking about about how society affects myself and the problem of social anxiety, I feel more confident in my own selection of what to emulate outwardly and what to integrate into my core character surprisingly due to my own autism as I know how much of my character it makes up and that it is inherently from myself and not anyone else, unless you mean genetically of course, but still, it feels like my most honest friend and it feels like such a solid foundation that it goes into all of my decisions even in social ones and is such an integral part to my character that even when I would’ve said I let the autism do the talking, I really just mean I talked honestly, and even though it gives me confidence, I don’t feel like I’m hiding behind something as there’s nothing hiding behind it, it gives me confidence that even when there’s no external goal given to me, I can always find my own meaning in life, it also gives me a surprisingly in depth moral code that meant I’m already able to drive yet I could probably count the amount of swears I’ve said on my hands and feet, but I also somewhat paradoxically dislike religion for its strict rules regarding this type of thing as I don’t like being told what to do, a thing that would give other people comfort, I similarly defy quite a few social norms as I simply don’t care for them, honestly, I might be a bit of an egoist, except I don’t crowd myself with thoughts of grandeur because I know simply robbing a bank or something like that would get me almost nowhere except living with a crap ton more stress than I had before as dying or getting put in a jail cell would be quite counterproductive to my goals. But anyway, I’ve likely rambled for far too long and nobody is likely to read this all anyway, I certainly wouldn’t, but I guess rambling on and on is just another part of my autism and therefore me.

[@urlovekir]

waited so long for you to do this

[@unsolicitedadvice9198]

Haha! I didn't realise people would actually want to watch this one - I am just mucking about for most of it

[@urlovekir]

it would be fun even if you took trolley problems seriously and made a video about it​@@unsolicitedadvice9198

[@ricardomiles2957]

14:46 I have a met a few share of people like that, although through differrent contexts on how they turned this ways but they burned in to my brains as the archetype of the Cheap Cynicist that decide to become annoying to cope with life but i am thankful today as i almost became someone like that

[@sno0wfl4ke]

Thanks to the KZbin algorithm for recommending me this video. I have no knowledge of philosophy at all, this was very interesting and fun to watch. As someone said the video feels like a friend talking about a topic one doesn’t know much about. Thank you!

[@Xizax41325]

I enjoyed the meme review casual video. More of it please and thank you sir.

[@geekexmachina]

“The Electric Monk was a labour-saving device, like a dishwasher or a video recorder... Electric Monks believed things for you, thus saving you what was becoming an increasingly onerous task, that of believing all the things the world expected you to believe” -dirk gentlys holistic detective agency. I often wonder if Richard Dawkins got the idea for memes from his friend Douglas Adams.

[@GOD-OF-DESTRUCTION]

"The more you increase in intelligence, the more you may find certain things cringeworthy. In essence, the smartest person in the world might be someone who doesn't appreciate humor."

[@edheldude]

Once I accepted that I am cringe, I was free to become my true self.

[@thepotatoportal69]

The real cringe was the friends we made along the way.

[@realdragon]

This is stupid, I don't like it

[@TlalocTemporal]

This feels like a 50th percentile meme.

[@kingbattyhand]

This would make me the smartest person on earth

[@almondmilklol3525]

I love how you speak and I have been binging your videos. Never stop, for it would be a moral failing to not prioritise the joy of the most amount of people for the longest possible time. Or don’t. Anyway you’ve earned a subscriber.

[@avnisunaina9267]

Thank you so much for this video! Speaking to the idea of cycles, I find it fascinating and truly lovely that concepts and thoughts themselves continue to emerge again and again in different forms and often give us the space to sit with the content. I did relate to quite a few of these memes...I will go and reflect on all this now. I would like to add that I recently came across your channel through your videos on love and romance; they were very insightful. Your inferences on the subject, as well as how passionately and eloquently you speak, inspired me to read more classical literature again (I haven't engaged with it much since college, but I think I will have a better appreciation for it now). Looking forward to your videos : )

[@AspynDotZip]

3:09 my mom didn’t care about putting the carts back until she saw me at work late one night picking up all the carts that were scattered around the parking lot, and now she puts them up every time. It’s crazy how much personal relationships will influence your morals, cause i wasn’t that bothered with people leaving them around since i got paid to get it, but she saw it as a problem cause her son was working hard

[@SiqueScarface]

7:15 When I was 15, I was tired of the question about my goals in Life, and thus I often said: My goal is to have my first original thought before the age of 30. In my mid-50ies now, I have to admit: I failed.

[@danieldiri2969]

Qualitatively every thought you develop in your head that is not planted or copied externally is original even though it parallels another person.

[@Blankult]

​@@danieldiri2969So he just wants a unique thought

[@yiwmsh4393]

I loved this, and it eased my current depressive episode briefly. Thank you, I hope I can look forward to more!

[@fabiochristiaan1128]

Love these different types of videos very much!!!! Amazing work, it always makes my day better!

[@caitlynwalsh3315]

I loved this video but I especially appreciate you talking about your chronic pain condition. I had a similar experience when I became chronically ill and the way you described that was beautifully done and we do need to remember that just because we are experiencing pain doesn't mean life is pain. I needed to hear that today. :)

[@Respectable_Username]

On the whole "philosophy students being annoying" bit, reminds me of the (good natured) banter on one of my group projects back at uni. We were all three studying computer science, but one of the others was doing a double degree with philosophy. A recurring joke was him trying to debate how do we know gravity is real and always will be etc, to which I would just keep dropping my water bottle onto the chair in response to his arguments 😜 I enjoy philosophy when it comes to things like ethics and politics and other such human decisions, but when it comes to the nature of reality, as somebody very empirically and practically minded, that's the sort of stuff that I just find incredibly frustrating. But I'm glad other people can get value from it, I just am not one to be able to walk on such a highly unstable ground!

[@KoishiVibin]

5:14 I think disgust generates a lot of standards and principles. Disgust at something being grody is why health standards exist and why stuff is cleaned. Disgust at something being very visceral or violent is why standards for food animal treatment exist.

[@anthonybarrios4225]

I like this form of video, very casual and insightful

[@safyullahjawid8592]

Yes Please Make more of these videos This was so unexpectedly fun I enjoy all your content but this one was very new and enjoyable

[@haliensexist]

This was a blast! I love a lighthearted thought dump once and a while. Would love more of these sprinkled through your other amazing work 😊

[@belot217]

10:00 in Perelandra, a novel about a second Eden in a potentially infinite sequence, Lewis also implies a belief that Trees of Knowledge exist for the purpose of giving a perpetual choice to sentients to continually exert will and create a moral structure to orient around.

[@mowukamoon7024]

18:57 This is a thing actually! I think the short story is called “The Ones who Walk Away from Omalas” or something similar about a utopian society that is for some reason predicated on the eternal torture of a little girl. There’s also the spiritual successor, “The Ones who Stay and Fight” (again I think) which is a similar concept except I like it a lot less: it felt very preachy and condescending to me, and also maybe was pulling for the abolition of free speech?

[@pbjmochi8400]

Haven't read the second short story (although apparently it's by N.K. Jemisin, which brings it closer to the top of my "must-read" list), but I have read the first one. "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" wasn't intended as a critique of utilitarianism so much as it was a commentary on how there always has to be some sort of "twist" in every utopia story to make it believable. Edit: there's also the fact that Omelas is a commentary on the many ways society already benefits from the suffering of others. In this case, "walking away" means rejecting the notion that society requires making innocent people suffer in order to exist. It does not mean ignoring the suffering that does exist.

[@Lamphia]

14:49 this reminds me of another meme i saw not that long ago (based on a poem i think) that went: - They dont know everything becomes dust - we do, and yet we dance - and yet we love

[@cabinboi1511]

Love your stuff, but especially enjoyed this one, It was fun and you had an obviously good time which was fun to watch.

[@cclarke10able]

You’re one of the best communicators I’ve ever heard. Thanks so much for the videos, my own lexicon has increased significantly due to watching them! 🙏

[@ozziepagan5365]

I Love philosophy because it often gives me ideas for my DnD or cyberpunk campaigns. I feel like it just facilitates a setting where these philosophical discussilisten can happen and not feel tedious. Also far less people know about Nisha and kafka So when I applied their ideas to a world it's far less apparent than when I steal something from film

[@techpriestsalok8119]

9:06 I have also seen the argument that if you combine this with the many worlds theorem, it’s less god knew and planned for you doing x in response to y but more that he knew all the possible responses to y and planned for all of them. Like if you were taking a multiple choice test, the test maker can plan for all situations, even ones where you try to deliberately not play along but they aren’t choosing for you. It’s obviously more complex then this but it’s the start of an argument.

[@Ankhar2332]

youve just discovered a gold mine, continue work on memes

[@dr_volberg]

8:23 That is a comic by Zach Weinersmith from his Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal which is full of philosophical insight.

[@anthonyr.capellan3198]

I Kant stop watching your videos!

[@nicholaslabonte620]

I believe the debate over doing a worthless task and doing nothing depends on many factors. But my favorite is that both are freeing to the person who had to do the other. To stop rolling a boulder after an eternity feels like a gift. And to roll a Boulder, and to do something after forced sitting in empty silence feels good.

[@n3ew777]

I think it’s good to have a pointless task rather than no task at all because when you have no task at all you aren’t chasing anything, and you’ll not only be gaining nothing, but you’ll lose something, your possible entertainment you could’ve had if you did something, no matter how pointless. Basically, something completely pointless is, in value, the very same thing as doing absolutely nothing at all, but when you are doing something useless, you are at the very least engaged with a task and save yourself from boredom. In addition, a pointless task could indirectly aid you in the future in some way, though it’s not a high chance, but doing nothing will never aid you.

[@danstevens64]

And you can make fun of the task itself, it's pointlessness and the fact that you are doing it with all of your friends and coworkers. It's what got me through a job I once had that was pointless.

[@valorificmirage]

but if the rock stayed at the top, Sisyphus would gain freedom, freedom to create his own tasks, to wander, to roam, one may argue all tasks are pointless- and in that case, it's better to do a task that uplifts you materially or at least- to do a task you have given yourself....

[@KingOpenReview]

Rolling the rock up a hill forever may be pointless, but at least Sisyphus is getting ripped.

[@4891MR]

Does it change the equation if your pointless task consumes more resources?

[@kujojotarostandoceanman2641]

How do you have a true pointless task? If rolling a random ball makes you happy then that is no longer a pointless task anymore, you might think this may be a reach but if you expand this definition into entertaining others to make people happy then it is now a real job in this world

[@ollie6672]

I really appreciate you reading out and describing the pictures as someone who does other things whilst listening to your videos thank you for you insights as well i find them interesting and i feel they add a lot unlike with typical reaction videos

[@MeganMegandaughter]

This is what I mean when I say I want to have conversations about philosophy, this was so fun 😄

[@GweniswasntTaken]

3:00 having no task at all gives you the freedom of choosing what you want to do, or do nothing. It's the freedom of exploring possibilities you wouldn't have been able to otherwise

[@yecksd]

2:03 ECCLESIATES MENTIONED ‼️ 🥳🎉🎉🎉

[@Treehugger08]

I very much enjoy these casual videos and would like to see more of them.

[@ThatCircusShow]

more meme reviews please 🙏 Edit - that mc hammer tweet broke me. Here for the collab I never knew I needed

[@ReiRidingSolo]

Please do more of these! Very helpful for visual learners, and it gives us great short tidbits of many topics in one video! ❤

[@bananastyle24k]

I think a pointless task is bettrr than no task because when you have nothing to do you just exist and question

[@chewie-v9546]

But with a pointless task you ask yourself "why am I doing a pointless task". There is no right/wrong or good/bad answer, but being able to do a pointless task or no task all while accepting it and being okay with it is what I feel like is the goal.

[@rompevuevitos222]

Reminder that you can create your own tasks. And you can do it to your liking

[@chewie-v9546]

@@rompevuevitos222 that kinda isn't the point of the video

[@rompevuevitos222]

@@chewie-v9546 yes, the video casually skips that fact to create a fake possible scenario. Truth is, if Sysiphus finished his forced task, he could make another one of his own. There is no moment where he would be doomed to live without purpose.

[@chewie-v9546]

@@rompevuevitos222 That's my fault I read your comment and thought it was about something else. I actually completely agree, it kind of branches off what I said previously. If doing something you feel like is pointless, come up with something to make it pointful.

[@delta_1997]

This guy has been my tune for sleep. I just open one of his video and It's just great to listen to while submerging into the realm of mystery. Your voice is cozy. Keep up the good work.

[@MemTMCR]

the worst part about philosophy is you make fun of it and it begins analysing you

[@crstph]

to answer 3:00 is it better to have meaningless tasks or no tasks? i recently read this and it rly changed my perspective: “these days I really do believe that chores give my life meaning. Not just because they present texture and struggle and a necessary counterpart to rest (all true), but because maintenance is in itself profound. Caring for ourselves, for other people, for our homes, for plants and other animals- these are the unfinishable projects of our lives. We do them over and over not to conquer them, not for personal gain, but to maintain and nourish them, with no greater expectation. (…) i think this is very sweet and pure. Almost spiritual.” when i tell you that i live alone and started to realize i kind of enjoy the ritual/satisfaction of certain chores id always dreaded, but didnt have the words for it til reading this…totally reframed my perspective. also i dont know whose words these are bc it was a screenshot (a downfall to the philosophy meme culture) so if anyone knows pls tell me & i’ll credit!

[@jackmullen3713]

I feel like this would make for a lovely series. It wouldn’t be bad to consider

[@KohanaWohali]

Optimism in the face of an utterly meaningless existence, is a radical notion and shows wisdom and humility. It says yes, being cynical is a safe way to protect myself from any and all external harm, but it also prevents any and all external benefit. Risking that people may hurt you, but hoping they will not hurt you in the face that they may is a choice. You are putting faith in your fellow human in hopes that empathy and logic will prevail.

[@KristofskiKabuki]

On the subject of people defining morality via disgust: as a queer/trans person I’ve been thinking about this recently regarding people with homophobic and transphobic beliefs - they’ll often claim their beliefs are a rational morality born from logic (or “common sense”), but when you question them on it it’s usually simply because they think it’s icky. But some of the more self aware among them will claim the fact that they and everyone they consider to be a right minded thinker are disgusted by queers is “proof” that it is in fact immoral, as the human disgust response developed to protect us from things that are dangerous. Which tbf isn’t untrue, but evolution is far from perfect and things like that can easily be misdirected, plus of course what disgusts someone and how much varies massively both culturally and individually. Of course these people also seem to lack the understanding that other people can think and feel differently to them (I’m sure there’s a technical word for that but I’m not sure what it is) so assume that everyone else either feels and believes the same as they do and is pretending so they don’t look bad or is somehow mentally ill

[@ricardomiles2957]

What people with those deep rooted prejudices seek is to justify their beliefs, since simple saying god said so isn't enough anymore they try to appeal to "science". An evolutionary mechanism is just that, an mechanism and it's uses and purposes are on constant flux. And funny enough those people would completely change tone if you were to bring up how homosexuality and gender transition occurs in nature too with other organisms.

[@Hibbyhubby]

First off, as a fellow recently queer/trans person, i hope you're doing well.! i agree on your insights too. people def seem to stigmatize things they find disgusting more than immoral things. which can be really unfortunate when it's misplaced. Facing things we find disgusting or uncomfortable is part of how we grow.

[@HBP27]

We do not think its "icky" it is wrong and if you advocate for it you are not mentally fine.

[@Hibbyhubby]

@@HBP27 on what basis do you deem it wrong when mountains of research disagree on the health of rejecting gender freedom

[@ricardomiles2957]

lmao i think my comment here got blacklisted oh well. tldr i was saying people who try to use science to justify a belief aren't scientists, it is like flat earthers. if you were to show these people the evidence that homosexuality and gender fluidity also happens with other animals suddenly it woulnd't matter or manipulated science

[@khamultheeasterling4459]

What you said about sisyphus finishing his task is something I have thought about a lot. To me sisyphus is actually not in a bad situation but a neutral or even positive one. He has purpose and a never ending task. To have fulfilled your purpose with nothing to do is a fate equal to death. Having to start over with no result is not a curse but a blessing in disguise as it allows you to continue doing it and improving on it without having it end before you having anything better to do.

[@emma_tm]

11:05 i think part of why this is suggested so easily is because once you learn to stop caring, it *feels* like it's really easy, despite the road to getting there actually being hard

[@lottemaas6038]

This was amezing! Jokes are sutch a great way to inform people or let them think. Its verry memorable

[@br3nto]

4:25 if no one put their trolleys away, there would always be a trolly nearby ready to use. 😉

[@alcedob.5850]

imagine it's on a parking lot

[@my_dude_5742]

Not necessarily. There is no guarantee that wherever you park in a Walmart parking lot there will be a shopping cart nearby if no one corralled them and distributed them equally throughout the parking lot. I assume lots of engineering has gone into the fact that the shopping carts need to be equally distributed across the parking lot so the maximum distance you have to walk to get to one is very small. Also something to consider which is the point of the meme in the first place is that it doesn't matter how many people leave their shopping carts in the parking lot the manager of whatever store you're doing this at is still going to have their employees go out and corral the shopping carts unless it becomes a nationwide social custom, so we must still consider the extra effort it takes to wrangle all of the shopping carts across a large plot of land against the fact that putting your shopping cart away minimizes the effort necessary to perform the task they are hired to perform

[@lrdofwlvs2734]

That is irrelevant

[@gljames24]

Rationality is often something we do as a consequence of our feelings rather than in spite of them. We construct narrative after the fact when we are impulsive.

[@rustygray5058]

Really enjoyed this one, but I was sad that you didn't include anything from The Good Place. Eleanor: It's like, who died and left Aristotle in charge of philosophy? Chidi: PLATO!

[@smallbeast2139]

2:58 I believe that this question is very subjective. It depends on the person’s whole perspective. Personally, I believe having a task that you have to do over and over and over again, i.e. doing homework, waking up early to go to class, going to work everyday, doing chores, etc. holds your sanity in tact. I remember during the summer, I didn’t do anything with my life. I didn’t even go outside. I slept all day and all night. However, even though I didn’t have a thing to worry about, that just made my mental state worse. I feel at my best when i do something. I don’t feel like a ticking time bomb where depression is harboring all of the explosive energy.

[@Via_0807]

You're one of the few intellectual people on this platform.

[@Ankhar2332]

he is not being countered by dumbing culture. how to counter culture though?

[@ichliebebaeumeweilbaum]

search more there's actually plenty ^^

[@FlatterTundra9]

On the fatalist argument comic at around 9:00, I've come to the personal conclusion a while ago that the self being the sole motivator of the actions of the self isn't only unnecessary, it's impossible. That being said, the effect of the inner sense on bodily actions, regardless of the previous bodily sense that cumulatively affected the inner sense to bring it to the state it is currently in, is, in a way, free will, and a form of free will that is both generally possible and unconflicting with a deterministic world. I think. I haven't really studied any of this :)