Everything we do is ultimately for our own benefit, for our hearts are wicked and deceitful above all things.
What was your Good deed for the day?
- Thread starter Monocrom
- Start date
Help Support Candle Power Flashlight Forum
M@elstrom
Flashlight Enthusiast
I disagree, a good deed to assist another without seeking any kind of reward or fame is the closest thing to a selfless act.
Regardless of not seeking reward or fame, it is not a selfless act because deep down inside it makes you feel good about yourself. Ultimately, that is your heart's reward.
IMA SOL MAN
Flashlight Enthusiast
Two things:
1. In Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts they teach Do a good turn/deed daily.
I think that when we follow that, we are doing two things, 1. giving service to others, and 2. making ourselves feel good, because there is something psychologically rewarding in helping others.
2. The Golden Rule from the Holy Bible: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Also, the Commandement to Love your neighbor as yourself. Kind of the same thing. Not a choice, though, a rule and a Commandment from The Creator. We may not want to do that good deed, but we are commanded to, so... *shrug* is it self-rewarding at that point? I don't know. That's beyond me. BUT! I do believe that it is rewarding to HUMANITY...and as they say, "What goes around, comes around." You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. There is a universal wisdom in everyone treating each other well. We are all in this together.
That's how it should be.
But human nature being what it is.... Nope!
@IMA SOL MAN, I agree with both
.
However, I don't get the point you're trying to make or how it's related to the post of mine you quoted. 😁
However, I don't get the point you're trying to make or how it's related to the post of mine you quoted. 😁
IMA SOL MAN
Flashlight Enthusiast
Point 1 agrees with your post about good deeds making us feel good.
Point 2 gave another reason for doing good deeds other than to make ourselves feel good. In fact, it can be a downright inconvenient pain in the donkey to do a good deed. For example, your neighbor is all the time asking to borrow your tools, or feed their pet while they are gone on vacation, or pick up their mail and (in the old days) their newspapers. Etc, etc. you get it. Now, I'm not saying that the Love thy neighbor as thyself commandment compels you to comply with all those requests, but, maybe it would be an act of love to have a "little talk" with that neighbor about how it really would be better for them to become a little more independent/self-sufficient rather than taking advantage of the kindness of others. Isn't that what you would want, if you were that dependent neighbor? Sometimes you have to exercise "tough love".
I don't believe that the only reason someone does a good deed is to feel good about themselves. My two previous posts concerned human nature at its deepest depth.
jtr1962
Flashaholic
If a person is religious, and does things for others solely with the goal of helping them get into heaven/nirvana/elysium/etc. then it's ultimately self-serving. An atheist has no such dynamic pushing them to do good for others. Their reason is right there in the bold-faced portion of your post. There's this thing called civilization. It's ultimately to everyone's benefit to treat each other well, or civilization falls apart, then we all lose.
Some people just aren't capable of being less dependent, either due to physical limitations or mental ones. That's why having safety net programs is a good idea. I wouldn't want to be the neighbor obligated to do stuff for the highly dependent person next door. I'd rather pay a little more in taxes so we can pay a person to help them professionally. This doesn't mean I won't do anything for my dependent neighbor. It just means I won't have to offer help on a regular basis.
I agree trying to get people less dependent who don't have any physical or mental limitations. I had a former friend (same guy who used to criticize all my life choices) email questions about different subjects. Eventually I told him you could do a Google search the same as I do and find the answers yourself. He was just being very lazy. He did finally take the hint.
jtr1962
Flashaholic
By the way, while we're talking about doing good deeds, how many here regularly refuse help from others? I do for the simple reason accepting help often comes with strings attached. The person helping will often constantly bring it up. Or they'll expect help from you in return if they need it. The latter might not be a huge problem except for the fact it seems people have needed help from me at the times I was least able to give it. Maybe I'd have a really busy week working, then on top of that stuff in the house needed fixing. I'd be spent, just couldn't give them help, then they would be bringing up how selfish I am not helping them, etc. This is why I learned to just start refusing help from the time I was a kid. Thanks but no thanks. I'll figure it out on my own. I don't like feeling indebted to people.
IMA SOL MAN
Flashlight Enthusiast
I disagree with this, a bit.
A selfless act does have the capacity to make one feel good about oneself, but I don't think that it is a certainty that it will. If you watch Schindler's List, at the end, Schindler was remorseful that he could have saved more lives, but he chose not to. He saved many lives, yet he did not feel good inside about it. This is just an example that I thought of off the top of my head, but I'm sure that there are others.
Sometimes I have done something that was insignificant to me, for someone, but it was greatly appreciated by them. We just have no clue what a random act of kindness can mean to another person. You never know, someone could be on the verge of suicide until you give them a compliment, or some other small thing, that would seem insignificant, like opening and holding a door for someone. I'm not saying that that would do the trick, but just an example of how small things that we do because we were brought up with manners, can mean a lot to another human.
When you lose a loved one, and someone you know shows up at the viewing, or the funeral, it means a lot to you. Sometimes even just getting a sympathy card or note from someone can make a world of difference to a grieving person. People are so self-centric, and wrapped-up in their own little world, that small acts of thinking of others has a profound effect sometimes. I felt this when my parents died. I also experienced the gratitude of a former schoolmate when I attended her brother's viewing/family visitation. I didn't attend out of any motive of feeling good about myself, I went out of compassion and fondness for their family.
As far as Schindler goes, the film and the reality were quite different. With one critic pointing out that the film was "very kind" in its portrayal of Oscar Schindler. Which was his extremely polite way of saying that the man was far from the self-less, warm, and caring person depicted on film. Also doesn't help that Schindler's List was a propaganda piece that angered all of the Jewish consultants on set (all saved by the real Schindler) to the point they walked off, and never returned.
They understood, it's a film; not a documentary. Still, even with that, Spielberg took FAR too many liberties. Schindler wasn't a great man. Far from it. But he did a great thing. The deeds should have been what was emphasized more. They weren't, and in fact the aspects that Spielberg personally hated, he just pretended they never took place.
They understood, it's a film; not a documentary. Still, even with that, Spielberg took FAR too many liberties. Schindler wasn't a great man. Far from it. But he did a great thing. The deeds should have been what was emphasized more. They weren't, and in fact the aspects that Spielberg personally hated, he just pretended they never took place.
Hollywood movies always get the facts wrong.
IMA SOL MAN
Flashlight Enthusiast
Not always. I think in all the WW2 movies I've seen, the Allies always win.
jtr1962
Flashaholic
Isn't that Hollywood in general? Most filmmakers are very bad at showing the shades of gray in a character. You could do great deeds and still be a horrible human being. The pure villians or self-less good guys shown in the movies just don't exist in the real world.
I've found many foreign films do a far better job of portraying people as they truly are, warts and all.
thermal guy
Flashaholic
Not titanic 😁
No, not on Titanic. That one was a documentary.
I don't believe in altruism, period. When I do something nice for someone, like slaying a dragon that wanted to wipe out humanity, it benefits me more than it does them. I think it can be healthy to share acts traditionally viewed as altruistic as an example to others on brotherly love and empathy. Now I know that I am in fact the strongest creature in the universe because I had to jump so high that I made through an empty void in a vacuum to have to climb a mountain that was eleventy-seven trillion meters high to slay the most ferocious human-hating beast in the universe. Yet, I demand nothing. Because I love you all, even if some of you are buttheads sometimes. Or maybe I'm the butthead. Or maybe we're all a bunch of buttheads bouncing around in a fart factory doing our best not to die of the stench of the filth we create for ourselves.
So, maybe not in the spirit of the thread but I'll share something nice someone did for me today. I get allergy shots. I have very bad allergies, to a lot of stuff. Mammals, dust mites, molds, pollens, etc. I am told that I am unusually sensitive to the shots and my allergist has had a real battle slowly escalating my doses over the past year. Today, for a number of reasons, I went into anaphylaxis and my allergist saved my life. I'm totally fine now, the epinephrine is still making me a bit on edge. She was awesome, handled it like a champion. To my credit, at no point was I scared or irrational, but make no mistake, the very least would have been a very not fun trip to the hospital if she wasn't such a pro. I do not welcome death but neither fear it, and once again tested it. Anaphylaxis can seem like not a big deal these days because epinephrine is so powerfully effective, but make no mistake, if you enter into it and do not have epinephrine, are by yourself or do not have powerful steroids you can absolutely die and it happens quickly. While it could be argued she did her job and did it well, in my eyes she saved my life today and will forever have my gratitude. Needless to say, next week I'll be my usual 20 minutes early to my treatment with a very nice bottle of champagne to thank her for being very good at her job.
DUDE! You really need to relocate away from Seattle!
