This is a pretty vague thing to be angry about, so it's kind of hard to put into words, but here goes. It seems like real intelligence is being killed of by sarcasm and cheap cynism, which all boils down to nihilism. Intelligence to me (so far as communication goes anyway) is the ability to convey enlightenment, insight, complexity or just plain sense in your idea's. But sadly, all I see among so called
"intellectuals" around my age, and even on this site (not pointing any fingers, you should be able to spot it out yourself), is sarcasm and cynism. People think that they're being really smart when they make a short, witty attack on something, be it someones idea, or the state of politics somewhere, whatever. The worst part is that this actually works, and these people if they've mastered the arts of acting cynical and jaded (which aren't very tough to learn) well enough, actually gain listeners! This furthers their ego, and they keep on spouting cynical arrogant trash.

It's easy to look at things from the most negative angle possible, and critisize the way the things are. What impresses me is those who find it in themselves to have a little faith. These are the people who, having some goals to attain, and something to strive for, actually think of solutions to problems rather than dwelling on them.

Well forgive my incoherent babble. It was just a thought. I'll leave you with a quote, which I'm pretty sure is Dostoyevsky.
"nihilism is the servility of thought".

Bullshit.

Heh just kidding, I know what you mean, and I try to not be too "nihilistik"? I wonder if this will have an impact though, because most people dont realize they are being an ass, they just think they are smart .

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Heh just kidding, I know what you mean, and I try to not be too "nihilistik"? I wonder if this will have an impact though, because most people dont realize they are being an ass, they just think they are smart .

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But I'm both. I'm a Smart Ass.

See? There I go, making sarcastic remarks and wasting my intellect. There's probably something seriously wrong with me. In fact, I know there is. I hide behind my cynicism. I'm actually a bit of an idealist on the inside. I've just given up on people. Perhaps one day I'll just let it all out...

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It seems like real intelligence is being killed of by sarcasm and cheap cynism

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I hate that shit.

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sadly, all I see among so called
"intellectuals" around my age, and even on this site (not pointing any fingers, you should be able to spot it out yourself), is sarcasm and cynism.

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I seldom use sarcasm, but I'm somewhat of a cynic.

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It's easy to look at things from the most negative angle possible, and critisize the way the things are. What impresses me is those who find it in themselves to have a little faith.

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I tend to see things with a negative slant, I critisize things that are amazingly idiotic, and I have no "faith" as they call it. I strive for the best but expect the worst.

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These are the people who, having some goals to attain, and something to strive for, actually think of solutions to problems rather than dwelling on them.

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That applies to me as well. I tend to see problems in things before they even occur whereas most people wouldn't think twice about them, and in seeing the problem, I prevent it if possible so nothing negative results from it. I don't dwell on problems, I'm all about knocking them out and getting on to the next thing.

The people you refer to sound like the "Life sucks and then you die" types. I'm a little different. I think life sucks, then you get cancer. Then you go into chemotherapy, you lose all your hair, you feel bad about yourself. Then all of a sudden the cancer goes into remission, you come out, you look good, your going great then all of a sudden you have a stroke, you can't move your right side. And one day you step off the curb at 68'th by Lincoln center and bang you get hit by a bus and then maybe you die.

thats something i hate. its very easy to discredit something and gain support, but its very hard to put forward new ideas. on totse though, people reply selectively, most people will not reply to a topic that thay have nothing to add to. it is easier to speak about something that you disagree with than something that you agree to. so most of the posts that you see are just disagreements and complaints. (or a group of people just rephrasing what the person before said, thinking that it can prove their point, which gets very annoying to argue against because the people cannot see that the basis of the argument is the same and they have just wasted their time posting)

got a bit sidetracked there, see, it is easier to disagree then agree.

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The people you refer to sound like the "Life sucks and then you die" types. I'm a little different. I think life sucks, then you get cancer. Then you go into chemotherapy, you lose all your hair, you feel bad about yourself. Then all of a sudden the cancer goes into remission, you come out, you look good, your going great then all of a sudden you have a stroke, you can't move your right side. And one day you step off the curb at 68'th by Lincoln center and bang you get hit by a bus and then maybe you die.

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Denis Leary: God Amongst Cynics

Pretty much. He puts on one hell of a show and has many views I can relate to.

How ironic.. only a true cynic could have come up with that post, great_sage.

[This message has been edited by ThunderChunky (edited 08-20-2002).]

Sometimes people don't read far enough into other's cynicism.

Sitting around agreeing with ourselves gets us nowhere. Without smart asses to keep you on your toes, your brain will shrivel up until you jump off a cliff, because everyone agrees it's the right thing to do (as the expression goes).

As my bathroom wallpaper says "If at first you don't succeed, you're running about average."

Next time someone says something cynical, thank them (mentally) for pointing out the rough edges, or tell them why they're wrong if they only deserve the last part of the title (as an Ass).