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Originally Posted by Yakk
Happiness is distorted message given by evolution saying "this worked in the past, do more of it". That's it.
I don't worship evolution, so I don't worship happiness.
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The frog can wish to be a swan but hes still a frog. To deny your own nature is rather silly. For example, my children bring me a lot of happiness. I never understood guys who would lament not seeing their kids for a week while they were out of town, it was only a week after all. Well now I get it. Its obviously a evolutionary response but why fight it?
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As many people have noted, there are some people who can produce happiness from nothing, and others for whom nothing can produce happiness. By the "happiness is the fundamental goal" rule, both of these people should cease action.
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I don't think this example is truly valid. Put someone who is 'always' happy in a room with his testicles wired up to a car battery and I think someone won't be happy. Likewise Mr. Never happy most likely is just denying what would make him happy or just doesn't know how to reach it. Both absolutes are not in fact absolutes.
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Technology is likely to figure out how to produce happiness cheaply and directly -- and if that is the fundamental goal of your life, you should then become a wire head and spend your entire life doing nothing.
I don't think that is a good way to live one's life.
When A implies B, and you aren't absolutely sure about A, and B seems wrong, this provides evidence that A is wrong -- that happiness shouldn't be the absolute fundamental goal, because being a wire head is not a good state to be in.
To put it another way: when wire heading is developed, all those who are motivated by maximizing their own happiness will stop playing the game of reality, and those who keep playing reality will inherit the universe.
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The wire head happiness is a pretty old theme in science fiction, always with a drug analogy, and like heavy drugs I'm sure thats how it would be used and thought of. There are some people who would stuff various substances in their bodies all day long currently and they will be the same ones using a direct mind current type of drug as well. You are right in that they will inherit nothing, no more than a meth head does today.