Why don't you want to die?

[Yeager]

See Rule #14

[Penguin]

This is the topic I've been waiting for during my entire forum career.  I am a self-taught philosopher (and have been described as such by numerous friends and family members).

Here is a short treatise that I have composed regarding death, thought and immortality:

The Immortal Mind
By Penguin

I think, therefore I am.  However, death is the cessastion of all biolgical processes, including thought.  Therefore I will cease to be when I cease to think; the cessation of thought is death.  Therefore, if I die, then I cease to be.  This raises the question, why should I wish to be?

To ask oneself why one wishes to be is equivalent to asking the meaning of life.  To ascertain the meaning of life requires thought.  The meaning of life, in and of itself, is a thought or thoughts.  If I cease to think, then I cannot ascertain the meaning of life, for it requires thought.  Furthermore, the enjoyment of life has the same prerequisite as the the meaning of life- thought.

One can derive from this logic that in order to enjoy and ascertain the meaning of life, one must think.  If death is the cessation of thought, then it is the cessation of the enjoyment and meaning of life.  Therefore, without death, life would continue to provide enjoyment and meaning.

If death ends the enjoyment and meaning of life, then life must provide enjoyment and meaning.  Therefore, I do not wish to die because if I were to then I would not be able to enjoy myself and ascertain the meaning of life.  With that established, I will now describe my conclusion in detail.

Enjoyment- endless life is equivalent to endless enjoyment, such as food, sex, art, science and adventure.  If I were able to live endlessly, I would be able to taste the most delicious food, make love with the loveliest women, appreciate the highest art, enjoy the benefits of the most advanced science, and go on the greatest adventures.

Meaning- enless life enables to ascertainment of its meaning via such lengthy research that its meaning can be prised out by trial and error if nothing else.  The endless debates, though tiring, would make my information infinite, allowing me to distill the meaning of life down to an essence.

To boil my point down to an essence: To live is to think, to live infinitely is to achieve infinite wisdom.

-Penguin

[Raphael]

because there are people that care about me and now people i REALLY care about.

[SFRT - Frenchy]

Because there's a lot of stuff that I want to do, most of them costing $$$. So, I need to live long so I can work many years to finally be able to afford it. Simple really.

[Tyrannis]

in the words of the all-knowing spock:
LIVE LONG...AND PROSPER

[Muzzy]

I'm glad nobody said "Because I've yet to beat Bruv." 

[mijoieau]

Great post Penguin BUT:
Once you get a lot older the copy and paste stuff that may make you feel smart may work out in your favor (NOT) BUT first live the stories like leave home first and get a life then work hard, have a family and do it with style or you will just end up in uni talking crap to people that dont listen as they also talk crap they haven't done or couldn't as they are stuck tiring to look better than people who lived.
Forkit

[cpxxx]

There was a point where I stood on the edge both literally and figuratively. Nothing to live for. That's changed. Now I'm married and have two sons. I don't want to die now and miss them growing up, nor do I want them to grow up without a Father or leave my wife alone. Other than that I've very little to live for, having lost all my ambitions and dreams or more accurately gave them up after stopping fooling myself.

I don't believe in life after death. You just go blank, it was going under general anaesthetic in hospital that convinced me of that. One microsecond I was aware before the operation, the next I was awake hours later. No transition at all. Death must be similar. But I will live on in my sons who already have demonstrated they are essentially chips off the old block, sadly for them

It's nice to think your consciousness lives on but I fear it doesn't. So death is to be postponed as long as possible.

[Plawranc]

I do not want to die... have come close a few times.. Its the primeval fear of a human being, as Karnak said, the cessation of existance is non-appealing.

But the dying is to me the crucial part. You see, I fear death, but what I fear worse (and this is not cheap humour) is leaving this earth, crappily.

Dying in bed would not appeal.

"Backwards at 200 mph through the gates of hell on fire is a more stylish entrance to the afterlife" - Jeremy Clarkson on The Koenigsegg GTR

[fudgums]

The jimmy v speach put it in perspective for me.

[Yossarian]

Partly because death isn't an appealing prospect, life is fun, and I'm an only child.  For some reason, I find the idea of dying without realising you're about to die particularly unappealing - no idea why, though.

Also fudgums - thanks for posting that.

[redcatcherb412]

I've had a good handful of near death experiences.....one I was laying in a field after crashing my motorcycle with a collapsed lung and internal injuries.

I knew then I wasn't ready to die but when your in pain like that you almost want to.

I'm not afraid to die but I think everyone should at least get the chance to love and have a family of their own before they go/quote]

Damn Belial, I think i'll stop calling you names when you kill my M4.  Laying with a collapsed lung in a rice paddy at 18 years old for over 8 hours gave me an awful long time to reflect on living or dying.  Now living thru it with 3 kids, 10 grandkids I look back and am glad it didn't end then.  I'll think of you differently I think being a member of the struggling to breathe  on one lung club as the other whistles uselessly.  Glad you pulled out of it, I will try to remember to salute you more often after I blow your t34/85 up   .         

[Penguin]

Great post Penguin BUT:
Once you get a lot older the copy and paste stuff that may make you feel smart may work out in your favor (NOT) BUT first live the stories like leave home first and get a life then work hard, have a family and do it with style or you will just end up in uni talking crap to people that dont listen as they also talk crap they haven't done or couldn't as they are stuck tiring to look better than people who lived.
Forkit

I wrote that myself.   It's sad, really, no-one wants to believe that a kid can have deep thoughts.  I could write another treatise if you'd like.

-Penguin

[Becinhu]

I'm invincible.  Plus I was imformed I must remain for awhile...at least until the devil can get his full pension.

[gyrene81]

penguin, you need to get a life boy...i see a lot of misguided angst and possible self pity brought on by a sheltered life...get out and live a little, and don't use your parents as an excuse.



to the op, it's great that you squeakers somewhat have some self understanding but, you're not alone...if you could get your peers to drop their b.s. macho act long enough to actually speak intelligently, you would find that out...perhaps one day you will understand it's that fear that keeps you from doing stupid things...it's when you no longer have that fear that you need to make sure your life insurance is paid up.