Inspiring

**Phil Cooper** · 18-Sep-13, 08:16 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=7s22HX18wDY

Read the above story in Reader’s Digest some months ago.

Now an advert, based on fact.

**Dave S** · 18-Sep-13, 08:42 AM

If only the real world was like that...

**Nickolai Naydenov** · 18-Sep-13, 09:12 PM

Awesome one Phil, when you give wholeheartedly you always receive back

**adrianh** · 18-Sep-13, 10:33 PM

Originally Posted by Nickolai Naydenov

Awesome one Phil, when you give wholeheartedly you always receive back

Rubbish, the universe doesn't keep score.

**Dave A** · 19-Sep-13, 12:56 PM

Originally Posted by adrianh

Rubbish, the universe doesn't keep score.

On average, I'm actually pretty sure it does.

Yes, much of the seed one sows falls on fallow ground. But the bit that falls on fertile ground tends to bear fruit far greater than the wastage.

It's easy to see all that wasted effort and take that as the standard, making it all seem futile. Until you see the times where it has paid off...

And that makes it all worthwhile.

**ians** · 19-Sep-13, 02:50 PM

Some people need a break in life and others need to be broken

**ians** · 19-Sep-13, 07:04 AM

Shame Adrian, if only you knew...you should try it some day, but don't be discouraged by the some, I have given away things or helped someone and it has angered me to see what the person has done or the response from that person.

There is a sense of satisfaction like you will never experience unless you do it. It may not come in a cheque for a million rand but you will find your life will change, it might be something as simple as you becoming a happier person

There is only one catch, you have to do it with no strings or conditions attached.

**adrianh** · 19-Sep-13, 07:50 AM

DaveS.

Okay, please site any study that proves that nice things happen to nice people. If what you say is true, that the universe rewards good deeds then howcome Robert Mugabe & George W Bush are fat and happy.

Our attitudes determine how we perceive events, they do not cause random events to happen. If you are an optimist your will generally see the positive in any event and if you are a pessiment you will see the negative. Your view does not cause the event to occur, your view merely justifies the reason for the event occuring in your own mind. The fact that you feel good about doing someting nice is your own internal process and has nothing to do with the universe per se.

The problem is that what we consider to be doing something nice, or positive is generally a social standard. If postive acts are rewarded with positive random events then it stands to reason that negative acts are rewarded with negative random events. How do you explain the 16year old girl, who never hamed a fly getting violently raped - what did she do to deserve such a punishment, and further, lets say the rapist is truly sorry and turns to God, will he no longer be punished. What about the soldier who kills people for his country, many of them have good lives and live fairly average lives without getting punished for their deeds.

DaveS, don't confuse perception and reality, they are not the same. Further, I am not saying that one should or shouldn't done nice things for people and I am not saying that I do, or I don't do nice things for people, I am merely saying that your perceived reward lives in your head, nowhere else.

I had a long discussion with my GP yesterday and at one point during the discussion he started laughing and said that I shouldn't be so brutally realistic, maybe, but in my world, whether one sees the glass as half full or half emply has no bearing on the objective state of the glass, the glass simply contains 50% of its total capacity. Your perception does not change reality, all it changes is the emotional value that you attach to your reality

**Dave S** · 20-Sep-13, 06:49 AM

Originally Posted by adrianh

DaveS.

Okay, please site any study that proves that nice things happen to nice people. If what you say is true, that the universe rewards good deeds then howcome Robert Mugabe & George W Bush are fat and happy.

Our attitudes determine how we perceive events, they do not cause random events to happen. If you are an optimist your will generally see the positive in any event and if you are a pessiment you will see the negative. Your view does not cause the event to occur, your view merely justifies the reason for the event occuring in your own mind. The fact that you feel good about doing someting nice is your own internal process and has nothing to do with the universe per se.

The problem is that what we consider to be doing something nice, or positive is generally a social standard. If postive acts are rewarded with positive random events then it stands to reason that negative acts are rewarded with negative random events. How do you explain the 16year old girl, who never hamed a fly getting violently raped - what did she do to deserve such a punishment, and further, lets say the rapist is truly sorry and turns to God, will he no longer be punished. What about the soldier who kills people for his country, many of them have good lives and live fairly average lives without getting punished for their deeds.

DaveS, don't confuse perception and reality, they are not the same. Further, I am not saying that one should or shouldn't done nice things for people and I am not saying that I do, or I don't do nice things for people, I am merely saying that your perceived reward lives in your head, nowhere else.

I had a long discussion with my GP yesterday and at one point during the discussion he started laughing and said that I shouldn't be so brutally realistic, maybe, but in my world, whether one sees the glass as half full or half emply has no bearing on the objective state of the glass, the glass simply contains 50% of its total capacity. Your perception does not change reality, all it changes is the emotional value that you attach to your reality

Adrian, What are you on about? I never said that good guys get good things, and bad guys get bad things. My comment quite simply refers that the old "do unto others..." is not entirely true, the universe doesn't keep score and, yes, one's attitude toward events will dictate the emotional value of anything that does/doesn't happen.

But when we do good things and we aren't rewarded for it, does that mean we must then stop doing the good things? Is the reward simply "on hold"? Likewise, with any wrong doing.

**pmbguy** · 19-Sep-13, 10:22 AM

Look you are right Adrian, but as a logical being you need a touch of mystery, even though the mystery does not really exist, your belief in some of it balances your Analytical self to not endeavour to much to see the harsh animal existence around us. If we were fully aware of how difficult and dangerous the world was we would struggle to function. Going full analytical brings plenty of knowledge but it makes one rather cynical, me included

So basically for optimal human functioning, including your analytical abilities, you need self misinformation (carma etc etc) about the environment to soften the stress reality causes, stress which would lessen your functioning therefore lessoning your analytical ability in the long term. So you have to be a bit mad to be sane.