If you could have/be anything/anyone, what/who would it/you be and why?

[тωιѕтє∂]

I don't know yet, I'll comment when I think of it. What about you people?

[brainiac3397]

This guy's position(a realistic version that is):

Hidden stuff:

Basically leader of a militant death cult intent on converting or destroying. Maybe modify it with the goal of "fixing" humanity by destroying it and starting from a clean slate.

Why? Because I'm probably crazy, a little eccentric and perhaps somewhat insane

[Potato]

dr. manhattan. enough said

[xcriteria]

(06-15-2013 07:57 AM)Potato Wrote:  dr. manhattan. enough said

Why, specifically?

[Potato]

the possibilities that come with the powers of dr. manhattan isn't "specific." he's nearly omnipotent

[brainiac3397]

(06-15-2013 11:34 AM)Potato Wrote:  the possibilities that come with the powers of dr. manhattan isn't "specific." he's nearly omnipotent

Nice choice. Dr. Manhattan could probably set himself up as God. He's nearly got all the requisites

[Night]

I'd be a house cat. Because it seems fun to be a cat.

[Thought Criminal]

I would be Johnny Depp

[xcriteria]

(06-15-2013 06:58 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  Basically leader of a militant death cult intent on converting or destroying. Maybe modify it with the goal of "fixing" humanity by destroying it and starting from a clean slate.

Why? Because I'm probably crazy, a little eccentric and perhaps somewhat insane

I wrote up a wall of questions, but the post didn't go through.

Here it goes again:

My mind has a bunch of "why?" questions, even though you already tried to answer that.

Why would you like that particular role, from a job-fit perspective?

Why would you use those particular methods to achieve your desired future world?

What would your "fixed" version of humanity look like?

[SoulRiser]

I would be myself... I've grown to quite like it.

But I wouldn't mind some superpowers, like mindreading, invisibility, flying, teleportation, all that good stuff. And an army of minions just for good measure.

[no]

I would be RAINBOW DASH!!!!!one!!!!

[brainiac3397]

(06-15-2013 03:35 PM)xcriteria Wrote:  

(06-15-2013 06:58 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  Basically leader of a militant death cult intent on converting or destroying. Maybe modify it with the goal of "fixing" humanity by destroying it and starting from a clean slate.

Why? Because I'm probably crazy, a little eccentric and perhaps somewhat insane

I wrote up a wall of questions, but the post didn't go through.

Here it goes again:

My mind has a bunch of "why?" questions, even though you already tried to answer that.

1-Why would you like that particular role, from a job-fit perspective?

2-Why would you use those particular methods to achieve your desired future world?

3-What would your "fixed" version of humanity look like?

1-I mentioned in another thread somewhere how that while nurture/environment while maturing have a substantial effect on a person, there is also the passive inclinations that may rise from the "soul" and the genetics of that person. A sort of "calling" that seems to unconsciously and slightly adjust your path. I feel that inclination when it comes to creating change in the world, or shaping the future or whatever fancy things people like to call it. The initial stage always is in need of a strategist, someone who plans and aims for progress. I may not be the best to maintain status quo after the dust settles, but planning,progressing and optimizing are things I'm fit for.

2-Why would I choose to be head of a militant death cult where I would kill those who refuse to join? Because it's my philosophy that there are problems that are better handled by totally eradication rather than attempting repair. Repairing certain things tends to create great difficulty. It's best to get a group of dedicated folk, then just clear the field to rebuild things from a clean slate.

3-The "fixed" version will require "sanitizing" history,society,culture, and religion. It's my opinion humanity took a wrong turn in history, and it's time we make a U-turn. Using the knowledge and experiences we've gained, it will be easier to start anew without having to restart the cycle of mistakes after mistakes. Course this all sounds too "perfect" but a perfect plan is simply a guideline of things to be achieved. The title of a list of realistic goals.

Maybe I'm also just Affably Evil and watched a lot of "Pinky and the Brain" when I was kid. I always did root for the evil side in most fictions...

[xcriteria]

tl;dr:

Hidden stuff:

Scroll to the end.

(06-16-2013 06:15 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  1-I mentioned in another thread somewhere how that while nurture/environment while maturing have a substantial effect on a person, there is also the passive inclinations that may rise from the "soul" and the genetics of that person. A sort of "calling" that seems to unconsciously and slightly adjust your path. I feel that inclination when it comes to creating change in the world, or shaping the future or whatever fancy things people like to call it.

I agree with this. I think it's worth exploring that calling a bit and look at where it comes from, but it's a good thing to have something to work with. A lot of people struggle to find any inclination.

(06-16-2013 06:15 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  The initial stage always is in need of a strategist, someone who plans and aims for progress. I may not be the best to maintain status quo after the dust settles, but planning,progressing and optimizing are things I'm fit for.

The initial stage... of? I suppose this is true of anything -- an organization, a movement, an entrepreneurial endeavor. How does your interest in strategy relate to your interest in studying engineering, if at all?

(06-16-2013 06:15 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  2-Why would I choose to be head of a militant death cult where I would kill those who refuse to join? Because it's my philosophy that there are problems that are better handled by totally eradication rather than attempting repair. Repairing certain things tends to create great difficulty. It's best to get a group of dedicated folk, then just clear the field to rebuild things from a clean slate.

How did you develop that philosophy?

I would break this down into a couple of parts. One, is that in a totally abstract sense, "there are problems that are better handled by totally eradication rather than attempting repair. Repairing certain things tends to create great difficulty." Sometimes it makes sense to tear down a building, and build a new one, as opposed to making structural renovations.

However, when it comes to human beings, I think it's worth digging a bit deeper than that. Actually, a lot deeper than that. That's part of being an intellectual.

We happen to be at a point in history where a lot more can be examined than at any previous point in history, about human nature, about the nature of change, and about the nature of organizations.

For example, consider two cases which come to mind when you say, "a militant death cult where I would kill those who refuse to join."

1. Sendero Luminoso, or the "Shining Path" of Peru.

Hidden stuff:

"These insurgents, who call themselves the Communist Party of Peru, or PCP, are the last remnants of the Shining Path, a communist group, that, back in the 1980's, took on arms, vowing to defend the peasantry,
and impose a dictatorship of the proletariat. What followed was a ruthless war between the subversives and government forces. The Shining Path was characterized by its bloody tactics. Within a few years, they had annihilated thousands of Peruvians. Most of their victims were the very same peasants they were supposed to be defending."



Watch on YouTube



Watch on YouTube

How do you relate the mass atrocities committed by a group like this -- whose own leaders now regret -- with lines like the following?

(06-14-2013 03:03 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  I don't know whether it's just my opinion on it, but it seems like society(American to be specific) is eager to dumb people down and take opportunities of development or opportunities that allow development away from those less fortunate but seeking to improve

How do you define development? Killing those who refuse to join your movement, or taking some time to consider other ways to improve the world?

2. Joseph Kony, of the Lord's Resistance Army.

Hidden stuff:

Lots of controversy surrounded Kony 2012, but Kony's tactics are a real thing. How does mass killing accomplish anything of value?

How can you possibly justify genocide, in a world where it's easier than ever to educate and empower people to live differently than any time in history?

What are your thoughts on these examples? How do these relate to what you have in mind?

(06-16-2013 06:15 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  3-The "fixed" version will require "sanitizing" history,society,culture, and religion. It's my opinion humanity took a wrong turn in history, and it's time we make a U-turn. Using the knowledge and experiences we've gained, it will be easier to start anew without having to restart the cycle of mistakes after mistakes. Course this all sounds too "perfect" but a perfect plan is simply a guideline of things to be achieved. The title of a list of realistic goals.

Okay -- lots to break down there. The silver lining I see is the idea of "using the knowledge and experiences we've gained." What are those experiences, and what knowledge do you have in mind? Arguably, you, I, we all have some more experiences to come and more knowledge to be gained -- for example, why else go to college, listen to professors, or otherwise study new things?

But certainly, we can reflect on what has happened so far, and see what knowledge that implies.

Next question -- what do you mean by "sanitizing" history, society, culture, and religion?

Keep in mind that any action you take will provide an example to at least some others, which may in turn "dirty" the resulting history, society, culture, and religion. How do you account for that contingency?

(06-16-2013 06:15 AM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  Maybe I'm also just Affably Evil and watched a lot of "Pinky and the Brain" when I was kid. I always did root for the evil side in most fictions...

Ahh, your Freudian Excuse. If you dig into that a bit, what is it that really appealed to you about the villains?

Give that some thought, then consider the following:

Hidden stuff:

Villains Act, Heroes React

How much is your underlying motivation is a desire to take initiative, and make a positive change in the world, vs. a desire to hurt others?

It's often preached that it's good to be proactive, and yet, if you think about proactiveness in fiction, and often in real life, you see the villains being proactive, and heroes reacting. Or, something along these lines:

Sliding Scale Of Proactiveness

If your fundamental inner motive is a desire to change the world, maybe the way fiction has portrayed initiative is the thing that makes villainy so appealing?

Maybe... just maybe... there are better ways to change the world than being a cookie-cutter villain. Maybe the way to start, as an intellectual, is to explore that question.

tl;dr:

Hidden stuff:

There are better ways to change the world than operating a death cult. (Agree or disagree?)

[тωιѕтє∂]

Wow, you people are boring. I would wish for either 1. Freedom or 2. Power. Complete power. I wouldn't use it, but I like the feeling of having it. Knowing that I'm able to do anything yet I stay myself, and don't go murdering everyone

[xcriteria]

(06-16-2013 01:52 PM)Twisted Wrote:  Wow, you people are boring. I would wish for either 1. Freedom or 2. Power. Complete power. I wouldn't use it, but I like the feeling of having it. Knowing that I'm able to do anything yet I stay myself, and don't go murdering everyone

Hah, interesting.

So, what do you mean by freedom and power?

Two key definitions of freedom are: 1. Freedom from something. 2. Freedom to make decisions -- which always occurs within some kind of constraints (time, resources, situations, subconscious factors, and so on.)

The second kind of freedom -- to make decisions, is a kind of power. The ability to make decisions can occur in all kinds of places... basically every moment of the day you snap out of autopilot. What to pay attention to, what to contemplate, what to ask, what to do.

Being able to stay yourself -- and yet evolve... without running around hurting others...

That's fits in with my answer. I like who I am, but I'd like to be less boring. And, I wonder, what's possible in this world? What am I capable of?

More specifically, I'm I'd like to be able to better explain complex ideas in interesting ways. Lots of work to do on that front! But I don't think I'm alone in that.

On that topic... what makes things interesting?

[brainiac3397]

(06-16-2013 01:52 PM)Twisted Wrote:  Wow, you people are boring. I would wish for either 1. Freedom or 2. Power. Complete power. I wouldn't use it, but I like the feeling of having it. Knowing that I'm able to do anything yet I stay myself, and don't go murdering everyone

They say power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
I get around by this by considering myself already corrupt XD

And xrit, Il have a reply for you in the morning.(are you a law enforcement officer trying to "interrogate" me or psychoanalyze me? Course I wouldnt care because its entertaining )

[xcriteria]

(06-16-2013 03:44 PM)brainiac3397 Wrote:  They say power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
I get around by this by considering myself already corrupt XD

And xrit, Il have a reply for you in the morning.(are you a law enforcement officer trying to "interrogate" me or psychoanalyze me? Course I wouldnt care because its entertaining )

Heh, on the TV Tropes ARG, I got a lot of flak for "psychoanalyzing" people and for my walls of text.

That gets to the question of who I want to be. It's a tough question. I'm still trying to figure it out, though I have a pretty good idea.

For me, the answer depends on what's possible. I know what I don't want to be -- I don't want to be stuck in the constraints of a traditionally-defined job. I want to help people learn and think about what they want to be, beyond the obvious roles society lays out.

More specifically, I'd like to be able to create more interesting and engaging arrangements of content ("walls of text.") I'd like to build an immersive storyline, a kind of game, that does a better job of helping people learn, figure out who they are, and who they can be than school usually does.

Hidden stuff:

I think we're at a time in history where people need a better set of tools for navigating life than at previous times in history. In fact, they're out there, but in an information-overloaded, media-saturated world, it can be hard to make the most of it all. What media experiences, scenes in life, and moments of learning give rise to what kind of beliefs, decisions, and outcomes in a given person's life?

I want to explore and understand things like that, and apply that understanding to creating better, more engaging, and more relevant learning experiences.

Asking good questions is a good way to learn.

That, and I'd prefer not to be eradicated by a militant death cult, so there's that.

[тωιѕтє∂]

Stop trying to get me to explain stuff. I'm horrible at explaining.

That could be something I really want too, actually...

[brainiac3397]

Quote:I agree with this. I think it's worth exploring that calling a bit and look at where it comes from, but it's a good thing to have something to work with. A lot of people struggle to find any inclination.

I agree. I've got 5-7 hours a day to think about it at work while I engage in simply physical labor.

Quote:The initial stage... of? I suppose this is true of anything -- an organization, a movement, an entrepreneurial endeavor. How does your interest in strategy relate to your interest in studying engineering, if at all?

Well, for one they don't exactly have a major for "Strategic Domination". My interest in engineering simply has to do with my inclination to invent something. Sure, many things I've drawn tend to be military-use leaning in nature but it's still creativity of a sort. And while one can educate themselves in any field, I seek not only the knowledge but also the certification that current society values as well. I'm simply aiming to "certify" by degree a field which I have interest in and that I find quite versatile in nature(as it's basically the study of materials and they're uses/capabilities)

Quote:I would break this down into a couple of parts. One, is that in a totally abstract sense, "there are problems that are better handled by totally eradication rather than attempting repair. Repairing certain things tends to create great difficulty." Sometimes it makes sense to tear down a building, and build a new one, as opposed to making structural renovations.

However, when it comes to human beings, I think it's worth digging a bit deeper than that. Actually, a lot deeper than that. That's part of being an intellectual.

We happen to be at a point in history where a lot more can be examined than at any previous point in history, about human nature, about the nature of change, and about the nature of organizations.

For example, consider two cases which come to mind when you say, "a militant death cult where I would kill those who refuse to join."

1. Sendero Luminoso, or the "Shining Path" of Peru.
How do you relate the mass atrocities committed by a group like this -- whose own leaders now regret -- with lines like the following?

How do you define development? Killing those who refuse to join your movement, or taking some time to consider other ways to improve the world?

We may be at a point where we can examine human nature, the nature of change and the nature of organizations. But we've also reached a point where the world has become fractured with factions and people have begun to react with their short-term emotions rather than long-term logic(not that they never did but now it's on a larger scale). The time of examining has long past, and there needs to be action at whatever the cost.

Quote:2. Joseph Kony, of the Lord's Resistance Army.

Lots of controversy surrounded Kony 2012, but Kony's tactics are a real thing. How does mass killing accomplish anything of value?

How can you possibly justify genocide, in a world where it's easier than ever to educate and empower people to live differently than any time in history?

It may be easier than ever to educate and empower people to live differently, but the very means that make it possible are also the very obstacles to "educating and empowering". Technology has made it easier to educate and empower, yet everyone is leaning away from that. Technology for them makes life simpler, helps them disconnect from society. Those who seek to do good with it, through "peaceful" means, are finding themselves easily outdone. Why? Because those who out-do them don't follow the same principles. They don't restrain themselves with those limits. Everybody follows their rules, not the other way around.

Genocide can easily be justified AFTER the event occurs. The shock that'll be caused by mass killings will the wake up call. You will not be able to remain neutral, hoping things won't change. Just as it requires a force to move a still object, humanity continually requires a force to get it moving along because humans find it easier to maintain status quo.

Continually moving may not be desirable either, but humanity hasn't reached it's full potential. Those who can't make it will inevitably "not make it" while those who make it will have shown the will, courage and strength. It won't be genocide, but a filtering. Staying still in one place for long leads to wear, erosion or "rotting. The idea is to remove the rotten parts so the fresh parts within can enjoy the air or light that's being received by the rotten sections.

Following this, there will be new ways of society, redesigned cultures to resist the effect of this "rot", as it will be impossible to actually prevent it for good.

Quote:What are your thoughts on these examples? How do these relate to what you have in mind?

Unfortunately, there are times where things may be original or unique in the sense that they may not have existed in history, nor are there any examples to accurately describe it. This leaves the event "in the making", where only "time will tell" of what would happen. Both examples were of groups with the intent of something more on the domestic level and with a specific ideology.

My outline of my "militant death cult" is for it to be on a global scale. There is no political thought behind it, nor religious. It doesn't seek power, it doesn't seek wealth, it doesn't seek freedom, it doesn't seek to spread a religion. It seeks to institute change, to redefine,to progress. People will either be part of it, or they will be against it(because there is no middle-ground). Course as time move ahead and things start to cool down, any remaining non-members who weren't on the opposition(as in actively assisting) and who managed to survive, would rather be "integrated" into the rebuilding process. Basically, it'll open up the position of "supporters/affiliates"(since at first it will be exclusively "membership")

And I don't think the term "cult" exactly fits my idea of it, though it would pretty much seem like a cult.

Course this is all technically just "fiction" in the sense that I haven't started a militant death cult, yet. Now, I don't expect to start some hippy-shit Red Cross imitation, because I find all that "pacifists-help-through-kindness" a load of BS. Not because they have no effect, but because they seem to purposefully neglect how things work in the real world.

And If fiction with villains didn't keep having Villain Balls, it would probably be more akin to real life. We create heroes in fiction because they don't really exist in the real world. Most fiction is usually just the real world mirrored through a "Goodness/Kindness" filter.

History has shown no such "greatness"(unless the victor decided to put themselves down in history as being of great character) in the volume fiction puts it at. Good follows some set of rules, and also refuses to make exceptions to these rules. Bad obviously has no rules. What one needs to do is know the balance between Good and Bad. Not to mention fiction also likes to split as "pure villain" and "pure good". There is no such thing as either. Inclination to be a villain doesn't make one a "cookie-cutter" villain. There have been rulers, leaders, in the past who resorted to villainous. Those who received something good from it, were those who knew the limit. Everything has it's limits and villainy is included, and the limits are gauged by the size of the event it is involved in. Looking to change the mayor of the city doesn't require nuclear weapons, but talk will also not change the entire world.

You need to find the sweet spot, because it'll make you unpredictable and leave you able to flex between options when needed. There will be a militant group with "join or die" ideals, but you're given two suitable options. We don't aim to kill everyone. Those who fight against have shown to be hostile, hence the "die" part, and if you aren't with, your most likely against(because "join" isn't some very difficult option. It can be done with the same ease of choosing to die.)
^This is probably a trope. I forget which one but I'm pretty sure I read it.

tl;dr

Hidden stuff:

MILITANT DEATH CULT FOR SURE! . Seriously however, no tl;dr to be found here. I have to go to bed and I've already written a wall of text. I can't even remember the things I said, so I have no idea what to write here either. Suck it up and read the thing

[Alucard483]

(06-15-2013 07:57 AM)Potato Wrote:  dr. manhattan. enough said

Damn, first guy beats me to it.

[Ahab]

Be anything? Me right now --- because whatever fantasy future me isn't even a person, it's a cloudy ass map that comes from my own ignorance of the future in the present moment, lacking in affirmation of life. What I do desire is the constant desire to work diligently towards an impossible goal. This is impossible, of course.

"Having no destination, I am never lost." - Ikkyu