If you could choose to never have been born, what would you choose?

RobertKK

Life can be so hard, life can be so good. From great happiness to the depths of despair. So much beauty in the world, whether in nature or the beauty of being loved by people you care about and who care about you.
Knowing what you know about life, if you could choose to have never existed, what option would you have preferred?
To exist in this far from perfect world?
To never have existed?

NIMAN

Is this another abortion thread?

RobertKK

NIMAN wrote: »

Is this another abortion thread?

No. It is a question I came across on Quora and I don't remember it being asked here.
If you never existed at all you would have never existed so that excludes abortion as you would have existed in utero.

El Weirdo

I can see this becoming a very depressing thread.

0byme75341jo28

Why anyone would choose this over peaceful non-existence is something I definitely cannot relate to.

.......

This post has been deleted.

Avatar MIA

El Weirdo wrote: »

I can see this becoming a very depressing thread.

Well, you're not wrong are you...

Callan Most Gauge wrote: »

Why anyone would choose this over peaceful non-existence is something I definitely cannot relate to.

Grayson

I wasn't sure so I asked my non existent imaginary friend. They said nothing. Because they don't exist.

Graces7

Life is a gift;it really is. At my advanced age, I see this more and more, and value it more and more.. regardless of pain and illness etc, it is still a gift. And one we can give to others from.

Robert; thank you.

huddlejonny

RobertKK wrote: »

Life can be so hard, life can be so good. From great happiness to the depths of despair. So much beauty in the world, whether in nature or the beauty of being loved by people you care about and who care about you.
Knowing what you know about life, if you could choose to have never existed, what option would you have preferred?
To exist in this far from perfect world?
To never have existed?

I take it you've never lived so...

vicwatson

I’d like to be a dolphin

Grayson

Graces7 wrote: »

Life is a gift;it really is. At my advanced age, I see this more and more, and value it more and more.. regardless of pain and illness etc, it is still a gift. And one we can give to others from.

Robert; thank you.

but it's not life he's talking about it's existence.

So if you look at the elephant that isn't in front of you, that's what he's talking about. The same with the giraffe that's riding it side saddle.

Except each of those have some kind of metaphysical existence because they now exist in your mind.

He's talking about a complete nullity when it comes to existence.

Gwen Cooper

So let's say that I'm somewhere in a limbo, knowing that there is this world, knowing pros and cons. I'm conflicted. Life has been pretty hard for me, battling a mental illness and being bullied until my late teens...

My answer would depend on how deep my knowledge is. Would I be aware what the odds are that I'm going to be born into a poor family and live a horrible life? Would I have a guarantee that I will be born as a human? Would I know what century I am going to be born into? Or do I just know that there is this world and I get to live a life there, with no guarantees?

I would probably still say yes, but with my luck I would be born as a girl in China to a family that desperately wants a boy and end up being abandoned in the woods, eaten by a bear or something.

To be, or not to be
That is the question

begbysback

What's life like in this non existence world you speak of?

Sin City

begbysback wrote: »

What's life like in this non existence world you speak of?

meh

Sam Quentin

This is the most confusing, stupidest-est-est, ridunculious,stoned, smoked out of me faces-es question thread whatevs in the whole entire planet earth ever ever EVVVVVVVERRRRRRRR.


PS: I LOVE LIFE

Graces7

Grayson wrote: »

but it's not life he's talking about it's existence.

So if you look at the elephant that isn't in front of you, that's what he's talking about. The same with the giraffe that's riding it side saddle.

Except each of those have some kind of metaphysical existence because they now exist in your mind.

He's talking about a complete nullity when it comes to existence.

Existing IS living. Read the title; about being born

And giraffes ride astride. Any eejit knows that :rolleyes:

Eponymous

I'd choose life obviously, as an entity capable of such a thing.

It's nice to have choice, isn't it?

Choice.

Yes, I'm very much pro-choice. What about you OP? Do you like choice?

Sofiztikated

Graces7 wrote: »

Existing IS living. Read the title; about being born

And giraffes ride astride. Any eejit knows that :rolleyes:

Merely existing (as per the poll question) is not living.

Edit : the title is about NOT being born.

buried

I choose be born. I'm a information junkie, love hearing about the scandal, the noise and glawping at everything. There was f**k all of that before being born and it will be back to f**k all of that soon enough, so eat it up

Sin City

Choose life.
Choose a job.
Choose a career.
Choose a family,
Choose a fcking big television
Choose washing machines, cars,
Compact disc players, and electrical tin openers.
Choose good health, low cholesterol
And dental insurance.
Choose fixed-interest mortgage repayments.
Choose a starter home.
Choose your friends.
Choose leisure wear and matching luggage.
Choose a three piece suite on hire purchase
In a range of ****ing fabrics.
Choose DIY and wondering who you
Are on a Sunday morning.
Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing
Sprit-crushing ga me shows
Stuffing ****ing junk food into your mouth.
Choose rotting away at the end of it all,
Pishing you last in a miserable home
Nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish,
****ed-up brats
You have spawned to replace yourself.
Choose your future. Choose life.

AlphabetCards

Man hands down misery to man,
It deepens like a coastal shelf,
Get out as early as you can,
And don't have any kids yourself.

Outlaw Pete

Callan Most Gauge wrote: »

Why anyone would choose this over peaceful non-existence is something I definitely cannot relate to.

Take it easy there, George, it's just eight thousand dollars.

AllForIt

I know I had less stress before I was born.

Franz Von Peppercorn

Grayson wrote: »

I wasn't sure so I asked my non existent imaginary friend. They said nothing. Because they don't exist.

Edgy.

Franz Von Peppercorn

[Deleted User] wrote: »

To be, or not to be
That is the question

No it isn’t.

To be, or not to have been.
That is the question.

Read the op again.

circadian

Pretty sure I don't exist a few dimensions over, just need to find the Sliders wormhole to see what the craic is.

Hector Bellend

Life's a piece of sh1t, when you look at it.

jiltloop

The poll needs some super powers in the options!

begbysback

Stoneriver wrote: »

Imagine that, not having to go to work or do anything ever again. Ask yourself the question, is the sum total of positive emotions and experiences higher or lower than the sum total of your negative emotions and experiences.

You have an excel macro for this?

Sofiztikated

This will probably get depressing, but the sun is shining, I've most of my projects done, and I'm having a can of cider in my garden.

If I was never born, then a lot of people would have had different lives.

My mother. She wouldn't have had a child that required multiple surgeries. She wouldn't have had to fight constantly to keep a medical card. She wouldn't have had to deal with schools and teachers that didn't understand and didn't want to know. She wouldn't have had to deal with the constant worry if I was going to be OK. She wouldn't have had to do that, and deal with my father losing himself to Alzheimer's.

Same worries for my father.

My wife wouldn't have met me, and have a husband that might not be able to father a child.
She wouldn't have to deal with my illness.
She wouldn't have to constantly worry about money.
She wouldn't have had to deal with the aftermath of a miscarriage on her own because I couldn't get time off work.
She wouldn't have to deal with depression because of said miscarriage, and being unable to get pregnant again.

So yeah, could the people I care most about have been better off without me? Possibly.

Would I have known about all that if I never existed? Nope, because I wouldn't be able to know.

Sofiztikated

Stoneriver wrote: »

So what's your answer?

I don't know.

Peatys

Sofiztikated wrote: »

This will probably get depressing, but the sun is shining, I've most of my projects done, and I'm having a can of cider in my garden.

If I was never born, then a lot of people would have had different lives.

My mother. She wouldn't have had a child that required multiple surgeries. She wouldn't have had to fight constantly to keep a medical card. She wouldn't have had to deal with schools and teachers that didn't understand and didn't want to know. She wouldn't have had to deal with the constant worry if I was going to be OK. She wouldn't have had to do that, and deal with my father losing himself to Alzheimer's.

Same worries for my father.

My wife wouldn't have met me, and have a husband that might not be able to father a child.
She wouldn't have to deal with my illness.
She wouldn't have to constantly worry about money.
She wouldn't have had to deal with the aftermath of a miscarriage on her own because I couldn't get time off work.
She wouldn't have to deal with depression because of said miscarriage, and being unable to get pregnant again.

So yeah, could the people I care most about have been better off without me? Possibly.

Would I have known about all that if I never existed? Nope, because I wouldn't be able to know.

Your wife doesn't have to do any of those things. She with you because she loves you and you make her life better.

_Dara_

....... wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

This. Either is cool.

lawred2

RobertKK wrote: »

Life can be so hard, life can be so good. From great happiness to the depths of despair. So much beauty in the world, whether in nature or the beauty of being loved by people you care about and who care about you.
Knowing what you know about life, if you could choose to have never existed, what option would you have preferred?
To exist in this far from perfect world?
To never have existed?

Are you sure that you exist?

Barry Badrinath

This place gets fcuking worse each time I log on.

DEFTLEFTHAND

Stoneriver wrote: »

Imagine that, not having to go to work or do anything ever again. Ask yourself the question, is the sum total of positive emotions and experiences higher or lower than the sum total of your negative emotions and experiences.

I'll hold off until Monday before I make my decision, want to see the Avengers first.

Good point.

There certainly are positive aspects to dying that we can all look forward to.

Personally my fav is never having to hear an alarm clock go off on a cold, dark winters morning again.

Franz Von Peppercorn

Barry Badrinath wrote: »

This place gets fcuking worse each time I log on.

You know, the old timers say AH used to be a fun place.

** spits tobacco into fire **

Not sure I believe that, meself

Shenshen

I'm the first to admit that I certainly haven't had the worst of lives.
But on balance, if I had the choice to change the universe in such a way that I would never have existed, I'd do that in a heartbeat.

Franz Von Peppercorn

These are very odd sentiments.

begbysback

Once we find what we are looking for only then we will understand

wexie

begbysback wrote: »

Once we find what we are looking for only then we will understand

that's deep man...

Franz Von Peppercorn

wexie wrote: »

that's deep man...

Its fairly shallow pretending to be deep. Like the if a tree falls in a forest question.

Mister Vain

We will all end up ceasing to exist anyway, so if you exist now you have the best of both worlds.

Would you rather die now or live forever?

Sofiztikated

wexie wrote: »

that's deep man...

Its also nonsense.

People find what they are looking all the time, and still haven't a ducking clue what's going on.

Mister Vain

Franz Von Peppercorn wrote: »

Its fairly shallow pretending to be deep. Like the if a tree falls in a forest question.

If a man makes a statement in a forest and there's no woman around to hear him, is he still wrong?

begbysback

Franz Von Peppercorn wrote: »

Its fairly shallow pretending to be deep. Like the if a tree falls in a forest question.

Reach inside your soul Von P - ask yourself the tough questions.

Does darkness actually exist, or is it merely an absence of light?

Subtle

It would be cool to see the correlation between those who voted say yes and whether they have children/dependents. Point being that if one had no dependents, they might vote no rather than yes. Sorry, overthinking this!!

Grab All Association

Nothingness is existence because existence has to exist for there to be nothingness.

Sofiztikated

begbysback wrote: »

Reach inside your soul Von P - ask yourself the tough questions.

Does darkness actually exist, or is it merely an absence of light?

Vantablack.

Darkness exists, and its dark.