Suicide: Discussion of the Phenomenon

[Bookman 4,642]

Sometimes when people are stuck in a well, and nobody can help them, they have to get out their own way. There's nothing immoral about that, just like there's nothing immoral about dying in a car accident.

[bernorange 8,366]

Sorry to hear that @markstanco .  Condolences.

[Grippe 313]

I have a question, and I am not one to break God's law.  What is wrong with checking out if there are no more accomplishments a person looks forward towards?

[fattyflattie 4,638]

Condolences @markstanco  Hope you can find some peace. 

[MaybeACoordinator 8,349]

Scott wrote this song about a girl/friend he'd known since kindergarten. She gassed herself in her garage leaving behind twin girls who were about ten or twelve I think...He wrote it from the POV of their dad.

 

[markstanco 12,627]

I have a question, and I am not one to break God's law.  What is wrong with checking out if there are no more accomplishments a person looks forward towards?

Well, unlike most of you I still havent nailed south Austin's mom so I still have that milestone in my future.

[workswithseed 2,119]

1 hour ago, Grippe said:

I have a question, and I am not one to break God's law.  What is wrong with checking out if there are no more accomplishments a person looks forward towards?

I mean it would make more sense in later life, but at 40 it seems too soon. I could be wrong, since I don't have children yet.

[Judge Roybeanbag 11,821]

13 hours ago, Grippe said:

I have a question, and I am not one to break God's law.  What is wrong with checking out if there are no more accomplishments a person looks forward towards?

I’d like to think at some point, when you’re old enough, just not shitting your pants is accomplishment enough to get through the day.  

[TwiceHorn 31,554]

14 hours ago, Grippe said:

I have a question, and I am not one to break God's law.  What is wrong with checking out if there are no more accomplishments a person looks forward towards?

The moral or moralistic theory is, I believe, that the individual does not know or understand what accomplishments may lay ahead and to assume that one does is an act of arrogance or hubris.  Suicide is an act in opposition to the natural order of things.

You can choose to interject a supreme being into that, or not.

 

[XYZ 2,154]

Crazy theory here, but I think that we are programmed genetically with a prime directive to propagate the species. If we didn’t have that genetic programming, then some other humanoid species would have “won” and homo sapiens would be extinct. Natural selection and whatnot. From this prime directive emanates a lot of “moral law” that societies have constructed over the centuries. Why is the proper thing to do to get married, have children, be a productive member of society, not kill others or self, be altruistic, etc? Because to NOT do those things attempts against the prime directive. Just a theory.

[Fudge Nuggets 19,227]

On 12/13/2019 at 9:10 AM, Judge Roybeanbag said:

I’d like to think at some point, when you’re old enough, just not shitting your pants is accomplishment enough to get through the day.  

There’s a shart thread that covers this.

[Pato del Muerto 52,616]

Who ever decided that God’s plan doesn’t include suicide?  Any time something unwanted happens, believers say we can’t understand god’s plan, so why can’t suicide be a part of it?  God doesn’t want murder either, but it happens constantly and the victims’ families have no problem embracing their faith and chalking it up to his plan. 

[Parliament 14,334]

Mental health affects every socioeconomic group.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/26/europe/norway-princess-ari-behn-intl/index.html

[TwiceHorn 31,554]

On 12/13/2019 at 10:56 AM, XYZ said:

Crazy theory here, but I think that we are programmed genetically with a prime directive to propagate the species. If we didn’t have that genetic programming, then some other humanoid species would have “won” and homo sapiens would be extinct. Natural selection and whatnot. From this prime directive emanates a lot of “moral law” that societies have constructed over the centuries. Why is the proper thing to do to get married, have children, be a productive member of society, not kill others or self, be altruistic, etc? Because to NOT do those things attempts against the prime directive. Just a theory.

I believe that''s close to the thinking that underlies a lot of the morality/ethics here.  As beings capable of higher order thought, we have the obligation to exercise that higher-order thought and not succumb to animal impulses.

[XYZ 2,154]

9 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

I believe that''s close to the thinking that underlies a lot of the morality/ethics here.  As beings capable of higher order thought, we have the obligation to exercise that higher-order thought and not succumb to animal impulses.

Can you explain more? I kinda sorta didn’t understand your post, like at all. This obligation that you reference, it’s imposed by whom? And what kind of animal impulses are you talking about?

[Iceman 2,726]

Moral handwringing over suicide, especially with regard to Christianity has long bothered me.  It's a pretty freaking ironclad case that Christ knowingly committed suicide.

If I jump in front of a truck, we don't blame the truck for hitting me.  It's still suicide.  Why did Christ allow himself to be captured by the Romans?  He knew the end result...

I am a Christian, but most of the time, I feel the moral judgment by the church on this matter is simply that you won't be around to tithe any more.

In the end, at least in the long term, big picture of things; I support getting people more help and leaving the judgment out of it.  I volunteer with 2 different charities that work directly with suicide prevention related to the LGBTQ community and that of veterans. Suicide is complex as hell, but it's never something that provides relief for the victim's survivors.