en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2450185 Comments by 1967camaro http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144957411 This might be the reason why this guy has not done it yet because he knows it will really hurt and he might not be successful. You know what I think is wrong, when terminally ill people or people who got into accidents and now are basically potatoes, cannot make the decision to end their lives. Man if you have got it that bad and are just deteriorating on the inside who’s to tell you that you cannot end it. People who are suffering like that should be able to go to some professional and say hey things are not that great and I am in a lot of pain and just want it to end, and then get something humane done. The stories of the doctor who was ending his patients lives who were in a ton of pain and were ready to go and wanted to, I think that is okay. It definitely should not be illegal. But you would have to have some strict and clear rules or qualifications for it because you do not want people who are not sick or vegetables to abuse this because then there would be all kinds of problems. Fri, 22 Apr 2011 00:29:59 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144957411 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144955990 This might be the reason why this guy has not done it yet because he knows it will really hurt and he might not be successful. You know what I think is wrong, when terminally ill people or people who got into accidents and now are basically potatoes, cannot make the decision to end their lives. Man if you have got it that bad and are just deteriorating on the inside who’s to tell you that you cannot end it. People who are suffering like that should be able to go to some specialist and say hey things are not that great and I am in a lot of pain and just want it to end, and then get something humane done. The stories of the doctor who was ending his patients lives who were in a ton of pain and were ready to go and wanted to, I think that is okay. It definitely should not be illegal. But you would have to have some strict and clear rules or qualifications for it because you do not want people who are not sick or vegetables to abuse this cause then there would be all kinds of problems. Fri, 22 Apr 2011 00:22:50 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144955990 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144954688 Dude, being in jail for 20 some years doing basically the same thing every single day is enough to start to drive anyone crazy. They must feel incredible bored and almost claustrophobic knowing that they are trapped and cannot get out. I wonder how many people in jail actually do commit suicide and after how many years. It might be kind of hard to commit suicide in jail because you do not have guns or chemicals to get the job done quickly. You basically would have to find something to hang yourself with. I saw this video once, I think it was on tosh.o, but anyway this guy was in his cell and he was sitting on the top bunk and then jumped off head first into the toilet to try and kill himself. Unfortunately for him he was not successful and probably just got really hurt. That’s another thing about trying to commit suicide in jail, basically all of your options include a painful and probably slow death. Who wants that? Fri, 22 Apr 2011 00:17:07 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/21/for-what-purpose/#IDComment144954688 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/lifer/#IDComment143284980 I do agree that people do get labeled as being certain things and then this label influences the way other people perceive them. It is judging people based on what other people have called them before you even get to know that person. That could be incredibly frustrating and depressing to always be known as a certain thing with people really getting to know who you are. Some people might embrace the label and say hey if this is what everyone thinks of me then I might as well not disappoint them. Others might be desperate to get rid of the label and will try everything to change the way people see them. A label can ruin someone’s life because of the way other people treat them , and they just become so depressed and eventually might start to really believe that the label is true and they are what other people say they are. So, labels have a significant influence if you let them get to you. Sat, 16 Apr 2011 02:51:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/lifer/#IDComment143284980 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/lifer/#IDComment143284936 This was an interesting point of view on how we are labeled to read about. I honestly do not really agree with the dude who wrote this but whatever we all have our own opinions. I do not agree with him when he says letting people call us boy, girl, felon, or lifer. I do not think these are labels at all, lifer might be but it is more of a slang term. But boy, girl and felon those are real things. I am a boy, in no way is calling me a boy a label it’s just what I am. The same for girl. Felon is not a label, if you commit some sort of crime; you are by definition a felon. No one is trying to label you as a felon, it is just the word used to describe someone who committed a crime which you just happened to do. If you do think that felon is a label and you do not like that society calls you that then you have no one to blame but yourself because you are the one who committed the crime in the first place. Sat, 16 Apr 2011 02:50:46 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/lifer/#IDComment143284936 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment140785192 Then think about when you graduated high school. You are most likely never going to see half of those friends again in life. You are going to have some friends that you still talk to and text and occasionally hang out with over breaks, and then you will have a handful of your best friends from high school that you will still hang out with. I had a lot of good friends in high school that I would see every day in school and then hang out with after school at a sport or just to hang at some ones house. I also had my best friends that I would hang out with every day after school. Now that we are all in different colleges around the country I have lost contact with those good friends and maybe see them once a year. I do still hang out with my best friends almost every day over breaks which is good. The point is if you want to stay connected with people that you do not see much any more you have to make the effort to talk to them and find out what they are doing. Thu, 7 Apr 2011 17:38:57 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment140785192 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment140785116 I wonder what this guy did that lead to him ending up in prison. He says he was a fair and good guy so it would be interesting to find out, but any way he has got to feel real forgotten and uncared for by his family since they are not writing him much any more. I do understand why this happens. It is one of those out of sight out of mind situations. His family does not see him much and they live far away so he is not in their daily lives and therefore they just do not think about him. After a while they grow apart and lose contact with eachother. This happens all the time not just in prison. Think about when you were in high school. You probably had tons of friends that you saw every day in school and hung out with all the time even outside of school. Then the next year or so you would be in different classes at different ends of the school and rarely see each other and therefore not hang out much anymore because you are not in contact as much as you used to be. Thu, 7 Apr 2011 17:38:40 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment140785116 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139196745 What pisses me off is when they say that they are actually going to do something that helps us out but then go behind our backs and do not do what they said they would. They basically say hey thanks for the votes and getting me in power but um screw you, I do not need you anymore and I am going to help these guys who have way more money than you do. I wish that when people who get voted into office and abuse their power by giving themselves and their friends advantages we could just kick them out, and it would have to be easy to do. So if you get into power and do something devious that is not right we as voters should be able to take another vote and say basically hey you lied and we do not like you so get out and we will find someone better for the job. If this was a reality and we could kick them out easily then the politicians would definately have more respect for the average citizen and maybe a little fear of losing their job, they would do be responsible with their power and not abuse it. Fri, 1 Apr 2011 21:00:17 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139196745 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139196700 .I agree that getting into a position of power within the government and doing things that benefit you and your friends is wrong and basically immoral. When you get these positions you have a responsibility to ALL of the people who supported you and voted for you not just the ones who gave you the most money and now you feel like you are in their debt. If you are in power you should stick to what you were campaigning on and not change things just because a person with deep pockets tells you to. I think they are being greedy aholes when they look out for only themselves. They are abusing the power that was instilled in them by us and screwing us over just because they are to much of a coward to stand up for what is right and not give into the rich. If they ran their campaign and said that they would help out these companies then there would be nothing to be mad about because they are doing exactly what they said they would. Fri, 1 Apr 2011 21:00:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139196700 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137568002 Also, I think people do not go to church or believe as much now as they used to because churches are not as powerful and influential as they used to be. Back in the old days the church had power and if you did not belive and support the church, you were screwed. People were afraid of the church because if you did not do what they wanted and believed what they wanted you to believe then they would portray you as an outcast or a sinner, and if you spoke out against them they would just kill you. Granted this was a pretty long time ago but still those feeling of the church being the powerful force were passed down throught the generations. There is also the lack of proof, it is hard to believe in something when there is nothing but old books to back it up. Fri, 25 Mar 2011 20:47:29 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137568002 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137567956 Personnally I could not care less about religion, and thats what I think a lot of people are starting to feel. I am greek orthodox and my grandparents are pretty religious, they go to church every week and do not eat meat on wednesdays and fridays, I do not really understand why they do it. Especially the not eating meat part but whatever, it is what they want to do and that is fine. They made my dad and aunts and uncle go to church when they were kids and I do not think any of them go now. The last time we went was at least ten years ago for some christmas thing. Honestly I think most people do not go because they think it is a waist of time. Who the hell wants to go to church on a sunday morning or christmas eve. There are so many better things people could be doing, like watching television, cutting the grass, working on the car, hanging out with friends or whatever it does not really matter. It is a real inconvenience because you have to get dressed up nice, drive like 20 minutes to the church, light those stupid candles, and sit in uncomfortable wooden benches for two hours, put money in the basket and for me listen to some guy speek greek half the time (which I do not speek). Fri, 25 Mar 2011 20:47:11 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137567956 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/07/freedom/#IDComment135969344 Also, what he said about escapism was interesting because I think that is something that everyone does, not just the lifers. Everyone thinks about a life that they would like to live in, which is different from their reality. It is just one of those things that happens naturally and you will just find yourself day dreaming about some fantasy you wish was real. We need that thought of something being better in the future, even when we say we cannot wait for summer or spring break. We need it because honestly on a daily basis life is kind of boring and we look forward to those days that are exciting and that make us happy. The anticipation of these days is what gets us through the week lots of time just knowing that something good and fun will happen soon but you just have to wait a little bit longer for it to happen. Sat, 19 Mar 2011 03:27:17 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/07/freedom/#IDComment135969344 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/07/freedom/#IDComment135969289 This was a good letter to read because even though this guy is in jail for life he is making the best of it and has changed his mind set so that life is more enjoyable for him. Yes, I do agree to an extent that freedom is being able to think and feel like he said but that is only a part of it. Unfortunately for him and the others lifers that is the only part of freedom that have left so I guess they take what freedom they can get and make it work for themselves. It must really suck to say that the only freedom you have is to think and feel about who you are because that must be incredibly boring. They do not get to do anything really fun or enjoyable. That’s what I think freedom is, it is being able to live your life do what you want to do and having as much fun as possible making life enjoyable. My ideal life of freedom would be to live on a few hundred acres with a wife and kids, riding my dirt bike and working on old cars. That would be pretty awesome. Sat, 19 Mar 2011 03:26:57 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/07/freedom/#IDComment135969289 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/01/lighting-our-way/#IDComment132441539 . I do not know about you but artificial light gets sickening after a while and you just got to go outside or near a window to get some real light. It also is probably packed everywhere during the five hours of light which kind of ruins the experience because you spend more time standing around waiting than you do enjoying where ever it is you are. Another thing is that in the summer their days are ridiculously long when it comes to how long it is light out. I am sure the first few weeks they love it but after a while it might get annoying. They really do have the worst of both worlds over there. But I would much rather it be summer than winter so they probably try to enjoy every minute of it. They also seemed to respond a lot better to that guy playing the instrument on the street corner because that little bit of cheery music might have made them happy enough to get them through the day. And they probably also appreciate the dude is trying to cheer them up a bit. Fri, 4 Mar 2011 18:56:36 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/01/lighting-our-way/#IDComment132441539 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/01/lighting-our-way/#IDComment132441467 .Wow that just seems like a horrible place to live during the winter. There is very little time to do anything outside that is better when there is light. Such as kids going sledding or going out snowmobiling. At least in the city you can still see, imagine if you lived outside the city and there were no store lights or street lights, which must be incredibly depressing. I wonder if their suicide rates up their go up more in the winter that in the summer. Since the dark makes them more depressed I would assume that more people do kill themselves in the winter just because of their surroundings being so dark. It also must be incredibly boring up there during the winter. It looks like all you can do is ice skating, go into a store or sit in front of a light. Hopefully there are a lot more inside activities to do up there like indoor sports or something, but even that would get old after a while. It is kind of sad that in order for them to feel happier they sit in front of an artificial light Fri, 4 Mar 2011 18:56:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/01/lighting-our-way/#IDComment132441467 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/fear/#IDComment130696482 I know that I could do a flip off of somthing or clear the jump, but for some reason that fear of the consequences hold me back. Also fear can make you freeze up. Say you are going to try a flip off some thing but you are a little hesitant, fear can come up on you right as you are upside down in the flip and then you freeze and land in a bad way and hurt yourself. if you were not afraid you would have just flipped and have been fine. Probably one of the coolest people on the planet is Travis Pastrana. This guy is afraid of nothing. He knows what his limits are and trusts himself and just goes for it every time. Some times he falls and others he makes it. It would be awsome to not be afraid of things like he is, because life just seems so much more fun and exciting when you do things that challenge yourself and scare you and get your adrenaline going. Fri, 25 Feb 2011 22:18:38 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/fear/#IDComment130696482 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/fear/#IDComment130696423 Fear is one of those things that can help you in some situations and then in other situations it kinda messes you up. It can help you stay out of dangerous situations and can keep you safe at times and it can also help you to figure out what is important to you in life. Like for this guy it helped him figure out that how people and his family perceived him and what kind of person he was were most important to him. It can also mess you up at times and can hurt you. When you are afraid you hold back a lot from doing things that you know you can do but the fear of getting hurt just stops you. And then you get pissed at yourself because you know you can do something but you are being too much of a wimp to commit to it. There are so many time when I want to try to flip off of something, or do a big jump on my dirt bike but I do not because I am afraid of messing up and breaking something. Fri, 25 Feb 2011 22:18:21 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/fear/#IDComment130696423 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127237360 There are plenty of chances like when we come home for breaks but we just have not hung out in so long that you do not even think about them. Any way that dude in jail must feel horrible and completely useless that no one but his mom stays in contact with him. It is either because they just forgot about him or they are just really dissapointed with him and want nothing to do with the guy. That is a good punishment for a murderer, just completely messing him up inside and making him feel horrible. Thats another thing, why does is suck worse when people are dissapointed in you than when they are mad at you. Man i hate when parents say we are not mad just dissapointed, that is the worst thing, you just feel like complete crap after they say it. This guy has been in there so long that he is rotting away and is forgeting a lot of how he got in there. He has been in there so long that his time spent is just blurring together and can not remember much. Fri, 11 Feb 2011 01:41:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127237360 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127237331 It must really suck to be completely forgotten by everybody that you thought cared about you in some way. Its kinda funny how if someone is out of sight out of mind for long enough that you just forget all about them. This does not just happen to people in jail, but also every other person in the world. Think of all the friends you have had in high school and elementary school. I have had some really great friends in high school that I just never hear from any more because we went to different schools and life just changed. We went from seeing our friends every day in school and hanging out with them all of the time after school to not hearing from them for over a year except maybe the occasional facebook talk which does not last long. Like they said in the movie "Lean on Me", "you never have as good of friends in life like you had when you were in grade school" ( that is not the exact quote but its close). Why do we not make the effort to catch up with those people we were best friends with? Fri, 11 Feb 2011 01:40:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127237331 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment126023671 Then when you are still laughing as that person is in the elevator it has got to suck for them too because they probably feel real wierd also. Another thing that sucks is when you get those lazy a-holes who take the elevators to the first or second floors, come on take the damn stairs. The reason for elevator music is to make the ride in the elevator less awkward because when there is no noise at all thats real awkward. When there is noise like elevator music of even just a loud fan in the top of the elevator it make the ride less awkward because we can focus on that sound. It also makes your thought seem not as loud with relaxes you. I think when it is quiet you can hear yourself better and therefore start to think more about the ride which makes you feel more awkward. Humans conform to the group and in this case face the same direction because they do not want to feel awkward in the situation. Fri, 4 Feb 2011 23:55:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment126023671