The mindset of one-upping

wegs said:
That makes a certain amount of sense, although I don't see a downside per se, with admiration. (I don't see it as part of a 'spectrum,' either.)

Can we envy someone's success for example, and that motivates us to work harder towards achieving success? Maybe. But, it still causes us to lose sight of ourselves, and fixate on someone else's ideas of success.

When we were kids, we had ''role models'' whom we looked up to...whom we admired. That feeling of respect and admiration can ignite a fire in us to want to ''be like them.'' But, that's not quite envy. Envy imo, causes resentment of another because of his/her good fortune. So, envy doesn't seem healthy, whereas admiration is seems ethical.

Have you ever been envious of someone, QQ?
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Does admiring someones health, and future amount to admiration or envy?

btw there is not right or wrong it is only understanding that matters...
 
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There isn't a right/wrong way to view this, but envy is a riskier mindset than admiration (imo), is all I'm saying.
 
wegs said:
There isn't a right/wrong way to view this, but envy is a riskier mindset than admiration (imo), is all I'm saying.
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absolutely... as these last posts indicate...
The thing is that the behavior of envy has been recorded in history for thousands of years, the word itself was coined about 1400 AD with the word Admiration coined about a century later.
The behavior in it's earliest forms is simply "Desiring something for yourself you do not have that someone else has"
Using the above definition: This can be entirely destructive but it also can be incredibly productive.
When envy is transformed into admiration as the ego matures, it gains the productive quality....IMO
 
wegs said:
There isn't a right/wrong way to view this, but envy is a riskier mindset than admiration (imo), is all I'm saying.
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One could suggest that envy is only a destructive form of admiration...due mainly to a weak self esteem and be done with it...
 
Quantum Quack said:
One could suggest that envy is only a destructive form of admiration...due mainly to a weak self esteem and be done with it...
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''Be done with it,'' eh? Is this the same guy who has threads that go on for months?

;) jk

I'll leave you with this...imo, envy stems from a place of inadequacy, and doesn't radiate happiness for another, usually. Admiration stems from a place of respect and genuine happiness for another, and while the two can potentially motivate people to improve themselves, one idea stems from something negative, while the other stems from a positive place.

My point being, be careful which wolf you feed.
 
wegs said:
''Be done with it,'' eh? Is this the same guy who has threads that go on for months?

;) jk

I'll leave you with this...imo, envy stems from a place of inadequacy, and doesn't radiate happiness for another, usually. Admiration stems from a place of respect and genuine happiness for another, and while the two can potentially motivate people to improve themselves, one idea stems from something negative, while the other stems from a positive place.

My point being, be careful which wolf you feed.
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It's a bit like the following statement/claim:
"Racial discrimination is not necessarily racism"
First reaction is usually a hostile "How dare you question convention?"
My response is "I question everything....convention included"

Human beings must discriminate to make sense of the world ie. orange vs apple... But this is not "fruitism". Racial discrimination happens continuously in our thoughts and beliefs.
It becomes racism when the pejorative definition of discrimination is applied.

Example statement:
"I accept that I am racially discriminating but do not accept that I am racist in my discriminations."

A similar rational can be applied to Envy
 
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Quantum Quack said:
My response is "I question everything.
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We know. :p

I wouldn't say that admiration and envy are comparable to your example above, using racism. Racial discrimination stems from racism...but, both could be considered forms of racism. They're both born from the same place.

Admiration isn't born from a feeling of resentment or inadequacy, like envy. Envy isn't defined as merely admiring someone. This is just how I've come to view it.
 
Quantum Quack said:
Example statement:
"I accept that I am racially discriminating but do not accept that I am racist in my discriminations."
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Really. Hmm. Okay, I'd like to explore this further...but, tomorrow is a new day.

My question is - how can one be ''racially discriminating'' but not ''racist'' in his/her discrimination? :?
 
wegs said:
Really. Hmm. Okay, I'd like to explore this further...but, tomorrow is a new day.

My question is - how can one be ''racially discriminating'' but not ''racist'' in his/her discrimination? :?
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You can't. He is just playing with words to find a difference with no distinction. He uses discrimination in the "discerning" sense when he wants to make that point just as he uses "envy" in the "admiration" sense.

It seems he's based his whole internet presence around that. This is the only reason that his threads go on for months. He asks meaningless questions, trying to appear "deep", when it's just gibberish designed to keep all conversations going on forever, like Jan Ardena.

"I question everything. Let's explore this..." "I say that "envy can be positive if I use it when I really mean admiration but I'm using it in a deeper sense than you are"... "Racism isn't racism. Let me explain. I admire Jimmy Hendrix's curly hair...I'm acknowledging that he is black with curly hair but it isn't negative racism". It isn't racism. It's simply being discerning enough to know that Hendrix is black with curly hair (your eyes tell you that).

Earlier he asked something like "If I admire you am I envying you?". This is his kind of word salad. He just said he was admiring you so...he is admiring you.

But we can explore this tomorrow...:)
 
wegs said:
There isn't a right/wrong way to view this, but envy is a riskier mindset than admiration (imo), is all I'm saying.
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i would like to comment further on your point but im not going to give any clues or ability of trolls to use what i say to trick and abuse others.
 
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