[NF] Do you like people? lol

[Digital Lion]

As individuals? As a collective? At all? I'm posting this in the NF sub forum but my inquiry is posed to everyone.

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I struggle somewhat with this.

I think humanity's potential (especially on an individual level) is towering and awe inspiring and that is what personally motivates me in my daily interactions; but how many jilted ex-lovers have been fleeced and left for broke on the back of their paramours' alleged "potential?" When is "enough, enough (not in the taken to its most logical conclusion, eventually suicidal/genocidal sense, but philosophically speaking)?" Moreover, what percentage of us do you think is actually worth saving/fighting for? lol I kid, but not really...answer that.

Many days I honestly can't help but think, "just throw the whole damn thing in the trash." Other days, "just cut off the moldy parts and the remainder should be OK." And every once in a while, usually due to some singular, seemingly "lone" act of decency/grace/tenacity/brilliance/beauty, I'll think, "hmm...perhaps we're not just a bunch of scummy, soul scavenging dumpster rats after all."

I routinely deal across all social classes, intellects, nations, creeds, colors, genders, everybody, and witness firsthand how our systemic propensity for absolute gutter sniping bridges the gap. But, to be fair, our ability to do great good (read: life/consciousness/health affirming in a positivist, humanistic sense) is also a uniting commonality among our species--I'm just unsure as to how often this actually happens and what that says about us in an "are we salvageable and worth the effort?" sense.

Bonus question: How common is a disenchanted, cynical, nihilistic worldview among "feeling (and particularly, NF)" types? lol Duh, I like the potential of what we could be a helluva lot more than the actuality/reality; In my actions, I've committed myself to turning some of these potentials into realities but I feel a little guilty, fraudulent and defective, even, that this doesn't come from a well spring of unimpeachable optimism, idealism and warmth towards the very beings I seek to "improve." I do it because I think it's the best thing to do, from a practical standpoint (in optimizing and bettering our overall life quality), but my "heart" seems...rather darkened, despondent and misanthropic. I accept this about myself but I don't think I like it.


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[TrailsTheHedgefun]

You know honestly growing up I tested as an INFJ then I slowly turned into an INFP but that was fine. Natural even. But, then crap hit the fan. I lost everything. I eventually started to take all of my emotions and feelings out of my body and see if they were even real. I now treat my emotions and most thoughts as experiments and toys that I can play with when I get bored. Then and sorta now I treat people the same way often. I wanted to unite the world too. But, now I want to see it all burn. Part of me wishes I could turn back to the way things used to be. But, unlike where you seem to headed towards, I seem to be gravitating towards accepting my 'darkened heart' as the way.

 

[Forever]

Are you a misanthrope? Come on, step right up!

 

[sacredjade]

i like *some* people. i do not care about of most people.

 

[Lady Lazarus]

Lol...No.

 

[Starry]

Not anymore.

 

[1487610420]

 

[Stigmata]

This, 1000%.

Honestly, I'm so in my head most of the time, I don't even notice most people, and even then I have a neutral/slightly favorable stance regarding them. It takes a lot for me to actually dislike someone -- I can't think of one person off the top of my head that I actually don't see any redeeming qualities in, enough to say I dislike them.

 

[LucieCat]

I like humans in general. Honestly, most people I encounter are totally fine. Sometimes specific people get on my nerves or irritate me or just plain do horrible things to anyone or anything. But I don't think that's enough to say I don't like people because there are so many billions of humans. There's no way to lump them all together definitively. But I find that I can find the good in mostly everyone, so that is a big part of why I say I like people.

 

[Dreamer]

Hmm...you posed quite a few heavy questions [MENTION=35774]Digital Lion[/MENTION], and on one hand I could say tons about what i think of people and in the ways you've described, the sorts of internal quandaries you bring up, but on the other, it's all really kind of "simple" to me in how I view or understand others. To keep this post as short and sweet as possible (watch this post turn into 10 pages of stuff) I will say that in general, I think it's a common thing for people to initially experience humanity, or people at a smaller scale, more idealistically, more romanticized. You know, when you're younger, you're still relatively sheltered from life and the experiences you could possibly live through, and the sorts of people you may run into might be fairly limited. But then a shift happens as you age and mature. You start to see the world for what it is, and what your idealized version is, and start comparing how the two differ. One would hope that all of humanity is pure and good, or that light will overcome all shadows, but you're faced with this harsh reality instead, put through trials and lessons that can leave all but the most optimistic, and let's be honest, those in denial, in sort of a tailspin initially of trying to make sense of it all. And it's in this period, I feel that people will find themselves on an edge, staring at humanity in one way or another. Based on who they've become at that point, the experiences and people they've gone through and met, what their dreams and idealisms are, all of that comes to this point, where things are then weighed and judged. But certainly this doesn't literally happen in one singular moment, but a feel people experience this sort of reckoning period over oh...let's just say within their 20's is when they might face this, and then it is more or less decided, is humanity decent? can it be saved? should it be saved? I feel at this point, once that general perspective is chosen, you then start to see the world through that narrowed lens. It's no longer "the world is your oyster", but it's not in a pessimistic sense either. It's a semi conscious and...level of maturity that overtakes that child-like perspective. But, people are always changing and growing so I wouldn't suggest these are definitive perspectives, but a generalized stance on humanity, that then shapes and flexes as you age and gain more experience. You come out in the end, a "victim", a "fighter", a "pacifist", eh, you get the point. You come out of this reckoning period with a general understanding of what humanity is, to you.


How do I personally see humanity? I think it's perfectly fine, in all its flaws and rays of beauty. As in life, humanity faces its ups and downs, and it's a system, a sort of "entity" that I don't believe we can really change, or even should. Human events will occur, good and evil, but at our core, generally, what people's desires and needs are, I find to be quite universal, which means it is neither good or bad. You just got to go with the flow, accept the reality for what it is, but don't let it bog you down in moments of despair, for there will always be moments of sheer kindness to offset the moments of pure evil. It's all in a balance. It's because of this view, I also tend to feel sort of indifferent towards most people. They may energize, disappoint, and sometimes downright confuse the hell out of me, but reflecting back on those universal, core, human desires and aspirations, I see people's actions, good or bad towards me, as reflections of those core motivators in a direct, contextual relationship to the immediate and long-term world around them.


Well...ok, so this post ended up being another long-ass mofo Dreamer post, but at least it ain't 10-pages long

 

[Sacrophagus]

This thread:

 

[chickpea]

i like a few people, but as a whole NO!!! nothing like working retail to show you how garbage the average human being is.

 

[Lexicon]

Do I like people?

Kind of a loaded question.

I find the human psyche endlessly fascinating. So simple. So complex.

I deeply enjoy the company of only a select few humans, but I can bear the company of most extremely well, when I have to. It’s a spectrum. I can get something useful out of almost any interaction, regardless of my own enjoyment in the moment.

I find helping others to help themselves rewarding, but I can’t always be as involved as much I’d like. Have to conserve some energy for myself, these days.

Interacting with others helps me to understand myself in new ways. Accept myself, feel more human. I appreciate that.

I value my alone time. I need a lot of it. I greatly dislike other humans disrupting that bubble.


I don’t always “like” (enjoy) other people, but I always care about them on a core level.
/shrug

 

[Tilt]

Meh...I can't stand people's BS and my own BS.

 

[ceecee]

There is a Thad Stephens quote in the movie Lincoln that is my preferred answer when anyone asks me whether or not I like people.

Shit on the people and what they want and what they're ready for. I don't give a goddamn about the people and what they want. This is the face of someone who has fought long and hard for the *good* of the people without caring much for any of 'em.

This makes total sense to me as someone who chose health care as a career but doesn't find people and humanity to have much to do with each other.

 

[Atomic Fiend]

I don't think it matters how one feels about "people", regardless of your personal feelings toward every human on earth unless you live in a remote isolated island you'll have to deal with them, and you count amongst their number regardless if you do live on that remote island. You are the tomato in the mirror. Usually when referring to "people" whoever is using that term is referring to rather a particular group of people, most of the time. That's because (and if you're on this site I hope you're aware) not all people are the same and there are wide variances between every individual. No, I don't hate (general) people, that's a very myopic viewpoint.

 

[SurrealisticSlumbers]

I don't dislike people. It's certain human traits I dislike.*

*Traits I dislike:

1. Greed, i.e. freeloading companies/entities/organizations who hawk unpaid internships to my generation, with no plan to actually hire us. Ladies and gentlemen, this is labor trafficking. Or, the friend who tries to get you to dine and ditch and/or doesn't tip the server at restaurants. Again, this is a manifestation of greed.

2. Self-righteousness, particularly without truth or merit ("my way or the highway")

3. Pride and Conceit - this kinda goes hand-in-hand with #2. People who try to one-up everyone around them and have an apparent modus operandi which includes belittling others without cause or merit. Trying to puff themselves up with self-pride, rather than earning the respect of others through their actions.

If you show me even an inkling of the above, you will alienate me almost immediately.

 

[Firebird 8118]

I'm kinda stuck in a conflict: I'm simultaneously attracted to and repelled by people in general.

 

[Non_xsense]

I like people but they don't like me .

 

[Norrsken]

I think a good chunk of them piss me off in general, though I try to stay quiet about it because exhausting my energy on them would be too draining and annoying. But there are some that I really connect deeply and I.. really like it when that happens, because it just feels like such a rare occurrence. It always hurts when I lose them.