"Perfection" as Death to Humanity

[LSJ]

As a race, what is it that humans intend on accomplishing?
Not in the near future, but in the distant future. There is a common idea or goal of creating world peace. That makes sense, because everyone wants to live a full happy life. There's actions to end world hunger. No one likes to starve. There's the end to violence, because violence makes other people's lives worse.

But after creating a world of non-violence, tolerance, peace, and the extinction of world hunger and disease, what is it that humans are aiming to accomplish?

Well, technology will become advanced. Science will create a sustainable world, and make us better able to understand the universe. Everyone could live a happy full life. Eventually there will be no need for innovation or invention, and science will meet its limits (explaining everything but the origin of the universe).

After all philosophical debates are ended except for whether there is or is not a god, there will be no point of existence.

Even though we can argue that there is no point to existence, we can have a point in the human world - to improve the world. But when it is impossible to improve the world any further - all limits are met - life will have no meaning.

When everything is done, there is nothing to strive for. What then will we live for? Well, we will have relationships with other people. Have families.

In the end, the only thing we do is feed ourselves and family, marry, spend time in leisure activities... Our society relies on innovation, entrepreneurship, science, working together to accomplish something. When all knowable is known and all accomplished our society is pointless; all we do is what the animals do, which is live day to day, have families, and die, not working toward any goal.
So, that is how we go out for the rest of time? Pretty damn depressing.

Why would anyone want to create a perfect world if all it would do is bring us to a standstill, everything stagnant forever? Without conflict or psychological experience we have nothing. A perfect world would be the death of humanity. Would it not be better then, to have conflict?

Is a perfect world worth sacrificing humanity?

An odd question…. opinions?





BTW I'm suffering from a fever while writing this, so if it is full of problems I'm sorry.

[Tajir]

I agree 100%.

The closer we get to personal and technological perfection, the closer we are to our own demise.

Biblical prophecy is so beautiful.

[SickBoy13]

I believe that with new technology comes new problems. Atomic power--> Atomic bombs. Nuclear disarmament-->former Soviet Nuclear weapons gone "missing". Those are just two relevant ones that we face now.
EDIT: However, there is a point where people will have to let go of the technology race, so in that light, I agree with you.

[Ummon]

The purpose of humanity is self-fulfillment, and completeness, not perfection.

[Tom Paine]

The purpose of humanity is self-fulfillment, and completeness, not perfection.

Self-fulfillment is personal perfection, no?

How can we assign a purpose to humanity, anyway... and end? Yes. I don't think a purpose is assignable however.

[Ummon]

Self-fulfillment is completeness, and acceptance of destiny. Perfection cannot be reached, fulfillment relatively can.

[Tom Paine]

Self-fulfillment is completeness, and acceptance of destiny. Perfection cannot be reached, fulfillment relatively can.

Completeness is itself perfection. All man can strive for is to maximise his experiences in life, no more.

[Ummon]

Perfection means absolute attainment. Completeness is merely a step in terms of attainment. This because, the mind always produces new content, which has to be integrated. Each day has a new completeness to acquire. On the other hand perfection is final.

[Tom Paine]

To be complete there must be nothing further one can do; this is perfection. Completion itself is final.

[Ummon]

That is what I am trying to tell you. If you are perfect there is nothing more you can do. If you are complete, there is nothing more you can do in that specific moment.

[LSJ]

It does not matter what the real purpose of humanity is. We'd never know what it is, so we assign it to ourselves. Societies assign themselves a purpose; to create more jobs, stabilize ther economy, improve medical technology, overall quality of life in and outside their own countries.
(Apart from the point that the perfection most certainly will never be met)
The problem with that self-appointed purpose is that once it is fulfilled we have nothing to work towards. There would be no reason for unity, yet keeping in mind that societal perfection means everyone wants society to be the same way, nothing would ever change. There would be no real point to life but to live it out in such a way that it keeps within the rules of the idea of a perfect society - not changing it because any change could mean ruining that "perfection".
It becomes an endless cycle, if it never changes. A very pointless cycle at that.

If the purpose of humanity is self fulfillment and completion, it is fulfilled by the existence of a "perfect" world, because everyone's idea of completion and fulfillment is the same - living in such a way that society is not changed, yet everyone is happy about their lives.

If everyone has the same idea of fulfillment, humanity has lost individuality. Humans would be identical robots, essentially, because that is what perfection would require. My original point was that I doubt most people would like to live that way, because we live in a world that prefers expression of individuality and innovation. Thus, "perfection" is something we should not want. It sounds bad, saying that we should want conflict, but it just seems to make sense...

[Tom Paine]

That is what I am trying to tell you. If you are perfect there is nothing more you can do. If you are complete, there is nothing more you can do in that specific moment.

If you are perfect, there is nothing you can do to improve yourself. This does not mean there is nothing more you can do. I would add that we could only achieve perfection or completion at death; until then we continue to expand and grow in terms of experience.

[Ummon]

Perfect comes from perfectum, the past participle of perficio.

The said verb means: to do, to effect..., to bring to an end

Something perfect is done, exhausted, stable.

Complete comes from the verb compleo.

The said verb means: to make smt. full, to fulfill, to accomplish

See the difference? Something complete is only momentarily done.

[Tom Paine]

But it is full; full of experiences, if we can increase our experiences we are not full.

[Ummon]

Tomorrow often brings new spaces to fill.

[Tom Paine]

In that case spaces were not filled today; we do not gain new spaces.

[Ummon]

The very act of learning, creates new chances to learn.

[Amorphos]

I think you cannot ever arrive at perfection. long before we even get to a point where everything has been perfected e.g. Technology, i feel humanity will desire a return to simplicity. If humanity is in its teens now then it will inevitably grow old and want a less complicated life, many philosophical issues will not be a concern, we will have got over all the biblical intensity of religion!

[Ummon]

I think you cannot ever arrive at perfection. long before we even get to a point where everything has been perfected e.g. Technology, i feel humanity will desire a return to simplicity. If humanity is in its teens now then it will inevitably grow old and want a less complicated life, many philosophical issues will not be a concern, we will have got over all the biblical intensity of religion!

It will be what must be. But in truth, you look for a circle, yet you may find a spiral.

New chances to learn, but not new space for learning; its a matter of opening areas, not creating them.

This is not how our mind works. There is no space where knowledge is stored. We are ourselves our knowledge. I do not wish to get into a complicated explanation of how neural networks function, I will just say this.

[Amorphos]

ummon

There is no space where knowledge is stored. We are ourselves our knowledge.

Woha, there you go again with your cryptic messages! I presumed knowledge was stored in the memory, considering that memory locations are known and can be pinpointed specifically?