13Sep/06
Perspective is Important
I have a habit of telling unhappy people that they should lighten up. I remind them that, whatever their troubles may be, they're still probably richer, safer, and more comfortable than most of the rest of humanity. When you put your problems in perspective like that, things usually don't seem so bad.
To be fair, pretty much everyone gets visibly annoyed when I try to cheer them up like this. I suppose people are usually looking more for sympathy than for cold, invalidating logic.
In case I'm not around to trivialize your problems the next time you're feeling down, you can still remember your place in the world just by watching this very good flash presentation.
September 13th, 2006 - 05:42
I think I can see why that doesn’t help to cheer people up, it’s really very depressing. Hell as it is I now feel guilty about being one the few people who are so fortunate. But thanks for passing that along, it’s really an interesting way to make an impact.