Og

Some people just have bizarre ideas of what is pleasurable. There seems to be a large mental component to human pleasure. 70 virgins for suicide anyone? People will choose the path that is most pleasurable to them based on how the thought makes them feel.

It is a constant. The only thing to figure out about individuals is "what is their idea of pleasure?"

__________________
Vi veri veniversum vivus vici. (By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe)
The self is not a fixed entity but a dynamic process of relationships
You & I, no distinction. - Tat Tvam Asi
Become Who You Are

The An-Jel

Do you think a soldier on the battlefield that falls on a grenade or takes a bullet for another man is thinking on the level of Hedonistic pleasure he will receive from doing this? Any soldier really? Those boys still do it though.

Epicurus tried to pull something like this way back in the day and as he aged he found that the greatest pleasure came from the Mind. So many Philosophers before him knew that and expressed it adequately enough for me to say the mind and memories hold the greatest gratification for an individual.

I think your question is way off basis but right on target with modern politics and anyone wanting to make money thinks. I haven't seen many common people placed in death defying situations and survive that get the gratification until well afterwards of the deed itself, if they survive, to bask in it.

__________________
"And let there be Light!" said the Blind man.

Life is simple, people make it complicated - Basilisk

Nulli Expugnabilis Hosti - Royal Gibraltar Regiment

Og

Yes, they gain glory, and if that's not enough, they couldn't think of living in a world where they ran and hid from that. The compulsion is great, but not unheard of.

The individual certainly experiences bliss in his choice. And then blows up.

__________________
Vi veri veniversum vivus vici. (By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe)
The self is not a fixed entity but a dynamic process of relationships
You & I, no distinction. - Tat Tvam Asi
Become Who You Are

LadyLuck

I would agree that we are all hedonists. If i asked you how sadists fall into this category, would you agrue that they get pleasure from pain?

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=^.^=

Og

Yeah. That's the point of S&M, right?

__________________
Vi veri veniversum vivus vici. (By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe)
The self is not a fixed entity but a dynamic process of relationships
You & I, no distinction. - Tat Tvam Asi
Become Who You Are

LadyLuck

What does S&M stand for? =/

__________________
=^.^=

The An-Jel

Sadism & Masochism

__________________
"And let there be Light!" said the Blind man.

Life is simple, people make it complicated - Basilisk

Nulli Expugnabilis Hosti - Royal Gibraltar Regiment

The An-Jel

I can't see that I guess. So your saying that a soldier is waiting for the chance to sacrifice themselves? When I was a soldier I didn't relish the concept at all but I would have done if it would have saved some of my boys. I can't see the bliss experienced at all but I see the necessity if the situation warrants it.

__________________
"And let there be Light!" said the Blind man.

Life is simple, people make it complicated - Basilisk

Nulli Expugnabilis Hosti - Royal Gibraltar Regiment

MartheGod

Um, your comments are really disturbing me... Soldiers don't just join the army because they are suicidal or want glory (Yeah, you'll really be thinking about glory after you die....). Have you ever heard of altruism? Risking your life to save someone elses? You gain nothing from that except possibly death. That's not hedonistic. I really think you should stick to talking about religious people only...

PhoenixReborn13

I'm with you on this one, Og. I don't quite think that these soldiers that dive on grenades are taking great pleasure in the death they experience, but I do believe that the lives they are leading, just like the lives almost all of the rest of us lead, are driven by what is pleasurable. That's not even including our consumerism trash that we are fed on a daily basis.

Don't confuse altruism and a selfless lifestyle to be the same thing. Altruism, also, is an animal instinct. In zoology, it would be the animal that sees the predator and cries, warning the rest of the pack. Sacrificing its life and position to ensure the survival of the whole.

We're still animals, no matter how evolved we may get.