• coffee_with_cream@sh.itjust.works
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    2 months ago

    People always say, “only the good die young.” But that made me think. What if long-lived people are just more likely to do bad stuff over the course of their lives? Because everyone does good and bad stuff.

    • explodicle@sh.itjust.works
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      2 months ago

      IMHO whether or not a person will ever be a domestic abuser or rapist is pretty much determined by the time they reach adulthood. It’s not like a good man suddenly decides to start beating his wife or raping teenagers.

      • sunshine@lemmy.ml
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        2 months ago

        I’d be interested to see any sociological evidence supporting that theory if there is any.

        • Dragon Rider (drag)@lemmy.nz
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          2 months ago

          Xi can point out that psychologists have looked at mental health trends in communities with slaughterhouses. When a new slaughterhouse opens and people start working there, depression, alcoholism, addiction, sleep problems, violent crime, and domestic abuse go up. Make a man do violence all day for a living, and he starts to think violence is a valid way to solve problems.

      • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        I bet if you give the average person insane amounts of wealth and power, most of em would start doing some heinous shit.

        • explodicle@sh.itjust.works
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          1 month ago

          Alright I’ll take that bet! I’m an average person, now we just need to find someone who’ll give me insane amounts of wealth and power… for science.

      • krashmo@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        That you know of. That seems like a pretty broad brush to be painting with. It may be generally true but I’d be extremely surprised if there were no exceptions.

      • peopleproblems@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        The only counter I have to that is how sensitive our brains are to chemical, mental, and physical trauma.

        Drugs, injury, and environmental stress cause easily observable behavior changes, but also changes on the brain measurable in medical imaging. And there’s a lot of acknowledgement that these changes can occur in childhood and persist.

        I don’t think anyone chooses to be cruel, I think it’s forced on them in ways they can’t do anything about, and as a society we owe it to them to do better and help them.