Do You Think That All Human Aggression Is In Self-Defense?

Whether it be real or imagined?

The following people thought they were acting in self-defense:

Hitler. Timothy McVeigh, Ted Kazcynski.

Are there examples of human aggression that are not self-defense of yourself or another?

The Japanese were acting in self-defense when they bombed Pearl Harbor because we were threatening them economically. We were defending ourselves back with the atom bomb.

The 9/11 hijackers were defending themselves in their own mind as well. (which I probably shouldn't talk about on the Internet because the government might be watching me lol).

And just to be clear.... I am not in support of any of these things.

 

No. Ever heard of sadism?

 

It seems like this is the message being used to get these people to agree to doing these things. But plenty of people are aggressive and even hostile assholes without being threatened by anyone. Predation is not a defensive posture.

 

A lot of times people over-compensate by acting powerful and violent because they're afraid they won't be loved for who they are, so in a sense they are threatened, but by the world, or society if you will.

 

What is the root behind sadism?

What is the root behind sadism?

What causes this behavior?

 

It is what it is. Some people are just psychopaths and take pleasure in causing pain.

Saying all aggression is defensive is overgeneralizing a behavior that probably has thousands of possible motives

 

I came up with that theory as a correction to a theory of Sigmund Freud that said human aggression stemmed from a subconscious wish to die. Which didn't make sense because then why wouldn't we just shoot ourselves?

There has to be more to sadism than that? Everyone that is into bondage is a psychopath? Because that means that A LOT of people are psychopaths.

 

uhhh...sadism and masochism in a sexual sense is largely make believe. There may be real pain involved but its done in a controlled and trusting environment. It is not the same as a real sadist who gets their kicks torturing other people against their will.

 

You raise a good point, but I think your wording could use tweaking. Perhaps self-preservation or self-reassurance would be better suited here.

I was tempted to quickly disagree with you on this, but the more I think about it, the more I could see how one would think that. Yes some people are sadistic - but if we raise the question of ''what do they get out of being sadistic?'', it comes full circle. Some people like to fight and harm others. In my opinion they do this to feel powerful and in control, so in reality, this could be seen as an act of self-preservation or self-reassurance, which is an asset in this rat-race.

So yeah. Maybe not defense, but I see where you are going with this.

 

Let me guess....



You wrote a book about this... Gonna be published in 6 months.

 

No but it might be part of my evolutionary psychology book. Maybe not, though.

It's kind of like a dog.... a dog will get angry if you take his food or poke him with a stick or rile him up as a young dog.

Otherwise, he should be fine, right? Same thing. The dog gets mad in self-defense.

 

how many books have you written so far?

 

I'm in the midst of turning my notes into the first one. Then, I will repeat this process for another one. Then, once more. Then, I'm out of ideas on books to write. Here's an excerpt from the one I'm currently writing:

History
Islam was founded by Muhammad. Muhammad was born on April 20, 571 in Arabia. His father died before he was born and his mother died when he was 6 years old. He was eventually taken under the care of his uncle, Abu Talib. He married a woman named Khadijah with whom he had 5 children. He had two sonds and three daughters, but only one of his daughters lived past infancy.
In February 610, the Angel Gabriel visited Muhammad, telling him that he was Allah's messenger. This is when Muhammad came to be known as the Prophet. Muhammad reportedly continued to receive messages from Allah and recorded them in the Koran, the holy book of Islam.
Muhammad then began to try to convert the people of Mecca to his new strictly monotheistic religion. At first, the citizens of Mecca laughed at his attempts to convert them. However, they soon became hostile toward him as the teachings of his new religion conflicted with their current religion and economic activity. Muhammad and his followers became the target of persecution.
In the year 619, Muhammad's uncle and wife died. Also during this year, he was visited by people from the city of Yathrib, over 200 miles outside of Mecca. The people of Yathrib wanted Muhammad to be their new leader. In the year 622, Muhammad escaped Mecca to go to Yathrib. This year became the first year in the Muslim calendar. Muhammad took control of Yathrib and renamed it Medina. Medina became the first Muslim city, where the first mosque was built.
After organizing Medina as a Muslim city, Muhammad organized a military campaign to extend Islam. He took control of Mecca in 630 and organized it under his new religion. People have been making the pilgrimmage to Mecca ever since. Muhammad died in the year 632, having spent his last years leading military campaigns to extend the new religion of Islam.
After Muhammad's death, his successors continued the expansion of Islam. By 640, Muslim armies had conquered Syria, Jerusalem, and Egypt. By 710, they had conquered north Africa and were ready to head north into Spain. By 732, they had conquered Spain and were stopped in France by a Christian army. Muslim armies also pushed north as far as Constantinople, and east, conquering Iran. These Muslim warriors were motivated by their belief in jihad, or holy war, that was part of their Muslim duty. They believed that they would go straight to heaven if they died in service in Allah.
The new territories that were conquered were brought under organization first by the Ummayad Caliphate, centered in Damascus, which lasted from 660 to 750. The later Abbasid Caliphate moved the capital to Baghdad, which became the most civilized city in the world.

Beliefs
Muslims believe in an impending judgement day. They believe in one God (Allah) and that Muhammad was Allah's Prophet. Muslims do not believe that Muhammad was divine in any way. They believe that Allah created the universe and will bring it to an end at judgement day. The Muslim teachings are contained in the 114 suras of the Koran. On judgement day, every person will either be sent to heaven or to hell.
Muslim teachings also say that Allah has sent prophets to Earth. Among the twenty-eight mentioned in the Koran are Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Noah, Adam, and even Alexander the Great, in addition to Muhammad himself. Muhammad is viewed as the true prophet to whom the complete picture was revealed. This is why adherents of Islam view followers of Christianity and Judaism as clinging to partial truths.
Some Muslims believe that jihad, or holy war, is part of their Muslim duty. Islam also allows polygamy.

Beliefs Proven Wrong
The beliefs of Islam have been proven wrong by modern science. The revelations of Allah to Muhammad that were recorded in the Koran can only be described as schizophrenic hallucinations. Also, science has shown that a God was not needed to create the physical universe. Since this Allah does not exist in the first place, then he certainly will not judge anyone on a judgement day. The purpose of life is not to serve a God that does not exist.
Modern psychiatry shows that the founder of Islam, Muhammad, was indeed a schizophrenic. He suffered both from hallucinations and grandiose delusions.
The Arabs were a tribe of people no more important than any other. They began to believe in this religion, which inspired them to wage war to spread their beliefs. This accounts for the rapid spread of the Arab people and their geographic distribution in the world today.

 

No.

Someone might mug someone to steal their wallet in order to buy a television (or other unnecessary tangible item). Many children hurt other children so that they can obtain negative adult attention. Just a few examples.

 

yeah youfreeme is right.
Consider your theory destroyed.
We forgot all about greed.

 

That is true. Which explains the hole I had thought of in my theory and that was....

What about "empire builders" like Alexander the Great, etc.

He was not acting in self-defense. Just being greedy.

 

So no one is born aggressive.... and they might turn into someone who steals, rather than gets something the legal way... because of the way they've been treated.

 

So my theory stands.... you see... Alexander the Great had it put in his head by his dad Philip of Macedon... and Philip was fucked up because he was just that way.....because he grew up in a world of kill or be killed and they thought that was the way it had to be... they lived in a paranoid world where they thought if you didn't kill someone else, they would kill you.....

So, in a way, it was in self-defense.

 

how does someone self-defend someone else?

 

well sometimes I type too fast.... but I'm sure you know what I meant.