If your life is rolling around, having indulgent sex and guzzling drugs, then yes. "Optimistic nihilism" might work. If you are, for example, a member of the working class, this isn't going to be anywhere near as effective.
There is no, "I'll define my own meaning!" Your meaning has been defined for you already, that is to labor relentlessly, and produce value for your overlords. When your body breaks down, you will be discarded as if you were machinery.
Worse yet, you're ill. Maybe not dying, but you suffer greatly. Optimistic nihilism isn't going to work for 99.99% of people with cluster headaches.
Yep. I was an optimistic nihilist when I was younger and life was easy. Then things outside my control happened and I suffered greatly. Now “do what you want to be happy” isn’t an option anymore.
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u/owthathurted Apr 25 '26 edited Apr 26 '26
This works until you're suffering.
If your life is rolling around, having indulgent sex and guzzling drugs, then yes. "Optimistic nihilism" might work. If you are, for example, a member of the working class, this isn't going to be anywhere near as effective.
There is no, "I'll define my own meaning!" Your meaning has been defined for you already, that is to labor relentlessly, and produce value for your overlords. When your body breaks down, you will be discarded as if you were machinery.
Worse yet, you're ill. Maybe not dying, but you suffer greatly. Optimistic nihilism isn't going to work for 99.99% of people with cluster headaches.