Philosophy on life - do things really happen for a reason?

[Sheilbh]

Yeah. I think things happen for a reason but I'm less than a speck in the universe and time.

[Eddie Teach]

I think life, much like pen & paper rpgs, consists of rolling dice constantly.

[grumbler]

To put it bluntly Psychology and Economics don't have theories or laws (though they like to pretend they do) they just have lots of hypotheses and postulates.

To put is bluntly, you will sound a lot less ignorant if you simply avoid making pronouncements that prove you know nothing of what you are talking about (though you pretend that you do).   "Hypothesis" is a synonym for "theory" and a postulate is just a hypothesis/theory that is assumed to be true for the case under study.   A "law" in this context is just a hypothesis that has survived being disproven to the point that it is generally held to be true without further testing (such as the "law of supply and demand" or "the laws of gravity").

[Scipio]

Everything happens through some combination of shitty choices and physics.

Sometimes the shitty choices are yours, and sometimes they are those of other people.

Even when you think your choices aren't shitty, they are for somebody.  The trick is not giving a damn about shit outside your ability to affect it.  Knuckle down, drink heavily, and remember: when your grandkid asks you what you did in the great WW2, you won't have to say, I shoveled shit in Arkansas.

[CountDeMoney]

Beautiful post, Scip.

But it was Louisiana.

[Scipio]

Beautiful post, Scip.

But it was Louisiana.

Well, Arkansas sounds better, and has more shit on the ground.  Louisiana's a swamp.

[CountDeMoney]

Conceded.

[Camerus]

Many events may seem (and probably are) meaningless and random, but the trick is trying to find something positive in them.  Obviously that's not always easy to do.

Also just keep in mind that fortuna is sometimes a bitch.

[Viking]

To put it bluntly Psychology and Economics don't have theories or laws (though they like to pretend they do) they just have lots of hypotheses and postulates.

To put is bluntly, you will sound a lot less ignorant if you simply avoid making pronouncements that prove you know nothing of what you are talking about (though you pretend that you do).   "Hypothesis" is a synonym for "theory" and a postulate is just a hypothesis/theory that is assumed to be true for the case under study.   A "law" in this context is just a hypothesis that has survived being disproven to the point that it is generally held to be true without further testing (such as the "law of supply and demand" or "the laws of gravity").

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_theory

A scientific theory is "a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts that have been repeatedly confirmed through observation and experiment."[1][2] Scientists create scientific theories from hypotheses that have been corroborated through the scientific method, then gather evidence to test their accuracy. As with all forms of scientific knowledge, scientific theories are inductive in nature and do not make apodictic propositions; instead, they aim for predictive and explanatory force.[3][4]

A Law is a direct relationship between real phenomena, before Einstein and Planck people thought that laws were always true.

A Theory is a well supported set of laws, axioms and explanations which explain all facts and are contradicted by none.

A Hypothesis is a proposed addition to or replacement for a theory which is not well supported and either doesn't explain all the facts or is contradicted by some. 

A Postulate is a prediction based on a Hypothesis or fact. The correctness of that prediction goes to support the Hypothesis, or given a well supported theory confirm the fact.

You will sound a lot less ignorant if you had made your assertion above while knowing what a hypothesis or theory were and what the differences between them are.

[Jaron]

I think it is comforting for humans to believe some things will happen because they're meant to or not meant to because it takes the responsibility for the outcome out of our hands. Things might not happen for a reason, but that doesn't mean we can't draw lessons and experience from bad events. It is what makes someone who is 30 theoretically smarter and wiser than a 20 year old or a 10 year old.

Our experiences shape us into who we are, and we don't always have a say, but if nothing else we can usually soften the blows life sends our way!!!!! #chickensoup

[The Brain]

Jaron is wise. And yes I do want fries with that.

[Jaron]

Jaron is wise. And yes I do want fries with that.

[katmai]

Jaron is wise. And yes I do want fries with that.

You like Jaron's shake?

[The Brain]

Jaron is wise. And yes I do want fries with that.

You like Jaron's shake?

Uh-huh!

[Ed Anger]

Jaron is wise. And yes I do want fries with that.

You like Jaron's shake?

It brings all the boys to the yard.