Happiness

[pmcd]

Chap on the BBC TV Breakfast couch was mumbling something about happiness being a "flaky" concept which didn't sit right with all the grief and woe going on in the world. (All to do with the latest "Happiness Index" debate stimulated by government.)

The precedent lies in Bhutan, idyllic Kingdom in the Himalaya, where the government measures the Gross Happiness Product of the country (or some such, before pedants bite!)

So - is happiness a genuine part of what makes us tick? Do we tick better if we are happy? Or are we - er - happier to wallow in misery, doom and gloom because the world shows us that THIS is the default drive of the human race on this planet?

[pig whisperer]

MYy husbands attitude is 'always look on the black side cos things can only get worse' [such a ray of sunshine] & fortunately Im very positive & fairly happy most of the time, i think that you are born happy or you arent.

[weezer 316]

I think happiness is what drives everyone on. Well it does me. I spend a fair bit of time moaning but im not often unhappy.

I suppose what I am trying to say is that moaning doesn't equate to unhappiness

[gleeber]

I think happiness is what drives everyone on. Well it does me. I spend a fair bit of time moaning but im not often unhappy.

I suppose what I am trying to say is that moaning doesn't equate to unhappiness
Ah but Weezer have you ever considered your moaning may equate to someone else unhappiness? :eek:
I think doom and gloom and unhappiness are connected to the outside world but how we handle it is connected to our inner world. I think there's more doom and gloom around now because of the instant global communications we have at our fingertips. Everyone and everything is interconnected like a web. We're the first generation to have this knowledge overload so time will tell whether the doom and gloom gene is real or whether happiness is a more dominant drive.

[pmcd]

People sometimes speak of happiness as a journey, rather than a destination. Is happiness a static state (self-generated or intrinsic) , or can it be communicated to others (transmitted), or picked up from others (received)?

[gleeber]

Yes, I think it can. Doom and gloom certainly can so why not happiness?

[gleeber]

On reflection I'm not saying it can be transmitted or received but more probably felt.

[ducati]

I pick up the transmisions (when I take my tinfoil hat off). When I am with positive people I am positive, when I am with negative people I leave :Razz

[alistair harper]

Hello,Why not say hello to the next stranger you meet watch their face and see if it makes you both happy.
Too much doom and gloom in the world a smile costs nothing.

[gleeber]

Well Alister it's bad enough acknowledging someone you know and have seen around the town most of your life and getting a blank without getting a reputation for chatting strangers up. :lol:

[alistair harper]

a well gleeber did it make you smile if so my work is done take care and live life to the fool.this goes to all people in caithness

[gleeber]

Aye it made me smile but it also made me realise how important other people are in my life whether strangers family or friends.

[brandy]

i quite often smile at strangers.. and sing out loud as i walk along.. i do get very strange looks at times! but i find that when you smile at someone.. and say good day you tend to get the same in return.. not allways but mostly *grins*

[golach]

This thread makes me think of Ken Dodd, I am not sure why.

[pmcd]

'Cos it's full of lovable Diddymen?

[Kevin Milkins]

Listen to this without tapping your foot or having a whistle, and you will know if your are a grumpy git.

Life Of Brian - Ending (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CC8QtwIwAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D1lo yjm4SOa0&ei=qJqlTeGrB8mo8AOxx9G5Dw&usg=AFQjCNGTrjpuyE1d8ucIiYHaI5m_IsvWPA)

[Vistravi]

Happiness is something we all strive to be either consciously or unconsciously.
I like to be happy and really notice when i'm not.
My son is a very happy boy. He's always smiling and laughing. Playing with him and seeing how i make him happy and giggly makes me very happy.

[John Little]

This is Happiness.

The chap in the white suit is an ex student of mine. Leg muscles like steel springs.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnHlGONToIc

[Carole]

Listen to this without tapping your foot or having a whistle, and you will know if your are a grumpy git.

Life Of Brian - Ending (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CC8QtwIwAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D1lo yjm4SOa0&ei=qJqlTeGrB8mo8AOxx9G5Dw&usg=AFQjCNGTrjpuyE1d8ucIiYHaI5m_IsvWPA)

Thank you for that Kevin - lifted the spirits big time.

[oldmarine]

Aye it made me smile but it also made me realise how important other people are in my life whether strangers family or friends.

Looks like you're on to something here.

[therealducati]

I am an optimistic pessimist, or a pessimistic optimistic, as I hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Of course, how could I not be happy sharing my life with Ducati (I think that's where the "preparing for the worst" comes in!)