Advice

On nothing

I’ve been reading your blog several months now, and I noticed that you often explain things in two ways that seem somewhat contradictory.

You write, “Anyone with the slightest sense of scale recognizes that nothing we do matters. In a universe so infinitely vast, our lives are entirely without meaning. The trick is being able to laugh at the abyss because you recognize the freedom it affords you,” but you also say things like in the last post about the importance of integrity.

I really am not attacking what you say, because I agree with both. I just am wondering how you (and I) can reconcile those two seemingly contradictory things. How can someone do whatever the hell they want, but with integrity? Isn’t that lawyer who works against gay marriage just doing whatever the hell he wants, because it pays the bill and “nothing we do matters”?

Honestly, I’m not sticking up for that person or trying to defend him, because I think that his job is pretty disgusting. But how can something be morally inappropriate through a nihilistic lens?

Just because nothing matters, that doesn’t mean you get to be a dick.

Nihilism isn’t moral relativism. The freedom that comes from embracing your insignificance has no bearing on morality. You’re still a human being. You still have a conscience. You are still obligated to play well with others.

Nobody gets to do whatever the hell they want. We live in a world filled with traffic lights and tax forms, and only sociopaths think their personal philosophy somehow nullifies the social contract.

There is no contradiction, because your universal insignificance itself becomes insignificant when faced with the day to day pursuit of happiness.

Shit doesn’t have to matter in any grand scheme for you to be a good person leading a happy life. It’s like, the impending abyss is always there, but fuck it.

Be cool and have a sandwich.

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