For my economics class I have to bring in an item that is “free”, and a three paragraph paper on why it actually isn’t free. After a little bit of thinking, I came to the conclusion that death is free, and possibly the only free thing in life. I would like to see if there are holes in my death is free argument or not. As well as knowing about other things that are truly free.
2 Likes
An interesting question, While I could be very religious about this, I’ll try to be as secular as possible.
It depends on how you look at it. It can cost you your life, and can cost those around you grief and suffering. In another way, it’s they only thing your guaranteed, so it could be seen as that you’ll get it no matter what.
A very thought provoking question.
3 Likes
Yes and no, the act itself is free, but is accompanied with costs and burdens that others must pay.
3 Likes
In the finiacial sense, it is because you cant buy it.
except if you count hitmen
3 Likes
It may be free to you, but never to others.
Plus funerals. They aren’t cheap.
6 Likes
Well
What are we defining free as? Would one pay with real, material money, or something less concrete, such as life?
In a sense, it’s free. You don’t have to ask for it or do anything to get it.
But it’s not because it costs you your life.
1 Like
Spoilering here because, even for this topic, I might be going into too much detail for some people.
There’s a saying that there’s no such thing as a free lunch - if it’s presented as free, someone else is paying for you. Since we’re already on the topic of “choosing death”, the first thing that came to mind was a statistic that approximately 18 people experience major disruption in their life when someone dies by suicide. Grief and sadness may develop into Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, and suicidal thoughts in those people that experience suicide loss. I’ll give that that’s the most extreme category, but those disorders can occur with anyone who witnesses or is impacted by a death.
On the more trivial side, for most deaths you need to have the material, or energy to have your life taken from you, or pay the physical or mental cost of a serious health condition. It can be cheap - a heart attack may be only a few minutes of pain before you become unresponsive. To posit this kind of death as free, you’d have to rule out pain as something that costs you - which some people are willing to do.
And as Meep brought up, you are, in a sense, paying with your life, but given how advanced you are in life, you might quantify the value of your life differently.
1 Like
The point of this whole assignment is to prove that there is always an amount of effort put in to everything you get. Someone or something had to preform an action to create what you want, have, or need. For example, oxygen isn’t free since a plant had to make it. Even if you don’t use currency it still cost labor.
@ProfSrlojohn @ToaNoah_Wafflemeister @Holi
I’m not including things that death causes as a cost. A proper burial is not contributing to the death itself. If it is not necessary to cause the death, then it doesn’t count as a cost. Trauma as a result of a loved ones death did not kill the one who died.
The first scenario I thought of was a man with no connections to people drowning. The water is free of course and the man not is trying to survive whatsoever. That man is putting no effort into trying to live, or trying to die. Is it a free death?
@Hawkflight
Tanstaafl is exactly what I’m getting at.
1 Like
The only way i can say this properly is in a religious discussion I can’t say here, nor do I think the economics professor would appreciate it.
otherwise, he still had to pay his life didn’t he? Even if he gave it freely, it still cost him. You give up money freely in exchange for goods and services right?
True, but you are, in a sense, taking something away from them, that being your presence.
Though there’s no way to quantify what that cost is. Take the scenario you posted; that man could have gone on to be a saint who was beloved by his community. Or he might have become a serial killer. It’s impossible to know.
And, as prosperjohnlo points out, you are paying your life. A life that could be used for other things, so you’re surrendering the right to do anything in the future.
1 Like
@ProfSrlojohn
If you want to use a religious stand point, please do so. As for the other part of what you said. Even though we give money away freely, almost everybody would rather get what they want and pay nothing. The man’s life has no value since he is dieing. No one would pay for a corpse.
@Racie02
As I said in my scenario this man has no connections with other living things. He has nothing. His future would have been nothing.
Also I don’t think a consequence of death is a cost of death. That is just a biproduct of death, not death itself.
As much as I would like to, board rules. And I don’t need another semi-active PM. I also don’t like to make long posts on mobile.
There’s an argument for that, but I’ll leave it.
How do you know that? How does he know that? How does anyone but God know that?
Yeah. It and the no political discussion does alot for (usually) stopping arguements.
Yep. I always say politics kill everything they touch.
1 Like
Yeah, look in the 310N faber discussion to see that mess.
Anyway, back on topic.
1 Like
But does a bill cause the purchase of a treadmill? No, the purchase of a treadmill causes a bill. The mourning doesn’t cause the end of a life, but a life causes the mourning. You can’t have the death without it. That’s a cost, or an expense. The effect of the cause.
Which is already asking for a lot. He’d pretty much have to never interact with anyone or anything ever as to not establish patterns that would be “missed.”
The human mind physically won’t let you drown yourself, so you’d have to find something heavy and tie it to yourself, costing labor. Plus, you’re also spending the ability to breathe.
2 Likes
This is a forum about a youtube channel that talks about toys.
6 Likes
So a perfect place for this type of discussion right?
4 Likes