[wpietri]

I mainly disagree with this.

It is extremely hard to comprehend how short life is. Most people actively avoid knowing. They tell themselves stories about eternal life, or they act like they have all the time in the world. When circumstances conspire to wake us to the transitory nature of life, it can be incredibly valuable.

I violently disagree with the notion that the heat death of the universe "means that it really, really doesn't matter what you accomplish." That's like saying it isn't worth cooking a beautiful meal because 48 hours later it will all be poop. That there's no point to love if the body will soon be dust.

Nothing lasts, but that doesn't mean that nothing matters. If you want intuitive proof of that, go rent Rivers and Tides:

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

It's a documentary about Andy Goldsworthy. Much of his art is ephemeral. The transitory nature of it make is more beautiful, not less.

[brianchu]

I interpreted ForrestN's statement much differently: "it really, really doesn't matter what you accomplish." Given that emphasis, I don't think what ForrestN said is incompatible with your analogy.

The point is that the heat death of the universe means that some things, like the drive to "contribute to humanity" are not goals that are inherently superior to other goals, such as "cooking a beautiful meal."

This point is clear when ForrestN says "there's no reason to adhere to anyone else's values, or to feel pressure to do anything in particular. You should do what you want, what makes you happy, even if it's humble." Cooking a beautiful meal certainly falls under the category of "humble things that make you happy."

[ForrestN]

I love that you made a contemporary art reference (my field) even if Goldsworthy isn't such a good artist.

It is worth cooking a meal if you want to. It's worth making a line of rocks. It's worth programming a cute tumblr theme. Just don't pretend like you are doing those things because they are inherently better things to do than watching TV or lying in bed. These activities are all animated by your feelings about them, which your brain can't turn off regardless of how steeped in death you are.

You think Goldsworthy's work is beautiful. I don't. And that's fine. Not everyone has the same feelings and preferences. I'm not saying no one should "fight," just that they can't really argue on the basis of death that other people should.

[swombat]

That's like saying it isn't worth cooking a beautiful meal because 48 hours later it will all be poop. That there's no point to love if the body will soon be dust.

What a fantastic answer to that assumption. I'm writing that one down in a corner of my mind for later use (sometime between now and the heat death of the universe). :-)