> I think much of human suffering due to competition stems from lack of security, or the lack of reassurance that basic needs will be met.

Good comment - there are two places I disagree with you:

1) See the hedonic treadmill theory[0]. You could point to someone, relatively speaking, who is on top of the world. But they are still unhappy. Why is this? It's sometimes theorized that we are at a "set point" in happiness, and while we can run faster on the treadmill, or slow down on the treadmill from time to time, we are stuck at this set level of happiness.

2) Surely the vast majority of the developed western world is not at a lack for "basic needs", but why is there so much anger and despair? Because I believe you might be missing more of the "basic needs" than just Food and Water. See Maslow's hierarchy of needs[1]. While it is also theory which has arguments against it, it utilizes a more comprehensive definition of "needs."

Surely there are many people in the western world who lack psychological stability or lack companionship.

> All of the needs of your friends and family are met.

You will need to define "needs" because IMHO, that is not true. I have relatives who are veterans of war, friends who have had psychotic breaks, friends who have everything they need but something just doesn't "click" with them.

[0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonic_treadmill [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs

According to this post, the hedonic treadmill theory has been disproven. [0]

"The author is flat out wrong. The Hedonic Treadmill has been disproven. Moreover, the author seems to be conflating the concept of the treadmill, with adaptation. The former denotes the subject returns to the original state. The latter recognizes that while we become accustomed to new things, we still improve in happiness.

The author is also misquoting, or misunderstanding, Kahneman. Kahneman isn't talking at all about the treadmill. He's talking about what he called the "Focusing Illusion"-- a fancy way of saying "the grass is always greener on the other side..."

Relevant links:

"Beyond the Hedonic Treadmill: Revising the Adaptation Theory of Well-Being"

http://www.factorhappiness.at/downloads/quellen/S9_Diener.pd...

Kahneman tried to explain the hedonic treadmill via with his own aspiration treadmill. He claims that he not only failed, but the data were opposite to his hypothesis.

https://www.edge.org/response-detail/10056

Kahneman's paper where that OP misquotes Kahneman from:

http://psiexp.ss.uci.edu/research/teaching/Schkade_Kahneman_...

[0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11535504

Note the key word in my post theory as opposed to "The Hedonic Treadmill" (law, or such thereof).

You're right, I should've defined "needs". I actually had Maslow's Hierarchy in mind when I made my comment. Also, "all of your needs as a human being are met" was meant in the context of a technological utopia, not now.

As for the hedonic treadmill, I'm sure this is something that philosophers have considered for ages, but I can only give my personal thoughts on it which are this:

I believe that "happiness" is attainable. Perhaps not pure bliss like popular culture likes to portray it as, but when I think of "happiness" I usually think of "contentedness." In this frame, I think it becomes more obviously attainable.

And if it is attainable in the far-from-perfect world we live in now, then surely it will be attainable in some-distant-future-full-of-convenience. I also think that this concept of hedonism is self-perpetuating. If you believe in nihilism, it becomes your reality. If you reject nihilism, it doesn't.

I can't speak for everyone, but the primary reason I remain unhappy despite having my basic needs cared for is Marxist alienation [1]. Put simply, as long as I remain a wage-slave for the bourgeoisie, I will not have the capacity for true happiness. But not to worry -- I have plans. Patience is key. Soon enough, I will liberate myself from wage labor. Part of what's so great about being a programmer is that the means of software production are relatively inexpensive, and indeed I already possess them. Wish me luck! :)

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marx%27s_theory_of_alienation

>"we are stuck at this set level of happiness."

Relevent HAPPYish scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AWcB_xuBSM

> All of your needs as a human being are met. All of the needs of your friends and family are met. Can you not imagine how much easier it would be to advance toward a "social utopia"?

This is the case for basically everyone I know, and I'd imagine this being the case for a lot of the people here. But we're not advancing to a social utopia.

There's a loooooong way you can fall in our society.

Until that floor is a lot closer to what we call "middle class" you're not going to realize many social benefits.

Is it? Most of us are one major medical disaster away from being bankrupt. And losing your job generally would throw all that out the window.

Slightly off topic but I can't help but be reminded of the quote from The Third Man:

"in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock."

I'm mildly optimistic that we can at least encourage the better bits of society found in the real world today.

>"in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock."

Surely Italy at the time had a far larger population base than Switzerland.

Also, Switzerland did produce something: a much better society, which served as an example to others. Unfortunately, just as we see today with the difference between developed and undeveloped nations, people are generally too stupid, in groups, to actually learn from others' examples.

And if you were to be dropped with no possessions save for a passport of the nation you are dropped in, where do you go today: Italy or Switzerland?

EDIT: "All of your needs as a human being are met (according to Maslow's hierarchy.)"