Why is it

[hummingwolf]

that sometimes we can look at a situation objectively and see why a certain course of action would be a Really Incredibly Bad Idea, yet still want to pursue that course anyway? You can enumerate all the obvious ways in which it would damage you or someone you love, you can trace in your mind's eye the trajectory of each fragment of the metaphorical bullet you want to shoot out and see each metaphorical organ that would be punctured; and still you want to carry out the Really Incredibly Bad Idea, consequences be damned. Why is that? It's so clearly contra-survival, you wouldn't think the propensity to be so foolish would survive in the species after all these countless generations. What is up with that?

Oh, maybe it's just me. Maybe nobody else out there ever gets these deep irrepressible longings for something they know is bad for them.

::briefly ponders world history::

Nope, not just me.

Comments

[hummingwolf.livejournal.com]

Self-sabotage is like it, yes. Lots of people are uncomfortable with being *very* happy, so they tend to do things which will bring them back down to their customary level of mediocrity/misery/okay-but-not-greatness/whatever. Self-sabotage usually isn't too damaging to your survival as a gene-carrier--might even promote survival sometimes, if you'd have a dangerously high level of certain hormones otherwise. I was thinking more about compelling urges to do something truly, magnificently self-destructive. I can avoid acting out on those urges usually, but why the heck won't they go away? I just don't geddit.

[hai-kah-uhk.livejournal.com]

I don't know. Maybe to shock some sense into you? Kind of like your subconscious saying, "Oh, you want something to angst and whine about? i'll GIVE you something to angst and whine about, and just remember that you asked for it!"