Discussion What if we are in a simulation and suicide is the only way out?

[Dejected 55]

Some have proposed the idea of "what if" we are living in a simulation. I want to extend that hypothesis by considering that living and dying in the conventional fashion might doom you to either oblivion within the simulation OR perpetual reincarnation as new characters in the simulation.

What if suicide is the only way out? The powers that be behind the simulation either need you here maliciously OR you are a consumer so they want to keep you here for profit... either way, they will do everything they can to encourage you to live... to continue the simulation. But what if those of us who are suicidal are the only ones truly rejecting the simulation, and if we are successful in exiting this "life" we are able to escape the simulation and have true freedom in a world that makes sense.

Maybe everything we've ever been taught was reverse... suicide is the path to freedom from the shackles.

It's worth a brain cell or two to ponder on your way out the door, no?

 

[Bootleg Astolfo]

If this is a simulation, i'm gonna be AM levels of pissed off that we can't just have catgirls.

 

[Dejected 55]

If this is a simulation, i'm gonna be AM levels of pissed off that we can't just have catgirls.

That's the problem with simulations... If such a thing exists, no doubt some megacorporation would control the simulation to suit its own ends. It wouldn't be like Star Trek where you or I could go into one with our own idea of a fantasy to simulate and actually enjoy ourselves.

 

[Unbearable Mr. Bear]

What if we leave the simulation and reality is like 100000x worse than it? That's another thing to ponder.

 

[Esc9434]

I think having no more desires, regrets, and fear at the time of death is how you permanently escape this world.

Yes, even wanting death is a desire that will "probably" work against you too.

I think having "Welp, if death is here, then I'm okay cause I did everything I wanted to do in this life. I have no regrets." is the attitude to have.

Please don't bite my head off everyone. I'm just guessing.

 

[Dejected 55]

What if we leave the simulation and reality is like 100000x worse than it? That's another thing to ponder.

I'm hoping for oblivion after death. I'm just allowing for the possibility of being disappointed... and yeah, if I woke to being free from the simulation, I have no doubt it would be worse because I would still be alive and unhappy and have all of my memories of what happened here.

 

[Namelesa]

Personally I don't think this is going to happen as there is no evidence for this as reincarnation and simulations are stuff made up by humans but I understand the fear of the unknown with what happens with death. Uncertainty is really scary.

 

[Forever Sleep]

Why let us die at all if they'd prefer us to be alive? Why would suicide be treated so differently to regular death? Because we chose to opt out? But then, what's to stop 'them' just putting us back in? Where do you suppose we actually wake up to- if this is all simulation? Why assume that world is better? Why assume the 'real' you can even die?

Personally, I don't really buy the simulation theory- other than being a really cool plot for 'The Matrix'. Even if it does exist though, seeing as all the parameters are unknown, I don't know how we could make things better for ourselves. If we can 'escape', what do we escape to?

The same criticism goes for any type of afterlife. What do we do there? What's the point of any of it? Why assume a different life woukd be better? It's why I'm hoping for nothing after death. I think any type of life is too risky.

 

[Csmith8827]

Prison Planet theory makes more and more sense everyday. It's just some higher power trying to fuck with us and feed off of our emotions. Its all evil and corrupt. Get lucky and find some pesce for yourself.

 

[Dejected 55]

Personally I don't think this is going to happen as there is no evidence for this as reincarnation and simulations are stuff made up by humans but I understand the fear of the unknown with what happens with death. Uncertainty is really scary.

I mean, people invented God too, and look how many people believe in that!

Why let us die at all if they'd prefer us to be alive? Why would suicide be treated so differently to regular death? Because we chose to opt out? But then, what's to stop 'them' just putting us back in? Where do you suppose we actually wake up to- if this is all simulation? Why assume that world is better? Why assume the 'real' you can even die?

Fair point. I guess I was thinking that the people running the simulation just run the simulation from a high-level and wrote into it algorithms to inhibit suicides and programmed non-player characters to infiltrate and investigate and inhibit... but that they don't have the capability to monitor people at all times so people can slip through the cracks. Somehow suicide is the loophole they couldn't patch in their simulation. They didn't account for the concept of people wanting to exit the simulation... so that's how we escape.

Escape to what, though? I don't know. It was something semi-entertaining to think about and I didn't follow the logic train all the way down the tracks.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I mean, people invented God too, and look how many people believe in that!

Fair point. I guess I was thinking that the people running the simulation just run the simulation from a high-level and wrote into it algorithms to inhibit suicides and programmed non-player characters to infiltrate and investigate and inhibit... but that they don't have the capability to monitor people at all times so people can slip through the cracks. Somehow suicide is the loophole they couldn't patch in their simulation. They didn't account for the concept of people wanting to exit the simulation... so that's how we escape.

Escape to what, though? I don't know. It was something semi-entertaining to think about and I didn't follow the logic train all the way down the tracks.

It's definitely an interesting idea. I've often thought of suicide as the life equivalent of the computer: 'Force Quit.' As in- this dumb sh*t programme isn't working anymore. I'm shutting it down!

*Spolier Alert!* One major qualm I've always had with the simulation idea is- if it truly isn't real, maybe there are 'cheats' to make it better. But then, I found it fascinating in 'The Matrix' where Agent Smith said that the first Matrix was designed as a perfect world with no suffering and people simply rejected the programme. That we wouldn't be convinced by a perfect world.

I've also wondered what they could be 'harvesting' if this truly is a simulation. The popular idea seems to be negative emotion but then, not everyone is unhappy. Why make us mortal too? Or, did they not make us? Did they just happen upon us and, enslave us? What happened when humans didn't exist? Were the dinosaurs in their simulation too?

I've read theories that aliens helped ancient civilisations like the Egyptians to build their pyramids. Then, people would theorize why they would have helped. Maybe to let us develop and breed and, return to enslave us. Like an ant farm. Lol. They're all interesting ideas. Not sure I really believe them though.

 

[Dejected 55]

I guess I was originally thinking something less malevolent... like maybe people invented simulations to have experiences that they could no longer have in their evolved forms... only to lose control of the simulation and find that there was no way to shut it down from the outside. Only from the inside could you kill yourself to escape. But the simulation is intelligent and adapts and if too many people are committing suicide, the program tries to find ways to stop them or discourage them with promises of "it gets better" but it can't really stop anyone who actually wants to go through with it enough. And maybe there is some faction of the outside beings that have found a way to profit from having people trapped in the simulation. Leeching lifeforce or something. I don't know, the more you try and put details around it the more it falls apart. Kind of like real life actually... the more you try and define human behavior the less it makes sense.

 

[timechained]

Interesting thought...

Following the logic I don't think suicide would be so common as it is though...unless that the point of the simulation was for most of us to eventually die by suicide...??

I've always found the simulation theory similar to Christianity.

There are 3 heavens. Earth is the 1st heaven, stars, sun, moon are 2nd heaven, God and 2/3 angels 3rd heaven above the stars, sun, moon.

We started in the 3rd heaven but now are in the 1st heaven with Satan and 1/3 angels. Only God (advanced beings) can travel through all heavens (they plan to, to establish God's kingdom on earth).

In a way, we already live in a simulation, God's simulation.