Does the past even matter?

[GrimTerror]

The title says it all really, but just to elaborate a bit more...

Say something happens in the past which you feel sorta ashamed of, should have any influence on how you feel now or what you will do in future? I cant seem to decide which would be better, to pretend the past is irrelevant and just base your actions and thought on the current moment or to look at the past and take it into consideration before acting on something. Should you feel bad for things that have happened in the past, or is it not worth worrying about?

[Schwitzer]

If you remember the lessons learned by past mistakes, you won't make that mistake again.

[GrimTerror]

But should you feel bad about making those mistakes in the first place?

[nix14085]

i whish i could remember the quote exactly but as solid snake once said "never regret your mistakes learn from them.. Regrets just make a person weaker" something like that

[Stonehand]

But should you feel bad about making those mistakes in the first place?

No. What has happened in the past is done. There is no use for regret. Regreting about something in the past will only make you sorrow and depressed. But learning from it is a good thing though. At least, that what I think that is...

[FallenLord]

Regardless of whether your past influences you and your behavior, it will certainly influence those around you and their behavior towards you.

So yes, the past matters a lot.

[pixels]

past is nothing. you gain things by experience and they become a part of you, but other than that, you focus on the present and future.

[Protosschick99]

Ppl are right--To me, the past does not matter--I learn from my mistakes and I move on. I can't beat myself up about it. Cuz it'll just eat at you, I've learned to not have false guilt :)

And Grim is this about the thing with skippy and me?? :P

[kongurous]

Ppl are right--To me, the past does not matter--I learn from my mistakes and I move on. I can't beat myself up about it. Cuz it'll just eat at you, I've learned to not have false guilt :)

Ha ha lies. If you didn't have me on ignore, you'd have seen I apologized. You refuse, however, to at least hear me out. Stereotypical, bah.

And... yeah, Grim. What everyone else said. Nothing better to put here, delete this post if you see fit. But I would like to say something: never regret. Never, never regret. It will lead you to the darkest pits of whatever is in your mind. Regret is what made me start drinking. Regret has done some bad things to people, if we're to learn from the past, then don't regret. Just move on.

[TinyDancer]

If you remember the lessons learned by past mistakes, you won't make that mistake again.

Theoretically.

But yeah, I think the past matters some, because it's a part of who we are. As for worrying about the past, I feel about the same as everyone else seems to on this one. Regretting something is a waste of time. You can't change it, accept it an use it to your advantage in the future. :D

[Nuts]

Should you feel bad for things that have happened in the past, or is it not worth worrying about?
What makes you think that past revolves only around you?

What about the other people that may have been affected by your mistakes or misdeeds? Have you asked them if they are ready to move on and forgive? If they cannot forget about your past actions, then it would be irresponsible to simply ignore them. Once you have been forgiven by others, only then can you forgive yourself.

+1 for deep thoughts

[KexMex]

I haven't really come to find out what the past is good for. At least, it's nothing bad.

[MidnightGladius]

Once you have been forgiven by others, only then can you forgive yourself.

Is it just me, or does that sound like something Kongzi or Mengzi say (and I'm sorry to non-Chinese people, but I'm not sure how the English slaughtered the translations)?

But yes, I certainly agree with that. Taking no heed of the past is both rude and selfish to others.

[GrimTerror]

Wouldn't that depend if anyone else was involved with the bad deeds of your past?

Oh and i haven't actually done anything wrong you know. I was just thinking about it today and thought i'd share. My bad??

[MidnightGladius]

Theoretically, everything you do has some effect on at least one other person, and that person's affected action would then affect others. The ripples of society, so to speak.

Unless everyone besides you was dead. Then that'd be a whole different story.

[Nuts]

Edit: No need to repeat what has already been said by MidnightGladius.

[GrimTerror]

And Grim is this about the thing with skippy and me?? :P

Actually it's not, but it was pretty foos timing i reckon. It seems to directly relate to your current situation, but it wasn't created for that purpose.

Ha ha lies. If you didn't have me on ignore, you'd have seen I apologized. You refuse, however, to at least hear me out. Stereotypical, bah.

Come on skip, leave the argument elsewhere. There's no need to continue the argument here and this is by no means an excuse for you to start an argument with me. You two should get a private channel and sort things out so as not to disturb the rest of us! Lets leave it at that.

[kongurous]

Come on skip, leave the argument elsewhere. There's no need to continue the argument here and this is by no means an excuse for you to start an argument with me. You two should get a private channel and sort things out so as not to disturb the rest of us! Lets leave it at that.

Actually, she can't see what I type. She has me on ignore on here, and probably the same on IRC.

[UnHoly-Assassin]

My mistakes never happened. It never will happen. I know not of the event--just the fact that jumping off a skyscraper is bad. My "mistakes" are accidents that I failed to prevent.

"Who controls the past controls the future;...who controls the present controls the past" -1984

[GenocideAlive]

Actually, she can't see what I type. She has me on ignore on here, and probably the same on IRC.
Well, on the topic, it really seems to be eating at skippy, anyway. As it should, he pretty much precipitated this entire fiasco and now he doesn't want to "reap the whirlwind" as a good friend would say.

As for me, I find that our lives are too short to have a past.

[Mindslaver]

What experience and history teach is this -- that people and governments never have learned anything from history, or acted on principles.
The past matters, but few ever learn from it.

[bluemicrobyte]

I shall reply to the innitial question (Does the past even matter?) with a story.

A while ago, there was a day when I was overloaded with work and worries and tests and stuff. I had a paper or two due that day (which I had completed the night before so I was tired), and I had a french quiz in about 40 minutes. I also had an "off campus event" (feild trip) in about 60 minutes. This was also my only lunch break.

I was sitting alone up at the snack bar studying and eating at the same time and this girl (whom I had never even seen before) came and sat by me (after the typical "can I sit here?" introduction). (I didn't think at the time, but obviously she probably didn't have too many friends and wanted someone to eat lunch with.) The last thing I wanted at that moment was to be placed in a social situation with the opposite sex against my will (which, on the contrary, was exactly what I had been praying for for the longest time).
So we both ended up keeping quiet and minding our own books until finally it was time for my french quiz and I left without a word (keeping in mind that I was not thinking straight that day).


So does the past even matter? I think it does. You can learn a lot from your mistakes no matter what they are. That day I learned two things; 1) an easy way to meet people is to sit alone at the snack bar and 2) an easy way to un-meet people is to keep quiet if you don't know what to say.

I think the relevant past matters - I don't care who the 34th president was and I don't think it affects me in any way since I'm not into that kind of thing. Something like the history of the internet might apply to me since I work with computers and technology - websites in particular - every single day. You can easily benefit from your own past, such as in the example above.

[Valjean]

To suggest that the past does not matter is pure idiocy.

The past influences you and those around you; and even those around them.

However, learn from the past. Do not regret the past, it solves nothing and creates more problems.

EDIT: Why is this in ML and not IR?

[psycho42b]

To answer the question: "does the past matter?" I believe the answer is yes. the past is what makes and defines us. Example: A habitual liar is provided for this example. the liar is known to lie about almost everything. If the past didn't matter, then we should trust said liar, as for all we know, he could be possibly telling the truth. However, if the past does matter, then we simply cannot trust said liar, as he could also lying. Note: no real people were brought to mind when creating this example.
/note. feel free to dissect and destroy as you wish. :)

[GenocideAlive]

I shall reply to the innitial question (Does the past even matter?) with a story.

A while ago, there OMFG THIS IS LONG day. You can easily benefit from your own past, such as in the example above.
Seriously, that was the weirdest, most surreal shit I've ever read. If I were intoxicated, I would probably just stare stupidly at the story and try to figure out what the hell you were thinking when you made that ungodly 5000 word behemoth and what in hell's name it had to do with the topic.

...I'm sort of doing it anyway.

[Yoda]

Learning about the past gives you an insight into the present. So thats a yes. The idea is that you do not repeat the mistakes you make, and although some do that, most don't.

[bluemicrobyte]

Seriously, that was the weirdest, most surreal shit I've ever read. If I were intoxicated, I would probably just stare stupidly at the story and try to figure out what the hell you were thinking when you made that ungodly 5000 word behemoth and what in hell's name it had to do with the topic.

...I'm sort of doing it anyway.

it's *supposed* to be an example of how the past matters and how you can learn from it...... is it not a worthy example?

[GrimTerror]

Has anyone got a strong argument for the other side of things? 6 of you seemed to say that the past doesn't matter, so i'd like to know why you think that.

[singo]

Regret needs a sense of shame or dignity. As such it is beyond me.

I dont really have anything I REGRET, I have things that make me cringe when I remember them, but I dont regret it as such.

But yeah, learn from your mistakes, then laugh about them. Although my life consists of more of the latter.

[Magmaniac]

The past matters.
To not take in consideration the past is to deny the very thing that makes us human, our ability to think about what has happened and make an evaluation of your situation based on it.
It is our past that defines our present and future, it is out past that deploys us to where we are, and to be ignorant of experiences in one's past is naive, stupid, and immature.
I watched a special on a man nmed Clive Wearing today, he had encephilitis and has lost all memory functions. He lives his life on a moment-to-moment basis, everything he does is for the first time for him. Without a recollection of past, he sits in a room all day staring blankly at a wall day in and day out because his lack of a past causes him to not know how long he has been sitting there, it could have been a few months or a few seconds and it makes no difference to him until someone else walks into the room.

Without a past, you have no future.
Without a future, you have no hope.
Without hope, you have no soul.
Without a soul, you straight fucked, foo.

[sololop]

The past does matter. Everything that you do, will affect the future. If you have a bad past, chances are you will have a bad future.

If, for example, you move, right now, to another country and lose all your friends, thats a large change. In say, five years, your life will be completely different, because of your past.

Many of us have done things in the past that we are not, "proud" of, but that is what makes each person unique. Their past.