Hobbies How much do your values affect your interests and/or hobbies?

[bdt2002]

A little while ago over in the neurodiversity thread, I posted something that's been bothering me for a while now. It's a bit of a touchy subject for me, to put it lightly. As I was posting that, however, I had an idea. Many of you might not be able to relate to my situation, yes... but what about some of us being able to relate to a moral construct? Specifically, our own moral constructs.

I'm the kind of person who believes that the various interests and hobbies we have started to... well, interest us for their own reasons. As a growing-up college kid, I've been able to observe that what those reasons are will constantly change as we mature. What this will result in is a unique correlation, where the vast majority of people will feel some kind of urge, conscious or not, to support the kinds of people who support what we support. Human beings can observe this trend practically every day in the field of politics, for instance. The reason I mention this psychological trend is because I've been going through a big shift in philosophy, where the things I believe in (in this particular case, my history with neurodiversity) don't exactly line up with the cultural values of the people who designed my special interests.

I think what I'm trying to ask with this thread here is that I want to see if this is just a "me thing" or if other people face similar debacles. As such, I created this thread with the intention of it being a way for me to... I guess you could say "study" your own experiences? I can't think of a better word off the top of my head right now. In doing so, I hope I can provide more of us with an outlet to talk about this kind of issue. We don't have to discuss anything ultra-specific here by any means, especially if it's uncomfortable for any of us to talk about the more personal aspects of life. I'd like this thread to be focused more-so around us providing each other with potential solutions, if at all possible.

So, uh... yeah. That's pretty much everything, I guess. Any contributions and help to this little "study" of mine are much appreciated. (Again, study might not be the right word.)

 

[Wigglytuff]

What this will result in is a unique correlation, where the vast majority of people will feel some kind of urge, conscious or not, to support the kinds of people who support what we support.

This is pretty untrue; the vast majority of people do not give a fuck about the conditions that the commodities they consume were produced under/the ideological leanings of the people who produce them. See iPhones, Chick Fil A, most AAA videogames, etc. This isn’t to say that anyone who partakes in these is automatically disqualified from voicing an opinion about it, but thinking the vast majority of people feel even subconsciously guilty as they chomp down on the Chick Fil A Chicken Sandwich Combo Meal Deluxe with Polynesian Sauce is optimistic at best.

 

[Morkal]

I want to point out a trait many people don't think about regarding morals and values concerning interests/hobbies - exhaustion.

Over the last 10ish years since the mainstream joined the internet, we've heard so many people sensationalize so many things to a stratospheric degree that many people who don't talk via extremes stopped caring about the ever-expanding amount of social movements. I'd like to reference the excellent point Wigglytuff made about Chick-Fil-A.

I'm LGBT+ (Bisexual, Genderfluid MtF), and I have eaten at Chick-Fil-A many times on cross-state / cross-country drives because it was the best affordable option for me to eat at that point that was still in line with my dietary needs. I'm fully aware of the specific moral standpoint the owners of that business support. However, if I were to apply the standpoint of "don't consume the product if the owner believes in things I don't agree with," I (and most others) wouldn't be able to get anything.

Amazon? Gone. Most major chain franchise stores? Gone. Many restaurants, theme parks, and video game companies? Gone.

I'm not trying to devalue people who stick to their morals and refuse to support those companies; more power to you; I respect the drive and initiative. However, many of us are still trying to overcome trauma; some people are trying to work two to three jobs to support themselves and their families. I feel the constant push for everything to be exceptionally morally just at all times has resulted in most people breaking away from common decency and has contributed to the divisiveness we see today. People are not brutal extremes; we are the gray in between, including those we love and hate.

So to answer the question, personally, my values will make me more likely to get into a hobby or interest if it lines up with said values. However, I don't often pay attention to whether big company A or small entertainer Z does something I disagree with at this point because I'm too tired to care about the views of people I've never met or talked to before. I want to make lasting positive changes in the lives of people I know and the places I live rather than jumping onto a vitriolic boycott or hyperbolic support train of a company, entertainer, or product.

 

[bdt2002]

This is pretty untrue; the vast majority of people do not give a fuck about the conditions that the commodities they consume were produced under/the ideological leanings of the people who produce them. See iPhones, Chick Fil A, most AAA videogames, etc. This isn’t to say that anyone who partakes in these is automatically disqualified from voicing an opinion about it, but thinking the vast majority of people feel even subconsciously guilty as they chomp down on the Chick Fil A Chicken Sandwich Combo Meal Deluxe with Polynesian Sauce is optimistic at best.

Perhaps I didn’t word this best at first, but I definitely see where you’re coming from. I suppose a better way to word it would be something like this. Let’s say I am a person who has access (for the sake of this conversation, let’s assume this includes money) to multiple options of phone, for example. If my own values line up more with Samsung than they do with Apple, I would be more likely, even if it’s not by much, to want a new Android instead of a new iPhone. I’ll admit that me saying this is common is… silly, to say the least, but with all due respect, being told I’m wrong is just as valuable information, if not more so- so thanks for your help. :)

I want to point out a trait many people don't think about regarding morals and values concerning interests/hobbies - exhaustion.

Over the last 10ish years since the mainstream joined the internet, we've heard so many people sensationalize so many things to a stratospheric degree that many people who don't talk via extremes stopped caring about the ever-expanding amount of social movements. I'd like to reference the excellent point Wigglytuff made about Chick-Fil-A.

I'm LGBT+ (Bisexual, Genderfluid MtF), and I have eaten at Chick-Fil-A many times on cross-state / cross-country drives because it was the best affordable option for me to eat at that point that was still in line with my dietary needs. I'm fully aware of the specific moral standpoint the owners of that business support. However, if I were to apply the standpoint of "don't consume the product if the owner believes in things I don't agree with," I (and most others) wouldn't be able to get anything.

Amazon? Gone. Most major chain franchise stores? Gone. Many restaurants, theme parks, and video game companies? Gone.

I'm not trying to devalue people who stick to their morals and refuse to support those companies; more power to you; I respect the drive and initiative. However, many of us are still trying to overcome trauma; some people are trying to work two to three jobs to support themselves and their families. I feel the constant push for everything to be exceptionally morally just at all times has resulted in most people breaking away from common decency and has contributed to the divisiveness we see today. People are not brutal extremes; we are the gray in between, including those we love and hate.

So to answer the question, personally, my values will make me more likely to get into a hobby or interest if it lines up with said values. However, I don't often pay attention to whether big company A or small entertainer Z does something I disagree with at this point because I'm too tired to care about the views of people I've never met or talked to before. I want to make lasting positive changes in the lives of people I know and the places I live rather than jumping onto a vitriolic boycott or hyperbolic support train of a company, entertainer, or product.

There’s a lot I’m able to take away from this as well. It can (unfortunately) be hard to remember that others have different kinds of situations. This is why it’s hard for me to want to make a decision- because I don’t want to quit supporting the things I’ve grown to enjoy. We can all make positive changes in each other’s lives in our own ways. It’s just that this particular method is a bit… unique.

 

[Wigglytuff]

Let’s say I am a person who has access (for the sake of this conversation, let’s assume this includes money) to multiple options of phone, for example. If my own values line up more with Samsung than they do with Apple, I would be more likely, even if it’s not by much, to want a new Android instead of a new iPhone.

I think anyone that's actually considering between an iPhone than a Samsung would be way more interested in the technical specifications than which company makes use of (marginally) less child labor. Just about every major corporation that produces most of the stuff everyone uses is knee deep in this shit, so there's really no point in even weighing that stuff out.

Which is why I disagree with the premise of the thread in general, taken to its logical conclusion you get this:

This type of thinking is a nonstarter. Demanding complete adherence to logical consistency and only logical consistency is counterproductive - it is perfectly logically consistent to own an iPhone if you support the use of child labor, for example.

Abstain from stuff that's bad if you're able, support stuff that's good if you can. That's about all you can really do.

 

[bdt2002]

I think anyone that's actually considering between an iPhone than a Samsung would be way more interested in the technical specifications than which company makes use of (marginally) less child labor. Just about every major corporation that produces most of the stuff everyone uses is knee deep in this shit, so there's really no point in even weighing that stuff out.

Which is why I disagree with the premise of the thread in general, taken to its logical conclusion you get this:

This type of thinking is a nonstarter. Demanding complete adherence to logical consistency and only logical consistency is counterproductive - it is perfectly logically consistent to own an iPhone if you support the use of child labor, for example.

Abstain from stuff that's bad if you're able, support stuff that's good if you can. That's about all you can really do.

Just to make sure we’re still on the same page, I totally get what you’re saying. In the time that’s passed since my last post here I’ve been able to think about the idea of “logical consistency”, as you worded it. I think- feel free to correct me if I’m wrong- but I think what’s going on here is that there’s a part of me that’s still in the “growing up phase” that doesn’t fully understand this concept. Instead, my mind is under the impression that if many people, not just me, start to adjust their interests based on other factors (your mention about phones and child labor works as an excellent example for this), then the word we live in will start to see more and more beneficial change over time.

The problem with this way of thinking is something you’re likely already aware of- going back to the phone example, this won’t change how much Apple or Samsung or whoever is utilizing child labor. As a business, these kinds of big brand names can, unfortunately, stick to whatever means work to produce the most efficient labor work possible for them. I’d like to believe there’s a more optimistic solution to this issue that also helps big businesses, but that may or may not exist depending on the industry.