So I figured I should start off my first serious blog post (technically my third) by talking about something not only positive, but also beneficial to the reader. There are medical benefits to being a positive person, such as being happier overall, improving friendships, and, I think, being more relaxed especially while under pressure.
I thought, wouldn't it be awkward and stupid if I suddenly posted about a negative or potentially revealing story?
Enough with that part of the intro. As a kid and even until now, I've constantly helped people in need, mostly family members, and rarely, complete strangers.
To borrow words from The WORST Drivers EVER! by Michael Groth (2017), "I'm not trying to brag, [the statements above are] objectively true." If you need proof, just ask the people I've helped over the years; I'm too lazy to record videos.
Evil Origins of my Generosity
I can't accurately identify the age where I gained my initial motivations for helping people, but my best guess is when I was in 2nd grade, or 8 years old.
I had absolutely no real friends until I was about 15 years old. I knew absolutely nothing about interacting with other kids—the only person I had serious talk with was my mother.
But I needed friends. I don't remember my reasons as a kid, but my reasons right now are mostly egoistic, including getting academic help, gaming help, emotional help, extra thrills, having someone to rant to, and, worst of all, financial help, among other things.
Edit: I just realized that utilitarians do things that benefit as many people as possible, not just themselves. Egoism is doing stuff that benefits the self. I apologize for my misuse of terms.
So I needed a "quick and easy" way to get friends. I thought, as a kid, maybe I should help them? Give them gifts and do their homework or something? (I actually never gave academic help until maybe 15 years old.) That way, I can "buy" their friendship and they'll pay me back. It's like an investment.
The belief above was made even worse in 3rd grade, when I was introduced to the old Facebook game Pet Society, which basically rewarded the player for having many Facebook friends who also play this game; visiting friends' houses gives money. Players can also give gifts to their friends. With that said, I used Pet Society as a tool to buy friends in cyberspace, mostly my classmates, by giving them virtual gifts and later expecting (or, rather, begging) them to sincerely thank me for those gifts, or even give me another gift in return.
Thankfully, I'm less obsessed with buying people's friendship now, but I still have egoistic reasons for helping others. Sometimes, I help people because I feel lazy; they can't help themselves and won't stop asking me until I move, so I might as well help them to get them out of my way. When I'm raging at my parents, I occasionally do extra chores, even ones I'm not assigned to do, to exhaust my negative energy.
In his book Debtermined, Jayson Lo (2014) narrated stories of him and others helping others and being rewarded afterwards. Lo heard a pastor's story where he gave away his car to someone who needed the car more than he did. He was then inspired by the pastor and did acts of generosity as well—Lo gave his excess gift certificates then coincidentally received more gift certificates two days later, and repeated the cycle of giving and receiving.
Hmmm, based on Lo's stories, perhaps generosity is one contributing factor to the success of morally good businessmen and celebrities like DanTDM and Markiplier. Naturally, LunaticTactician experimented with the generosity cycle.
Edit: I wrote this post before developing conservative beliefs. Turns out, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Taylor Swift are leftist scumbags. For example, Facebook permanently banned Paul Joseph Watson out of nowhere for no stated reason, and similar censorships happen to Duterte supporters. I apologize for citing those three, and firetruck them.
My brother once ate a cheeseburger that I didn't know was for my father, so I secretly bought my father another cheeseburger with my own money. A few days later, when I forgot about giving away that cheeseburger, my evil grandmother gave me PH₱500 (approx. US$9.60).
I have other stories of receiving after giving, but I completely forgot them. I guess I need to go on a generosity rampage again.
The video games that inspire me to help others now include The Sims, Fire Emblem Awakening and later, Miitopia, and the inFAMOUS series. (Admittedly I do too many Evil Karma actions and quarrel a lot with my family.)
I had absolutely no real friends until I was about 15 years old. I knew absolutely nothing about interacting with other kids—the only person I had serious talk with was my mother.
But I needed friends. I don't remember my reasons as a kid, but my reasons right now are mostly egoistic, including getting academic help, gaming help, emotional help, extra thrills, having someone to rant to, and, worst of all, financial help, among other things.
Edit: I just realized that utilitarians do things that benefit as many people as possible, not just themselves. Egoism is doing stuff that benefits the self. I apologize for my misuse of terms.
So I needed a "quick and easy" way to get friends. I thought, as a kid, maybe I should help them? Give them gifts and do their homework or something? (I actually never gave academic help until maybe 15 years old.) That way, I can "buy" their friendship and they'll pay me back. It's like an investment.
The belief above was made even worse in 3rd grade, when I was introduced to the old Facebook game Pet Society, which basically rewarded the player for having many Facebook friends who also play this game; visiting friends' houses gives money. Players can also give gifts to their friends. With that said, I used Pet Society as a tool to buy friends in cyberspace, mostly my classmates, by giving them virtual gifts and later expecting (or, rather, begging) them to sincerely thank me for those gifts, or even give me another gift in return.
New Beliefs
I still hold on to that childish belief even now, but in somewhat more... "mature" ways. For instance, in Minecraft, I give precious items like iron, gold, weapons, and armour to teammates to bribe them to attack enemy territory with me, or to calm down an angry person. In my Minecraft team, Lunatic Blade, I want to be respected as the team's Supreme Leader; I not only help them with emotional support and military tactics, but also with academics.Thankfully, I'm less obsessed with buying people's friendship now, but I still have egoistic reasons for helping others. Sometimes, I help people because I feel lazy; they can't help themselves and won't stop asking me until I move, so I might as well help them to get them out of my way. When I'm raging at my parents, I occasionally do extra chores, even ones I'm not assigned to do, to exhaust my negative energy.
In his book Debtermined, Jayson Lo (2014) narrated stories of him and others helping others and being rewarded afterwards. Lo heard a pastor's story where he gave away his car to someone who needed the car more than he did. He was then inspired by the pastor and did acts of generosity as well—Lo gave his excess gift certificates then coincidentally received more gift certificates two days later, and repeated the cycle of giving and receiving.
Hmmm, based on Lo's stories, perhaps generosity is one contributing factor to the success of morally good businessmen and celebrities like DanTDM and Markiplier. Naturally, LunaticTactician experimented with the generosity cycle.
Edit: I wrote this post before developing conservative beliefs. Turns out, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Taylor Swift are leftist scumbags. For example, Facebook permanently banned Paul Joseph Watson out of nowhere for no stated reason, and similar censorships happen to Duterte supporters. I apologize for citing those three, and firetruck them.
My brother once ate a cheeseburger that I didn't know was for my father, so I secretly bought my father another cheeseburger with my own money. A few days later, when I forgot about giving away that cheeseburger, my evil grandmother gave me PH₱500 (approx. US$9.60).
I have other stories of receiving after giving, but I completely forgot them. I guess I need to go on a generosity rampage again.
The video games that inspire me to help others now include The Sims, Fire Emblem Awakening and later, Miitopia, and the inFAMOUS series. (Admittedly I do too many Evil Karma actions and quarrel a lot with my family.)
Volunteerism - Boxing
In 2017, I took up Civic Welfare Training Service (CWTS), a mandatory college course part of the Philippines's National Service Training Program (NSTP) designed to train college students to become productive members of the community. We were allowed to do almost any kind of volunteerism we liked, and I chose boxing.
Again, I had egoistic and utilitarian reasons for specifically choosing boxing, but at least some of them were more Kantian-acceptable. First, it was very unique; the vast majority of students is already good in math, computers (especially coding and Photoshop), music, and basketball. On the other hand, I know hardly any teens/young adults who are passionate in boxing. Second, I'm infuriated by seemingly never-ending and consistent crime reports, in which some of the victims didn't know how to fight back. Third, I don't like how most of my family store customers, even the ones that live a stone's throw away from the store, or have backpacks, companions, or vehicles, or are teens/young adults, regularly need plastic bags to lift even lightweight products--I'm convinced that most of these customers are lazy, unaware of eco-friendliness, and most relevantly, physically weak. (Heck, some of our regular customers do not reuse the bags we give.) Fourth, it's my duty to become a good student and help others. :p
In 2018, the professor let us get started on actual volunteerism. I volunteered in a big school near my house, where my students were 4th graders. I showed them how to stand, punch, block, and dodge, and gave them a workout in the process. They enjoyed it a lot, especially the boys who watch wrestling.
When I got my Certificate of Appreciation from the school, I was interrupted on my way home by those kids, who were very happy to see me. I gave them a quick round of boxing.
I initially perceived volunteerism as a boring activity, but seeing these kids happy with my teaching made me happy as well, and excited to volunteer again.
(I'll admit, I felt lazy while writing this section)
Minecraft Server Staff Stories
Hackers, or cheaters, are a common sight in public Minecraft servers. They ruin the game by slashing other players with unnaturally pinpoint accuracy and long range (killaura), seeing players and precious items buried underground (X-ray), hitting players through walls, and even flying, among other things. It's a server staff member's job to prevent cheats from disrupting the fun of fair gameplay by banning those who use them.
Like other players, I have also been annoyed by these hackers, which is exacerbated by the lack of staff who moderate the server on the time I usually play. (Yup, another freaking egoistic reason. Get triggered, Kantians.) So I met the requirements, applied for staff, got accepted, and bam, I'm already working like crazy.
I had virtually no friends in MCW when I wasn't staff, except for Lunatic Blade, which, unfortunately, wasn't very active. When I became staff though, I became an instant celebrity. It felt slightly good, but was kinda lacking since the players think mostly of themselves rather than others--having staff will benefit them by making the game less annoying, among other things.
Edit: To be fair, a staff member's job does not include being a celebrity in the first place.
Using my tactically advantageous play schedule and unique approaches to hack-checking, I catch many hackers almost every day, with each ban improving not only the players' moods, but also mine. It simply feels good to know that I have done good for others, whether I buy their friendship or not. It also makes me more relaxed since the players stop nagging me to check a hacker even when I'm busy, and I stop nagging them to help me check hackers.
However, being staff comes with some problems.
One, I can't play normally since players will either ask me a volley of questions with long and complicated answers, some of which are either impossible, too obvious, or downright illegal, and I have a hard time typing quickly in the heat of battle or while someone is hiding their hacks, or I get asked to check multiple hackers at the same time, some of which are skilled at hiding their hacks. It ruins my tactics since my focus shifts from fighting to server moderation.
For crying out loud, guys, if you're gonna flood me with questions and requests, do it in a place where I can talk with my mouth rather than my keyboard, such as Discord. I don't care if you don't have a microphone; talking lets me talk and work at the same time. I can't move while typing.
Two, similar to the above problem, some players, especially the new and/or simple-minded ones, think staff members are basically genies with infinite wishes. When I was new to the staff team, this chump who I will call Mr. Incessant (who still annoys me today) asked me either illegal, obvious, or impossible requests, usually for two or more days or hours in a row.
"Can you give me (item)" No, Mr. Incessant, I don't have that item because I'm busy with staff work and I don't fight much. Plus, doing it repeatedly to staff is a rule violation. (Actually, I'm just lazy to get the item)
"Can you give me donator perks" No, Mr. Incessant, you have to donate for it yourself, and I don't have the powers to give it to you.
"How do I do this" Read the rules and instructions on the server's website. I also wrote a FAQ for you.
"I still don't understand" You probably didn't read the rules and my FAQ hard enough. Come back when there's something that's actually unclear.
No offense to Mr. Incessant, or anyone for that matter, but I'm just a regular human being like you. I'm not a god, and I'm certainly not your butler or robot. I have my own time, my own knowledge, my own powers, and of course, my own limits. I am not being selfish or stupid; I am asserting myself. I already helped you in the best way I can; don't nag me to help you for things I already helped you with, or I can't help you with. (oh boy, i bet there's gonna be some backlash for this [intentional bad grammar])
Oh yeah, and I get people similar to Mr. Incessant in real life as well, but I don't need to explain since they're too similar to this particular story, and you probably get the idea already.
Edit: On 4 June 2018, Mr. Incessant called me "L" (loser) and "noob" (newbie) for losing to him in battle. He then asked me for items afterwards. You've already annoyed me during my family vacation, and now you insult me? You didn't even give me a "gg" (good game). That is very dishonorable. I'll be harsher to you next time you offer to be my temporary soldier.
Despite these annoyances, I still remain staff in this Minecraft server because it allows me to do good every once in a while, in a game I like to play. Again, there are no staff in my usual playing time, so I cover for that lack of moderation time. Plus, this server has some unique features that stop me from playing in other servers, and I know most of the community fairly well.
TL;DR summary: I wrote this as my first blog post since this is potentially beneficial to the reader by inspiring them to help others. My generosity originated from the idea of buying friends, which was developed in 3rd grade by Pet Society, and is currently motivated by laziness, rage, video games, and receiving after giving. I have taught boxing as a volunteer activity, I am currently moderating a Minecraft server, and I want to raise awareness at some point on littering and smoking.
P.S. Sorry for not posting last Sunday. I'll try and make it up by posting a short blog post before the next Sunday.
Edit: To be fair, a staff member's job does not include being a celebrity in the first place.
Using my tactically advantageous play schedule and unique approaches to hack-checking, I catch many hackers almost every day, with each ban improving not only the players' moods, but also mine. It simply feels good to know that I have done good for others, whether I buy their friendship or not. It also makes me more relaxed since the players stop nagging me to check a hacker even when I'm busy, and I stop nagging them to help me check hackers.
However, being staff comes with some problems.
One, I can't play normally since players will either ask me a volley of questions with long and complicated answers, some of which are either impossible, too obvious, or downright illegal, and I have a hard time typing quickly in the heat of battle or while someone is hiding their hacks, or I get asked to check multiple hackers at the same time, some of which are skilled at hiding their hacks. It ruins my tactics since my focus shifts from fighting to server moderation.
For crying out loud, guys, if you're gonna flood me with questions and requests, do it in a place where I can talk with my mouth rather than my keyboard, such as Discord. I don't care if you don't have a microphone; talking lets me talk and work at the same time. I can't move while typing.
Two, similar to the above problem, some players, especially the new and/or simple-minded ones, think staff members are basically genies with infinite wishes. When I was new to the staff team, this chump who I will call Mr. Incessant (who still annoys me today) asked me either illegal, obvious, or impossible requests, usually for two or more days or hours in a row.
"Can you give me (item)" No, Mr. Incessant, I don't have that item because I'm busy with staff work and I don't fight much. Plus, doing it repeatedly to staff is a rule violation. (Actually, I'm just lazy to get the item)
"Can you give me donator perks" No, Mr. Incessant, you have to donate for it yourself, and I don't have the powers to give it to you.
"How do I do this" Read the rules and instructions on the server's website. I also wrote a FAQ for you.
"I still don't understand" You probably didn't read the rules and my FAQ hard enough. Come back when there's something that's actually unclear.
No offense to Mr. Incessant, or anyone for that matter, but I'm just a regular human being like you. I'm not a god, and I'm certainly not your butler or robot. I have my own time, my own knowledge, my own powers, and of course, my own limits. I am not being selfish or stupid; I am asserting myself. I already helped you in the best way I can; don't nag me to help you for things I already helped you with, or I can't help you with. (oh boy, i bet there's gonna be some backlash for this [intentional bad grammar])
Oh yeah, and I get people similar to Mr. Incessant in real life as well, but I don't need to explain since they're too similar to this particular story, and you probably get the idea already.
Edit: On 4 June 2018, Mr. Incessant called me "L" (loser) and "noob" (newbie) for losing to him in battle. He then asked me for items afterwards. You've already annoyed me during my family vacation, and now you insult me? You didn't even give me a "gg" (good game). That is very dishonorable. I'll be harsher to you next time you offer to be my temporary soldier.
Despite these annoyances, I still remain staff in this Minecraft server because it allows me to do good every once in a while, in a game I like to play. Again, there are no staff in my usual playing time, so I cover for that lack of moderation time. Plus, this server has some unique features that stop me from playing in other servers, and I know most of the community fairly well.
Some Volunteering I Plan To Do in the Future
I wanna continue teaching boxing at some point since I want to reduce crime rates and improve physical fitness, but I'm kind of struggling to find an opportunity right now. As of writing this, it's summer vacation, so the school I volunteered in can't accept me.
In most of Metro Manila, one can't walk 5 meters without seeing a cup, snack wrapper, cigarette butt, or some other form of rubbish lying on the road or grass, and that annoys me. I want to participate in street and park cleanup projects at some point.
And by the way, no offense to those with different political views, but learn from Diehard Duterte Supporters (DDS) events; most of the participants clean up after themselves. About 40% (I think) of opposition-aligned protesters, on the other hand, not only leave piles of trash, but also spray-paint graffiti on public property (particularly the communists), and that TRIGGERS my superhero tendencies.
I also want to raise awareness about the dangers of cigarette smoking.
Need My Help?
Leave a comment or message me on Facebook or Discord if you need my help.
I can help in the following: Elementary/high school subjects, Pokémon competitive battling, Minecraft Annihilation, a little bit of Fire Emblem, real-life fighting, and a few computer problems.
Facebook: facebook.com/LunaticTactician
Discord: Juliann#2165
TL;DR summary: I wrote this as my first blog post since this is potentially beneficial to the reader by inspiring them to help others. My generosity originated from the idea of buying friends, which was developed in 3rd grade by Pet Society, and is currently motivated by laziness, rage, video games, and receiving after giving. I have taught boxing as a volunteer activity, I am currently moderating a Minecraft server, and I want to raise awareness at some point on littering and smoking.
P.S. Sorry for not posting last Sunday. I'll try and make it up by posting a short blog post before the next Sunday.
References
Groth, M. (2017) The WORST Drivers EVER! Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JF87aHqfevoLo, J. (2014) Debtermined. YOUnique Publishing.
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