Some philosophy student was hanging out with me and my friends and I heard this question. Now it's hurting my god damn head and I have to study for a Calc III exam...-blam!-! So it went like this:
[quote]Why am I me and not you? [/quote]
And I said: chance, maybe a God(s), complex chemistry...no -blam!-ing clue
[quote]"[Insert rambling about Jesus and our Lord and Savior here]"[/quote]
...
[quote]just kidding[/quote]
And then the subject matter changed, and then we got lunch, Earth continued on it's elliptical orbit around the Sun, etc.
But then I thought about it..."why am I me and not you?". Why are we perceiving the world around us through the pair of eyes and ears through the body in which you are in [i]right now[/i] and not through let's say the person sitting behind you? Or why am I perceiving this life through a Human in the first place? Why not a lion, or some other alien on another planet? Why am I living in this time frame, in this century and not during the Roman Empire? Bloody hell...I think I'm rambling now...blah blah blah philosophy...
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6 RepliesIf the answer doesn't matter, neither does the question. This is one thing that philosophy students never fail to ignore.
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No one mention schizophrenia, this thread could get out if hand.
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1 ReplyBecause there has always been a 100% chance of you being you.
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Well, you've got to be someone. And whoever you are, it's always going to be you.
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[quote]One quick answer to this question would be this: definitions. The usual use of the terms "I", "me" and "you", makes it impossible, both practically and theoretically for "you to be me" or vice versa.[/quote]
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1 ReplyYou are you and not me because I am me and you are you. The distinction exists because it is impossible for it not to when individuals are involved. Why aren't you someone else? Because you are you, and whether or not you were someone else, you would still be you and not someone else, since "you" are whoever you are. You are you because you are you. You are the way you are because you were born and have grown the way you have. If that had been different, you would still be you, just different from the you you are now. A=A.
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Edited by Sgt Petter: 7/3/2013 6:48:31 PMOne quick answer to this question would be this: definitions. The usual use of the terms "I", "me" and "you", makes it impossible, both practically and theoretically for "you to be me" or vice versa. It's a little like asking "Why does Stoke's theorem only apply to closed curves?" So, if you want to have any discussion at all based on this question, you need to reconsider the definitions of "I", "me" and "you". So then you need to define "I", some sort of self, and all of a sudden you have a discussion about existence. That seems to be the core of the question (the way I see it). It's still an interesting one though, am I a consciousness? A body? A set of personalities? Opting for the first may lead to a another question: [i]If I am just a consciousness, what is a man in coma?[/i] And you'll probably want to adjust your answer. In this way you may through discussion get closer to an answer, it is important though, to note that the discussion will often hold more value than whatever answer you end up with.
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1 ReplyTo quote the late and great Bill Hicks - "We are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively." I believe... You have forgotten your old selves. These are not the first eyes you have seen through and they will not be the last. One day you will realize in a haze of deja vu that you recall some one asking you the same question you are now asking. You look in the reflection of the window and see your face. You are your friend and then it dawns on you, clarity. You stir from your sleep, vaguely remembering an odd dream of a past event, or maybe it hasn't happened yet? The dream fades as you look at your bedside alarm clock. The dream fades. You grumble at the prospect of your day and ready your body for work and routine. The dream fades. You come home tired and worn out. The dream is gone. You feel a tug at your soul as if a part of you is missing and yet there is contentment there all at once. You ready your body for slumber. The dream is here again. You're sitting behind yourself over hearing a conversation, "Why am I me and not you?"
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4 RepliesBecause our AT Fields separate us.
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If I'm not me, then who the hell am I?
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There is no "reason" why I am me. I am me simply because I am the result that occurred. Millions of other results COULD have happened, but they did not.
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Because your atoms are not my atoms, your parents are not my parents, and your consciousness is not my consciousness.
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I'm too cool for you.
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You're human...
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I am.
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You're a beta. I am an alpha.
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Oh great this...I've heard this question before lol
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Because i am me, and you are you. Quite simple. Existence.
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Because I'm too awesome.