"Tomorrow is another day."

[DanaC]

'It is what it is' is a phrase I use often. It's a bit like saying 'that's just the way it is', and it also means that you can only deal with what it is, not what you would like it to be. And sometimes it means, 'it's ok, no biggie'.

[it]

Originally Posted by DanaC

'It is what it is' is a phrase I use often. It's a bit like saying 'that's just the way it is', and it also means that you can only deal with what it is, not what you would like it to be. And sometimes it means, 'it's ok, no biggie'.

I used to use that one too... A lot. Though usually in the context of judgement.

When I used to analyze the dynamics or social systems and people would then go "that's saying it's corrupted" or "are you saying that isn't genuine"... Sure those statements might be true but they usually weren't what I meant, which focuses on answering "what is it?".

If anything, systems and social dynamics have much better measurements then those - how consistently applicable that dynamic is & under what circumstances, how beautiful it is in it's complexity, how many layers of humor are tucked inside.. The last of which can probably be rephrased for the purpose of this topic as "how good of a sense of humor does a person need to have in order to - despite understanding it - be able to accept that it is what it is".

Only in recent years I have become a hell of a lot more fighty and judgy about ethical things, which I suppose means if I ever time traveled I might need to bring weapons to kill my older self for giving me that "it is what it is" bullshit.

Sure he might be more fit, but I am from the future so obviously I have the advantage. I mean... We have smarter phones now. I bet he wouldn't even survive in flappy bird.

[xoxoxoBruce]

'that's just the way it is'

That's seeing the folly of trying to change others, change the world.

That's the way I am.

This is questionable, you might be trying to justify things about yourself that cause you trouble, make you uncomfortable.

[it]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

This is questionable, you might be trying to justify things about yourself that cause you trouble, make you uncomfortable.

My personal favorite version of that is:

that's the way I roll

Honestly there's a whole can of worms under that sentiment that I can dedicate a few years to hack & slash through while duel wielding large trouts.

I've more or less reached the conclusion that some of the worst aspects humanity has to offer come from people who have a very static idea of who they are. Taken to the point where criticism, negative judgement - from others or their own subconscious - isn't understood as a statement about what they are doing but a complete and unacceptable threat to their moral identity, making it unthinkable and unreachable, in which people define themselves by how good they are too others but do so in spite of how they are experienced by others - since for them a perspective from which they've harmed others is not simply a statement of what they did and how they can strive to do better, it's a statement of who they are indefinitely and have no ability to change it, a perspective that becomes too ugly to consider or acknowledge. It's the worst kind of sickness, leaving no room for personal growth in how they relate to the world or themselves.