A lot of people talk about their experiences of pleasure in ways that suggest the same properties to me: it causes them to forego rational behavior and the consideration of long-term consequences in favor of seeking out/continuing pleasure, it distracts them from doing things they could otherwise do, it doesn’t come with clear referents and indeed can sometimes lead to generalized happiness not connected to any particular event.
If I’m understanding them right, does it follow that for them pleasure is just as bad as pain?
Yes, it does, at least in my opinion. The extreme example of this would be a heroin addict; a less extreme example would be an overweight person unable to resist a bag of potato chips. Doing what is ultimately contrary to one’s long-term goals is destructive and irrational, regardless of the cause for such behavior.
A lot of people talk about their experiences of pleasure in ways that suggest the same properties to me: it causes them to forego rational behavior and the consideration of long-term consequences in favor of seeking out/continuing pleasure, it distracts them from doing things they could otherwise do, it doesn’t come with clear referents and indeed can sometimes lead to generalized happiness not connected to any particular event.
If I’m understanding them right, does it follow that for them pleasure is just as bad as pain?
Yes, it does, at least in my opinion. The extreme example of this would be a heroin addict; a less extreme example would be an overweight person unable to resist a bag of potato chips. Doing what is ultimately contrary to one’s long-term goals is destructive and irrational, regardless of the cause for such behavior.
(nods) OK, cool. That seemed to follow from what you were saying, I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t putting words in your mouth.