"the sound of silence"

[Tibbs735]

I'm noticing this more and more. I regularly walk into places like busy supermarkets and am stunned at the level of ambient noise

[bigpaul]

(28 November 2012, 15:19)I-K-E Wrote: As BP has stated I would expect a lot to commit suicide at various times during any change in society if its a forced and sudden change like the light going out but the bulk of them will be about giving up,no point in living, better than staring to death, nothing left to lose etc

yes, thank you, at last an intelligent reply. i'm expecting a large die off, through starvation, no drinkable water, loss of housing, nothing to cook with even if they had food, but thats just generalising. i think a lot of people will just go mad as in insane cos they just cant cope with the stress, the mayhem, the rioting. eventually once the mayhem is over and it all quietens down, thats when a lot will not want to go on living cos they cant see the point without their jobs, salary, foreign holidays, standard of living, blah,blah,blah. but here's my point, i dont think there will be many people apart from us loners who will relish the peace and quiet.and that is probably what will finish off those that are left.

[Mortblanc]

Here is a bit of reverse logic for you.

Historically, it has not been silence that drove people insame, but continuious noise. I have studied history of the western frontier in the U.S. intensely and have many references to the sound of the howling wind, the constant lowing of cattle and the crash of waterfalls sending people into insanity.

Not a single mention of silence causing one to go bonkers. Probably due to nature having its own background noise which people in primitive settings expect. We refer to it as "silence" when there is continuious sound we do not consider worth hearing, so we block it out. I can not remember ever being in a soundless woods. Fact is, when things in the forest get silent that is usually a warning of danger.

There are many references to women going insane for lack of contact with other females when in remote areas. We are speaking about months or years without contact. The men in the family do not count, women want other women to converse with for normal function.

[bigpaul]

(28 November 2012, 16:02)Mortblanc Wrote: Historically, it has not been silence that drove people insame, but continuious noise.

in "modern" society i believe that somehow NOISE is the norm, people dont seem to be able to SHUT UP they are continually making a racket, therefore i believe they (modern society) are AFRAID of noise, i think after "the collapse" people will go mad because it is so quiet!!

[Tarrel]

What an interesting thread. Personally, I look forward to the silence, but I agree that it will freak a lot of people out. I'm not sure I agree that people surround themselves with noise because they are afraid of silence, it's just the world we have crafted for ourselves. Take people away from that "normal" however, and they'll maybe find it hard to adjust.

Sitting here typing, with nothing but the ticking of the clock for company. :-)

[bigpaul]

i do LOVE peace and quiet, i cant stand modern society with its noise and rush, i like to get away from people, up the lanes into the countryside, i'll be glad when "the collapse" does eventually happen, as we KNOW it will happen, cant happen soon enough for me! i was brought up as an "only" child, been a loner all my life, so silence and no people would be like nirvana to me!

[Highlander]

Again it depends on what you are used to or where you come from,... I can go outside now [ any night ] and stand and hear nothing, I doubt that there will be three cars go past my house all night long, and its the only road in and out of the penninsular,..all I hear from time to time is nature, foxes, Stags, owls and the like, even during the day, I can hear the Canada Geese on the Loch about half a mile off,...I love the quiet

We have a family member who comes up from Birmingham who cant sleep because it is too quiet, so I understand the earlier mention of that

[SealDriver]

Dartmoor in mid winter...the silence will make your ears bleed!

[Pagan-Mist]

Might make some peoples ears bleed but not mine

[Prepaday]

The kids are at school, The fella at work and I now have silence, So I thought, after reading this post, I closed my eyes and took a few mins to listen. Clock ticking, tap dripping, freezer humming, lap top humming, birds tweeting, water tank humming, so much for silence! It's amazing what background noise you DO'NT notice unless you listen for it.