NationStates Jolt Archive

So in "No More Mr. Nice Guy" of the medical show "House M.D.", House's patient is a guy who is apparently too nice, and is listed as one of the symptoms. At first they thought it was a Neurosyphilis. Which does affect one's personality because it attacks the brain. However, people with Neurosyphilis usually succumb to dementia, (See Howard Hughes Jr. in his later years) not become the world's nicest guy.

Can someone be too nice? Is Niceness a disease? Is being an asshole a disease?

Personally, I do think that people who are "too nice" are messed up in the head. I mean I have met people who are just too nice and chipper. They're especially annoying at 8:00 AM in the frickin' morning! However, I don't think it's a disease. You could make an argument for self delusion.

The same goes for the people who are complete assholes, but usually I can deal with the assholes better than I can the people who are too nice. At least the assholes seem more human to me.

Thoughts?

dont use house md as a guide to real life.

There's a difference between being nice and being a pushover. I think it's the latter that's seen as a problem; the inability to stand up for yourself and lack of self-respect can lead you to being easily manipulated or worse.

dont use house md as a guide to real life.

Thought I'd inject this forum with non-political discussion. I just got done watching my copy of House MD Season 4.

Hush.

Eh? How can people be too nice? I can't see how a friend could ever be too considerate, caring or unselfish. The fundamental fault of the world is that the nice people are by nature too patient and pleasant to brutally murder the assholes. Tragic, it be.

Eh? How can people be too nice? I can't see how a friend could ever be too considerate, caring or unselfish. The fundamental fault of the world is that the nice people are by nature too patient and pleasant to brutally murder the assholes. Tragic, it be.

I dunno, people who are classified as "too nice" just seems un-human to me. I'm used to dealing with people from the "Gruff guy with a heart of gold" to "Total assholes".

Niceness a disease? I would favour a pandemic outbreak of that disease, then. A large part of humanity could use an infection!

Niceness a disease? I would favour a pandemic outbreak of that disease, then. A large part of humanity could use an infection!

and then the whole world will turn into a combination of "The Brady Bunch", "Full House", "Leave it to Beaver", and I'll be hanging from the ceiling with a suicide note pinned to my shirt.

I dunno, people who are classified as "too nice" just seems un-human to me. I'm used to dealing with people from the "Gruff guy with a heart of gold" to "Total assholes".

Hmm. Well, I find it very difficult to get on with anyone who isn't obviously particularly caring, considerate, generous and suchlike. I *hate* the sort of people who go around winning arguments by shouting loudest and bullying others to get their way. Sucks that I'm doing a politics degree in which >75% of people are of this type:p

Personally, I do think that people who are "too nice" are messed up in the head. I mean I have met people who are just too nice and chipper. They're especially annoying at 8:00 AM in the frickin' morning! However, I don't think it's a disease. You could make an argument for self delusion.

Thoughts?
I don't think niceness is a disease, or even ever annoying. I've been annoyed plenty of times by the up and chipper people you describe, but not because they're nice; they're annoying because they don't realize when a person just wants to be left alone. It's entirely possible to be nice and pick up on the feelings of others.

Thought I'd inject this forum with non-political discussion. I just got done watching my copy of House MD Season 4.

Hush.
im OK with the show because hugh laurie is brilliant as house--the rest of the show sucks--but doesnt his moronic anti-religion shit drive you crazy?

im OK with the show because hugh laurie is brilliant as house--the rest of the show sucks--but doesnt his moronic anti-religion shit drive you crazy?

*shrugs* Not really.

I don't think niceness is a disease, or even ever annoying. I've been annoyed plenty of times by the up and chipper people you describe, but not because they're nice; they're annoying because they don't realize when a person just wants to be left alone. It's entirely possible to be nice and pick up on the feelings of others.

and yet, those people who say "HI, HOW ARE YOU?! ISN'T THIS A LOVELY MORNING!" don't seem to pick up on that, and I'm one isotope away from kicking them in the ovaries or crotch.

im OK with the show because hugh laurie is brilliant as house--the rest of the show sucks--but doesnt his moronic anti-religion shit drive you crazy?
I don't think I'd be able to watch it, only because every time I see an ad for it I think of young Bertram Wooster asking his valet Jeeves for advice concerning Gussie Fink-Nottle.

and yet, those people who say "HI, HOW ARE YOU?! ISN'T THIS A LOVELY MORNING!" don't seem to pick up on that, and I'm one isotope away from kicking them in the ovaries or crotch.
That's because they don't pay attention to how you act, but it has nothing do to with their niceness. There are probably many other people who are nice and intelligent that you just don't think of because they seem normal.

dont use house md as a guide to real life.
Sage advice.
doesnt his moronic anti-religion shit drive you crazy?
As an atheist - absolutely. People should be free to have their religious views, if that's what makes them happy, then OK.

I don't think I'd be able to watch it, only because every time I see an ad for it I think of young Bertram Wooster asking his valet Jeeves for advice concerning Gussie Fink-Nottle.
i havent seen any of mr lauries comedic roles but i do have a couple of dvds somewhere on my netflix list

you should watch it, he is amazingly american on the show. hes good.

im OK with the show because hugh laurie is brilliant as house--the rest of the show sucks--but doesnt his moronic anti-religion shit drive you crazy?

Isn't that one of his major character quirks? Doesn't his anti-religion angle just bolster the narrative of his 'me-against-the-world' concept? Wouldn't that angle suffer if he had some 'greater shoulder' on which he felt he could rest his troubles?

Anyway - I personally don't see anything wrong with it. I don't need yet another story where the heroes have to be godfearing Christians.

Isn't that one of his major character quirks? Doesn't his anti-religion angle just bolster the narrative of his 'me-against-the-world' concept? Wouldn't that angle suffer if he had some 'greater shoulder' on which he felt he could rest his troubles?

Anyway - I personally don't see anything wrong with it. I don't need yet another story where the heroes have to be godfearing Christians.
i dont care if it fits the narrative. its awful.

I don't think I'd be able to watch it, only because every time I see an ad for it I think of young Bertram Wooster asking his valet Jeeves for advice concerning Gussie Fink-Nottle.

House is one of the few American tv shows I'll watch, and it's pretty much entirely because Hugh Laurie is just so magnificent in it. I remember him from Blackadder, from Jeeves and Wooster, from various engagements with Steven Fry, from Stuart Little... but, while all those performances were genius, his portrayal of House is outstanding - and never once do I find myself running his roles together.

It really is well worth a watch.

(Even more so if you like "Scrubs" - he and Cox are very much variants on the same concept).

i dont care if it fits the narrative. its awful.

Why is it awful?

Is the person being genuinely nice, or artificially nice?

Regardless, some people are just asking for a proverbial boot up the ass.

i dont care if it fits the narrative. its awful.

Why?

Aside from how it works in character... what's actually wrong with being anti-religion? I think it makes House something of a refreshing change, to be honest. I'm sick of atheism/agnosticism being treated as a negative trait in characters... something they should be ashamed of, something that is portrayed as a weakness or sinful characteristic. Something to be 'got over' to make everything work out in the end.

With House, his particular bitterness is the 'sin', is the 'flaw'. He's not judged unfairly by the show just BECAUSE he's anti-religion, he's judged for the same reason as for everything else - because he's a prick about it.

because he uses anti-religion as a bludgeon and we are expected to believe that those around him will just TAKE the constant harrassment.

its not believeable because he is too old for that kind of bullshit "oh i dont understand why people would believe in that kind of thing" stance.

and he does things that no one would do--like kill himself?--in order to test his stupid theories.

because he uses anti-religion as a bludgeon and we are expected to believe that those around him will just TAKE the constant harrassment.

its not believeable because he is too old for that kind of bullshit "oh i dont understand why people would believe in that kind of thing" stance.

and he does things that no one would do--like kill himself?--in order to test his stupid theories.

He uses everything as a bludgeon. And those around him DO take the constant harrassment. Except the time the guy slapped him one... wasn't he a Mormon? So - like anything else - they don't stand for it forever.

So - why does his approach to 'religion as a weapon' offend you more than his approach to 'everything else as a weapon'?

Whether or not he's too old for the 'I don't know why people believe it' thing is kind of irrelevent. That's what his character SAYS, but not necessarily ALL of how he FEELS. I've said similar things - "I don't know how people can believe". But, I DO know how they can believe - they just believe - but it doesn't make any SENSE to me. What does make sense is the idea that people like to have a strong father-figure that will never leave them, that always supports them, and that takes at least half of the responsibility for every mistake you make. What does make sense is the idea that, even if your life 'here' is shit, it's nice to have the idea that there really is someone in control, there really is a plan, there really is something better to look forward to, and someone, somewhere actually cares.

But, how you get from acknowledging that, to actually believing it? No idea.

But - it's all flavour - I still don't see why that particular aspect of his character niggles you so much.

yeah i dont find that realistic and it makes the roles of everyone around him crap--the actors cant sell that they would put up with that much of an asshole

my sister who is a nurse tells me that she knows doctors who are that arrogant but even they dont have free reign to treat everyone like shit.

I think if you believe that it's wrong to be "too nice" the problem lies not with them but with you.

I think if you believe that it's wrong to be "too nice" the problem lies not with them but with you.

Yea, trust me, I used to be this happy go-lucky kid, who thought that by being nice, you can get by in life. Then reality set in.

and then the whole world will turn into a combination of "The Brady Bunch", "Full House", "Leave it to Beaver", and I'll be hanging from the ceiling with a suicide note pinned to my shirt.

Nice =/= Corny

because he uses anti-religion as a bludgeon and we are expected to believe that those around him will just TAKE the constant harrassment.

its not believeable because he is too old for that kind of bullshit "oh i dont understand why people would believe in that kind of thing" stance.

So you don't believe that some people stay fairly immature regardless of age?

because he uses anti-religion as a bludgeon and we are expected to believe that those around him will just TAKE the constant harrassment.

its not believeable because he is too old for that kind of bullshit "oh i dont understand why people would believe in that kind of thing" stance.

Um, what?

We need more people like House, I'm sick of religion getting a free ride.

and he does things that no one would do--like kill himself?--in order to test his stupid theories.

He does, in one episode.

So you don't believe that some people stay fairly immature regardless of age?

I do, and trust me, it is ANNOYING!

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nice

"The good die young, and pricks live forever."

-- Lewis Black

yeah i dont find that realistic and it makes the roles of everyone around him crap--the actors cant sell that they would put up with that much of an asshole

my sister who is a nurse tells me that she knows doctors who are that arrogant but even they dont have free reign to treat everyone like shit.

I know people who make House look positively easy to get along with... and, for the most part, people really do let you get away with just EXACTLY that kind of shit - especially if they're either scared of you, or need you. In the case of House, both factors apply.

Maybe that's why I don't find it particularly unrealistic, or the idea of the other actors tolerating him as all that far-fetched.

But, again, I still don't see why his anti-religion stance is so 'awful'. Atheists (agnostics... people that aren't christian) are expected to choke down the inverse version on a daily basis.

and then the whole world will turn into a combination of "The Brady Bunch", "Full House", "Leave it to Beaver", and I'll be hanging from the ceiling with a suicide note pinned to my shirt.

But think of all the nice things people will say about you during your funeral. You will be sorely missed.

I think if you believe that it's wrong to be "too nice" the problem lies not with them but with you.
This occurred to me as well, especially given the judgmental flavor of many threads and posts I've witnessed.

This occurred to me as well, especially given the judgmental flavor of many threads and posts I've witnessed.

1. I never actually said it's wrong to be nice, I just said that its in-human, not natural.

2. A quote from Dr. Cox "People are bastard coated bastard with bastard fillings."

I'm sure even Mother Theresa and the good Pope John Paul II had their "asshole" moments.

2. A quote from Dr. Cox "People are bastard coated bastard with bastard fillings."


And this is why I love Dr Cox.

and then the whole world will turn into a combination of "The Brady Bunch", "Full House", "Leave it to Beaver", and I'll be hanging from the ceiling with a suicide note pinned to my shirt.

I think that he only thing that will come out of this is further proof(not that any is needed) of just how differant people are.

Myself I'm the other way around, give me ya nice people(I'm one myself) your nasty shits, well I just cut them outa my life, I really don't have time to be dealing with them.

So I think you can't be too nice, yes you can be a bit of a pushover, but that has more to do with weakness not niceness.

"The good die young, and pricks live forever."

-- Lewis Black

That sounds like non-canon Ecclesiastes to me.

Yea, trust me, I used to be this happy go-lucky kid, who thought that by being nice, you can get by in life. Then reality set in.
Same here. But you know, if reality can't cope with niceness then there's something wrong with it. I'd rather try (however futile the effort may appear to others) to change reality than become a prick to fit in with the screwed up system.

Remember, you don't need to be nice to the way things are to be nice to people. Empathetic Rebellion all around!

Same here. But you know, if reality can't cope with niceness then there's something wrong with it. I'd rather try (however futile the effort may appear to others) to change reality than become a prick to fit in with the screwed up system.

Remember, you don't need to be nice to the way things are to be nice to people. Empathetic Rebellion all around!

You can't change it, because ultimately, nothing changes.

Paris Hilton will still be a lazy ass whore who'll have more money than any of us could ever dream of

Politicians will suck our collective cocks during elections seasons, but once we stupidly vote them in office because they did the best job, they go back to stabbing us in the back

Gravity will still be here, and Bears will forever continue to shit in the woods.

judgmental


Main Entry:
judg·men·tal Listen to the pronunciation of judgmental
Pronunciation:
\ˌjəj-ˈmen-təl\
Function:
adjective
Date:
1909

1 : of, relating to, or involving judgment 2 : characterized by a tendency to judge harshly <judgmental prigs>
— judg·men·tal·ly Listen to the pronunciation of judgmentally \-ē\ adverb


http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/judgmental

House is one of the few American tv shows I'll watch, and it's pretty much entirely because Hugh Laurie is just so magnificent in it. I remember him from Blackadder, from Jeeves and Wooster, from various engagements with Steven Fry, from Stuart Little... but, while all those performances were genius, his portrayal of House is outstanding - and never once do I find myself running his roles together.

It really is well worth a watch.

(Even more so if you like "Scrubs" - he and Cox are very much variants on the same concept).

Wow. I've been wary because the commercials for it don't look great, but I'll have to give it a chance.

You can't change it, because ultimately, nothing changes.

Paris Hilton will still be a lazy ass whore who'll have more money than any of us could ever dream of

Politicians will suck our collective cocks during elections seasons, but once we stupidly vote them in office because they did the best job, they go back to stabbing us in the back

Gravity will still be here, and Bears will forever continue to shit in the woods.

Umm, what about when bears are extinct?

Umm, what about when bears are extinct?

Their ghost and zombies will shit in the woods. *nod*

And this is why I love Dr Cox.

Yep, good episode. But nice won in that I believe.

Yep, good episode. But nice won in that I believe.

But only because Dr. Molly fake cried.

Wow. I've been wary because the commercials for it don't look great, but I'll have to give it a chance.

I'd say go for it. Like I have said before, I hardly ever watch tv, and I watch 'American' tv still less. "House" is one of the few exceptions. Basically, that and "Dr Who". (Oh, and "Ni Hao, Kai-Lan", obviously).