Worth a browse, people things are wishing for, mainly device-type things : http://www.ideafinder.com/showcase/wishlist.htm
It reminds me vaguely of an article I once read where researchers studied prayer intentions inscribed in the ledger at some crypt for some saint. It was everything from "I pray that all nations would live in peace," to "Dear God, please stop my husband from beating me when he's drunk."
Also... for a while I liked to ask people, "If money were no object, what would you do?" I was surprised by the number of people who said things like "Buy a new car," or "Go to France." Nobody ever thought big. I had said "money was no object" but they still could only imagine that meant a few thousand dollars or, at the outside, a few hundred thousand or a couple million (so "buy a beach house" or "pay off my debts"). Nobody thought in terms of trillions of dollars. It was interesting to see how bounded we are.
Anyway, the website you linked made me think of all that. It's interesting how precise and minute some of those wish are. Fascinating.
So many of those are things that could be done/made, there just needs to be enough will to do so.
>> If money were no object, what would you do?
I was asked a similar question once. In the hallway at university I was accosted by a troupe of drama students, one of who was dressed as a fairy godmother. She told me she could wave her wand and make ONE wish come true ... ANY wish. So what would I wish for?
For every thing that went through my mind, I realized I should be thinking bigger. Then I'd think of something bigger, which still wasn't big enough. I ended up mumbling something about wishing for an end to war because it was the biggest thing I could think of on short notice.
Quote from: buckworks on August 19, 2019, 07:52:15 PMan end to war
Nobody I've ever asked could think bigger than a beach house. In fact, nobody has ever picked something that didn't primarily benefit them (end of war benefits you, but not primarily - other people would benefit far more).
To be clear, it isn't a problem with the selfishness of people. As soon as you make it clear they can and should think bigger, they do. But they are bounded by the possible, even when you say they should set aside the possible. Of course, in my scenario, I don't set aside the possible. Some things cannot be solved with an infinite amount of money. But it's the same essential problem. It's hard to wish big unless we're prepared for it.
I don't think it represents how base we all are, but rather the grander and more collective the benefit of a wish the more it seems like magical thinking. Paying off one's house or becoming a multi-millionaire is a within the realm of possible; world peace or universal global healthcare would take the majority of the world's population to work together. We can't even agree to stop burning dinosaurs.
A few of the device-type wishes are in production.
If money was no object i'd form a civilian space programme.
Quote from: littleman on August 19, 2019, 11:14:44 PM
I don't think it represents how base we all are, but rather the grander and more collective the benefit of a wish the more it seems like magical thinking.
Yes, exactly. It's hard to think big when it seems impossible. So we tend to not even wish for those things.
But imagining something is possible is a precondition for an "impossible" thing to become possible. I remember Arlo Guthrie saying that he wishes people would quit striving for peace. "Peace isn't something you strive for. Love is what you strive for. Peace is what you settle for when you can't love each other. You're walking down the street and see someone you hate. You just peace him out and keep on walking." (best read aloud with an Arlo Guthrie accent).
There's also the consideration of wanting something that affects more than you, and any unintended consequences.
Bruce Almighty was a flick that covered that idea
At least with a personal thing like a holiday, there's no obvious (negative) knock on effect for others.