"The truth will set you free, but first it'll piss you off"
Have truer words ever been spoken? Especially at the beginning of a song? Probably not. But the thing about truth is that sometimes, no matter how hard we try, it's just not something we can ever really know.
One Reddit user asked:
What is something you desperately want to know the truth about?
And honestly we were expecting the answers to be full of conspiracy theories and aliens. Some people wanted to know about that, of course, but it seems like a lot more people are interested in more mundane personal truths.
Missing heirlooms, sketchy incidents, and friends who just vanished into thin air all pop up in people's answers right alongside those aliens we mentioned.
So have a read through and then tell us what truths you really want in life.
Where's The Ring?
I had a 200 year old ring stolen out of my house, handed down from my great-great grandmother and grandmother (every other generation) who are also my namesakes. I was at a low point in life when my grandmother gave it to me, and it kind of felt like - "I still believe in you. You CAN still live up to the name," and it meant SO much to me.
Just after moving into a house for the first time, someone broke in and stole it. There is almost no chance it would be recognized for its true worth or age, or history. And obviously, it could never have that sentimental value. I'm terrified it will have been dismantled.
I'd give anything to know where it is / get it back.
Alone
ancient aliens GIFGiphyAre we alone in the universe?
The universe is enormous. The chances that life exists in other places is not only likely but might even be fairly common. But the universe is enormous. If there was life on the nearest star to ours it would take a generational ship to get there and explore. And that is the very closest star.
Even if we just wanted to send a message with a radio wave and see if anything in that stat system had the intelligence to intercept the radio wave and interpret it as different from background radiation it would still take years for that radio wave to get there, and years for that system to respond back. In summation it is virtually guaranteed that earth is not the only planet with life on it, but the chances of ever meeting aliens is almost zero. Space is just too big. Even if you could travel at the speed of light (which we cant and physics seems to say we never can) we still wouldn't be able to travel far enough to explore space for other life
- Maharog
That's just space. Don't neglect how huge time is. That nearest star could have fully-realized spacefaring civilization, but it exists two billion years in the past - - or the future.
We're ships passing in the night in a sea of time as well.
Indus Valley
Maybe not as exciting as some of the other historical mysteries, but I've always wanted to know more about the Indus Valley Civilization.
They were one of the earliest civilizations on the planet and built complex cities with extensive planning, including efficient sewage systems! And yet their writing script remains undeciphered to this day and thus a lot of what we know about their culture and society is mere speculation.
There's just so much about them I'd love to understand- What was the language they spoke and what family it belonged to? How extensive were their trade networks? What were their cultural practices and religious beliefs and what relation, if any, did these have to those of later societies in the Indian subcontinent?
Consciousness
What actually happens to our consciousness when we die?
Yes this! And how does it originate when we are born?
- poorees
From a technical point a consciousness is an evolutionary trait that develops as an infant matures and it has 3 stages
- non active from 1-2
- passive from 2-8 (when it acquires all of the societal values and is able to think however will follow what its environment mandates)
- active, post 8, once all societal values are accepted and critical thinking becomes much more accessible
Babies dont have a consciousness as it hasnt developped yet and this trait is only found among few animals as an evolutionary trait that allowed us to survive.
This said, in theory we should cease to be once we die , the very same way we came into the picture
So the consciousness would be the same as pre-birth, nothingness once the brain ceases all activity. I would find it much more disturbing and horrifying if a consciousness doesnt fade away and makes you spend an eternity trapped in a void similar to when you re half awake after you passout
Now that would be horrifying.
Ceasing to exist, however, is just something that will happen and I don't think anyone should be afraid of what will happen as it would be the same as pre-birth
Solicitors
I wanna know why these people keep ringing my doorbell while the baby is sleeping trying to sell me pest control or a new roof.
Motherf*cker it's 2020. If I need some bugs killed or a new roof, I'm not sitting on my @ss waiting for somebody to ring my doorbell to give me a sales pitch.
I put a sign on the front door that said please do not knock or ring the bell. And it worked wonders! Never had a knock or bell ring even when I ordered take out and forgot about it haha but I was waiting patiently for my take out of course lol.
Gundam
gundam GIFGiphyThis is going to sound petty, but to me it's more important then anything political, I want to know what happened to the Victory Gundam Toy I leant to my friend when I was in the first grade. It was the MS in Pocket V- Dash.
My grandmother got it for me for my birthday, which means my parent's actually got it for me and wrapped it and put her name on it but she pretended to know what it was and I appreciate that to this day.
My parents probably got it from a store in Springfield Mall called "Another Universe". It was a one stop sci-fi novelty shop and after my dad took me in there one day I fell in love with the "Japanese Robots" because I grew up watching Robotech, and Ronin Warriors.
I was super stoked to get this, and loved it dearly. And because I loved my best friend and sharing is caring etc, when he asked to borrow it one night, maybe a week after I got it, I let him. I never saw it again. We stayed friend's up until high-school when we started to drift apart, and it legitimately bothers me to this day that I never found out the truth.
Elisa
What ACTUALLY happened to Elisa Lam. Like, come on. She couldn't have dropped herself into that tank. She didn't have keys to the roof, and she was too tiny to lift the hatch anyway. So, what? Did an employee kill her?
Your average hotel employee couldn't haul a sober young woman to the roof, restrain her, open that heavy-ass hatch, and throw her inside. Not without somebody noticing. There's no surveillance footage either. Besides all that, there's no evidence that Elisa was raped or assaulted, so what would be the motive for murder?
And she wasn't intoxicated. No drugs, no alcohol. But... why the weird behavior in that elevator, then? Why the imaginary conversation? Why hide from nothing?
Yes, she was bipolar, which could attribute to the strange behavior. Elisa was mentally ill, but that doesn't explain everything.
I lived down the street from that hotel when she went missing, I remember the posters going up around the neighborhood. What happened was a terrible, unfortunate accident and nothing more. In fact I wish the internet would stop trying to turn it into a "spooky mystery" because I can't imagine what the family must be going through.
The main thing you have to remember about the hotel she was staying at is it wasn't a normal Holiday Inn kinda place you're used to seeing. It was a run down building over 100 years old that was being used for low income housing that had started renting out rooms to tourists. I lived in one similar when I was really poor.
They're not well maintained, they're not well staffed (maybe some kid working security), and you can pretty much have your run of the place without anyone messing with you because no one who works there cares. Security cameras? LOL. I'm impressed the ones they had were actually working, most of the time they're just there to warn off people. The most mysterious part about the hotel is why anyone would chose to stay there on purpose.
Now imagine a girl off her meds having a breakdown (which is what authorities and her family have said is what happened). I talked to employees at local shops who saw her and told me she was acting crazy. She's in this beat up hotel, can't get the elevator to work, can't figure out what's going on. She ends up on the roof wandering around and takes a dive into the water tank and can't get out. That's it. Nothing mysterious. Just a tragic accident.
Poisoned Pooch
Who killed my dog with poison. My dad knows but he doesn't want to tell me because he said it's going to be troublesome. Don't get me wrong he loved that dog but he got reasons to hide that from me. We live in a dangerous neighborhood.
Tumblr Trouble
I had an internet friend who suddenly stopped posting on Tumblr at around 2014. I didn't realize it at first because I had multiple friends who would leave for a few days and come back again, but after a few weeks with no activity I started to worry. I think I even assumed that she wanted nothing to do with ME specifically because she wouldn't reply to my messages until a mutual internet friend of ours messaged me to ask me if I knew where she went.
She never came back. She wasn't sick, she wasn't going through anything, she never said she was going to switch accounts (she had multiple accounts dedicated for some core things she liked. When she stopped posting on her main blog, I checked to see if there were any activities on the others. Nothing.), etc. She was just there one day and then she suddenly wasn't. I guess I'd just like to know what happened to her.
Maybe A Little Too Great
The Great Pyramid.
Either the truth about how long it took and how Egyptians built it, or who actually did it.
History books say it took 20 years to build, which is just ridiculous to believe. 20 years was definitely not enough to build it, but that's only one of many facts that make me raise an eyebrow:
"Pharaoh Khufu began the first Giza pyramid project, circa 2550 B.C."
Egypt was founded around 3000 B.C. so the Pyramid was built pretty much at the beginning of their civilization, and I believe they claim the Sphynx is even older than that.
So these people had the skill and knowledge to build a monument that would last through eternity, featuring some of the most astonishing mathematical and physical properties but could never better themselves? Never in the history of our species, we have witnessed a civilization reach their engineering peak at the very beginning and then get progressively worse. It just doesn't make sense.
For reference, the Great Wall of China is 25ft tall, has roughly 4M blocks and it took several centuries to finish with the help of millions of workers. The Great Pyramid (just one of the 3) is nearly 500ft tall, made of over 2M blocks of stone, and only took 20 years???
In 2550 B.C humans could build at amazing speed with unmatched precision and a few millenniums later we lost all that skill?
If we wanted to, nowadays we could replicate any building or construction that's ever been made with the help of machines. But not the pyramid. Modern engineers admitted that even with our best technology, we would struggle to replicate a 4 faced pyramid of that size. Imagine building an 8 faced one that has VERY PRECISE astronomical and mathematical properties; the amount of resources and hassle required for such a feature would be ridiculous even for today's standards.
"The Great Pyramid embodies an advanced knowledge of geometry, geodesy (the science of earth measurement), and astronomy. It incorporates not only the value of pi but also the golden section, phi, found in the growth patterns of living things.
The Pyramid stands at the center of the earth's landmass and represents the earth's northern hemisphere on a scale of 1:43,200."
When scientists presented these and a million other facts just as mind-blowing, Egyptologists said it was all a coincidence and claim that to this day.
Imagine making a tomb for your king and, just by pure chance and a bit of luck, recreate a replica of our planet that gives exact data of its dimentions and movement in space LMAO
I have been to the Plateau, Karnak and Luxor (Valley of Kings) and let me tell you, by the end of the trip my eyebrow had raised so much it became one with my hairline.
Human Relationships
I wanted to know the truth about human relationships. Now there is nothing else I want to know desperately..
There is no want anymore about anything in life. The truth is,"Human relationships are need based. They are never absolute and hence keep changing. It takes enormous energy to keep a married relationship going."
So choose wisely. Choose somebody for whom it's very easy to love himself and you. And not somebody who talks about leaving you or breakup at the drop of hat!
Death Night
grim reaper death GIFGiphyWhat the fck exactly happened in Stammheim prison on the 'Death Night' of Oct 18 1977 at the height of the German autumn.
Three prisoners of German far left-wing terror group RAF were found dead in their cells. The story goes that they killed themselves and other members of the group tried to frame it as murder by the state
But official reports have some holes and some things don't quite line up. Were they actually murdered by the secret service? Did the sercret service know about what they were planning but didn't intervene? Why was there a power loss in that prison block right around the time they killed themselves and why was the officer that was assigned to watch the cell block called away from his position by an unknown person right around the same time? One inmate killed himself with a gun, how did no one hear that?
- enderlux
After The Crisis
I work in a suicide/crisis line. We never know what happens after the call ends. And there is this one call that still haunts me, and all I desperately want to know is what happened to the caller after they hung up. I just want to know the truth.
Catfished
I talked with a girl for years. Started on a chat room, we talked with letters, Facebook, on a phone (our record was 9 hours straight), we became "a couple" at some point. We never saw each other, shared only few photos, but we had fun talking so it didn't bother me. Webcam wasn't a common thing back in 2009 and 2010 when this started and since we were young, we couldn't travel and see each other.
(Yes, this is starting to sound like a Catfish episode)
In 2011 things changed tho. I went to army for 9 months and during that time I learned that she had leukemia and she had few months to live. We talked on a phone, cried together and she told me she wanted to do the things she always wanted to do, travel to other countries. She went to USA, UK, Brazil, sent me letters and postcards. One day she was dead, just like that. We had one common internet friend who told me the news and later I saw her face to face and she gave some stuff so I could remember her.
Later Google came out with image search, where you can search images and see if that picture is on internet. I think like a year had passed at this point. I tried it, and voila, her pictures came out with some hits. She was a fake? I immediately asked her friend, what is this. She came clean that yes, she was fake and no, she didn't die. She said "I don't want to become between this, so she can tell the truth, if she wants to". Never got the truth, never heard from her again, she never explained anything.
I just want to know, why.
Just Want To Plan
When am I going to die? I have stage 4 breast cancer. I've seen and heard prognoses from two years to ten years to it can actually go away.
Obviously, I'd like it to go away, but if I only have two (or five, or ten) years left, I need to know that. That will determine how I spend my time and money.
If I refuse to entertain death as a possibility and live like I'll have the chance to become elderly, I may not do all the travel I want because "I can do it later" or "I'm paying off this new car that I need."
If I assume that I'll be dead in three years, I could be caught with my pants down in 2024, having spent all my money on my bucket list and being unable to buy a car. (Mine is a 2002, 232k+ miles)
I assume I'll know more as my death gets closer, but I'd like at least a year or so of being mentally with it before I die so I can wrap up all my loose ends.
A Detailed Catalog
I wish archeological sites hadn't been looted for centuries before the scientific method was developed. The amount of historical knowledge that has been lost to human ignorance and greed is tragic.
I also wish some angelic being would descend from the heavens and gift us a fully detailed catalog of all the creatures that have walked the Earth. I'd spend the rest of my life poring over the information on animals that evolved, thrived, and went extinct millions of years ago.
Brother Allen
What happened to Brother Allen.
20 years ago, there was a man in my church who went to Texas for work and was found bound and gagged and dead in his room. He was an FAA investigator, there was no sign of a break in at the hotel, and reportedly guests heard nothing. I was friendly with two of his daughters (we were Mormons, he had like 7 kids) and both he and his wife had served in youth leadership and education positions together. I keep thinking at some point I'll watch an episode of Forensic Files and find out the truth...
Hoping For Nightmares
Who killed my brother (happened in the 90s). My parents refuse to tell me or my siblings anything besides a few details. Pretty much, all I know is that the driver of the vehicle was a friend of his who had too much to drink.
I don't know what I would do with the knowledge if I had it.
Maybe visit him in jail if he is still there. I'm told I look eerily like my brother. So I'd go in for a visit using my brother's old clothes. Say nothing, then after a few seconds, get up and leave. Hopefully give him nightmares for the next decade, make sure he never forgets what he did.
When studying or learning about different countries and cultures, many Americans find themselves fascinated and/or perplexed by some of their customs and traditions.
Up to and including Canada having their Thanksgiving celebrations in October, Guy Fawkes night in England, or spitting on the bride for good luck at Greek weddings.
Many of these same Americans who scoff at the very idea of these customs might not stop to think that the tables can be easily turned, and visitors from abroad often find themselves in an equal state of confusion at some of our customs and traditions.
Redditor thunderpower1999 was eager to hear which American customs foreigners found to be the most baffling, leading them to ask:
"Non- Americans, what is an American custom that you find unusual or odd?"
The Only Thing More Ridiculous, Are Most Of The Candidats
"I find the length of your election campaigns so crazy."- Olivia123321
Presidential elections seem to be some sort of two year affair. It's out of control.
Most Meteorologists Would Agree
"My friend from India once asked me (an American) to explain Groundhog Day to her."
"I had no explanation- it’s just weird."- marmosetohmarmoset
Groundhog Day Winter GIFGiphySlowly Becoming Extinct Though...
"The waiter taking your card away to pay."- Vlakob
Trick Or Treat!
"I’ll never forget when a college schoolmate from China asked me 'is it true that you have a holiday where children dress up and go around asking for candy?'"
"I had never thought about it before but all I could say was 'yes, I guess we do…'"- EverLong0
They Think That's Strange, Ask Them What They Think About Our Health Care System...
"The Canadians I worked with in the oilfield were blown away by all of the television commercials for medicines."- rufneck-420
Happy Mental Health GIF by Jimmy ArcaGiphyGobble Gobble!
"Pardoning a turkey at Thanksgiving."
"Cracks me up every time, and I've lived here 20 years now!"- sandithepirate
Strange Isn't Always Bad
"Let me pull the Uno reverse card on this."
"I am an immigrant, living in the US for a very long time."
"Getting your leftovers to go at the restaurants was a surprise to me."
"But my reaction was, 'yeah, why is that not the norm?'"
"Rather than “Americans are strange'."- BobTheInept
When You Think You Have Exact Change...
"Not including tax in the price tag."- klc81
The Simpsons Animation GIF by FOX TVGiphySo Much For Camaraderie...
"The obsession with college sports…and in some places even high school or middle school!"
"I just came back from a work trip to Texas and one of my colleagues told me the football stadium for his daughter’s middle school held 20,000 people!"- Speedbird223
Valuing Children? The Very Thought!
"That new parents, especially fathers, are expected to show up to work within days of having a newborn."- kellygrrrl328
How Long Have You Got?
"Some things I found strange in America:"
"Lack of recycling bins everywhere."
"That homeless people have tents everywhere like streets (Washington really surprised me)."
"Ice filled to the brim of the cup."
"Anything and everything having a tipping option."
"Tipping in general."
"Tax not included in the price."
"Massive lawyer billboards on every highway."- effypom
The Office Yes GIFGiphyCivic Duty, But No Civic Holiday.
You have holidays for everything but a day off for election is too much
Just Plain Gross
"Child beauty pageants."
"Just stop it."- LoadedGull
It should be said that most Americans are equally confused, if not downright horrified, by many of the abovementioned customs.
Which begs the question, what keeps us living here?
Perhaps Americans desire to stay put, in spite of a heavily flawed electoral process, a convoluted healthcare system, and winter being dictated by a groundhog's shadow is the strangest American custom of them all...
Who among us hasn't wondered about how our rich buddies have made their fortunes?
Some people work really hard actually.
They're in an office or in the field all day and night.
They have their noses to the grind.
And yes some people just collect an inheritance.
That's ok too, but how do you make it bigger?
Redditor h3llofaRide wanted to hear about how the rich make a living, so they asked:
"What does the wealthiest person you know do for work?"
My rich friends are all investment people.
They know when to buy and sell.
It's a gift.
Fancy Services
Coding Looney Tunes GIF by Looney Tunes World of MayhemGiphy"The wealthiest person I know (and hang out with regularly) built a company (IT services) and then sold it for several hundred million dollars."
"He now runs a company that does the same kind of IT services in a different field. (He figured out a winning business formula and is just repeating it in a different market)."
omniumoptimus
Name It
"A family friend retired after being a COBOL programmer for 30 years. About 2 years after his retirement, a company came to him and said 'Name your salary' and he requested around $1.5 million/year. He was hired on the spot and still works there."
bbbbbthatsfivebees
"A family member worked at various companies, he told me this is very common. It's not obscure programming languages, just that they know what's going on. And don't let anyone else near it or something."
chabybaloo
Oink Oink
"Pig farmer. I kid you not. He's my father's old friend. I visited him once when my father and I were passing through the state. He lives in a modest classic farmhouse with his wife, both in their seventies. I mentioned I was starting a school in West Africa as we were catching up."
"A few weeks later I got a text asking how much it would cost. I told him 40k, thinking it was really nice of him if he wanted to send a few dollars."
"I got a check for 40k. I thought it would take me years to raise that. I'm typing this from Sierra Leone because he also paid for the house I thought would take years to raise funds for."
LadyCordeliaStuart
That Dude
"It's a guy I work with. He started with one Jimmy John's franchise and turned it into 10 franchises. Ran them for 10 years then sold them all and dumped the money into the stock market and real estate. He did this all while working as an airline pilot, currently still working at the airline. This dude owns and flies his own private jet on top of all that."
OT-35
Every day...
Proliferate Charlie Chaplin GIF by nounish ⌐◨-◨Giphy"Inherited a small factory from his father. Developed it into a huge nationwide company. Still goes to work there everyday despite being worth hundreds of millions."
ShipJust
Factory work. That is where so much greatness begins.
On the Road
Happy Go Crazy GIF by DAF Trucks NVGiphy"Truck driver. Starting his own trucking company."
Apprehensive-Crow-96
"Tons of money in the trucking business. An owner of one in my city drives a Porsche 918."
ForgottenPercentage
In the End
"Own their own conveyor belt business. Makes almost 2 mil a year after it’s all said and done."
TakeMe_To_Eisengard
"I was a control systems engineer who started contracting on the side. Now I build out crazy manufacturing systems like this. All it takes is getting one project to build a conveyor system and if you end up good at it then boom, you build conveyor systems for the rest of your life. Conveyor systems are actually really expensive and complex in the manufacturing world."
PleasantProgram7572
Life-Changing
"Both in tech. A friend is in a company about to IPO and is VP level so will do well there. Her husband just sold his company (gaming company) to the biggest gaming company in China for, as she put it 'life-changing money.' Both are very intelligent, super nice, and crazy hard-working. They worked for it, and it couldn't happen to nicer people."
BonePGH
The Little Things
"I was a fly fishing guide for many years, and one of my regular clients year after year owned a factory on the East Coast that is one of the top suppliers of O-rings and small plastic machine parts in the world. I never asked how much they made obviously out of respect. But they always tipped absurd amounts ($1500 was my biggest tip for 3 days) they flew private and drank and shared $600 bottles of wine like they were nothing."
The_Kinetic_Esthetic
Let's Play
gamer GIF by TotorialGiphy"He's the founder and CEO of a very successful games company. I met him over a decade ago when the company was successful but nowhere near what it is now. He's also one of the most approachable and friendly people I've ever met, to the extent that it sometimes feels like an act."
Lauantaina
Games and gaming.
Who knew?
Can I count all of my hours of Nintendo for tax exemptions?
