Why are you expected to love someone just because they are related to you by blood?

[Dispraise]

ultra-conservative muslims that think atheists and homosexuals are arbiters of evil =/= average.

Seeing as how I don't have any way of confirming your claims, my assumptions stand.

[tj119]

I love and only soeak to my biological brother. We were raised in foster care because our parents were both pieces of shit. Last time I saw my real father was in jail. I wasn't even aware he had gotten out of prison to be able to be arrested and go to jail.

[Omgodzilla]

I hope you wont cannibalise them.

I honestly wouldn't mind if someone cannibalized some of my cousins...

[Spraxle]

The idea of loving your family is just some old school thought processes. It was meant to build up tribes and whatnot, but today probably has less and less value.

OP I get your sentiments. My whole life I have been told constantly that I had to love my brother because he was the only one I had and whatnot. The most liberating thing in my life was when I broke off all contact with him a year ago. I'm 30 now and I still don't regret it. He was a vile toxic creature of hate, and I do not regret my lack of interaction with him nor do I want him in my life.

We all have to make our own path and our own choices about who we care for or who we associate with. Just do you and don't worry about what your family thinks.

[cFortyfive]

When I was a kid, I would sneak over to my friend's house and try some of his bacon. The first time I did it, I nearly had a heart attack cause I thought my mom find out and bash my head in. It was awesome though and the fact that my family was preventing me from eating bacon because some 1400 year old book said so was just another reason for me to hate them. It wasn't the only reason but it sure as hell made them look like bigger jerks in my eyes.

Well my parents forbid me for most of the times to eat candy and my mother always has been a somewhat conservative Christian but neither made me hate her.
I find lack of bacon while probably an appropriate reason in dank meme land of social media on its own a bit weak.

[tj119]

OP if your parents don't respect your religious and life choices then they can fuck off. Blood does not mean loyalty by any means.

[Zazeeth]

My view on it: They're people too. Just because they're related to you via blood or marriage does not negate that.

[Omgodzilla]

Well my parents forbid me for most of the times to eat candy and my mother always has been a somewhat conservative Christian but neither made me hate her.
I find lack of bacon while probably an appropriate reason in dank meme land of social media on its own a bit weak.

I already said it wasn't the only reason for me to hate them but it sure as hell didn't help things.

[wishbone346]

To answer the question of the OP, you are expected to love them because that is the norm in society and has been for thousands of years. That said I don't necessarily agree with it 100%. This is just the reason behind it.

Anyway I like to live by the "I have to love my family, but nobody ever said anything about liking them" mentality, at least most of the time. My father betrayed me after spending 6 years taking care of him when he became bedridden. He chose my older brothers over me despite them not doing anything for him in all that time. It caused me to leave and stop taking care of him so I could go to college, and while I did stop liking him and wanting to spend time with him it didn't change all the good times we had before that. I still loved him and had cherished memories and I still was completely torn apart when he died.

I also still have a connection to one of the older brothers previously mentioned. While 4 of them are essentially dead to me, partly because of the events surrounding my father's funeral and partially because I just never really knew them anyway since they were all over 20 years older than me, I did have a connection to one of them who still lives nearby me. While we don't really talk much and we actually don't have anything in common we have both stood up for one another against the other brothers and even against other people. I guess because we're both black sheep in the family we became close. I know that if he needed help I'd give it and he'd return the favor.

I think there's a big difference between what many consider love and what love actually is. Just because you don't want someone's company anymore doesn't mean you don't still hold some sort of attachment to them. Of course you, OP, might not even have that. I mean you probably won't know until something happens though. Regardless it might surprise you just how much you still care even if you don't realize it now.

[Deleted]

Just because someone is related to you doesn't mean they're not going to harm you. I grew up with a sexually abusive mother and a physically abusive father, I bare no hatred to anyone more than I do to them. It's incredibly frustrating and insulting when people say you should love and respect your parents without ever considering that some people are crushingly vicious, and parents are just people.

[DeleteThisThanks]

You can call anyone your family, depending on the situation of course. Anyhow, related or not, I tend to trust and respect people the same. As Zazeeth stated, "They're people."

[cFortyfive]

I already said it wasn't the only reason for me to hate them but it sure as hell didn't help things.

Sure overall I think most people aren't actually opposing the idea of having no love towards your parents for appropriate reasons these days.

[bayushisan]

When I was a kid, I would sneak over to my friend's house and try some of his bacon. The first time I did it, I nearly had a heart attack cause I thought my mom find out and bash my head in. It was awesome though and the fact that my family was preventing me from eating bacon because some 1400 year old book said so was just another reason for me to hate them. It wasn't the only reason but it sure as hell made them look like bigger jerks in my eyes.

Hatred is one of the most useless and self destructive emotions we're capable of; and the most petty. Seriously man you're claiming them not letting you eat bacon as a reason to hate them. That's kind of messed up, and childish on any number of levels. Have you tried actually talking to your family and telling them how their treatment of you makes you feel or do you usually just scream back at them and cause more anger and more rage build up?

Yoda wasn't wrong you know. All hate does is lead to suffering.

[Chubark]

The whole 'Love your family' thing, as other people pointed out, is a part of Group Solidarity. All Humans want to belong to some sort of group, which by far the easiest to form is the blood group. Less often is the political, religious, and social group.

Also, as other people wisely pointed out: Nothing says you have to -like- them. It's all about social bonds and coming to their aid with the idea that they come to your's when you need it. Sometimes it doesn't work out as such, but it's supposed to function like above.

[DEATHETERNAL]

If family doesn't love family (parents loving children more specifically) society falls apart in one generation. If family doesn't love family (children loving parents more specifically) society suffers a rapid cultural decay. That is why.

[Cthulhu 2020]

You don't have to love your family if they're complete douchecunts.

[Omgodzilla]

Hatred is one of the most useless and self destructive emotions we're capable of; and the most petty. Seriously man you're claiming them not letting you eat bacon as a reason to hate them. That's kind of messed up, and childish on any number of levels. Have you tried actually talking to your family and telling them how their treatment of you makes you feel or do you usually just scream back at them and cause more anger and more rage build up?

Yoda wasn't wrong you know. All hate does is lead to suffering.

You can't reason with bigots.

- - - Updated - - -

If family doesn't love family (parents loving children more specifically) society falls apart in one generation. If family doesn't love family (children loving parents more specifically) society suffers a rapid cultural decay. That is why.

What if your family is made up of horrible, disgusting bigots?

[Deleted]

I don't really see my family and I'm not too fussed. Spending time with them is more of a chore than anything. My father, mother and sister all live in different towns, so I think we're all pretty happy to live our own lives.

[Sforza]

They are just people in the first place, then your relatives, and as people, they can be shitty just like anyone else.
That's why i hold no love for most of my father's side family, they are my blood but they are shitty people in the first place.

[Feel The Power]

OP, you already made this thread not long ago, in fact it was called "is unconditional love a stupid idea"... http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...-a-stupid-idea. Not sure why you are so stuck on this topic, I mean if you hate your family then fine, live with it because it was your choice.