Theory that may help explain the Problem Of Evil

a reply to: Krazysh0t

Absolutely!

When I first started researching this stuff, I believed most of the "new age twaddle"; by the time that I had finished most of my research a couple years ago, I had discarded more than 90% of the twaddle.. and the "jury is still out" on the exact details of the 10%. (54 years of research BTW).

When I'm wrong... I'm wrong... and I happily discard any wrong thinking.. I mean, I don't hang onto life after death and all the usual "hooks" that cause people to fall prey to wishful thinking and selection bias.

I'm happy if all I am is a "3rd Chimpanzee" (Jared Diamond) and then I die.

Live life in a fruitful manner then you can die without regrets I say.

Good conversation.

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

Heh. I joined ATS because I was looking to learn more about AA theory after having watched the show on the History Channel. Though I was looking for an alternative viewpoint since the show came across as overly biased to me. I read up on it and discovered the problems with the theory, the tons of fraudulent claims, the legal controversies around various AA theory proponents, how Sitchen's work was shown to not know anything about ancient Sumerian language, etc.

Climate Change was another topic that I changed my mind on here at ATS. Someone pointed out recently that I used to have a more skeptical outlook towards the theory than I do now.

In my belief, many to most skeptics started out as believers. They just looked at the evidence, found it wanting, and became skeptical. Myself, I WANT to believe. I just have very high standards of evidence, so I won't believe until those standards are fulfilled. I'm sure most skeptics are like that too.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

Nicely put.

Yes, humans are innate story-tellers, and it's rather depressing to "believe" that we are just mutated chimps with toxic imaginations, destroyers of worlds, and that we die and that's it.

A nice Star Trek or Star Wars type world would be QUITE interesting.

But if that's the entire story.. why.. then that's the entire story.

In my opinion, that's 90% of the entire story, and I enjoy looking into the 10% AND making sure I clearly and fully understand "real science" every chance I get, as "real science" flew us to the moon and metaphysics (beyond physics on the good doctor's shelf) didn't.. in fact fixation on theology (the evil cousin of metaphysics) kept us in the dark ages an extra thousand years or so.

Kev

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

From what I've seen when comparing various religions' idea of how the universe works to what science says, science ALWAYS comes out way more complex. Thinking about how simple things would be if religions were right, it actually sounds like the universe would be rather boring. Especially if the geocentric view of the universe that Christianity used to have turned out to be true.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

You are right. Religion springs up from the nastiest and most angst-filled part of the human organism.

Even Buddhists slaughter each other and burn down others temples, so its not just the Roman Empire control system.

Kev

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

Fun fact: the Western perception of Buddhism being tolerant and peace loving is a propaganda construction invented by the Buddhists kicked out of Tibet to raise sympathy for their cause. But in reality they were basically fuedalists that ruled over their people without giving them many rights or ability to move upwards in the world.

What we don't hear about Tibet

Until 1959, when China cracked down on Tibetan rebels and the Dalai Lama fled to northern India, around 98% of the population was enslaved in serfdom. Drepung monastery, on the outskirts of Lhasa, was one of the world's largest landowners with 185 manors, 25,000 serfs, 300 pastures, and 16,000 herdsmen. High-ranking lamas and secular landowners imposed crippling taxes, forced boys into monastic slavery and pilfered most of the country's wealth – torturing disobedient serfs by gouging out their eyes or severing their hamstrings.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

Nice link!

I suppose we've gotten off topic though.

Really nice chatting.

Kev

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

Yea true. It's just refreshing (and fun) talking about religion unbiased like and without worrying about the other person getting offended because they can't accept that maybe their religion isn't all peaches and cream like the believe it is.