Letters to the Editor
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@cosmo G...never said you had to agree with me
the cosmo dude wrote, in sum:
Please elaborate on exactly how "brain chemicals", if I may borrow your highly technical nomenclature, account for human intellect, emotions, and sense of the divine.
Also, how do you know that there is no God? How exactly is that "reality" manifested in the span of a single human life? Do you know why we're here? Do you know why the universe exists? Do you believe that "why..." is a pointless question?
Please grace me with more of your enlightened smugness.
-- Cosmo Guzzardi
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Uh, 'scuse me, but, uh, last time I checked, the human brain was responsible for intellect, emotions, and the sense-of-the-divine. The human brain secretes various chemicals that modulate brain function, therefore, the three products of human brain function noted above are caused by brain chemicals, and not the flying spaghetti monster. QED.
'course, if you want to argue that the gods make the chemicals, I give up. That's the problem with all supernatural belief. If I come up with a perfectly good proof, the believer can simply say "my supernatural imaginary friend says so, and I believe."
Your question of how I know there is no god it purely rhetorical, since we both know I cannot prove a negative. At least I don't ask you to take it on faith, do I?
Tell you what, why don't YOU prove there is one................................................................................................................................... I'm waiting. I haven't seen a worthwhile proof of any supernatural being, ever. Period. And that is because there isn't one. The best one I ever saw was Pascal's Wager, and that's just a form of existential insurance, not a proof.
I will say that every *single* experience I've had in my life, as far back as I can remember, reinforces my firm awareness that there is no god. No god or gods of any kind. Period. I hardly expect anyone to take my word for it...but you did ask.
And I do find that the current development of evolutionary theory makes the nonexistence of any supernatural being whatever pretty much supremely obvious. Although any reasonably enlightened person has probably known there is no god, for about as far back as you care to go. They just kept quiet...after all, the general run of humanity has shown a distinct hostility to those who know there is no god.
The reality of the fact that there is no god is manifest every, single day in my life. When I look at human beings, you know what I see? Savage plains apes. We dress, and bathe, and talk, and make lovely and terrible things. But, in the end, we're all just savage plains apes with forebrains WAY too big for our own, or the Earth's, good. Once you see that, friend, you can never un-see it. Trust me on this one, I know.
As for your questions about why the Universe is here, and why we are here...excuse me while I laugh uncontrollably. Those are juvenile, ridiculous questions, not worth asking, let along worth answering. And, by the way, I *know* those questions are worthless. I don't "believe" they are.
I try to observe the golden rule in all my dealings...but, sometimes, when confronted with callow bullshit, I lose my moral compass a little, and revert to plains ape... but not too savage.. I'm a retiring sort of plains ape... (where's my obsidian axe? I had it here a second ago..) ;>
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Alex O'Neal, NOT Neil
d'oh! sorry, Neil!
Alex, I agree it was a silly question about the missing limbs, but in fact this *would* pose a dilemma to plenty of people who don't see these things as "metaphors."
I must admit, I'm not sure why you think it is an especially useful metaphor.
I'm curious as to why, if you see all the supernatural aspects of Christianity as metaphors, and you've studied other religions and think they're pretty much saying the same things, you identify as a Christian? I guess I think of Christians as having to accept the divinity of Jesus in particular, to qualify. Is that misguided? I'm just curious.
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Its all fiction
Spend some time reading religious history from secular and religious scholars and you will find that you have only heard part of the story. Jesus is a mythological character, as were his deciples.
Jesus of Nazareth died before Nazareth existed as a town.
Jesus is only the latest of a long list of crucified saviors, just the latest
in a list of saviors who were born of a virgin and received gifts from wise men.
The only thing new in Christianity was the notion of original sin, a pox on people
that they did not deserve, but which served the church fathers well to this day..
Even the early Roman Catholic (state) Church admitted that Jesus was a fictional character.
Read the Christ Conspiracy by Acharya S for starters. Amazon will show you lots
of others from there.
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darwinian_mechanist
"Uh, 'scuse me, but, uh, last time I checked, the human brain was responsible for intellect, emotions, and the sense-of-the-divine. The human brain secretes various chemicals that modulate brain function, therefore, the three products of human brain function noted above are caused by brain chemicals"
I didn't ask you to re-iterate your assertion that "brain chemicals" are responsible for human intellect and emotions, I asked you to explain how they are responsible for them. Which particular "brain chemicals" produce which particular thoughts and sensations?
"Tell you what, why don't YOU prove there is one....I'm waiting. I haven't seen a worthwhile proof of any supernatural being, ever. Period. And that is because there isn't one. The best one I ever saw was Pascal's Wager, and that's just a form of existential insurance, not a proof."
There's a lot of things that I believe that I personally can't prove to the degree you seem to expect. I can't prove the shapes of the various continents. I can't prove that the moon has lower gravity than the earth. Hell, right now I can't even afford a plane ticket to prove that there is such a place as "Nova Scotia". No single person could ever scientifically prove all the information that is now known to human beings through the work and knowledge of other human beings, in the past and present.
Of course I believe the above things, even though I can't prove them myself. However, I have to take the word of other human beings for all of it. I've yet to have an ape deliver a geography lecture to me (although I'm pretty sure I did take an on-line philosophy course taught by a jackass once).
"And I do find that the current development of evolutionary theory makes the nonexistence of any supernatural being whatever pretty much supremely obvious."
No, it doesn't, and no serious evolutionary theorist has ever claimed that it does. Please show me a quote from someone who claims to have proved the "nonexistence of any supernatural being" through their study of evolution.
"The reality of the fact that there is no god is manifest every, single day in my life. When I look at human beings, you know what I see? Savage plains apes. We dress, and bathe, and talk, and make lovely and terrible things. But, in the end, we're all just savage plains apes with forebrains WAY too big for our own, or the Earth's, good. Once you see that, friend, you can never un-see it. Trust me on this one, I know."
Good grief. You sound like an embittered child. Something tells me you haven't seen quite as much as you think you've seen. You apparently haven't seen enough to yet realize that you can't presume to know more than anyone else who disagrees with you.
"As for your questions about why the Universe is here, and why we are here...excuse me while I laugh uncontrollably. Those are juvenile, ridiculous questions, not worth asking, let along worth answering. And, by the way, I *know* those questions are worthless. I don't "believe" they are."
Well, I suppose people like me should be grateful for the lack of intellectual curiosity on the part of people like you- makes it easier to find jobs. You sound like you'd make a fine US President.
Cheers