They're Marching Against God - Your .02
07-18-2002, 10:37 AM
#101
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hey warren, your example of that fire/baby thing is why many people look to buddhism. simply stated: the agony and suffering that a person felt (however young/old) was within their karma - they may have done something in the previous life to deserve that (not many other ways to explain it).
i really suffered at the hands of a former co-worker, that co-worker almost drove me over the edge (considered suicide) with the things he did to me, but i survived and aged 10 years in the process. am i angry? you bet. am i vengeful? not at all. i figure i'm paying my debt to whatever i did to him in past lifetime(s), and i will live from now on with more wisdom and compassion so i don't suffer that in my next reincarnation.
quite honestly i prefer to believe reincarnation (well, as a human being anyway) because earth just seems more fun than any of the heavens the major religions described. i can drive an S2000, chat with y'all on the net, watch porn (i'm sure that's not allowed in any of the heavens, except maybe the muslim ones? or maybe virgins are all you're allowed?), hang out with friends, work on the S2000, and drive the S2000 some more.
let me know if one day any of the deities decided to offer a free S2K to anyone who enrolls. free Spoon and Mugen parts are a plus.
i really suffered at the hands of a former co-worker, that co-worker almost drove me over the edge (considered suicide) with the things he did to me, but i survived and aged 10 years in the process. am i angry? you bet. am i vengeful? not at all. i figure i'm paying my debt to whatever i did to him in past lifetime(s), and i will live from now on with more wisdom and compassion so i don't suffer that in my next reincarnation.
quite honestly i prefer to believe reincarnation (well, as a human being anyway) because earth just seems more fun than any of the heavens the major religions described. i can drive an S2000, chat with y'all on the net, watch porn (i'm sure that's not allowed in any of the heavens, except maybe the muslim ones? or maybe virgins are all you're allowed?), hang out with friends, work on the S2000, and drive the S2000 some more.
let me know if one day any of the deities decided to offer a free S2K to anyone who enrolls. free Spoon and Mugen parts are a plus.
07-18-2002, 10:39 AM
#102
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Warren, when I say logically consistent in the way we live our lives, I mean that if we are to operate on a punishment/praise system for people, they must have free will for that system to make sense. Like I said, you cannot punish or praise someone if they cannot control their actions.
07-18-2002, 10:42 AM
#104
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Warren, when I say logically consistent in the way we live our lives, I mean that if we are to operate on a punishment/praise system for people, they must have free will for that system to make sense. Like I said, you cannot punish or praise someone if they cannot control their actions.
- Warren
07-18-2002, 10:42 AM
#105
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mingster, since you believe in reincarnation...how does the world's population increase?
I'm assuming that your concept of reincarnation is that people are reborn. But do you believe that new people can be born without other ones dying?
I'm assuming that your concept of reincarnation is that people are reborn. But do you believe that new people can be born without other ones dying?
07-18-2002, 10:45 AM
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Jay: reincarnation takes many forms. just because you're human this lifetime doesn't mean you're not a cow or a dog the next 
that's why i said i prefer to be reincarnated as human
anyone ever seen the movie "defending your life" with Meryl Streep (sp?) and what's his name with the curly hair?
that's why i said i prefer to be reincarnated as human
anyone ever seen the movie "defending your life" with Meryl Streep (sp?) and what's his name with the curly hair?
07-18-2002, 10:45 AM
#108
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Jay Li,
There are lots and lots and lots of bacteria. And insects. In fact, the biomass of insects eaten every day by animals, other insects, etc. is larger than the biomass of human beings.
- Warren
There are lots and lots and lots of bacteria. And insects. In fact, the biomass of insects eaten every day by animals, other insects, etc. is larger than the biomass of human beings.
- Warren
07-18-2002, 10:53 AM
#110
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Jay Li,
You can't be "quite adamant" about truth -- it either is, or isn't.
Let's imagine that everyone is just a computer. Each person has input from his/her world, a machine that works upon that input, and produces an output which goes back to their world. You can make the subtle leap, if you'd like, that the machines are not static, but learn new behaviors over time as they experience input from the world.
Some of these machines are "children," who have a decidedly different computational engine than do "adults." The adults have learned over time that a certain morality exists, and that, for example, people should not steal other peoples' toys. When the adult-machine observes a child-machine stealing another child-machine's toy, the adult-machine produces the output of punishment. How does any of this behavior REQUIRE free will?
Creativity seems to be the sole element of human reality that is not entirely deterministic -- i.e. the only process in which the output is not necessarily just a manipulated sum of the input.
With the exception of creativity, can you provide an example of any single human behavior that mandates free will? One that would only function if free-will was present?
- Warren
You can't be "quite adamant" about truth -- it either is, or isn't.
Let's imagine that everyone is just a computer. Each person has input from his/her world, a machine that works upon that input, and produces an output which goes back to their world. You can make the subtle leap, if you'd like, that the machines are not static, but learn new behaviors over time as they experience input from the world.
Some of these machines are "children," who have a decidedly different computational engine than do "adults." The adults have learned over time that a certain morality exists, and that, for example, people should not steal other peoples' toys. When the adult-machine observes a child-machine stealing another child-machine's toy, the adult-machine produces the output of punishment. How does any of this behavior REQUIRE free will?
Creativity seems to be the sole element of human reality that is not entirely deterministic -- i.e. the only process in which the output is not necessarily just a manipulated sum of the input.
With the exception of creativity, can you provide an example of any single human behavior that mandates free will? One that would only function if free-will was present?
- Warren