[Vision2020] New You-Tube for your summer entertainment.

[Paul Rumelhart]

There are some people that believe that the world is what it is, 
regardless of how much different we might like it to be.

Anyway, you could argue that a belief in an afterlife cheapens life here 
on Earth - you spend less than an eye-blink here, and then spend the 
rest of the time either floating on clouds or being burned alive.

If you have this one existence, and then nothing, then you might be 
motivated to make the best of what you have now instead of pining for a 
glorious future somewhere else.

Not that I don't believe in the supernatural, mind you.  It just doesn't 
follow that a belief that this world is all there is necessarily leads 
to bad behavior any more than a belief in an afterlife does.  Witness 
the suicide bombers and their promised virgins, as one extreme example.

Paul

Donovan Arnold wrote:
> Paul,
>  
> Without a belief in a supernatural being life is not meaningful. 
> Everything is only as it appears to be, nothing more. All actions, 
> fortunes, misfortunes, and events are nothing more than happenstances. 
> What a boring and pointless existence someone must have to believe 
> that there is no higher intended purpose in life or what you do with it.
>  
> Best,
>  
> Donovan
>
> */Paul Rumelhart <godshatter at yahoo.com>/* wrote:
>
>     I really despise these cutesy propaganda-ish jibes at the
>     non-believers. But putting that aside for the moment, I'm trying to
>     understand their point. At best, they seem to be saying that
>     without a
>     caring/feeling religion like Christianity, people treat life like it
>     means nothing and can develop into despots and nazis. Yet when you
>     look
>     over the last couple of thousand of years of Christianity, you notice
>     things like the Crusades, the Inquisitions, and the witch burnings.
>
>     We've argued on this list before about who has racked up the highest
>     body count. The answer varies depending upon who you trust for a
>     historical record and who you do or don't count in modern times.
>
>     However, if you can't easily find the answer then it follows that
>     religion has no affect whatsoever on a human beings seeming need
>     to kill
>     it's own kind.
>
>     I don't know which is better. A God that so often inspires people to
>     kill in the name of Good, or the lack of a belief in a God that
>     fails to
>     keep our basest instincts in line. It's my opinion that the people
>     that
>     do these kinds of things are just looking for an excuse no matter
>     what
>     rationalizations they finally decide upon.
>
>     Paul
>
>     heirdoug at netscape.net wrote:
>     > I thought some of you who think for a living would like this one.
>     > enjoy, Doug!
>     >
>     > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm1JYYIk-pI
>     >
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