Posted by Tom O'Donnell on August 18, 2008, 3:22:23, in reply to "Re: More bullshit"
IM Ottawa Chess Coach

This is an interesting post. I believe human beings are not more, nor less, than cockroaches. That is, humans are animals and as such are just trying to survive to the next generation. Constructs like religion, in my view, do some good: they allow people to find meaning to their lives, and prevent them from thinking about the point of existence. They also do evil: they coerce people into believing that, though their lives suck now, they will eventually get something better if only they passively wait for it and behave. The problem with that is that it convinces people to refuse to take charge of their own lives and enact change for the better - their own individual betterment - while they are here. Even if the idea of God and the afterlife is a lie (and I think that it is), living the lie isn't necessarily bad for the person living it. I don't believe in reincarnation, nor do I think that I will live forever. I know my time on the planet as me is finite, and I can live with the idea that after that, there is nothing. Getting back to my original point and considering the above, I have a lot more at stake than the person who thinks they are here for a while, and then are going ... somewhere ... for eternity. For them this existence is just a very temporary thing. That's why I would prefer people in charge of nukes to share my view.