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  1. Chris B

    Hitchens, Dawkins and Harris are old news — a totally different Atheism is on the rise

    " atheist voices are talking about nonbelief less as an end in itself, but as part of a larger conversation about social justice. " Seems reasonable. There's room for a bit more social justice. "The increase in diversity isn’t happening quietly or easily, " Is it increasing? One thing about...
  2. Chris B

    When Someone Refuses to Learn About God, What Do You Do?

    I wonder, genuinely, if the original poster and some others here have ever put this up against a mirror, to consider what it looks and feels like to be on the other side of this idea. "What do you do when someone refuses to see the validity and truth in their being no god?" Whatever rises in...
  3. Chris B

    When Someone Refuses to Learn About God, What Do You Do?

    The ability to dialogue is vastly improved by some trace of being able to appreciate different perspectives, and their groundings *on their own terms* rather than just dismissing such "... without even a consideration". If someone engaged with me and my world-view on those terms, is there any...
  4. Chris B

    When Someone Refuses to Learn About God, What Do You Do?

    Check mentally to see if there is the slightest possibility that they might have been correct. If your views are so perfect and indisputable that they are never going to need either major or minor adjustment, or completely re-thinking, then congratulations are in order: you have arrived at...
  5. Chris B

    Suicide

    I'll live until I don't. Learning is getting tricky. (I live with a thousand friends who are losing their ability to communicate with me.) I'd prefer to be able to use what I've already learned, to help others.
  6. Chris B

    Suicide

    "I'm not sure what these "huge, huge benefits" are supposed to be." Chris Some suggestions might be nice. Though I did manage to reduce a nurse to tears of laughter today. I call that a win.
  7. Chris B

    Suicide

    Possibly, if you survive. Or, on the Christian model, if you are in heaven. (Any way I reckon it, I won't be.) Having been matched to two new negative makers for my life expectancy recently, and being in pain, I'm not sure what these "huge, huge benefits" are supposed to be. Chris
  8. Chris B

    Are we doing our best?

    "Are we doing our best?" I've had that described as the stoic error: thinking that we can do always what we can do sometimes. The very best is rarely sustainable. And that's when we are trying. And doing our best may not mean doing good at all... What's the activity?
  9. Chris B

    Would you let your partner have sex with someone else?

    I think I wouldn't recommend your solution. Too many ways for it to go wrong, just about no way for it to go right. Just checking what's in the way of the obvious solution: why not get married, if you are that sure of each other otherwise?
  10. Chris B

    Critical Mass of Science Denial / Ignorance

    The other thing it does it let people find like minds. Now the individual with the oddest of odd thinking can find a group of people to nod agreement and generate mutual reinforcement of beliefs.
  11. Chris B

    How Do You Feel About Trump's Continual Changes Of Position?

    Someone who will say almost anything to anyone if it suits his purposes at that moment?
  12. Chris B

    Scientism

    No, not really. It tells me what the religion was of the biggest empire at the time, which stomped on other calendars at least as much by economic and military power rather than sheer superiority of its religion. (The tactical good move of Christianizing the Pagan midwinter festival to make...
  13. Chris B

    Emergence

    There is that.
  14. Chris B

    Scientism

    But is your memory of that right, beyond all doubt? Or only almost totally certain, beyond all reasonable doubt. The two do the same duty almost all of the time.
  15. Chris B

    Emergence

    That was the example that occurred to me, having tinkered in the past with Conway's game of life. The initial rules are simple and do not suggest gliders, glider guns, organism arrangements to produce a series of glider guns...
  16. Chris B

    Scientism

    Pretty close to absolutely sure. The thing itself, then, provided your memory is dead sure.... I've had a couple of geographical surprises from my memory, in my time. At least for me, that takes it back to that tiny edge short of absolutely sure. (My memory had misplaced five mile of coastline...
  17. Chris B

    Scientism

    That tells me about the existence of religion, with not enough doubt to worry about. Born in different country it could have been a different set of liturgies, chants etc. that you were familiar with. And in many a belief so strong that war was engaged with others of largely the same belief...
  18. Chris B

    Charlotte Observer: Girls must overcome ‘discomfort’ of seeing ‘male genitalia’ in locker rooms

    But if I see an undressed woman I'm a Peeping Tom, and if she sees me undressed I'm a flasher. Again, apparently, except in changing rooms and...
  19. Chris B

    Charlotte Observer: Girls must overcome ‘discomfort’ of seeing ‘male genitalia’ in locker rooms

    This. Why that is held against President Obama eludes me.... (More sort of pinned to him with a nail gun, it seems.)
  20. Chris B

    Why do Atheist hate God?

    "but by comparison to most other solar systems things do seem to fall into place here. " That's a bit of a criterion shift, but it's fine, What other sort of solar system is a living and possibly sentient being going to see? Rare Earth Theory seems untroubling, right or wrong, tto the case for...