NEWS: Creationists Buying Dinosaurs for God

thorr74 said:
I actually agree about ID not being a science, I USED to think there was scientific basis to back it, I happen to not beleive that now.
I kinda asked for it, my very original post was sarcastic about the "ranting" of this thread....
I learned a couple months ago a very important lesson I should have remembered here.
I am not going to change anyones mind, and I shouldn't try, but here, today thats not what I was trying to do, i was trying to........
well I ended up trying to not be mis-quoted and have my ideas twisted and garbled with others assumptions and bias' .....
anyways, as I said, I forget that trying to debate a "gray" topic with people who think black and white, all or nothing, its a losing battle, esp when there are several of "them" and one of me

Vestril said:

You go really far out of your way to be wounded, and really far out of your way to insult people in a passive agressive fashion.

thorr74 said:

in a passive agressive way? how so? sarcasm?
If something I said in the last post was seen as passive agressive it wasn't supposed to be at all.

I forget that trying to debate a "gray" topic with people who think black and white, all or nothing, its a losing battle, esp when there are several of "them" and one of me

thorr74 said:
or perhaps you don't like that idea you may have to be ultimately accountable for your actions

setting aside extreme fanatical branchs of ANY religion and those "neo-religions" that have sprung up in the past 100 yrs...

every religion that has a significant history, at its core, teaches/ preaches love, compassion, understanding and tolerance of others. If people followed these guidelines we wouldn't be as fucked up as a society as we are.

People who are "equally opposed to all religions that have some higher power determining what you can and cannot do" MAY figure...as long as the law/ society dosen't catch me I can do whatever the hell I want..........come here little girl...........
but perhaps a dash of fear of being accountable after we die, will keep these people in line

And there is no need to go into the bullshit about people who use religion to do the bad things I allude to... there will always be people who abuse a belief pattern.....but not the majority

venomkid said:

How about no mythology-based belief system? How about living in and dealing with reality as it is? How about just you and me and our own experiences, our own minds. How about no delusion that invisible superheroes from space are watching us and judging our every action?

How about, dare I say it, genuine personal responsibility?

Stemming from our selves, not some fantasy of bearded white men in the sky. Based on mature interpretation of our experiences, giving us the opportunity to develop real empathy with other human beings instead of basing our actions on the assumption that some unseen jerk is going to strike us with lightning if we don't follow his ridiculous, cryptic demands.


I didn't think you'd get so desperate as to pull out the "Religion is the only basis for morality" argument, but there it is plain as day. This most tired of religious apologetic canards just laid waste to your credibility, sir.

I hope it was worth it.

thorr74 said:
I am not going to change anyones mind, and I shouldn't try,

dark_TRItium said:
What if your accountability to yourself was somehow clouded? What if you really believed that killing certain people was RIGHT? Can you make it across the country from your house to someplace you've never been without a road map or road signs? No, you can't. So how do you know that YOUR way of doing things is the RIGHT way. If people were PERFECT and followed all of the guidelines described at the core of many religions, then maybe yes, we probably wouldn't be as fucked up as we are now.

dark_TRItium said:
There have been plenty of times I've shown personal responsiblity for my actions. The way I see it, what's the harm if I'm wrong and there is no God?

fpkk said:

I have had my mind changed on at least two topics on these boards. Not by you, but it has happened. So if it's possible maybe the question is why can't you change people's minds?

For the record I have also amicably settled to a difference of opinion with a couple of people, they modified the *way* I thought about an issue but not my initial feeling, so it is also possible to have a rewarding discussion with someone who at this time cannot totally see things from your point of view.

The point of debate is not to win, it's to lose. By having your beliefs challenged if they can endure at root there's probably something in them. If on the other hand you feel that they will slip away under a more sophisticated retort maybe change is required after all, on your part.

Being wrong is a small liberty that many people forget about. If you can say you are wrong then you get to surrender a little responsibility while you become right. Trying to be right all the time is often more of a burden than people realise.

Shalome said:

Shalome said: