(April 8, 2014 at 8:20 am)cromwell Wrote: So just as we think we could make some progress on getting rid of the old religions, all this new age bullshit turns up. Things like you have a third eye, we ourselves are gods from atlantis before it sunk, scientology and all that crap. Maybe the human race is just inclined to believe in and be apart of something bigger than reality. I honestly don't think we will ever get rid of this trait.
Humans do have the ability to accept information (whatever the source) without evidence, if we did not then when our ancestors were told (or shown) 'don't eat the red berries, they will kill you' they would have died off from seeking to discover the truth of the matter first-hand.
There are good evolutionary reasons for having the ability to take some information as it is given to be truthful without the need for supporting information. (Just ask any parent how much they rely on that particular trait). This mechanism has not vanished, it is still part of our psychology and can be accessed.
I'm not suggesting for a second it's that simple, it's not, but it gives us some idea that there are likely to be evolved mechanisms behind the behaviour that was most probably useful for our survival once upon a time.
The likelihood is we will never rid ourselves of these tendencies, there will always be something like religion to plug the psychological gaps and prevent us from falling into delirium.
MM
"The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions" - Leonardo da Vinci
"I think I use the term “radical” rather loosely, just for emphasis. If you describe yourself as “atheist,” some people will say, “Don’t you mean ‘agnostic’?” I have to reply that I really do mean atheist, I really do not believe that there is a god; in fact, I am convinced that there is not a god (a subtle difference). I see not a shred of evidence to suggest that there is one ... etc., etc. It’s easier to say that I am a radical atheist, just to signal that I really mean it, have thought about it a great deal, and that it’s an opinion I hold seriously." - Douglas Adams (and I echo the sentiment)
"I think I use the term “radical” rather loosely, just for emphasis. If you describe yourself as “atheist,” some people will say, “Don’t you mean ‘agnostic’?” I have to reply that I really do mean atheist, I really do not believe that there is a god; in fact, I am convinced that there is not a god (a subtle difference). I see not a shred of evidence to suggest that there is one ... etc., etc. It’s easier to say that I am a radical atheist, just to signal that I really mean it, have thought about it a great deal, and that it’s an opinion I hold seriously." - Douglas Adams (and I echo the sentiment)
