some questions

[festive1]

1. What do you believe about God?

I don't believe anything about god.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

I know that the universe is huge. I know that it follows basic (and not so basic) physical rules, though I may not fully understand them.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

I believe humans are capable of much good and equally much evil. The individual is another matter.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

We are all born. We all will die. There is no evidence of an existence beyond what we are experiencing here and now.

5. How do we get knowledge?

Many ways. We learn by mirroring our caregivers when we are young. We learn through our experiences. We learn from teachers and books. If we are lucky, we become critical thinkers, question the information given to us, and come to our own conclusions.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

Societal norms and the value systems of our families, until a certain age. Then we ideally form our own ideas about morality. MLK Jr. (paraphrased): Unjust laws should be broken.

7. What is the meaning of history?

History doesn't have a definite "meaning." It's open to interpretation. History is traditionally written by the winners, thereby it is inherently biased in their favor.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I don't have a religion or belief system. I am an atheist, no belief required.

See I answered the survey! Is there a prize of some sort?

[Gambit]

I'm with festive on this. Presumably the aim of the questions is to draw conclusions about the worldview of the respondents. There is no way you're going to garner any meaningful data from those questions, without every respondent writing essay type answers, at the very least. Never the less, I'll answer the questions as best I can.

1. What do you believe about God?

We have no proof there is such a thing(s) in existence; which is a fact, rather than a belief as requested in the question. So, I know that we do not know if God(s) exist or not.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

That it is large and that we (The human species) do not know all there is to know about it, and it's unlikely that we ever will.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

We are self-aware, social animals who are still evolving. Our self-awareness prompts us to search for answers about the origins of everything, however, our ego sometimes leads us to believe that we have all the answers already, and that we are a lot more special than we actually are. I suspect these are traits that we will grow out of, but it is unlikely to happen in our lifetime.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

This question would require a whole series of books by authors more qualified to discuss it than I, so I'll leave it at what I know. We live and then we die.

5. How do we get knowledge?

There are a number of ways to gain knowledge - experience, tutoring, experimentation, observation and etc.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

Right and wrong are very subjective words. However, they are pretty much determined in the same way that we gain knowledge - experience, tutoring, experimentation, observation and etc. Progressively, we tend to determine what is right/wrong by how it affects members of our society. We keep what benefits the society, and we throw out what doesn't. We also tend to adopt as good, those things that benefit us personally, or would want for ourselves. Things like kindness, cooperation, sharing and empathy make for a healthy society and benefit everyone, whereas things like murder, rape, slavery and racism don't. So, I determine right and wrong in exactly the same that you and everyone else on the planet does.

7. What is the meaning of history?

Sorry, this question doesn't make sense so you're going to have to clarify.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I would currently describe myself as agnostic, with leanings toward deism.

[Annik]

1. What do you believe about God?

I don't believe in any gods. I have no reason to.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

I believe it's very big. Veeeery big. If you're concerned with the origins, ect, the latest in science tends to decide my views.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

Humans do a lot of things for a lot of stupid reasons. We're monkeys with nukes. We can be irrational and nasty beings. However, we are capable of a lot of good, too.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

I live and then I die.

5. How do we get knowledge?

From learning.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

How most humans do. I take social cues from my environment and peers/parents. Nowadays and tend to stack my values against ethics lensed through my philosophy.

7. What is the meaning of history?

How will we understand the mistakes humans have made if we don't study history? My father was always a big fan of the phrase "Those who do not learn history are bound to repeat it" and I am as well.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I am an agnostic Atheist, but the label is just a label.

[The Grand Nudger]

Hey everyone. I'm doing an assignment for school. I'm not looking to debate what you believe at all. I just have some questions I need answers to. If any people who AREN'T Christians could answer this, that would be awesome! Thanks!

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1. What do you believe about God?
2. What do you believe about the universe?
3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?
4 What do you believe about life and death?
5. How do we get knowledge?
6. How do you determine right and wrong?
7. What is the meaning of history?
8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

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Welcome aboard amigo.
1. Not a damned thing.
2. Yet again, not a damned thing.
3. There are plenty of things I'd -like- to believe about human nature..lol, but as with both of the above, nothing I can really claim belief in.
4. Same as 3.
5. By both searching for it, and subjecting it to scrutiny- endlessly.
6. Gut feeling until I'm pressed.
7. It means "the past", or sometimes "the study of the past".
8. None.

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6. How do you determine right and wrong? A good way to start is to examine the legal codes in whatever society you happen to be a member.

7. What is the meaning of history? "History is a lie agreed upon." - Napoleon Bonaparte.

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[Simon Moon]

1. What do you believe about God?

I don't believe anything about any of the gods humanity believes in, including the Christian god.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

I don't have to believe anything about the universe. It exists whether or not I believe it does.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

We are hominids, species homo sapiens.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

I was dead for 14.7 billion years. I don't worry myself much with death.

5. How do we get knowledge?

Knowledge is gained using several tools. Observation, critical thinking, valid logic, experience.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

Empathy. It is rational to treat others in the same manner as I would like to be treated.

There are evolutionary reasons for behaving ethically and empathetically that are probably best left to another discussion.

7. What is the meaning of history?

This question makes no sense. Maybe you can clarify.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I am an atheist. I have no religion or belief system with regards to the existence of gods.

[Brakeman]

1. What do you believe about God?

That he's a senile old pervert that is completely impotent to the point of non-existence.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

I believe that the waters in the sky are held back by a dome and that the little tiny christmas tree lights that are affixed are called stars and will fall to earth one day so that people will have to hide in caves to avoid getting hit by them. The moon glows, and heaven is a bejeweled palace in the clouds.
Just kidding, I don't have to believe stuff about the universe, I can use science to verify my own observations.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

We are a great ape with strong herd mentalities.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

I live until I don't, which is exactly equal to the state I was in before I was born.

5. How do we get knowledge?

By avoiding superstition.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

From what I was taught by my parents, plus the innate herd empathies.

7. What is the meaning of history?

History is a record of past events, subject to the quality of the recording.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I don't, and atheism is neither a religion nor a belief system and needs no initial capitalization but could use some spelling correction.

[Gilgamesh]

1. What do you believe about God?
2. What do you believe about the universe?
3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?
4 What do you believe about life and death?
5. How do we get knowledge?
6. How do you determine right and wrong?
7. What is the meaning of history?
8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

1. I believe 'god' is a work of fiction that people actually believe is true on the basis that it makes them feel good and not because it's reasonable.

2. I'm in it. I'm a part of it. It's constantly expanding.

3. We're curious and like to fuck. Everything else is relative.

4. Life is consciousness. Death is the other thing.

5. Our senses.

6. I reason it out.

7. Go to Wikipedia and find out.

8. Why do you list "atheist" there? Atheism is not a belief.

[Angrboda]

1. What do you believe about God?

She's awesome!

2. What do you believe about the universe?

Not specializing in cosmology or physics, I let others deal with the subject. Though I am an anti-realist with sympathies toward Platonic realism and mereological nihilism.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

I believe in biological evolution. Human nature, in its broadest strokes, is my specialization. You'd have to be more specific to get a reasonably short and meaningful answer.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

Life was covered in question three. My views on death are too idiosyncratic and personal to be shared.

5. How do we get knowledge?

The scope of this question is far too broad, again. (Epistemology is one of my other core specialties.)

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

I often don't. As a philosopher specializing in human behavior, I have notions about how humans in general accomplish this, and the conclusions I've reached are that right and wrong are a function of biology and psychology (ignoring larger epistemological issues for the moment). I personally am rather intuitive, amoral, highly unorthodox, and somewhat sociopathic, so I in general don't worry much beyond what my intuition yields up to me in the here and now.

7. What is the meaning of history?

History is an abstract concept. If you need a dictionary, I recommend the Oxford English Dictionary. If you're asking how we should interpret history, my views are largely influenced by Gadamer, Foucault, and the deconstructionists.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

I am a Taoist and Shakta Hindu who worships the goddess Kali.

[Tiberius]

1. What do you believe about God?
2. What do you believe about the universe?
3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?
4 What do you believe about life and death?
5. How do we get knowledge?
6. How do you determine right and wrong?
7. What is the meaning of history?
8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

1. I don't believe any God exists.

2. Only what thorough scientific inquiry has told us.

3. We're capable of both great and terrible things. In that regard, we aren't much different from any other form of life.

4. Life is when molecules self-replicate. Death is when they stop.

5. I don't believe we can.

6. Negative form of the Golden rule.

7. Not sure I understand the question. History in itself has no meaning...events in history might have some meaning to people.

8. I'm an agnostic atheist.

[Something completely different]

Hey everyone. I'm doing an assignment for school. I'm not looking to debate what you believe at all. I just have some questions I need answers to. If any people who AREN'T Christians could answer this, that would be awesome! Thanks!

1. What do you believe about God?

That he is a made up figure of authority, who was made up by people as a justification for their absolute authority and to explain unexplained natural phenomena.

2. What do you believe about the universe?

Nothing. I know things! It`s huge, it expands at a speed of 71 kilometers per second, it is 13 billion years old and there a various theories on how it came to existance which have to be factually evaluated to be accepted by me.

3. What do you believe about the nature of human beings?

What ever I can read and assess out of behavioral studies.

4 What do you believe about life and death?

I know that they are the beginning and end of life.

5. How do we get knowledge?

Scientific knowlege through a method called critical rationalism
Humanistic knowlege through thought and creativity.

6. How do you determine right and wrong?

Laws and comon sence.

7. What is the meaning of history?

A reminder of a darker past and[/quote] a process from which one can learn.

8. If you have a specific religion or recognized belief system you belong to, please state what it is. (ex. Athiest, Buddhist, Agnostic, etc)

Atheist