This thread is more Shirley MacLaine than Jesus or zombie. Hell, the previous necropost on this same page pits this one to shame. I think I counted at least five reincarnations.
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Current time: April 19, 2024, 8:15 pm
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Why am I me?
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 (October 12, 2010 at 5:58 pm)R-e-n-n-a-t Wrote: Being conscious individually, as I assume everyone else is, the question comes to mind; why do I exist from a 1st person point of view? Obviously I couldn't exist from a 3rd person POV, but when I die it'll seem to me as if the world ends; MY world will end. How can I explain this... When you sleep without dreaming everything is nonremembered, and seems 'black'. If death is the same, then it'll be lights out for eternity, and therefore I'm wondering why I'm conscious to begin with. Why me? Why here? Why now? Why at all? etc. I think "why" is being misapplied here.
Nay_Sayer: “Nothing is impossible if you dream big enough, or in this case, nothing is impossible if you use a barrel of KY Jelly and a miniature horse.”
Wiser words were never spoken.
Haha, I didn't notice how old this post was!
Nay_Sayer: “Nothing is impossible if you dream big enough, or in this case, nothing is impossible if you use a barrel of KY Jelly and a miniature horse.”
Wiser words were never spoken.  RE: Why am I me?
December 16, 2016 at 8:45 am
(This post was last modified: December 16, 2016 at 8:45 am by Whateverist.)
I find myself wanting to tell the OP in answer to his question regarding why he is stuck being himself that while it may be a dirty job, someone has to do it.
It's an interesting question to ask. I can remember being very, very young (7 or 8) and asking my parents this and they would always give me some sort of half assed response or just dodge the question, which would always frustrate me.
I think it's akin to a spark causing a fire to start and the fire then asking, "Why am I this fire? Why am I not another fire?" It's an interesting question but ultimately, not really a valid question. It's like asking why is water wet. Well, because it's water. Why are you, you? Because you are. That's it. This question arises because we are self aware. But to ask this question is almost to assume that your consciousness could have ended up in another body and/or brain, but that's not how consciousness works, as far as we know. The question almost assumes that consciousness is like a pitcher of water being poured into smaller containers, or glasses. You would then ask, "Why did I end up in this glass instead of another?" But I don't liken consciousness to glasses of water... Rather I liken consciousness more to the idea of a spark starting a fire, which eventually burns out. To ask where the first "spark" came from is to ask of the origins of life, or consciousness, and we obviously do not have the answers to those types of questions. The idea is confusing because "you" arose from your consciousness which arose from completely natural, biological processes. You simply grew into existence, you weren't placed into your body or something like that, because, once again that is not how consciousness works.
“Love is the only bow on Life’s dark cloud. It is the morning and the evening star. It shines upon the babe, and sheds its radiance on the quiet tomb. It is the mother of art, inspirer of poet, patriot and philosopher.
It is the air and light of every heart – builder of every home, kindler of every fire on every hearth. It was the first to dream of immortality. It fills the world with melody – for music is the voice of love. Love is the magician, the enchanter, that changes worthless things to Joy, and makes royal kings and queens of common clay. It is the perfume of that wondrous flower, the heart, and without that sacred passion, that divine swoon, we are less than beasts; but with it, earth is heaven, and we are gods.” - Robert. G. Ingersoll 
. . . bad luck?
 ![[Image: hqdefault.jpg]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gX91aiiTWq4/hqdefault.jpg)
 RE: Why am I me?
December 17, 2016 at 12:49 pm
(This post was last modified: December 17, 2016 at 12:50 pm by Chas.)
(December 15, 2016 at 11:20 pm)LadyForCamus Wrote:(October 12, 2010 at 5:58 pm)R-e-n-n-a-t Wrote: Being conscious individually, as I assume everyone else is, the question comes to mind; why do I exist from a 1st person point of view? Obviously I couldn't exist from a 3rd person POV, but when I die it'll seem to me as if the world ends; MY world will end. How can I explain this... When you sleep without dreaming everything is nonremembered, and seems 'black'. If death is the same, then it'll be lights out for eternity, and therefore I'm wondering why I'm conscious to begin with. Why me? Why here? Why now? Why at all? etc. That is definitely the case. The "why" question has a tacit assumption that there exists a "why". Only the "how" question is meaningful. And when that is answered, a why may or may not emerge. This seems to be the case in many of the philosophical debates here; people are asking why when they need to be asking how.
Skepticism is not a position; it is an approach to claims.
Science is not a subject, but a method. |
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