(May 17, 2016 at 6:42 pm)mh.brewer Wrote:

(May 17, 2016 at 6:39 pm)quip Wrote: I suppose, with a little effort, you may pare down that thinking process to the point of a self-induced coma.  Good luck.

Answer please, what difference would it make?

To you, apparently none. Carry on!

(May 17, 2016 at 6:43 pm)quip Wrote:

(May 17, 2016 at 6:42 pm)mh.brewer Wrote: Answer please, what difference would it make?

To you, apparently none. Carry on!

OK, what difference does it make to you?

(May 17, 2016 at 3:48 pm)The Valkyrie Wrote: "There's no I in you"

Dammit, I thought this was going to be a pickup line thread.



Sorry, in a weird mood.

Sadly, there will never be an "I" in you, but one can still dream, right?

(May 17, 2016 at 5:54 pm)quip Wrote: Ontological identity had to come about at some point.    

-but, apparently, not before my conception, huh?

Quote:The question is odd though sound.  Look, the premise is simple...just take an introspective look at your life. Have you ever wondered exactly why you are who you are; as a teenager did you wonder why you weren't the star football player or prom queen (assuming, like most of us, you weren't); why were you born into the family you were born into and the "what-if" fantasy of being somebody else. Well, why weren't you?

No, I wasn't a star football player because I didn't put the hours in.  I wasn't a prom queen because I have entirely too much penis. Let me guess....though, you think the answer to all of these questions is " because magic"....huh.

Quote:I'm simply expanding upon that nascent wonderment and making an ontological query into exactly how or why any one particular self among a historical amalgamation of selves has been, existentially speaking, personally discernible as "you". 

-and you've received plenty of sensible, easily demonstrable answers, despite your litany of insensible questions and responses.  What's the problem?  

Quote:If nothing else comes of this, it aptly illustrates that the very hand-waving efforts at dismissing/dodging the inquiry exposes a blind spot within the atheist perspective.

Another inexplicable belief you have, to add to the pile, it would seem.

(May 17, 2016 at 7:41 pm)mh.brewer Wrote:

(May 17, 2016 at 6:43 pm)quip Wrote: To you, apparently none. Carry on!

OK, what difference does it make to you?

It answers much. Anattā is an important concept to Buddhist understanding.

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(May 17, 2016 at 8:33 pm)Rhythm Wrote:

(May 17, 2016 at 5:54 pm)quip Wrote: Ontological identity had to come about at some point.    

-but, apparently, not before my conception, huh?

I dunno maybe.

Quote:The question is odd though sound.  Look, the premise is simple...just take an introspective look at your life. Have you ever wondered exactly why you are who you are; as a teenager did you wonder why you weren't the star football player or prom queen (assuming, like most of us, you weren't); why were you born into the family you were born into and the "what-if" fantasy of being somebody else. Well, why weren't you?

No, I wasn't a star football player because I didn't put the hours in.  I wasn't a prom queen because I have entirely too much penis.  Let me guess....though, you think the answer to all of these questions is " because magic"....huh.

No, magic seems the knee-jerk proxy for atheist's misinterpretation.

Quote:I'm simply expanding upon that nascent wonderment and making an ontological query into exactly how or why any one particular self among a historical amalgamation of selves has been, existentially speaking, personally discernible as "you". 

-and you've received plenty of sensible, easily demonstrable answers, despite your litany of insensible questions and responses.  What's the problem?  

No problem at all. If it's important to you that I have one....I'll see what I can do.

Quote:If nothing else comes of this, it aptly illustrates that the very hand-waving efforts at dismissing/dodging the inquiry exposes a blind spot within the atheist perspective.

Another inexplicable belief you have, to add to the pile, it would seem.

Perhaps you could expand your horizons with the aid of a couple of them.  Give it a try.

Well I am me because of my choices and the social and environmental conditions I've been raised in. We have a lot of factors effecting us during our lifetime and the factors are so numerous that collectively they are unique for each individual.

But from your questions I think you are making a mistake in thinking that we are more than our physical biological selves. You asked why someone is born to particular parents, but the thing is there is no 'someone' before they are born. Existence begins at birth. So the question shouldn't be why someone is born a certain way, rather it should simply be why someone is what they are.

I, I, Sir!

(May 18, 2016 at 2:33 am)Aoi Magi Wrote: Well I am me because of my choices and the social and environmental conditions I've been raised in. We have a lot of factors effecting us during our lifetime and the factors are so numerous that in total they are unique for each individual.

But from your questions I think you are making a mistake in thinking that we are more than our physical biological selves. You asked why someone is born to particular parents, but the thing is there is no 'someone' before they are born. Existence begins at birth. So the question shouldn't be why someone is born a certain way, rather it should simply be why someone is what they are.

I'm simply asking atheists what mundane factor(s) determined their particular experience of self in distinction to roughly six billion alternate, extant possibilities.

@quip I didn't reply to your reply since it was a mess and I couldn't edit it properly since I'm on the phone :p

Anyway. You can't just say "a deity must come up at some point" without any evidence. I strongly dislike that because we've heard it several times and none who claim such things have succeeded in convincing me or anyone else here in AF as to why a deity must be and none of them got evidence. You must understand that our lack of knowledge is not evidence for a deity. If I'm wrong, tell me why. Even if we can never answer this question it still isn't evidence for a deity because we are simply humans and our knowledge is limited. 

What I think is happening here is, since you're human, your brain tries to find patterns and make sense of random data. the random data being something along individuals and consciousness. There's even a word for that, Apophenia.

And yes I've had the thought about why I am me and not him/her the longer I thought about it the less sense it made. It was like one of those moments where you repeat a word several times and it loses its meaning :p

(May 18, 2016 at 3:46 am)RozKek Wrote: @quip I didn't reply to your reply since it was a mess and I couldn't edit it properly since I'm on the phone :p

No worries.

Quote:Anyway. You can't just say "a deity must come up at some point" without any evidence. I strongly dislike that because we've heard it several times and none who claim such things have succeeded in convincing me or anyone else here in AF as to why a deity must be and none of them got evidence. You must understand that our lack of knowledge is not evidence for a deity. If I'm wrong, tell me why. Even if we can never answer this question it still isn't evidence for a deity because we are simply humans and our knowledge is limited.

 

I'm specifically and explicitly not positing any form of deity. I'm simply offering up food for thought...a "reasonable doubt" to the atheist perspective, if you will.

Quote:What I think is happening here is, since you're human, your brain tries to find patterns and make sense of random data. the random data being something along individuals and consciousness. There's even a word for that, Apophenia.

What patterns have I meted out? I'm simply referring to the self...clearly a self-evident proposition. (for lack of an alternate term.)

Quote:And yes I've had the thought about why I am me and not him/her the longer I thought about it the less sense it made. It was like one of those moments where you repeat a word several times and it loses its meaning :p

Yes, I understand.