(August 25, 2012 at 11:08 pm)teaearlgreyhot Wrote:

(August 25, 2012 at 10:06 pm)spockrates Wrote: Interesting. Will you give me an example of one such motif?

Inanna, Romulus, Osiris, Zalmoxis, and Adonis are considered dying and rising gods.

Of course, none of them will match completely the story of Jesus, but they same basic elements

(August 26, 2012 at 10:59 am)spockrates Wrote:

(August 25, 2012 at 11:08 pm)teaearlgreyhot Wrote: Inanna, Romulus, Osiris, Zalmoxis, and Adonis are considered dying and rising gods.

Of course, none of them will match completely the story of Jesus, but they same basic elements

Of the written accounts of these gods, are there any that indicate the god was incarnate in human form and the human form (rather than the god) died and was resurrected?

(August 26, 2012 at 11:04 am)teaearlgreyhot Wrote:

(August 26, 2012 at 10:59 am)spockrates Wrote: Of the written accounts of these gods, are there any that indicate the god was incarnate in human form and the human form (rather than the god) died and was resurrected?

I don't remember. Why does that matter? To make an analogy, you're just getting distracted by the equivalent of little melodic figures and ornaments and missing the shared underlying harmonic progression common to all of them.

spockrates Wrote:Well, if my brain is my mind and it is in control, then my brain has control of the decisions made. It is free, so I must be! However, if you are saying my mind is not my brain, but something else (like a soul) then I suppose my brain might be the puppet master pulling my soul's strings, yes. But is that what you are saying? My soul is slave to my brain? If not, then how can my brain not be free, since it has complete control over me and is, in fact me?

(August 26, 2012 at 11:43 am)Faith No More Wrote:

spockrates Wrote:Well, if my brain is my mind and it is in control, then my brain has control of the decisions made. It is free, so I must be! However, if you are saying my mind is not my brain, but something else (like a soul) then I suppose my brain might be the puppet master pulling my soul's strings, yes. But is that what you are saying? My soul is slave to my brain? If not, then how can my brain not be free, since it has complete control over me and is, in fact me?

Free will requires that you be able to make decisions freely. What I meant by your brain structure being in control is that your decisions may not in fact be free, but are determined by the brain's make-up. For instance, we know that the frontal lobe determines your ability to control your impulses. You may be the most reserved, in control person, but after an injury to the frontal lobe, you could become the most impulsive person in the world, unable to properly suppress the behaviors you previously could.

So, your brain structure being in control was not the best choice of words. What I should have said is that your brain structure may predetermine which choices you will make when faced with different options. How does our idea of free will fit in when our decisions are so contingent on the structure of our brain?

(August 26, 2012 at 8:33 am)spockrates Wrote:

(August 25, 2012 at 9:21 pm)Stimbo Wrote:

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Apologies to all BSG fans, 'cos I know how popular the reboot series is, but personally I tuned out when Starbuck rebooted into a girl and Adama gained a first name. Cheesy as it now looks and even as it did at the time, I'll take the original series any day.

Speaking of cheese, and I apologise again for straying off topic, there's a brand of such fermented curdled comestible over here called Leerdammer, which some have pointed out sounds uncannily like Lee Adama. Coincidence?

Yes.

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Yes, having her colonial viper explode and then having her appear months later with no memory of the event and then having her find her own charred remains in a crashed viper on some alien planet was cheesy, since there was no explanation given as to how this was possible.

(August 26, 2012 at 1:53 pm)Stimbo Wrote:

(August 26, 2012 at 8:33 am)spockrates Wrote: Yes, having her colonial viper explode and then having her appear months later with no memory of the event and then having her find her own charred remains in a crashed viper on some alien planet was cheesy, since there was no explanation given as to how this was possible.

Hmm, I didn't realise that, most probably because I watched the feature-length pilot episode of the rebooted BSG with great interest, thinking "well, something's bound to happen in a minute" and I kept thinking that right up to the point when it ended. I decided not to bother with it after that. No, I was thinking more along the lines of when Starbuck looked uncannily like Dirk Benedict:



Not in any sexually-curious or even 'bromance' way; I just feel the series had more dramatic impact back then. In many ways I'm a traditionalist when it comes to classic sci-fi. Hence my totally-unrelated disappointment with J J Abrams' Marmite version of Star Trek (i.e. you either love it or loathe it).

Sorry to keep going off-topic. Consider my interruptions a pause for reflection.

(August 26, 2012 at 1:23 pm)Rhythm Wrote: A valid point, some terms like "self" or "you", or "I" may be artifacts of ignorance. Nevertheless, try to communicate any concept about them without using the terms. Stranger than we can suppose...I believe is the phrase.

Quote:Omniscience, in any form Spock..abrogates free will. How many times do I have to say this? It is not omniscience itself (or any omniscient thing)which has this effect, and so altering the particulars of your "omniscience" claim will not alter this. Even if there were no omniscience, and no omniscient thing, if it was possible...free will is shitcanned.

(August 26, 2012 at 2:30 pm)spockrates Wrote: I can't agree more. Star Trek (TNG) cannot hold a candle to the 52 episodes of Star Trek (TOS).