If Life is Meaningless Anyway, then What's Wrong with Religion?

[Arkilogue]

Since the day we are born? Surely, there is a growth processes and gaining of information/order before there is cessation of growth and accumulation of disorder. Unless you're talking about telomerase.

http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101128/f...0.635.html

And then there is the spiritual quality of "dying" inside before the body does. Losing the "spark" of life and will/want to live. Aka the death of the heart, the waxing of love, the human soul turned cold.

My personal metric for that death of the heart is when I stop playing. That is when the death process has over come the inertia and willed pattern of my life process. If I can still express joy on the day of my death, I will have never died. Something to aim for, anyway.

I knew someone would get pedantic with the poetic.

I retain artist license of my life, and so can you.

[Huggy Bear]

But EP WAS speaking of immortality.

Quoting Mister Agendas post:


*emphasis mine*

And that wasn't what I was talking about, which I made plain already.

Also my point was that you don't know anyone PERPETUALLY in their prime that would want to kill themselves.

Thanks, that's pretty obvious. What should be just as obvious is that I was speaking to the human condition, which is clearly outside the bounds of your special condition.

An eternal being would have wisdom and experience far beyond your typical 20 year old.

There is no comparison.

Well, it's a good thing I wasn't comparing a human to an immortal, then!

So basically you're just making random comments that are irrelevant to the original point being made?

Apparently EP likes to waste time responding to irrelevant nonsense, I would have shut that down from the get go.

Your back peddling has reached Olympic levels.

[Thumpalumpacus]

So basically you're just making random comments that are irrelevant to the original point being made?

Uh, no. The conversation drifted, and unlike you, I followed it.

Apparently EP likes to waste time responding to irrelevant nonsense, I would have shut that down from the get go.

You're double-dog bad online ... I'm impressed. No, really. You're bad -- nationwide.

Your back peddling has reached Olympic levels.

I ain't backing down from shit, kid. Would you like pineapple or cactus?

[Huggy Bear]

You're double-dog bad online ... I'm impressed. No, really. You're bad -- nationwide.

I ain't backing down from shit, kid. Would you like pineapple or cactus?

The hypocrisy is strong in this one...

[Thumpalumpacus]

You're double-dog bad online ... I'm impressed. No, really. You're bad -- nationwide.

I ain't backing down from shit, kid. Would you like pineapple or cactus?

The hypocrisy is strong in this one...

Ooooooooh, you got me there.

Next up:



Pity you couldn't be bothered to respond to my point. Do you need me to make it again? I'll happily oblige.

[Huggy Bear]

The hypocrisy is strong in this one...

Ooooooooh, you got me there.

Next up:



Pity you couldn't be bothered to respond to my point. Do you need me to make it again? I'll happily oblige.

What point? You just admitted to being complicit in derailing the discussion off on to some irrelevant tangent when you weren't trying to respond to EP's original point about IMMORTALITY, but now you're adamant that I address whatever point you're trying to make?

Which is?

[Thumpalumpacus]

No, I admitted to following the flow of the conversation. Read much?

I'd ask why that's so hard for you to understand, but then, I thought, Huggy's a believer, he's used to being told what to do. And then it all makes sense.

I repeat -- if you need help understanding my point, all you have to do is ask, I'll be happy to help. But I doubt you'll ask -- it's not deep in your character to admit error.

"Prove" me wrong now. Go on.

[Huggy Bear]

Yes, because using your grandmother for an example as to why someone who is immortal might want to stop living makes a whole lot of sense.

Also I did ask you what your point was, read my last post again.


I actually did ask. Read my post again.

[Edwardo Piet]

Aside from emotional meaning life is meaningless. Subjective self-assigned meanings are only meaningful because they feel meaningful. Subjectively meaningful, to the subject.

However if it feels meaningful and adds subjective purpose to one's life who cares if it's "really meaningless" or whatever?

Feeling meaningful is pretty much all meaningful is.

Exactly my point. I thank you for the pith that I lacked

[LadyForCamus]

So, you're saying if we could eliminate the inevitability of old age and breakdown, everyone would want to live forever?  Hmm.  Maybe.  I'm still not sure that is a reasonable assumption to make though.  How would anyone know they'd still enjoy living beyond, say, 600 years if no one has ever actually made it that far?  I can sit here right now and say if I were to remain 33 and healthy I'd be thrilled to live for eternity, but how do I know I wouldn't change my mind some 200 years down the line?  

No, if you could eliminate the solvable problem of old-age related breakdown, yes, people wouldn't "tire" of living. They might still want to end their lives, but it would be for other reasons than so-called "tiredness". Do you hear many young healthy folks saying they're done with life, they've lived enough and it's time for them to go now? Why is it that you don't, do you think? Take whatever reason you might come up with to explain that and ask yourself if you think it's unlikely or even impossible that we won't overcome it in the future.

You don't, but neither do you know that you will. If we are to allow for the simple fact that we just don't know what the future might bring or what that particular situation might look like, yet, then both positions expressed here so far are just as invalid. Namely, we don't know either way. We can make assumptions, though. That's what I've been doing, same as all the rest of you who disagree with me at the moment.

I'm not trying to argue with you, EP. I am actually seriously considering your assumption. Did I not make that obvious? I think it's very likely that if we could "solve" the problem of old age and disease a great many more people would be happy to live on forever. I would put myself in that category in fact. The idea of ceasing to exist someday horrifies and terrorizes me on a regular basis. But, I'm not operating on any assumptions, to be clear. All I'm saying is that generalizations about feelings and motives like, 'no one ever feels' or 'no one ever wants', are meaningless unless you have some amazing ability to live the entire life of every human who has ever, or will ever be born.