Share your worldview?

[vulcanlogician]

Camon guys, I want to see what he has to apologize for.

Since his handle is channeling the "fool says in his heart" shtick, the prophecy is we'll see whatever agenda he has very soon.

Really? I didn't even catch that. Y'know, I used to think you veterans were jaded but it turns out again and again that I am the fool for taking these theists at face value.

[J a c k]

Ugh. Work with me, Stim.
Not clear as daylight. Dark. Like my soul.

Your ass soul, amirite?

:crickets:

I’m not laughing, my face is twitching.

[Antares]

I'm taking a class on Christian apologetics - and as part, I need to find a non-christian to interview. Figured I might find one or two here...

Anyone willing to share with me their viewpoint on the big questions -
Q.where we came from
A. Our parents
Q.morality
A. Secular is best
Q.destiny
A. We all die, sorry
Q.and the general meaning of life?
A. 42 (Douglas Adams answered this years ago. I sure hope you brought your towel?)
No debate, just a chance for you to speak your mind.

If you are, reply or send me a private message - and we can find a time to chat or skype.

[Fireball]

Your ass soul, amirite?

:crickets:

I’m not laughing, my face is twitching.

 The face of fear.

[The Grand Nudger]

 where we came from

My momma. You?

morality

Yup

destiny

Nope.

the general meaning of life? 

There isn't any general meaning, thankfully..there are a ton of specific ones.

Welcome aboard.

---

Really? I didn't even catch that. Y'know, I used to think you veterans were jaded but it turns out again and again that I am the fool for taking these theists at face value.

You'll get there. 

[KevinM1]

I’ll give it what it wants, what it really really wants! I’ll give it what it wants, what it really really wants! It wanna.. it wanna... it wanna...

As an atheist (take notes), my world view is sad and void. I believe in eating bebitos. (Write this down) I’m mad at the god, which is why I pretend to be skeptical. My values? None. Since there is no hell, I’m free to kill all I want! Because, that’s what everyone naturally wants to do, and they just don’t do it, because of their god.

My favorite color is black, like my soul. My hair is black, my clothing is black, my men have all been black. My car is also black, but it has a few white scratches. Does that mean something? I’d like to say my coffee is also black and strong like my soul and them men... but it’s sweet and creamy, like my women.

I’m also on drugs and worship Satan.

I would rep again just for this. Well done

To the OP:

I came from my parents. Morality is relative/subjective. Destiny doesn't exist. The meaning of life is something each individual must figure out for themselves.

[psalm531]

Wow. Thanks for the replies. 

The reason I didn't initially open it up to a group discussion is that the assignment is to interview one person. But I'd certainly like to get other thoughts if you'd like to share.  If so, below are the starting questions I was going to ask - on 4 general topics. If not, just ignore them...

Origin
How do you think we got here - how did humans originate?
Where did the universe/world come from? Big Bang, God, other?

Meaning
What do you think the purpose of life is?
Does human life have meaning? If so, what gives that meaning?
Are humans more significant than other creatures? Are we special? Why?

Morality
Why do we have moral ethics? Why do some things ‘seem’ bad (like murder)
Do good and bad exist? How do you determine what is good or bad?
Are good and evil subjective or universal/absolute?
If you don't believe in sin, do you ever feel guilty?

Destiny
What happens to us after death?
Is there a heaven / hell? 
If so, how do you get there? Is there anything specific you have to do?

[GrandizerII]

Wow. Thanks for the replies. 

The reason I didn't initially open it up to a group discussion is that the assignment is to interview one person. But I'd certainly like to get other thoughts if you'd like to share.  If so, below are the starting questions I was going to ask - on 4 general topics. If not, just ignore them...

Origin
How do you think we got here - how did humans originate?
Where did the universe/world come from? Big Bang, God, other?

Meaning
What do you think the purpose of life is?
Does human life have meaning? If so, what gives that meaning?
Are humans more significant than other creatures? Are we special? Why?

Morality
Why do we have moral ethics? Why do some things ‘seem’ bad (like murder)
Do good and bad exist? How do you determine what is good or bad?
Are good and evil subjective or universal/absolute?
If you don't believe in sin, do you ever feel guilty?

Destiny
What happens to us after death?
Is there a heaven / hell? 
If so, how do you get there? Is there anything specific you have to do?

Ill get to those when Im back home.

[KevinM1]

Origin:
The Big Bang is the best theory of the universe's creation to date.  What was (if anything) 'before' the event (notions of time break down, so it's an imprecise term) is a mystery.

Meaning:
There's no inherent meaning for life.  There's no ultimate purpose.  Meaning comes from ourselves... our interactions with each other and our environment.  One of the classic blunders of theistic thought is that, unless meaning is foisted upon us by an external source, we have no value.  I believe that life is precious because it's finite and fragile.  There will only ever be one of me, you, everyone.  So, we might as well maximize the use of our time.

Significance is a loaded term.  Humans are animals.  And other animals have the capacity for language, and even rudimentary reasoning (not just primates or even mammals... look up crows and their apparent capacity for abstract thought).

Morality:
Humans are social creatures.  Indeed, much of our survival depended on us banding together to brave the wilds.  We're tribal.  Morality is largely a manifestation of our evolution.  We've developed a theory of mind (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_mind) which grants us the ability to empathize with others.  As such, we can understand/predict that certain actions (theft, assault, murder, etc.) are harmful to those in our tribe, and ultimately harmful to ourselves.

IMO, this is how religions and early governments formed.  They were codifications of things that maximized their tribe's chances of survival.  It's why religions, in particular, put so much emphasis on how/when one can breed, or otherwise engage in sexual activity.

So, good and evil are subjective, in that they're the result of particular culture's attempt to maximize their group's cohesiveness.

Do I ever feel guilty about some things?  Sure.  Not because sin exists (the very notion of sin is laughable), but because, as an empathetic creature, I understand when I've caused harm.  And that same awareness pushes me to remedy the situation.

Destiny:
When we die, we're obliterated.  No awareness, no anything.  As it was before our birth, it will be after our death.

[Astreja]

Origin
How do you think we got here - how did humans originate?
Where did the universe/world come from? Big Bang, God, other?

Humans evolved from other primates, who in turn evolved from other animals.  At some point billions of years in the past, complex organic molecules aggregated into the first forms of life, self-replicating molecules, and then changed into other forms in response to environmental pressures.

Big Bang marks the start of the known universe.  I believe that matter/energy has always existed in some form or another, and that creation ex nihilo is an absurdity and a contradiction in terms:  Creation requires energy, and there is an equivalency of matter and energy; therefore, at most a creator-god could rearrange the matter/energy that already existed and could not have created it.

Meaning
What do you think the purpose of life is?
Does human life have meaning? If so, what gives that meaning?
Are humans more significant than other creatures? Are we special? Why?

There is no one purpose of life.  It is entirely subjective and unique for every sentient being.  Human life has meaning if we choose to see that it has meaning.  Humans are significant primarily to other humans but not necessarily to any other beings.

Morality
Why do we have moral ethics? Why do some things ‘seem’ bad (like murder)
Do good and bad exist? How do you determine what is good or bad?
Are good and evil subjective or universal/absolute?
If you don't believe in sin, do you ever feel guilty?

Moral ethics are a consequence of living in communities.  Things that make the community unsafe for its members, such as theft or murder, become problems for the community to solve and lead to the creation of codes of law and law-enforcers.

Good and bad exist as actions and perceptions, but are not innate properties.  "Good" relieves suffering and increases happiness; "bad" increases suffering.

I see good and evil as subjective for the simple reason that they are value judgements.  In a stable, thriving community there will appear to be an objective standard, but I think this is an illusion created by the fact that people tend to want similar things like safety.

I feel guilty if I violate my own code of ethics, for instance not following through on something I had intended to do.  It doesn't happen very often, though.

Destiny
What happens to us after death?
Is there a heaven / hell? 
If so, how do you get there? Is there anything specific you have to do?

I believe that the self is wholly dependent on the physical brain, without a "soul" component.  When we die, the brain circuitry that supports our self-awareness and personality rapidly breaks down and cannot be restored, and "we" are gone forever.

I do not believe in either heaven or hell.