(July 29, 2015 at 2:33 pm)The Batlord Wrote:(July 29, 2015 at 1:38 pm)Alex K Wrote: Welcome!
However, if being wrong makes you sacrifice a significant part of your all too short life to a bullshit idea, being right has a clear advantage.
I've never known atheists to be any happier than anyone else, and if there is no intrinsic happiness benefit to being right, then I don't see it necessarily as an advantage on the individual level.
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Two things. First, I was much happier after I deconverted than I was when I was a believer. That is not why I deconverted, and it is not what I expected. However, from speaking with others, who are not recently deconverted, they seem to generally be happier than they were as believers, too.
For one example, I do not worry about making a mistake and ending up burning in hell forever. Think about the implications of common religious beliefs, and you will find much to worry about in them.
Second, being right about things is often beneficial for choosing appropriate means to one's ends (goals). If someone is wrong about things, they often pick means that fail to bring about their desired ends, and are therefore frustrated. If someone has an accurate view of things, then one is better able to select means appropriate to one's ends, and consequently is more frequently satisfied.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
