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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 3:58 am
(This post was last modified: May 28, 2010 at 4:00 am by Violet.)
(May 26, 2010 at 9:34 pm)Tiberius Wrote: Evil, whilst being entirely subjective, exists as a concept, just as love exists as a concept. It is interpreted differently by different people, but it still exists.
But then... everything exists as a concept... so tis not saying much. I should have assumed that it is not what the OP meant when they asked the question... but if it should be meant literally: I find myself agreeing with you 
(May 27, 2010 at 12:18 am)Joe Bloe Wrote: When that serial killer grabs your little sister - there's evil...
I know... i mean: little sisters are the fucking devil incarnate.
The serial killer should be thanked, if anything.
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 4:24 am
(May 26, 2010 at 6:24 pm)theistwithquestions Wrote: hi everyone! I was wondering what your thoughts were on the existence of evil. My atheist friends say that evil does not exist, but they are still repulsed by things that are...well, evil? I was wondering if anyone could clarify this paradox for me. This is my first post, and I apologize if it sounds elementary.
Humans can be evil and humans can be good. Nothing to do with God. It all comes from us mate.
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 6:25 am
I believe in subjective evil but not objective evil.
EvF
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 6:39 am
Question : Do you believe that an abstract concept can be used objectively? I think a good example would be mathmatics.
"There ought to be a term that would designate those who actually follow the teachings of Jesus, since the word 'Christian' has been largely divorced from those teachings, and so polluted by fundamentalists that it has come to connote their polar opposite: intolerance, vindictive hatred, and bigotry." -- Philip Stater, Huffington Post
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 2:27 pm
I too agree that evil exists as a concept and not some entity or entities with ill intentions towards mankind as in demons. I define evil as the opposite of good, in other words anything that has deleterious effects or is detrimental to man, society, a people, the environment is in my view evil. Of course there are a myriad number of thing that we could attach evil to but this is the long and short of it.
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 3:10 pm
(May 28, 2010 at 6:39 am)tackattack Wrote: Question : Do you believe that an abstract concept can be used objectively? I think a good example would be mathmatics.
But mathematics are not provably objective... 
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 3:43 pm
I wonder if TWQ will now go back to his atheist friends and say that he asked at atheistforums.org and we said that evil does exist. Leaving out the distinction we are making between the concept of evil and the superstition based 'malevolent force', so he can claim his friends are wrong.
In case you do plan to include that distinction, TWQ... What I mean (and what I think most of the others mean) is that evil is the word we use to describe extremely bad things. That is all it is.
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 3:50 pm
OK sae.. language and logic are also subjective, so is our understanding of the concept of the color black. Where are you going to draw the line? If nothing is objectively verifiable, what is this call for objective evidence for God? (don't mean to derail the topc just a quick question)
Is not 1+1=2?
"There ought to be a term that would designate those who actually follow the teachings of Jesus, since the word 'Christian' has been largely divorced from those teachings, and so polluted by fundamentalists that it has come to connote their polar opposite: intolerance, vindictive hatred, and bigotry." -- Philip Stater, Huffington Post
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RE: does evil exist?
May 28, 2010 at 11:47 pm
(May 28, 2010 at 3:50 pm)tackattack Wrote: OK sae.. language and logic are also subjective, so is our understanding of the concept of the color black. Where are you going to draw the line? If nothing is objectively verifiable, what is this call for objective evidence for God? (don't mean to derail the topc just a quick question)
Is not 1+1=2?
I don't draw a 'line'... it is all subjective that can be perceived and described and shared with others who have agreed upon a definition. Nothing is objectively verifiable, even existence cannot be objectively verified. Existence (among other things) may be 'intersubjectively' verifiable... and what that means is that several subjective beings experience a similar feelings/impressions/perceptions/whathaveyou. It means a thing can be 'shared' among those who can experience it.
Only people who do not understand what 'objectivity' means would ever ask for "objective evidence" for anything. I should be truly impressed if anyone were to discover such a thing :S Some people don't rightly 'know' what 'objectivity' is (using 'know' by its common usage... that being 'their knowledge matches what is known to most of us')... and use it to supplant 'scientific evidence'. If you see anyone say that they want objective evidence for God, Tacky... I would recommend you first: Laugh at them... and second: ask for objective evidence for anything.
Quick answer:
1+1 does equal 2... to me and apparently my computer and most/all fellow humans I have met. Another might have a different answer... and in different circumstances the question cannot be answered at all.
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RE: does evil exist?
May 29, 2010 at 12:17 am
Fair enough sae, I like the new word too I'm going to have to use that "intersubjectivity". What philosophical stance would that be that nothing is objectively verifiable? Also I try not to laugh at anyone not telling a joke...
"There ought to be a term that would designate those who actually follow the teachings of Jesus, since the word 'Christian' has been largely divorced from those teachings, and so polluted by fundamentalists that it has come to connote their polar opposite: intolerance, vindictive hatred, and bigotry." -- Philip Stater, Huffington Post
always working on cleaning my windows- me regarding Johari
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