Why did God create so many idiots?

[Dubious]

It was the super intelligent who created god and it was the idiots who believed them...and still do. The former live in palaces; the latter live in huts.

[Ned]

That's a good way of looking at it, for sure!

[Dubious]

That's a good way of looking at it, for sure!

It's unfortunate in one way. Where can we now apply for summary justice which many yearn for when God is nothing more than

a fable, bruised by thunder
a dream that told a lie.

I suppose the only merit which remains is the concept of standing before an impartial judge who does not measure crime by the protocols of bureaucracy or the rules of expediency. No sacred or secular texts of Law only the effect you have had on others. Who the hell knows. Maybe God lives in some other Universe being an absentee landlord in this one.

[Ned]

That's a good way of looking at it, for sure!

Maybe God lives in some other Universe being an absentee landlord in this one.

Maybe 'god' is a word without meaning.

I have never heard a definition that did not use other undefined words.

If you follow from one to the other, you will find that it is circular, like a snake eating its tail.

[Greylorn Ell]

Ned,

A better question than why did God create idiots might be, why so many dreadfully ordinary, innocuous, and dull people? For your question and this even wider version of it, presuming that there is a creator and that some key elements of theological/religious lore are more or less true, the answer is simple. God created the human brain/body system, but not the soul.

To make sense of this approach it is helpful to consider Descartes' claim that the soul is the mind. His theory is flawed because it fails to explain the brain's function, but we can mitigate this flaw by modifying Descartes' theory in the light of modern neurological knowledge, which despite considerable advances has yet to find any part of the brain that accounts for human consciousness. Consider these propositions:

1. The entire subconscious mind is accounted for by the brain.
2. The "super-conscious" mind is the soul, at least when it actually is conscious.
3. The conscious mind is the effect of a well-integrated brain/soul system working together.

In that context, suppose that God did not create the soul. It always existed, or existed at least as long as God has. God does not need a body to be conscious. However, the soul is too insignificant an entity to develop consciousness without assistance. God has generously provided souls with a brain-body system to help them develop consciousness, if possible. He cannot be blamed for actually creating the silly things.

Greylorn

P.S. These comments are just a condensation of ideas taken from a more complete theory in which they are fleshed out with logic and scientific data.
G.

[Ned]

...presuming that there is a creator and that some key elements of theological/religious lore are more or less true, the answer is simple. God created the human brain/body system, but not the soul.

Greylorn, even assuming that there is a creator, you plunged right ahead and used another undefined word: the 'soul' You used it as if it was obvious and well understood what that word means. For me, it doesn't. Is it the mind? Is it the consciousness? If neither, than how is it related to either? What empirical evidence do we have that there is such a thing? If it is one or the other, then why do we need another and separate word for the same thing?

Just because science has not figured it out yet, there is no need to invoke a "final answer". It is perfectly rational and sensible to say that we are not there yet, and we may never be there, ever. We, humans, are not the center of the universe, with the capacity for infinite knowledge. There may be phenomena out there that would require another 8, 9 ,10,... senses (beyond the five we possess) and so, we may never even become aware of those phenomena.

It is possible to say: we don't know, or: we don't know yet. We don't need to invent supernatural entities to substitute for lack of knowledge.

We have a vague idea of what 'consciousness' and 'mind' means. Science has not been able to pinpoint the source, or even define the words, at least not yet. It is the biggest mystery of neuroscience and they are busily working on it.

Let's give them more time, without impatiently jumping ahead to an unsubstantiated "final answer".

[Ned]

We all have seen them.

They are all over.

In government, in military, in business, in the citizenry at large and even on forums.

So why did 'god' create so many idiots?

Damn if I know.

I ask myself this question every single day.

Never any answer, only more and more idiots!

Especially on the forums.

They must be attracted by the ability of pouring out their mental garbage without any personal risk.

'god' must be very pleased with 'his' handiwork.

the bible thumpers, the compassion-haters, the reality-deniers, the obscenity-marinated, the filthy-minded, the compulsive hoarders, the malicious, gleeful lot of them are all there to praise their 'god' for the wonderful creation of self-destructive humanity.

And the cowards who don't dare to speak up to oppose them.

Enjoy your forum, ladies and gentlemen, this is YOUR world -- not mine.

[David Handeye]

We all have seen them.

They are all over.

In government, in military, in business, in the citizenry at large and even on forums.

So why did 'god' create so many idiots?

Damn if I know.

I ask myself this question every single day.

Never any answer, only more and more idiots!

Especially on the forums.

They must be attracted by the ability of pouring out their mental garbage without any personal risk.

'god' must be very pleased with 'his' handiwork.

the bible thumpers, the compassion-haters, the reality-deniers, the obscenity-marinated, the filthy-minded, the compulsive hoarders, the malicious, gleeful lot of them are all there to praise their 'god' for the wonderful creation of self-destructive humanity.

And the cowards who don't dare to speak up to oppose them.

Enjoy your forum, ladies and gentlemen, this is YOUR world -- not mine.

Good evening, London. Allow me first to apologize for this interruption. I do, like many of you, appreciate the comforts of the everyday routine, the security of the familiar, the tranquility of repetition. I enjoy them as much as any bloke. But in the spirit of commemoration - whereby those important events of the past, usually associated with someone's death or the end of some awful bloody struggle, are celebrated with a nice holiday - I thought we could mark this November the fifth, a day that is sadly no longer remembered, by taking some time out of our daily lives to sit down and have a little chat.
There are, of course, those who do not want us to speak. I suspect even now orders are being shouted into telephones and men with guns will soon be on their way. Why? Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there?
Cruelty and injustice...intolerance and oppression. And where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance, coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission. How did this happen? Who's to blame? Well certainly there are those who are more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable. But again, truth be told...if you're looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror.
I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn't be? War. Terror. Disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense. Fear got the best of you and in your panic, you turned to the now High Chancellor Adam Sutler. He promised you order. He promised you peace. And all he demanded in return was your silent, obedient consent.
Last night, I sought to end that silence. Last night, I destroyed the Old Bailey to remind this country of what it has forgotten. More than four hundred years ago, a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice and freedom are more than words - they are perspectives. So if you've seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you, then I would suggest that you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked. But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek...then I ask you to stand beside me, one year from tonight, outside the gates of Parliament. And together, we shall give them a fifth of November that shall never, ever, be forgot!

[henry quirk]

I wonder who V would align himself with?

Would he stand with with the one who proclaims each man just a link in a causal chain (the one who wags his finger, who ignores, who overflows with 'compassion' [guilt])?

Would he stand with the one who sez 'I own myself. What I make of myself, how I use myself in the world, is my business, not yours''?

Would he stand with the one who would see Agency (Agents) made into cogs for the Great Machine of Community?

Would he stand with the one who assesses communitarianism as the greatest crime possible?

Would V stand with the small kitchen appliance (perhaps stroking its chromed exterior, saying 'what a good toaster you are!)?

Would he stand with the anarchistic sociopath, saying 'do as you will and can'?

The better question: where do you stand?

[David Handeye]

V is an anarchist.

[henry quirk]

Yeah, I know.

[thedoc]

Yeah, I know.

Henry, just a quick note, My "problem neighbor's" house is for sale, and I had found a listing on the internet indicating that he was living several miles away now. Things are getting better in my neighborhood.

[henry quirk]

He' moved cuz of 'iron'?

[thedoc]

He' moved cuz of 'iron'?

Not sure why, I'm just taking it as good news.

[henry quirk]

"I'm just taking it as good news."

All you can really do, I suppose.

Just stand ready for the next schmuck...world is overflowin' with 'em.