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Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Tue Mar 17, 2026 5:27 pm
by Immanuel Can
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:50 pm
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:24 pm
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:03 pm
Don't worry about me. Worry about something else.
If you're not worried, then I guess I've done as much as anybody can do.
But Thomas Sowell has a very good saying. It goes, "If you love somebody, you tell them the truth; if you love yourself, you tell them what they want to hear."
Now, that's wisdom.
Seriously? Are you seriously saying that you're concerned that I'm not worried, that I feel fine? Does it bother you if I feel fine?
You'd better read again. You've missed the point...again.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Tue Mar 17, 2026 7:02 pm
by Gary Childress
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 5:27 pm
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:50 pm
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:24 pm
If you're not worried, then I guess I've done as much as anybody can do.
But Thomas Sowell has a very good saying. It goes, "If you love somebody, you tell them the truth; if you love yourself, you tell them what they want to hear."
Now, that's wisdom.
Seriously? Are you seriously saying that you're concerned that I'm not worried, that I feel fine? Does it bother you if I feel fine?
You'd better read again. You've missed the point...again.
My bad.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Tue Mar 17, 2026 11:05 pm
by Immanuel Can
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 7:02 pm
Immanuel Can wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 5:27 pm
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2026 4:50 pm
Seriously? Are you seriously saying that you're concerned that I'm not worried, that I feel fine? Does it bother you if I feel fine?
You'd better read again. You've missed the point...again.
My bad.
Forgiveness.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2026 3:20 pm
by Walker
Forgiveness is primarily for the forgiver, which supports the philosophy that all actions are borne of self-interest (objectivism). What that philosophy ignores is the effect of being forgiven upon the forgivee. This is ignored because everyone is ultimately responsible for their own reactions, that is, unless dark energy (Satan) made you do it, which would mean that The Great Satan and little Satan helpers cause all the bad doings in the world and any actions against that dark energy is therefore, good. That reasoning justifies the theocratic regime punishing people in Iran as Satan would be punished for demonstrating against the government.
Iran Executes 19-Year-Old Champion Wrestler Saleh Mohammadi in Public Hanging
https://www.breitbart.com/sports/2026/0 ... c-hanging/
*
Re: Ethics of Atheism.
Rand’s Objectivism is considered to be atheistic, although from a higher altitude it does recognize a top-down hierarchy (God-like ideal) with the human ideal of impeccability’s absolute, situational appropriateness.
Objectivist ethics:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/object ... #ref301954
“In this way Rand claimed to have solved the centuries-old “is-ought” problem—the problem of showing how a statement about what ought to be can be logically derived solely from a statement (or statements) about what is.”
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Sat Mar 21, 2026 4:07 am
by Gary Childress
Ever since I was a kid in elementary school starring at, mesmerized over, and developing crushes on the attractive girls in class, I have always wanted a pretty girl friend. Not sure why but I have always had an overactive libido. It's been the primary driving force in my life. It's caused me a lot of trouble and aggravation but there is just nothing I want more out of life than to be around attractive women. Unfortunately, it's also a desire that has never come to fruition. And now, as I enter my latter years, my bark is worse than my bite. I'm like a dog who chases cars that he can't drive.
Life has been OK. Right now, I'm not really kicking myself for the choices I made or feel regret for pursuing what I've pursued, I just wish I had been successful in finding a love interest. Such is life. At least I have peace of mind right now, even though I've never found that dream girl I've always yearned for. But I'm OK.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2026 4:00 am
by Gary Childress
I don't go to church and don't have any interest in reading the Bible. And because of that, according to IC, I'm going to Hell. Maybe I should white knuckle it and go to church and read the Bible just to avoid IC's threats that I'm going to Hell? Would it be worth it to change? Is changing from skeptic to believer possible for me at this point?
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2026 4:45 am
by Gary Childress
So, IC's insistence that I'm going to Hell for being a non-believer has succeeded in making me profoundly unhappy. I can't get the thought out of my mind concerning what if he is right. Sucks to be a paranoid schizophrenic. I'm a gullible easy mark. If I were a gazelle, I'd be the first one the lions would go after. I give up.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2026 3:07 pm
by Immanuel Can
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Fri Mar 27, 2026 4:45 am
So, IC's insistence that I'm going to Hell for being a non-believer has succeeded in making me profoundly unhappy. I can't get the thought out of my mind concerning what if he is right. Sucks to be a paranoid schizophrenic. I'm a gullible easy mark. If I were a gazelle, I'd be the first one the lions would go after. I give up.
I'm not after you to make you unhappy, Gary.
What's making you unhappy is just your present state, not me. All of us who don't know God are lost -- you just have the good situation that you're realizing it, because that means you can change it. You're actually in a much better situation than somebody who's happy being lost.
But Jesus said,
"I have come to seek and to save that which was lost."
It's a choice, Gary, not an inevitability. Just make a better choice. Take salvation. It's freely offered.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2026 5:32 pm
by phyllo
Sounds like a pretty good deal.
Accept Jesus and IC will stop bugging you.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Sun Mar 29, 2026 8:28 pm
by Iwannaplato
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Fri Mar 27, 2026 4:45 am
So, IC's insistence that I'm going to Hell for being a non-believer has succeeded in making me profoundly unhappy. I can't get the thought out of my mind concerning what if he is right. Sucks to be a paranoid schizophrenic. I'm a gullible easy mark. If I were a gazelle, I'd be the first one the lions would go after. I give up.
It's be pretty easy to avoid IC. I can't imagine a good reason for you to read another one of his posts.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2026 9:33 am
by Gary Childress
Iwannaplato wrote: ↑Sun Mar 29, 2026 8:28 pm
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Fri Mar 27, 2026 4:45 am
So, IC's insistence that I'm going to Hell for being a non-believer has succeeded in making me profoundly unhappy. I can't get the thought out of my mind concerning what if he is right. Sucks to be a paranoid schizophrenic. I'm a gullible easy mark. If I were a gazelle, I'd be the first one the lions would go after. I give up.
It's be pretty easy to avoid IC. I can't imagine a good reason for you to read another one of his posts.
I suppose the reason I don't avoid IC is that I want to know once and for all if the Bible is the truth concerning a God. It's been a nagging question for me since I first watched Carl Sagan's Cosmos back in the 70s. I grew up an atheist, though my parents seem to have maybe been more along the lines of non-practicing Christians at the time. After studying philosophy, I became agnostic.
I honestly don't know what to make of the Bible. It's apparently the single most read book in human history. But one of the great philosophical questions is, what is the Bible? We have it. Many read it. Is it factual in a "spiritual" sense? Or is it just a rudimentary story told by archaic humans who tried to understand the world before technological and epistemological advancement but didn't quite have the right tools at the time to understand the world? Is there truth in the Bible?
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2026 10:00 am
by Gary Childress
Or more importantly, if it were true that modern civilization is built upon the psychological advancements of the Bible, what happens if the Bible were suddenly removed from circulation? Would humanity somehow revert to brutal barbarism? Or is the brutal barbarism in the Bible itself?
Since my atheist days, I've witnessed some resurgence in the Bible in society around me.
Who has it right? And how do we determine who has it right?
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2026 10:18 am
by Iwannaplato
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Wed Apr 01, 2026 9:33 am
I suppose the reason I don't avoid IC is that I want to know once and for all if the Bible is the truth concerning a God.
I can't imagine how that would happen. Participation in a religion might lead to belief. Prayer, attending church - in this case - participation in the rituals whatever version of Christianity you choose, perhaps because it seems most appealing. Accumulated experience with the many facets of the religion + careful reading of the Bible. I can't imagine what IC could say that would change you mind. Think about how often people change their minds online through discussion and argument. We generally our minds though very intense short term experiences and less intense ongoing experiences.
But if you think it could work, why not?
I honestly don't know what to make of the Bible. It's apparently the single most read book in human history. But one of the great philosophical questions is, what is the Bible? We have it. Many read it. Is it factual in a "spiritual" sense? Or is it just a rudimentary story told by archaic humans who tried to understand the world before technological and epistemological advancement but didn't quite have the right tools at the time to understand the world? Is there truth in the Bible?
Well, if you wanna know if biking is for you, thinking about it and hearing about other people's experiences of biking and being told how it will be great for you will likely never convince you. There's really only one diverse, experiential way to find out, I think. Same with Italian food or massage or a relationship with a specific woman or man.
You could hear all about this person. Read about the person, hear people talk about what it's like to be around them, hear them talk about her writing, read arguments about why it is really great to be with him or her. But, you really gotta start doing stuff with that person. And a religion is a bunch of relationships, with one perhaps in the center, and a bunch of activities.
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2026 10:29 am
by Gary Childress
Iwannaplato wrote: ↑Wed Apr 01, 2026 10:18 am
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Wed Apr 01, 2026 9:33 am
I suppose the reason I don't avoid IC is that I want to know once and for all if the Bible is the truth concerning a God.
I can't imagine how that would happen. Participation in a religion might lead to belief. Prayer, attending church - in this case - participation in the rituals whatever version of Christianity you choose, perhaps because it seems most appealing. Accumulated experience with the many facets of the religion + careful reading of the Bible. I can't imagine what IC could say that would change you mind. Think about how often people change their minds online through discussion and argument. We generally our minds though very intense short term experiences and less intense ongoing experiences.
But if you think it could work, why not?
I honestly don't know what to make of the Bible. It's apparently the single most read book in human history. But one of the great philosophical questions is, what is the Bible? We have it. Many read it. Is it factual in a "spiritual" sense? Or is it just a rudimentary story told by archaic humans who tried to understand the world before technological and epistemological advancement but didn't quite have the right tools at the time to understand the world? Is there truth in the Bible?
Well, if you wanna know if biking is for you, thinking about it and hearing about other people's experiences of biking and being told how it will be great for you will likely never convince you. There's really only one diverse, experiential way to find out, I think. Same with Italian food or massage or a relationship with a specific woman or man.
You could hear all about this person. Read about the person, hear people talk about what it's like to be around them, hear them talk about her writing, read arguments about why it is really great to be with him or her. But, you really gotta start doing stuff with that person. And a religion is a bunch of relationships, with one perhaps in the center, and a bunch of activities.
That does sound like the most practical way to learn about and understand Christianity. But is a scholarly understanding of Christianity the same as a more intimate understanding of it? And which is the better understanding of it? Maybe it's a little like trying out a bicycle to learn what it is like to ride a bicycle versus becoming a professional bike racer or someone who competes with other professional bikers in contests?
Re: Gary's Corner
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2026 2:22 pm
by MikeNovack
Gary Childress wrote: ↑Wed Apr 01, 2026 10:29 am
That does sound like the most practical way to learn about and understand Christianity. But is a scholarly understanding of Christianity the same as a more intimate understanding of it? And which is the better understanding of it? Maybe it's a little like trying out a bicycle to learn what it is like to ride a bicycle versus becoming a professional bike racer or someone who competes with other professional bikers in contests?
On one hand, agree. Especially as a religion incorporating "mystery". To truly understand would need to experience.
But Christian, there is a problem with your argument "have to join a religion to experience whether right for you". What is your argument for why I should "test out" Christianity first? Say before Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism, etc. etc. Enough perfectly reasonable alternatives might no live long enugh to give Christianity a try. So you need at least one good pre-experience argument. What's your "try me first" pitch?