Even though as I grow old and fuddy-duddy, I’m not such a big fan of humanity anymore, it was fun to be there. It was positive and uplifting.

Joe Zamecki
Austin

While I resent organized religion, and hate their influence in this society and across the globe, I think the purest atheist brand of though is almost contradictory. You accept nothing until it is proven by science, yet you embrace the nonexistence of the influence of a designer, even though it has never been proven, and in many ways is counterintuitive.

Humanist put the whole issue aside, acknowledging that designer or no designer, we are left on our own to succeed or fail. No interference for or against us is forthcoming. We are like the dinosaurs, we will survive or become extinct as a result of our ability to adapt, think clearly on our feet, and rise above the social mental diseases that plague our cultures. Humans may be the first extinct species that committed suicide.

NeoWolfe

The idea that sustains me is that we are left on our own. It is comforting to know that no magic or mythic creature is controlling my life. And I like your comment that “Humans may be the first extinct species that committed suicide.”

… yet you embrace the nonexistence of the influence of a designer, even though it has never been proven ..

And how does one prove that something doesn’t exist? Even more important is that theists give no operational definition of “god” and “exist” thereby making it impossible to answer the question “Do gods exist?”. The question is nonsense.

… and in many ways is counterintuitive.

Define what you mean by intuitive and then attempt to justify that assertion. This ought to be fun.

While I admire the approach humanists take, I’m just not that much of a joiner of anything remotely churchy. Plus, this “Humanlight” thing sounds kinda silly.

Some years ago, my wife and I started sending out Winter Solstice cards of my own design. But these are simply a way to note the season (and to remind folks of the origin of the holidays clustered around the solstice). They really have nothing to do with any sort of Paganism per se.

The HumanLight observance is another way to go, but I see no need for it personally.

However, I’m all for anything that reminds all of us that the most important thing is not the label we wear but the life we live.

I’ve met lots of people in my 67 years. Each of them wore many labels, depending upon which aspect of their lives was under consideration. But, in my experience at least, there is no one label that describes or defines anyone.

“Define what you mean by intuitive and then attempt to justify that assertion. This ought to be fun.”

Let me say that by now you know I don’t say things without thinking them through. At the same time, truth is in the eye of the beholder, and we can look at the same evidence and come to opposit conclusions.

While no free thinking person can deny that evolution is a fact, one thing gives me pause. If it’s true, and I believe it is, that both plants and animals originated from a single cell, I am awestruck that that cell not only had the ability to replicate itself, but also had the ability to adapt and evolve to a constantly changing environment. Today we find life in total darkness of the deepest part of the ocean, thriving even around volcanic vents. There is life on the frozen polar caps, and in the dryest hottest regions of the world. Life is nearly unstoppable, finding opportunity, and thriving in the most unlikely places. What makes me stop and think is that the evolutionary process was built right into the mechanics of life from the very beginning.

Now, this is not to say that I have concluded that there is a designer, nor do believe that if there is, that he gives a rats ass if we survive or not as a species. I just feel that observation of what life has become, it’s tenacity, it’s cruel and heartless insistance on survival, leaves some room for doubt about the possibility that inteligence planted the seed. In that way, I feel that attaching the label of “accident” is somewhat counterintuitive.

Well, What, was it as much fun as you thought it would be?

NeoWolfe

That was no fun at all. You gave no definition of intuitive.

Furthermore, who cares if it is intuitive ot not. The history of science is one of debunking foolish intuition.

In that way, I feel that attaching the label of “accident” is somewhat counterintuitive.

But nobody here attached that label.

Evolution requires no “accident”.