Wow. I'm glad I continued to question you because that is some of the best poetry I've read lately!

Well, a jig is a kind of dance; a lively dance. So, it is a form of dancing. Thus is defined as 'therefore' or 'as a result or consequence of this.'

So, saying thus as the describing one self would be like saying I am what I am currently, which is a fair statement. I just wanted to be clear on what you meant.

That seems like a bit of a tautology.

"I don't think there is any reason to think that dreams are produced in collaboration with others."

What are the 'others' you speak of here?

Syria and the Middle East is a proxy war between the east and the west. It is a mess! Check out these maps showing the different factions and occupied regions:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-27838034

Even if life were counterfeit or fake, it sure feels real! But, the problem for me is so do my dreams.

When I'm in them I certainly feel it to be life and I think of myself as myself. Then I wake up and go about doing the same business only certain that this time it is actually true and the other was illusionary.

Now likely the system will collapse in a decade or two (or earlier), just like it did before in the 1970s, but we won't call it a collapse or even a default. — ssu

I think the current fiat monetary system is truly unstable and it is not a matter of if it will collapse, but rather when.

However, why do you say that it wont' be called a collapse or a default?

He would take a statement such as this and then run it through different schools of mathematics and the paradox would always persist.

The article you provided was about this quote "banks and corporations will deprive the people of all property." Which is not my quote.

Here is a Forbes article citing my quote:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertlenzner/2011/11/06/thomas-jefferson-warned-the-nation-about-the-power-of-the-banks/#516691642aac

Then it would also follow since you have never been dead before that we cannot say that death is nothingness.

But it logically follows because we can imagine going to sleep and never waking up (at least, crudely); therefore, we should be able to imagine the inverse; that is, waking up without ever having gone to sleep. Alan's point was that this represents birth.

I presume the imagining waking up after never having gone to sleep must have been tough because the only thing that would describe that would be birth.

Your answer was everything I wish I could have written:)

I see what you're saying, but some of what you're assumes that we understand the consciousness of newborn babies and that is something that really can't be proven.

The first two may not be from nature in the sense they are like a tree, but if you google them, they have an image, a shape, they occupy matter and space.

For the other two, these are internal concepts and feelings that we try to capture in words. But their is a physiological nature behind even these concepts.

I wish you the best, but I hear it is a very hard field. There is a lot of pressure if you want to be successful and not many get to publish or do research. But, if you truly enjoying teaching then you should be fine.

However, do not be discouraged if you go to a top tier school and end up teaching at a much lower school. Let your passion drive you and you cannot fail.

I agree with a lot of what you say, but I think the idolatry is the key problem that I take serious issue with.

All symbols, sounds, or whatever represent something in nature that we are trying to express to other people.

I mean the double slit experiment and quantum entanglement may to support your idea empirically.

You posed a lot in your comment, but I want to address one thing that I have a follow up question to: the Bible states that you should not worship false idols; however, churches these days are draped and covered in the most luxurious of riches and portray images of God and Jesus everywhere.

There are millions around the world that could use this wealth for food or shelter.

Do you think that this is a form of worshipping false idols?

Great response! I truly don't think there is an answer to my inquiry; I just like to hear what others have to input.

I think your response might be a form of poetry in and of itself :)

It's an interesting concept isn't it?

Well, I get my intel from my senses (empirically), from then I make decisions about them through using reason (rationalism)...I don't I can separate the two like trying to separate the dance from the dancer.

Intuition and the subconscious is a powerful and a mysterious force.

This may be related but somewhat off topic, but I find it interesting how I say that my heart is a part of me, but I never would say I am my heart; it beats without my thought, and same with my breathing.

My point is that it seems interesting that we associate this idea of 'I' with a very limited perspective of the totality that we occupy (our bodies).

I see what you are getting at. When I was first introduced to Zoroastrianism in my religion class I took in college, I was mind blown. It seemed that the Bible had stolen so much from bordering religions.

Nevertheless, Jesus does stand out in certain ways, I mean if he didn't we wouldn't be talking about him 2,000 years later.

To me fact or fiction the philosophical principles he taught are profound (maybe not unique, but profound). They are ethical ways of living and interacting with others.

I don't know if there is a 'right' way to respond to the world, but I do believe that we should not let the world dictate our inner world. That is to say, even if the outer world is in chaos and turmoil, to remain still and calm within oneself - act in a cool, calm, rational, and appropriate way.

That's an amazing answer. It really does make me think. I posed this question simply for philosophical purposes, not because I am suicidal, but because I see so many people who constantly complain about their lives and how there is no way out. They say they will continue basically living the same day over and over until they die.

I think this is quite sad. But you have demonstrated that while the physical reality may not change, our perspective and attitude towards it can. And, by doing so, we truly do alter reality, at least, our reality. Because by altering our perception we alter how we perceive.

"For me the 'dark' thoughts have become (more or less) toys for the intellect," very well said!

Do you think it matters whether or not Jesus was a literary character or a true being if the overall effect was the same?

I really appreciate your answers, they are very thought provoking. I am not posing this question necessarily from a personal reason; it mainly stemmed from some of my research into the philosophies of Nietzsche and he believed that the underlining premise of philosophy was whether to live or commit suicide.

Though, it is highly controversial, I really thought this was an interesting point.

I very much agree with you that learning and inquiring, especially philosophically, can lead to a deeper and more meaningful understanding of reality. I also agree that these revelations do take time and persistence to uncover the truth, or at least a truth that can better you own life.

That is why I have joined this forum and pose such questions.

So, thank you for your responses. It is much easier to expedite the process of learning through intaking other's perspectives; so, thank you for yours!

That is a beautiful and articulated response. I guess my follow up question is, what if you find no joy in life? What if you see it as a continual struggle - a constant form of stress. Even without the belief in an afterlife, if you suffer continually and see no end in sight and everything seems futile, then why continue to live?

Even if death is a blank void of nothingness, do you not think some would choose that over their current existence if it consists of nothing but struggle, agony, and misery?

The past and future are the only the things we can truly understand, while the present is an elusive concept, because the moment we think about the present it becomes the past. Furthermore, when we think about the present, it is a futuristic perspective.

Therefore, the present contains all, but we cannot conceive it.

Thomas Jefferson was a Deist and read the Bible while omitting the miracles Jesus supposed committed. He viewed it as a philosophical doctrine, which is why he says, "I call [it] the Philosophy of Jesus."

"I have a different view of what can be considered the domain of possibility." What is your different view?

Yes, but there have only been two would wars, so sense I am talking about WWIII, which would contain nuclear weapons, I separate from the other wars in history.

This is a difficult question. I disagree with Hillary because she committed perjury and jeopardized national security through her email use. Moreover, I truly believe she has some form of health issue, whether it be minor or severe, I do not know; but, it is a factor. She has lied under oath and continually lies until she is called on it.

Conversely, Trump says whatever is in his best interest. He will lie and contradict himself with no problem. I believe he seeks money and power (as if those two things could be separate). He says and does what his voters want to hear. He cultivates and exacerbates fear to serve his political platform.

Gary Johnson is a candidate, but he will not win, nor any independent party.

I don't like Hillary because I think she is corrupt and in the back pocket of wall street an big money.

However, I do not like Trump because he attacks religious groups, he talks about race in callous manner. He will flip flop any way that behooves him.

I wish it weren't between these two, and I hope something may change that, but in the realm of reality, I truly do not know who to vote for.

This is a tough question, while my optimistic side wants to believe that the world has far surpassed these primitive tenacities.

The police violence in the United States seems to paint a different story; furthermore, I grew up in a small rural country town. I saw first hand the racial discrimination between classes.

I think there is a class that has much and a class that has little. If I could have all the power I needed, I would like to bridge the gap.

I simply don't understand how the U.S. which is $19 trillion dollars of debt can recently give Israel $38 billion dollars. I do not understand how.

In regards to race, I think there are many divisions among humans, religion, race, culture, nationality, sex and so forth. All of these cause conflicts because each party wants the other to conform to their ideology...when in reality, people can coexist with differing ideologies.

Maybe I'm a foolish optimist but I truly believe that if we broke down the man made divisions, we could see that we are one species and unite under that premise.

I ramble but I think this to be important.

I really agree with your last paragraph. You summarize the true daily existence of humans. Aside from philosophical inquiry, and I truly respect that.

Your answer was profound and has truly helped my learning process,

So, thank you for your comment. I wish you well and I look forward to hearing more of what you have to say.

I truly respect your passion for uncovering the truth. We live in an age where information is in an abundance, but with that, critical thinking becomes the primary means of interpretation.

I by no means assert that I have all the answer. I truly do not. I have come to this forum to question other like minded people to help me further my knowledge. I do not know if that is selfish intent or not, but I want to know the truth of the word. I believe everyone has something to offer if you integrate it with an open mind.

I also believe that though in the past there were many admirable individuals who defended of freedoms ( I have relatives who fought in the Alamo). But, with that being said we live in a new world and I think critical thinking and unity under one cause is what will change the course of history.

No matter the race, religion, or nationality, we are humans; we are a species an we need to unite and set aside our man-made differences in order to confront the powers that explicitly an implicitly control our lives.