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  • Marijuana and Philosophy
    Corporate Fascism demands obedient brain-washed consumer/slaves.
  • Anarchy is Stupid
    Anarchy is the counter force to Fascism. (The Antifa's in the US) The middle ground is plural democracy. And that is what we all want. -
  • Anarchy is Stupid
    That is the purpose of anarchy (disobedience): to create a revolution.
  • Is halting climate change beyond man's ability?
    Migration will be a far greater problem humanity will have to solve than climate change.
  • Fundamental Forces and Buddhism
    Since gravity and other fundamental forces in the universe do not undergo changeWeynon5x
    Not true: Time, space and gravity all undergo change and are in flux.
    The only thing Eternal (unchanging) is consciousness (the soul). Buddhism believes this is the true eternal nature of the Self.
  • Marijuana and Philosophy
    Listened to an interesting Podcast recently where the speaker explained that Nixon's 'war' on cannabis was initiated to counter-act the flower power movement which he believed was very much inspired by the use of Cannabis. This movement was also very much opposed to the Vietnam war (burned their draft bills etc...) In essence he viewed pot smokers as very anti-authoritarian and undermining the hierarchical power structure.
  • Anarchy is Stupid
    'Extreme' Anarchism is merely a response to Fascism. See what is happening in Hong Kong. What Anarchists aspire to is a pluralistic Democracy.
  • Different reactions to relativism in East and West
    Both religions (West and East) propagate a form of fatalism. The West views it as an external determinism (God rules and if you obey Him you will be happy). Everything is the will of God (God's ways are inscrutable and are to be accepted as your lot. The people in power demand obedience),
    Buddhism (internal determinism) also believes you are to accept your 'fate' your 'lot' in life, for it considers your desires as the source of your misery, preventing you from finding happiness.
  • If you were asked to address Climate Change from your philosophical beliefs how would you talk about
    I don't think climate change is the real problem but what climate change is aggravating: That is unbridled migration. We are approaching a migration problem. The is a major factor in advancing popular support for Brexit, Trump and right-wing parties popping up in Europe. We are moving to a world that is less willing to cooperate and in most part considers other countries and people as hostile. We will move towards a world with an increase in civil-disobedience (civil-war), violence and international conflict.
  • Do the Ends Justify the Means?
    The road to hell is paved with 'ends' that justify the means. Idealism has produced the greatest evil committed by Man: Communisim, Fascism, Stalin, Mao, Hitler. All were prepared to sacrifice millions to achieve an imagined Utopia.
  • Belief in balance
    It think the Big Bang starts off with a huge imbalance and decays from
    neg-entropy to entropy. Everything in the Universe is an oscillation. Instead of a battery consider a spring that you have pressed together or pulled apart. When you let it loose it starts to vibrate. However you can also use it to apply a force (energy) to another system. Because the Universe is expanding the amount of energy is slowly being spread out over a larger and larger volume (in effect the energy is dissipating). Life is also a kind of battery able to absorb energy from its surroundings.
    All things decay from a high energy (high degree of imbalance) level to the complete dissipation of energy.(flat-lining, energy death). I look at the Universe as a kind of 'wind-up clock' slowly losing its energy potential.
    Eventually all energy is so spread out the process ends.
  • Different reactions to relativism in East and West
    My personal experience (under the influence of THC) and which I believe is very similar to what you experience under Transcendental Meditation is that all reality (including you own body) is a 'dreamed' up by your consciousness. As you allow your senses to degrade and die, your consciousness will be released like a butterfly from a cocoon.
  • Is halting climate change beyond man's ability?
    I am of the opinion we'll sooner have a humongous war wiping out half the human population before we solve the climate problem. The migration problem (The 'West' being overrun by refugees) will allow the rise of fascist' regimes to emerge. These regimes are hostile to cooperation and international diplomacy.
  • On Suffering
    Tao is the path to finding your equilibrium (balance). We are all riding bicycles endeavoring not to fall over.
  • Belief in balance
    Everything is Vibration: A phenomenon whereby oscillations occur about an equilibrium point. People, society, beliefs, atoms, history, nature...Yin/Yang,
    You have to find your equilibrium point in life.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    Consider Buddhism a tool, like a hammer: you only use it if you want to hammer in a nail. Or perhaps a better analogy a compas when you are disoriented. If you are reasonably content with your life you have no need for any kind of 'religion'.
    BTW I hate authority. It tends to be dumb as a pile of bricks.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    Buddhism is a method to defeat suffering. It does not seek happiness. It is to relieve unhappiness. It believes we are the unwitting slaves of our fears and desires. It focuses mainly on the consequences of seeking pleasure as the source of much suffering. E.i. the acquisition of possessions as the cause of poverty. The fear of loneliness and boredom makes us desire wealth and status.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    I have discovered that many of the ideas I ascribe to can be found in Buddhism which is in essense 'positive nihilism'. The search for neutrality: absence of fear, pain and suffering in general. Not the 'sense' of happiness/joy (Epicurean) but the absense of unhappiness/misery as guiding principle.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    When I travelled, various snippets of songs came to me i.e. Janus Joplin " Freedom is another word for nothing left to lose". I am very inspired under the influence of THC. I have very poor eyesight which prevents me from doing much reading. My philosophical thoughts are based on ideas arising from popular culture like, fairytales, legends and the Bible. I have never been able to get into the ideas of the great philosophers Socrates, Plato, Kant, Nietsche. I think I am slightly drawn towards Existentialism.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    I live in Holland even though I think in English and prefer to converse in English. Boredom is a problem I have to contend with as I avoid all social interaction and crowds. Watching TV and playing the piano helps alleviate the boredom.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    Yes I have. I confessed to my significant other on our first date that I considered myself a failure and despite that she did not reject me. We have been living together for 25 years. At the time I lived on the dole(foodstamps) and no friends. I still don't have any friends as I am incapable of making or keeping friends.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    Depression causes loneliness. Loneliness causes fear. Fear caused me to travel (escape loneliness and fear of failure). Travel heightens anxiety and fear: trapped in a vicious cycle of fear and flight. Once I realized this trap I was in I decided to return to Holland where at least I felt physically safe. All that remained was overcoming my fear of loneliness and failure which made me travel in the first place. Simply stated: fear you try to ignore or escape from will haunt you. Your inner fears have to be confronted to be overcome.
  • The Path to Contentment: Live in the Absence of Fear
    True. I was running away from my fears: fear of failure and fear of loneliness. By returning, I accepted defeat and decided to reconconcile myself with the fact that I was a failure and would probably be lonely for the rest of my life.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    We do whatever we believe is to our advantage under the specific circumstances we find ourselves in at that time and place; altruistically or selfishly. If you can't beat them (the other, stranger), join them. and if neither is possible: avoid them
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    You might be interested in this story https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutiny_on_the_Bounty This illustrates what happens when we can behave 'immorally'.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    Throughout history man has been active in tribal warfare. Witness the many genocides that have taken place. Most wars are to a large extent 'ethnic cleansing'. Jane Goodall observed a group of chimpanzees that formally lived together as 1 extended family, split into 2 groups. At a certain stage they started attacking each other until 1 group was completely wiped out.
  • Christianity and Socialism
    A very powerful description of how the powerful subvert the true meaning of social reform can be read in the book 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    I think you should study history. Perhaps even start with Jane Goodall's observation of chimpanzees in the wild.
  • Sider's Argument in Hell and Vagueness
    who gets into Hell, is going to lead to two very similar people who have committed similar acts of faith, goodness, repentance, etc. to receive eternal damnation or eternal salvation.Bridget Eagles

    I don't quite get the logic of this statement. Why would 2 'good' or 2 'bad' people go to Hell of Heaven?
  • Christianity and Socialism
    Christianity started off as the religion of the dispossessed. After a period of class warfare the ruling class (polytheistic) adopted the religion of the lower classes and turned it into the state religion (Constantine). This was the formation of Catholicism. A new counter revolution happened under the banner of Protestantism and this was also eventually adopted by the ruling classes (Northern Europe). The ruling class is and always will be right-wing and any religion they adopt will always be as such interpreted.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    Anything that contributes towards the preservation of (our) life and/or lives collectively can be considered to be 'sacred' and having 'intrinsic value'.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    But we do ascribe some idea of sanctity to life and the taking of it is regarded as the worst crime a human can commit. Why?Brett
    Preservation of the species: Our ability to work together as a 'social' group is a survival mechanism. We are a very weak species and our strength is in numbers. A kind of herd mentality through social cohesion. The lives of member of the same group are considered 'sacred'. This is not the case for members outside of this group (the other, the stranger). These people can be killed with impunity.
  • How Do You Know You Exist?
    Doesn't a question logically presuppose a questioner?
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    Why should anything have an intrinsic value. The value of a thing is what you bestow on it.
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    Nor do I. Only from a religious perspective can one make such an argument. The intrinsic value of a person's life is no more or less than that of yours or any other living thing for that matter.
  • Übermensch or Last Man - Which one are we heading to?
    "
    "How can you see "extreme libertarianism/individualism" on Fascism?
    "many Germans discovered his appeals for greater heroic individualism and personality development"

    "See Hitlers admiration of Nietzsche's ideas."

    Other authors like Melendez (2001) point out to the parallels between Hitler's and Nietzsche's titanic anti-egalitarianism,[9] and the idea of the "übermensch",[10] a term which was frequently used by Hitler and Mussolini to refer to the so-called "Aryan race",
  • Plato's argument for the soul (in Alcibiades)
    Shouldn't we be asking a more fundamental question? What is life?
  • Is life sacred, does it have intrinsic value?
    Does life have an intrinsic value for you?