re: Beyond Death: The Science of the Afterlife

Perhaps the brain and body are the current physical dimension's manifestation of the metaphysical outerdimension component, what some call a soul.

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I never said you couldn't. But why is wrong if someone doesn't?

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First thing is I didn't say it was wrong. I only make that statement to respond to people asking why an atheist wouldn't just go Helter Skelter all the time.

As far as your actions go that's much more complicated. Most of my internal beliefs line up with societal norms that define the laws. And they're societal norms because most people feel that way for one reason or another. So I'm personally glad that you can't kill me or steal from me without consequence.

I believe society is better off with those rules even if it infringes on your beliefs (not saying that you do want to kill everyone...and not saying you don't). Since the vast majority also feel that way society has adapted to that.

And we could go down the rabbit hole of specific examples of where the line get's crossed for me. I think that's a waste of time because I define the line based on my personal feelings. There doesn't have to be any justification for those beliefs.

I would have no issue walking up to every child molester and rapist and personally putting a bullet in their head. I'll take it a step further and say I would really like to do that. But I don't in this case because I don't want to go to jail. And I'm fine with living in that system that doesn't allow me to do something I want because I get protected from someone else who thinks they should go around and kill everyone with brown hair.

Further, if I did go around as a vigilante then I open myself up to the consequences of living in that world. A rapist might have a father or brother who then wants revenge on me. So even if I don't go to jail, I'm now messing with my "karma" theory.

Max Planck Institute for Physics in Munich.

Experts there argue that our physical universe is just a perception, and that once our bodies die there is an infinite life beyond. Dr Hans-Peter Dürr, former head of the institute, has said: "What we consider the here and now, this world, it is actually just the material level that is comprehensible.

"The beyond is an infinite reality that is much bigger.

LINK

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How do you think society got to this point?

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Belief in religion

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The founders of America had certain ideas on what they thought was the "best" way for a group of humans to function; I generally agree with them.

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They rooted all of those ideas in God.

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I'm not sure what this means. A virus exterminating me is obviously against my #1 goal of extending my lifespan. Do you mean everyone but myself? Why would that be good? I enjoy human companionship. Being the only human would be bad, not good.

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Are you being serious?

Let me reword it for you:

Rounding up and exterminating anyone who had a contagious virus and then killing those people to therefore ensure the end of that virus and its spread fits under your rule 1.

Well since energy can neither be created or destroyed, your energy just changes form, so theoretically you continue on by means of your changing energy. YOU you stops existing.

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What religion?

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Judeo-Christianity

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All of the ideas?

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American ideas about morality via the criminal justice system that you just said you agreed with passed down by the Founding fathers.

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What God?

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Yahweh

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Do you believe that your God personally decided to make America awesome? 

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No. But it's factual that the Founding father's used their religious beliefs when crafting the ideas of the foundation of America. It is all over the declaration of independence and the constitution and the writings and debates of those days.

Are you being intentionally obtuse?

You just said this:

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We happen to have been born into a society where a high value has been placed on the rights of individuals and most people have collectively agreed that this is good. The founders of America had certain ideas on what they thought was the "best" way for a group of humans to function; I generally agree with them. 

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Its a code of humanity to be able to to live together with one another.

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If humanity has proven anything over the course of its existence it's that we generally really do not live well together with one another.

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If only believers had morals, and non believers were free to do as they please, there wouldnt be many believers left. 

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I didn't say everyone would just snap and start murdering, I asked why you would tell the people that did that they are wrong and where you derive the authority to do so from? And as we have already discussed, there is a code of laws which is largely based on religion in this country that punishes people for moral relativism that is not in line with Judeo-Christian ideals.

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They are simply the same rules everyone since the dawn of time 

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You failed the shite out of history class.

Agreed.

You know what my biggest influence is when it comes to not believing in god? It's the numbers. They don't work for me.

If God is real (whichever God you believe in), then why can't it convince even a majority of the population to believe in it? Christianity is the biggest religion at just over 30% of the world. Not even a third of the world believes in the most popular deity.

Islam is next at just over 22%. I'm taking these numbers from a quick google search. Judaism is less than a half percent.

Even if I grant you that the 3 religions are based on similar beginnings despite very different beliefs today, then this god has just over 50% market share. Not that impressive to me at all.

How long have humans been around? A whole lot longer than the 3,000 or so years it's estimated that Judaism has been. So this deity that isn't that impressive today in terms of influence had no foothold in mankind's consciousness for the vast, vast majority of it's existence.

This tells me that it's not likely there is a God. And if there is some kind of creator, then it's not something that is concerned with our acknowledgement of it. And not something that demands us to worship it and follow a set of rules.

Mankind personalized this creation for a variety of reasons...explain the mysterious world, control the people, ect.

Some scientists and doctors believe that consciousness is something that is separate from the body that it can continue on without the body. they are doing studies on it right now

They use it to explain possible instances of reincarnation and out of body experiences

They get into instances of consciousness being shut down, such as in anesthesia, where we are simply not there, no sense of time passing, no memory, no dreams, nothing. Now they are actively trying to isolate consciousness

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How long have humans been around? A whole lot longer than the 3,000 or so years it's estimated that Judaism has been. So this deity that isn't that impressive today in terms of influence had no foothold in mankind's consciousness for the vast, vast majority of it's existence.

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Exactly. Many will cling to their bibles and believe they are going to heaven, others to hell. Tribes in the Amazon that have never even seen a bible, would use it for kindling to make a fire if they found it. Those people have never heard of this mythical god. They disregard any mention of a Christian god because they cant see it. Its not real.