I'm Loosing Hope

My answer to your question: "Why does it obviously seem that this kind of thinking process seem to be used most by Americans as opposed to the rest of the world?"

Cause the rest of the world is too pre-occupied with trying to figure out how they are going to make it through another day.  They don't have the luxury of sitting in front of a computer all day analyzing the mysteries of life and creation like we Americans can.

" Why do some people hold on to an opinion, when evidence suggests something different?" 

The same reason the jury found O.J. "not guilty".  The same reason politicians are re-elected by their constituency even though they have been proven guilty of a crime. Americans today are obsessed with the mystique of celebreties and powerful people and feel that these qualities alone allow them to march to a different drummer or set of rules. Bottomline: It is distrust in information. Nothing is for sure in today's world. One day something is good for you, the next day it is going to kill you. Never before have the people been bombarded with such a deluge of facts and information such as we are subjected to daily. It is hard to discern what is right. You just go with your own gut feelings.

As your question pertains to religion, I think it is a personal decision. I choose  creationism over evolution cause I like the thought of being created in the image of a creator rather than evolving from a speck of scum or whatever. Also, when I am troubled or extremely grateful for my things in my life, I have someone to communicate those feelings to and it is comforting.

 Bottomline, it's no mystery.  It's whatever cranks your anchor and the true answer will remain a mystery until we go on to the next plateau.

germanfrau,

Thanks for the contribution.  It's a level headed common sense explanation & I ccan't find fault in it.  Wish I could say that I'm one of those who can sit in front of the computer all day & contemplate things.  I do spend more than enough time on it but make sure that I parcel out my day, & sometimes night, for the real world, which includes reading.

I agree with your statement that we are deluged with information.  Yes, some of it changes but all too many people either don't know, or care to know why.  Technology keeps improving & changing.  New things are discovered & those things must be taken into consideration.

That's why I prefer evolution, in particular & science, in general, over creationism & dogma.  Science says up front that it is a self correcting system.  It has to be as a matter of simple necessity.  If a new technology is used, as new facts are uncovered, they are incorporated into the theories & the theories are changed accordingly.  One other benefit is the fact that science doesn't use boogey man scare tactics or threats of any kind if you don't happen to agree with them.  To me, that's a good thing.

Great philosophy on your last sentance.  JATFUR.

Doubt is the first step towards knowledge.  Acquiring knowledge is the next step to a higher intellect.

RichK

Thanks RichK for your reply.

RichK,

Please bear with me and take into account that the blogs and blogger-statements are too long for me to go back and read again to be sure I am exactly correct in what I am about to say.

Didn’t you say that you had different religious sites as Favorites on your computer and that you were agnostic?  One dictionary defines an agnostic as being

a. One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God.

b. One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.

c. One who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.

An atheist is one who disbelieves or denies the existence of God or gods.  I appreciate these enlightenments from you since I have never really looked up the two words to compare them.

That being said, since you so often bring the subject of religion up it makes it appear as if you are so uncertain and must search for the truth so vigorously that you even challenge all of these religious sites and religious leaders. I too am more times than not disappointed and unimpressed by those individuals that profess so loudly to have all of the answers and preach doom and gloom.

I am much too shy to stand before a congregation and give my testimony; it would probably bore most because I have no stories to tell about overcoming a drug addition, a life of crime or a particularly harrowing childhood.

Through most of my childhood I grew up with only my Mother and my sister.  My Mother managed to keep us clothed and fed with a nice roof over our heads without government support.  She never abandoned us in any way because it was too difficult to handle; she just did what she had to do the best way she could and that included taking us to church every Sunday.  As I entered school where such things mattered, I began to notice that I did not have the most popular brand of shoes or clothing at times and that we did not have a pool or such luxuries.  What she gave us that was more important was a sense of security and no doubt that she would be there for us.  We angered her and disappointed her at times but she was always there for us, no matter what.  We never wanted to let her down.  That is part of what kept us on the “straight and narrow”.  To this day, I wonder if I could have done as well as she did if I were placed in the same situation.  She also taught me something that is espoused in different words in different religions; to treat others as you want to be treated.  That statement rings in my ears everyday.  It keeps me from breaking into my neighbor’s house, cheating on my spouse, steeling someone’s identify and helps me give the driver that practically took my fender off when passing me the benefit of the doubt that he may not have seen me.  In the case of the driver, I have a peace in me that feels better than if I sped up behind him, rode his bumper, shot him a bird and generally raised everyone’s anger level.

I hope you find some sort of peace and can just relax one day.  I am not saying that ignorance is bliss, I am just saying that you may at least find peace in knowing that maybe there are more people out there like myself than like the religious zealots we see on the national news with the hoods over their heads, the guns in their hands and the hate in their hearts.  While I may not stand before the congregation, I would proudly proclaim in my daily walk through life what I am all about without hiding behind a literal mask. 

I will not harm another for believing anything they wish, even if they believe their left shoe is a god; I might think them strange, but I would not harm them.  If the majority believes one should treat others as they want to be treated, then the Hitlers in the world will never prevail.  There is peace in just believing that.

Whether you were created or evolved, what matters most is what you do once you are here.

Evidence, history and truth can be altered and/or distorted.  At the end of the day you just have to strive to do more good than harm.  Beauty and evidence is in the eye of the beholder.

I enjoyed your blog immensely, I especially loved your last line, I am going to remember it and use it!  Thanks to all for the mostly even tempered responses to one of the most volitile subjects in existence.

Read44 is, as usual, thoughtful and eloquent.

Seems we have touched the religious hot button on the blogs today.

I'm enjoying them all.

Read,

Thanks for input.  It is no hardship on me reading the blogs.  As I've stated before, we have a real gem in this scene because we have so many points of view, so many paths we may choose and a great opportunint to learn something.

Agnostic.  Yes, I am one.  I have found that many people confuse it with being an atheist.  Difference being, and I combine the definition with my philosophy, an agnostic does not believe in the existence of a god or gods.  An agnostic does not believe in the absence of a god or gods.  Reason?  There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever to support either view.  In addition, I reconsile myself to the very real possibility that I may never find out.  But that does not stop me from trying to find out.  Reading the opinions of people on this blog keeps giving me new things to think @.  That's a good thing, in technical terms.  Don't worry too much about the definition, as long as you get the difference.  It's the same situation with believers, at least with Christianity.  Most of them don't realise that they come under two different categotries.  Deists & theists.  Most are theists.  It's been a long time since I did any comparative religion studies.

Am I uncertain?  Absolutely.  Heck, if I had the answers, I'd be a very rich person and would not be here.  Do I search for the truth?  Yes, along with a search for facts & the possible connections between them.  Do I challenge every religious site?  No, for very pragmatic reasons.  I challenged 5 or 6 on the subject I mentioned.  I was 99% sure what the result would be & I was right.  I am reasonable enough to know, from past experience, that any challenge on a purely intellectual level would come to naught.  I am not a proponent of mental self flagellation.

I find similarity in the way we grew up.  I come from a single parent family, but was lucky to have an extended family.  Lower middle class but never went hungry, had a roof over my head & decent clothes on my back.  My mother made sure that I had a darn good education.  Catholic parochial grade school & a Catholic, all boys, college prep high school.

She only got as far as high school & worked on an assembly line.  I still don't know how the heck she did it.  Even back in the 50's & 60's, tuition wasn't cheap.  But I could imagine the scenario with our mothers if we came home & said we wanted a pair of sneakers like Johnny & they only cost $150.00.  I'm sure the reactions would be the same.  "You'll wear the Coverse All Stars I got on sale, & you'll like them.  They cost What?"  SMACK!, right upside the head.  "Are you goofy in the head or something?  Get back to your books & stop being goofy."  Like you, she & those in my family instilled good values, including the doing unto others you mentioned.

Peace & relaxation?  Trust me I have plenty.  One might consider me a bit of an expert on relaxing.  Heck, if you're going to do something, do it right.  Along with the onset of age comes a certain amount of peace if, & it's a big if, one realises that the world will not turn out the way they want.  We learn to learn.  We learn to accept what is, what we can change & what we can't.  One of the things I've learned is that not every believer, regardless of their religious views, is a raving extremist bent on religious domination.  Simple as that.

Meanwhile, I'm going to do the smart thing.  I'm going to take some of the advise some of you have contributed & put it to good use.  And there is a lot of good advise out there from which to choose.  Enjoyed your contribution.  Don't stop.JATFUR.

Doubt is the first step towards knowledge.  Acquiring knowledge is the next step to a higher intellect.

RichK

would smell as sweet.  But it's still a rose.

If faith could be proved, then it couldn't be called faith, it would have to be called proof.

You've gotten me thinking. I need to have better answers.

unabashedly theist-

KC 

KC,

You go girl.  Thinking is one great step forwards.  (And it keeps the hair a wonderful  shade of red, I see) Do not, under any circumstance stop thinking.  You want better answers?  Keep thinking.  Keep asking questions.  Don't be satisfied with dogma.  Don't be satisfied with some one who can only offer, "It's a mystery."  Find out why.  Keep on keepin' on.  No one said it would be easy.  It's not.  But when you start getting answers, you will realise the effort is worth it.  It is a never ending story & getting there is at least half the fun.  JATFUR.

Doubt is the first step towards knowledge.  Acquiring knowledge is the next step to a higher intellect.

RichK

is the only Latin I know well.

I've yet to find a suitable definition of 'sum' in your post above with an online dictionary. Can you translate please? The best I came up with is 'reasonable thinking'.

BTW- I went 'red' because I grew weary of those assumptions made in accordance with the blonde jokes. :o)

Not doubting, just ruminating.

KC

Blog " I'm Loosing Hope"

"I’m loosing hope.  Specifically, I’m loosing hope in the thought processes & decision making processes of our own people, in particular". 

Etymology: New Latin cogito, ergo sum, literally, I think, therefore I am, principle stated by René Descartes

the philosophic principle that one's existence is demonstrated by the fact that one thinks

the intellectual processes of the self or ego