Anxiety and depression

[OuchThatHurts]

I will pose an alternative perspective. I think it is important that unreason and lack of logic is counter balanced WITH reason and logical thinking in public settings. Atheism is the lack of faith, not a different form of faith. Science is evidence based, it and by extension atheism, therefore require no faith.

Here is a quick example why someone may be Atheist, and it’s not that they may have a damaged brain. There are 100 billion planets in the Milky Way galaxy, one of many galaxies. Of those 100 Billion planets, it is estimated 300 million may be able to support life. So let’s suppose there is a god or creator. Why would this entity, with millions of planets like earth, conceivably, even if a fraction support intelligent with life, care or even have the capability to notice what happened here On Earth?

Scientists pinpoint how many planets in the Milky Way could host life

Based on data from the Kepler and Gaia missions, a new study estimated that there are 300 million potentially habitable planets in the Milky Way.

www.inverse.com

Religion is the construct of a primitive and closed mind that makes its own existence special, a mind that needs the reassurance that an all powerful being exists and more importantly loves and protects them. It is a form of control used to govern society by those in power, who above all wish to remain in power.

I am not going to go back and forth with you. I enjoy that this board does not encourage the discussion of religion or Politics. I think it can dominate the content and reduce the value for all members. I wanted to provide a different perspective for consideration. Seems everyone is drinking the Kool-Aid (it’s a valid reference, look it up).

However, I want to add one last thought. There are many examples of religion being the greatest evil, from wars, acts of terror, to the oppression of women, and free thought. The inquisition, crusades, burning of witches, rape of children, genital mutilation, and colonization of indigenous populations are all products of, or encouraged by religion. All of that sounds like damaged brains, not Atheism, at least to me.

I know this is off-topic from the thread so apologies.
You make some good points. My point is that there are agnostics and believers. You are either not sure or you have faith. Faith in it's strictest definition is required for daily living. You can't just turn it off. You exhibit faith every time you get behind the wheel of a car, or board a plane, or hike through the woods. Spiritual faith is no different. We use the faith mechanism to "fill in the blanks" for things we can't see, understand, and cannot measure (or predict).

It's important that we separate religion from the innate curiosity and belief (faith) that there is something more. You are correct that historically, religion has been a disaster. On the other hand, the belief that there may be more to all this and the resulting curiosity has resulted in some of our greatest achievements— telescopes in space, rovers on Mars, bathyscaphes 36,000 feet deep. And we're now looking for exoplanets and possibly intelligent life. They wouldn't be spending billions if they didn't have faith that there is life or something more out there.

Science changes by the hour. Just a few hundred years ago we'd have believed the Earth was flat and the stars were on a firmament in the sky.

As I said earlier, I believe science and the ancient theories will merge.

Einstein—"Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner security."

 

[OuchThatHurts]

There is no such thing as 'Hyper Aggressive Alpha Male Syndrome'

A man's status in the hierarchy all starts, not with aggression and dominance, but with empathy and bonding. A strong sense of connection to others in the group increases levels of oxytocin, which moderate stress and allows high levels of testosterone to promote competitive behavior.

 

[marssel]

There is no such thing as 'Hyper Aggressive Alpha Male Syndrome'

A man's status in the hierarchy all starts, not with aggression and dominance, but with empathy and bonding. A strong sense of connection to others in the group increases levels of oxytocin, which moderate stress and allows high levels of testosterone to promote competitive behavior.

This is super clear in say a combat unit, especially small units. All comprised of highly dominant alpha males everywhere they go but what drives. Mission accomplishment and the ability to overcome anything comes from the covenant between brothers in arms. We also see it to a degree in say the NFL where violence is a norm but the guys all for the most part love each other. A lone alpha is an alpha of nothing and doomed to fail no mattter his abilities

 

[aimanabolic]

Nice, I didn't think I'd see super deep conversations in this forum I actually appreciate these topics but a lot of people aren't mature enough to not resort to arguing about who is right

 

[marssel]

Nice, I didn't think I'd see super deep conversations in this forum I actually appreciate these topics but a lot of people aren't mature enough to not resort to arguing about who is right

It’s a good topic and most guys get along respectfully I can think of two guys who don’t really like my posts but are always civil, course I think they’re both mods but still there are 3-4 guys who always seem to bag on dudes and when it’s done consistently I think people tune it out. For a group where the guys are generally the biggest AND smartest guy in the room whenever they go we seem to get along, which only benefits every member of the group.

 

[aimanabolic]

It’s a good topic and most guys get along respectfully I can think of two guys who don’t really like my posts but are always civil, course I think they’re both mods but still there are 3-4 guys who always seem to bag on dudes and when it’s done consistently I think people tune it out. For a group where the guys are generally the biggest AND smartest guy in the room whenever they go we seem to get along, which only benefits every member of the group.

Hell yeah, I'm still new to these forums. I very much glaze over the negativity I've seen and try and find the good information, which there is a ton of.

 

[OuchThatHurts]

It’s a good topic and most guys get along respectfully I can think of two guys who don’t really like my posts but are always civil, course I think they’re both mods but still there are 3-4 guys who always seem to bag on dudes and when it’s done consistently I think people tune it out. For a group where the guys are generally the biggest AND smartest guy in the room whenever they go we seem to get along, which only benefits every member of the group.

I agree. We all know there are no alpha and beta males in reality but rather a hierarchy from the most dominant to the least. And even that gets blurry because if you put me in a car garage, I'll go "full beta". Put me in front of a blade server and I'm a total "alpha".

"Alpha" males are often described as tough guys, bullies, loud, and abrasive. People don't respond to that. But the reality is that guys who are masters at forming relationships across a myriad of cultures, personalities, political, even religious are the true alphas. We are born dependent, we grow older and then become independent. But the final goal should be interdependence; creating and maintaining productive groups and bringing ppl together.

 

[beast405]

Yea and as biggger guys I’ve found that when talking to regular people if you have too much eye contact it scares some people. Being a big guys usually elicits positive responses buuuut it brings on some hate and fear. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked to someone I’ve see around for a while but never talked to, then we talk and to a T almost they all say “man you’re really cool/nice, I always thought you were an asshole”. It’s meant as a compliment but it goes to show that being big scares regular folks and holding too much eye contact can be seen as intimidating. Manners for sure I say yes sir to my waiter, why well it’s polite and easy and when you give it you get it and in todays world being a little disarming is good as everyone seems on edge these days

Definitely a good point bro

 

[K Bomb]

I know this is off-topic from the thread so apologies.
You make some good points. My point is that there are agnostics and believers. You are either not sure or you have faith. Faith in it's strictest definition is required for daily living. You can't just turn it off. You exhibit faith every time you get behind the wheel of a car, or board a plane, or hike through the woods. Spiritual faith is no different. We use the faith mechanism to "fill in the blanks" for things we can't see, understand, and cannot measure (or predict).

It's important that we separate religion from the innate curiosity and belief (faith) that there is something more. You are correct that historically, religion has been a disaster. On the other hand, the belief that there may be more to all this and the resulting curiosity has resulted in some of our greatest achievements— telescopes in space, rovers on Mars, bathyscaphes 36,000 feet deep. And we're now looking for exoplanets and possibly intelligent life. They wouldn't be spending billions if they didn't have faith that there is life or something more out there.

Science changes by the hour. Just a few hundred years ago we'd have believed the Earth was flat and the stars were on a firmament in the sky.

As I said earlier, I believe science and the ancient theories will merge.

Einstein—"Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner security."

Your use of the word faith, to compare faith my car will work, to faith in a higher being is loose at best. My car starts based on the basic principles (scientifically proven) of physics, Chemistry and mechanics. They explain why and how my car will start, and why it may not. There is zero scientific evidence of God. I am an atheist because of this, not agnostic.

If there was suddenly some scrap of scientific evidence supporting the idea of god, then I would become Agnostic. Unless they/it suddenly appeared in front of me and struck me down. Then I would be a believer. I agree we don’t have all the answers, but that doesn’t make me want to believe in someone else’s invisible friend… and science is updated based on evidence, studied, proven and peer reviewed evidence. We don’t simply change it, unlike religious doctrine.

Thats a great Einstein quote. He was a humanitarian based on his own thoughts and morals. Not because some religion told him he should be.

 

[danieltx]

Your use of the word faith, to compare faith my car will work, to faith in a higher being is loose at best. My car starts based on the basic principles (scientifically proven) of physics, Chemistry and mechanics. They explain why and how my car will start, and why it may not. There is zero scientific evidence of God. I am an atheist because of this, not agnostic.

If there was suddenly some scrap of scientific evidence supporting the idea of god, then I would become Agnostic. Unless they/it suddenly appeared in front of me and struck me down. Then I would be a believer. I agree we don’t have all the answers, but that doesn’t make me want to believe in someone else’s invisible friend… and science is updated based on evidence, studied, proven and peer reviewed evidence. We don’t simply change it, unlike religious doctrine.

Thats a great Einstein quote. He was a humanitarian based on his own thoughts and morals. Not because some religion told him he should be.

We've found the US-based version of @Eguz22.

 

[Muay Thai]

Your use of the word faith, to compare faith my car will work, to faith in a higher being is loose at best. My car starts based on the basic principles (scientifically proven) of physics, Chemistry and mechanics. They explain why and how my car will start, and why it may not. There is zero scientific evidence of God. I am an atheist because of this, not agnostic.

If there was suddenly some scrap of scientific evidence supporting the idea of god, then I would become Agnostic. Unless they/it suddenly appeared in front of me and struck me down. Then I would be a believer. I agree we don’t have all the answers, but that doesn’t make me want to believe in someone else’s invisible friend… and science is updated based on evidence, studied, proven and peer reviewed evidence. We don’t simply change it, unlike religious doctrine.

Thats a great Einstein quote. He was a humanitarian based on his own thoughts and morals. Not because some religion told him he should be.

einstein believed in spinzosas god, a more pantheistic being, his entire work was "faith based" one can argue - (not religious), in the form of intuition, epiphanies, strokes of brilliance and theories that he believed in and pursued

 

[OuchThatHurts]

If I can observe a piece of matter and collapse the probability wave into a reality (a particle) or witness the behavior of entangled particles whereas one effects the it's counterpoint instantaneously despite vast distances apart (turning Newtonian physics on its head), then I can at least entertain the idea of what Einstein referred to "spooky actions at a distance".

I accept the possibility of there being vast swaths of reality that are simply beyond our senses. A prism splits light along it's various wavelengths. A dog cannot see these different colors. Does that mean they don't exist? I'm not about to push my doubts and thoughts on spirituality on you or anyone else.

I just want to be clear that you can entertain forms of reality and universal truths that are transcendent and our feeble senses and instruments cannot detect. I can choose to have hope, even faith, that there is more to reality than we can see and still be an amateur scientist and follow the science wherever it may lead. It will lead us to a higher state of existence or it will annihilate us. The glass has to break sooner or later.

 

[Muay Thai]

father of quantum physics

 

[OuchThatHurts]

View attachment 198299
father of quantum physics

One of my favorite quotes. Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle is another head scratcher. It takes a while to understand but once I began to see was magic. Not David Copperfield but not any physics in my life's history. Some of the most influential scientists of all time, could not ward off something and that all this was designed intelligently.

 

[marssel]

If I can observe a piece of matter and collapse the probability wave into a reality (a particle) or witness the behavior of entangled particles whereas one effects the it's counterpoint instantaneously despite vast distances apart (turning Newtonian physics on its head), then I can at least entertain the idea of what Einstein referred to "spooky actions at a distance".

I accept the possibility of there being vast swaths of reality that are simply beyond our senses. A prism splits light along it's various wavelengths. A dog cannot see these different colors. Does that mean they don't exist? I'm not about to push my doubts and thoughts on spirituality on you or anyone else.

I just want to be clear that you can entertain forms of reality and universal truths that are transcendent and our feeble senses and instruments cannot detect. I can choose to have hope, even faith, that there is more to reality than we can see and still be an amateur scientist and follow the science wherever it may lead. It will lead us to a higher state of existence or it will annihilate us. The glass has to break sooner or later.

I definitely believe in a “God” whatever that is to you but thru long standing methods of “elevation” ie peyote, shrooms, and DMT- I am uncomfortable with lsd so never tried but i definitely have felt there is more to our existence than we see, also there can easily be a creator, imo, and still have lesser entities be in existence good, bad, or both/ambivilent. The problem with modern western religion is it omits the previous 10,000-300,000 years of humanity. Once you’ve stood in a non Christian temple that pre dates the Bible (oral or written) by thousands of years it makes you question at least for me not God or even basic Judeo Christian tenets but rather the exclusion of all other beliefs for its sake. By no means is this a recent change like so many new woke people but something i experienced in Japan in the 1990s. As an American raised in the “last 300 years is the history of the world that is US education” I was washed over seeing shrines and Temples standing for millennia on an island nation that has been at war internal and external for millennia and yet still these places stand. I’m sure places like China and India have similar places. Africa has some spots oddly I did not get the religious wave that many get in Southwest Asia though I’ve never been to Israel which I imagine is quite intense not unlike Rome or Greece. These of course are the remnants of civilizations that haven’t been lost or buried. I believe as we study Turkey and Egypt further we’ll learn a lot more, assuming we don’t drop into another hot war in those regions soon.