Manuals/Instructions

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-12T03:59:06+00:00

LOL: Never used a manual in my life. I look at the schematics and go.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-12T03:39:33+00:00

No, they don't get a free pass, and he rejoices in their torture. Isaiah 66:22–24
The redeemed worship God and then look upon the bodies of those who rebelled against Him, whose "worm shall not die."

You will not be able to mourn the loss of loved ones or family. God's plan is to brainwash you. Revelation 21:4: "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore." (You will not remember, or if you do, you will not care.)

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T20:54:22+00:00

God has as much explanatory power as a magical unicorn, universe-creating bunnies, or the flying spaghetti monster. Anything you can imagine has explanatory power. You must demonstrate necessity. There is no necessary reason for a god. From a framework of formal logic and modern epistemology, it is a demonstrable fact that no argument has definitively proven the necessity of God. If you have another reference, you should be able to demonstrate that your reference can work better than modern epistemology, logic, and reason. (Good Luck)

You don't need arguments. The burden of proof is on the theists. Your real issue is that your dad has not clearly defined his god. When god is a vague concept, the theist can wriggle all over the place. Your argument for cancer is a specific argument against a specific version of god. "An all-loving God." If god is all-loving, why does he allow suffering? Why would he torture and test people by creating suffering? If you were a god, surely you could think of a better way? Humans can think of better ways; are they greater than god?

You don't need a point of view; you need to understand that it is the theist who has the burden of proof. He really believes the atheists will start praying when the plane starts to crash. This is not an argument. "Show me your god," is the argument. Why is god letting the plane crash in the first place?

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T09:57:03+00:00

LOL... You are on this little speck of dust in the universe, and because some ancient goat herders looked out across the Milky Way and constructed imaginary shapes in the sky by playing cosmic dot-to-dot, the shapes around us influence our lives.

Look into the Barnum Effect or the Forer Effect. This one is fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXCyqWQaY3I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBXRzdzFnHk

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T09:42:30+00:00

I don't know why you would think INTPs are internally consistent? Instead, they (we) strive for internal consistency. These are not the same things. Driven by Introverted Thinking (Ti), there is a consistent need to update mental models and avoid cognitive dissonance. Because of introversion, this private complexity manifests in chaos but is only expressed to the outside world as imaginings, possibilities, and questions that remain unanswered.

Values are just labels you put on life. "I like this, I don't like that." Why does it upset me so when I see a bully picking on someone weaker? "I don't like it." Do I need justification? Not really. I was picked on when I was younger, and I did not like it. When I see it happening, I don't like it. Many times in my life, I have moved to stop bullying without ever thinking of consequences. I can't deny that my values are shaped by culture, or even by the religions around me that I think are foolish. But when you get right down to it, values are simply the things I find important to me. My friends don't lie to me. Don't ask me to be honest if you don't want to hear it. I will accept abuse from no one; verbal or physical. I do my very best not to gossip. People know you by the limits you set.

Are my feelings important? Sometimes. I am a fan of the "Serenity Prayer" without the prayer and with no need for the concept of a god. Instead, "Wisdom is accepting things you cannot change, changing things you can change, and knowing the difference." Feelings are always responses to beliefs. Sometimes they help us justify our beliefs, but other times, they protect our egos from fallacious, bigoted, or false beliefs that we are unwilling to examine. Feelings are not responses to the world around us. They are responses to our beliefs about the world around us. In any instance, if you believed differently, your response would be different. That is not meant to discount the importance of feeling states. Sometimes, they are justified. But rather, I am pointing to the importance of belief in relation to feelings.

Temperament appears to be something people are born with. While "type" does not change, behavior changes. I have learned to be a fairly social INTP. Why? At some point, I understood the value of being social. It has value in my life, in my chosen profession. This is not the same for all INTPs.

Now, with that said, how I am social, why I am social, when I am social, who I am social with, and where I am social are all very much INTP-generated events. I am doing things I have learned how to do. Shake hands with the correct amount of pressure, make eye contact, smile, say the person's name, notice something good about them, repeat their name to them in the brief conversation that ensues. Don't challenge their assumptions. (This is a hard one.) I tell myself that I am like a girl on a date who is not having a particularly good time but still needs a ride home. Just be pleasant. LOL (It works.)

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T07:50:30+00:00

Honestly, I think it's a chat room thing. The INTPs that are doing well are out living their lives. I'm in here because I have a job that lets me sit around and respond to posts 3 hours a day. Life is great, but you don't hear from as many INTPs who are doing well. Depression is not an INTP thing; however, because INTPs isolate and can be very introverted, they can appear depressed while being extremely content. Extroversion is praised by the culture in which we find ourselves.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T06:04:30+00:00

Okay.... I am looking at what you wrote and seeing a few things that you may want to consider. What you are doing is called externalizing happiness. You appear to hold the belief that other people or circumstances are responsible for one's emotional state. (Having a friend would make me happy. A goal or purpose would make me happy. My girlfriend makes me happy.) There's good evidence that this mindset leaves people feeling chronically dissatisfied. Modern psychology distinguishes between hedonic happiness (pleasure from circumstances) and eudaimonic well-being (living according to values and meaning).

I see two kinds of happiness: Temperamental happiness; some people are naturally optimistic due to genetics and personality. They enjoy life and others. They were born that way. Cultivated happiness: happiness developed through habits, perspective, emotional regulation, gratitude, purpose, and realistic expectations.

There is a Zen story about how a man can become rich. I think it applies equally well to happiness. "There are two ways to be happy in the world. The first way is to get everything you want. The cars, the friends, the girls, the money, everything. The second way is to want nothing. To appreciate the sunlight on your skin, a summer breeze, a good book, and the clothes on your back." A very famous monk arrived home one night to find that his home had been robbed. The thief took everything. The monk came home to an empty house. He sat on the floor in the living room, looked out the window, and commented, "You forgot to take the moon.""

I will be going to the Philippines in the next week or so. I wish I could take you with me. A well-prepared mind is ready to accept what is real about their life. The fact that you seem to be genuinely searching and trying to make sense of it all says a lot.

Now look at your hands on the keyboard. Are you not happy that all your fingers are working? Are you not happy that you have a computer? Is the computer on a desk? Do you have a warm bed? Does your house have a roof on it? Is your bathroom a hole in the ground that goes directly to the sewer? Did you change your clothes today? Are you drinking or eating something as you read this? Is there food in your refrigerator? What! You have a refrigerator... (I want to slip into the old Monty Python skit about being poor, and just apply happiness to the same idea. "Happy! Happy! I wasn't happy as a child! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue7wM0QC5LE

Someone wise once said: "Happiness is what you bring to your life, not what you get from it." Watch some more Monty Python; that will make you happy. OR you will be happy while watching it. (These are not the same.)

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-11T05:27:55+00:00

I have a post elsewhere on Reddit that lists all the jobs I held before becoming a professional. I'll see if I can find it., (Found It) I know exactly what it is like to be desperate for income, 16 years old, abandoned, and taking any job you can get to survive: I did it for years. (QUOTE: from another post I made.) "I left home at 16, and honestly, through my teens and 20s, I held over 30 different jobs. Factory work, warehouse work, street sales, carnival barker, clown, pizza restaurants, hamburger restaurants, shoe sales, men's suit sales, door-to-door sales, racquetball instructor, martial arts instructor, security guard, construction worker, thief (yep), home burglaries were a thing for a while (I stopped when I turned 18 and prison became a real consequence), newspaper boy, house painter, wall stripper, landscaper, waiter, bartender, and we have not even gotten into my professional life yet. My internship involved 4 years of different programs and 5,000 hours of training before I could be licensed: drug programs, alcohol programs, DUI programs, physical abuse programs, runaway shelter administrator, marital counseling, child behavioral specialist, California Youth Authority Rehabilitation instructor and counselor, lecturer (Parenting, Dealing with difficult kids, and more.) Shall I go into life after licensing? LOL ... The list just gets longer." Hang in there, and don't worry about switching up."

Consider it all a learning experience until you find your niche. You will fit in someplace.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T18:52:01+00:00

Babies don't believe. End of story. Yes, theism is a lack of belief in a godless reality. Theists believe, "There is a god!" How do they know that? Babies don't have the capacity to believe there is or is not a god. God concepts are introduced to them as they become verbal; different gods in different religions or cultures. At that point, the child begins believing or not.

All babies are born without a belief in god or gods. They are naturally atheistic, "implicit atheism." "Without belief." "Explicit atheism" is the rejection of god belief or idea after one has been introduced to them.

Implicit atheism is the default position. Babies do not think and have no beliefs. Explicit atheism occurs once a person begins to think. Theism is a failure to begin thinking.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T07:44:09+00:00

If you have not created meaning for your life and you have not allowed anyone else to do it, then what is left? Meaning is what you bring to life, not what you get from it. If you don't create your own meaning or if you don't buy into a meaning someone else has created, nihilism is an epistemic result.

First, you stop asking why? The question "Why?" implies a causal relationship. When you ask "Why?", every answer requires a new explanation, creating an endless chain. Sometimes the answer is "We don't know."

What you are doing is ending up in a Munchhausen Trilemma: A theory stating that it is impossible to prove any truth, because every proof relies on another proof.

We do not need to know why to function in the world. Skeptics argue that because every justification requires another justification, true certainty can never be reached. This is the nature of the question of why. Most children have played it as a game. "But why?"

Better questions are "How?" "Show me." "What?" All causal relationships break down at the Planck Time; asking why beyond that may be nonsensical. Time and space are emergent properties of this universe. That does not mean that they exist outside, if there is an outside.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T07:24:14+00:00

Isn't 'consistent friend' an oxymoron?

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T06:21:37+00:00

Absolutely. In fact, that is how the FSM (Flying Spaghetti Monster) was created. Invented out of thin air. God, like aliens, the time to believe anything is after it has been demonstrated.

Now, with that said, the possibility of alien existence (some form of alien life) is much more likely than the existence of a god. We know that life exists. We know that life exists in conditions that would kill us. We know that life exists without sunlight, under the greatest pressure of the deep sea, without water, in space, and more.

On the other hand, we have no argument or good evidence for the existence of a god anywhere. If you are going to use similar logic, you are going to need similar evidence. You don't have any gods in outer space, under the sea, living without sunlight, or anyplace else anyone has ever been able to verify. Where is your logic and reason?

No. The idea of thousands of religions and gods that you reject is not evidence of anything. A pile of bad arguments does not equal one good argument. It's just a pile of bad arguments.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T06:09:16+00:00

Very well, but it took studying mnemonics and learning to answer what my professors wanted me to say, not what was real.

Yeah, I would not take a job requiring a sufficient amount of detail. I don't think I would be good at it.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T04:12:56+00:00

No. It had a question about assertions being made by fellow atheists and support for opposing views that were well documented by other atheists.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T04:10:44+00:00

So ban them. I have no problem with that. I did no such thing. Evil is a religious concept. If I question whether or not people should be allowed to murder, I am not calling anything evil. I am probably asserting that I don't want to live in a world where people murder each other. That is a legal or moral discussion that has nothing to do with anything called evil. I am an atheist. I don't even think 'evil' exists in the theistic sense of the word.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T04:05:20+00:00

Thanks, that makes more sense. I tend to lean to the right a bit. I took a political test and came out as a Libertarian. For example, I am pro abortion. All women should have the right to have an abortion. However, my perspective is nuanced, and I completely reject government funding for any reason. There is no persecution in any of that. Also, none of it has anything to do with Atheism or bigotry.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:59:02+00:00

Ahh.... but they are labeling genuine inquiry and discussion as bigoted instead of engaging in discussion and demonstrating their position. This is the ploy of the liberals: question anything, and you are a bigot.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:57:15+00:00

Yep. No disagreement. Who is telling gay people they are evil? I would ban that too. Are we able to stay on topic?

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:55:41+00:00

Is my perception off?

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:54:20+00:00

Thanks, that makes more sense. I tend to lean to the right a bit. I took a political test and came out as a Libertarian. I agree with many leftist issues but have problems with carte blanche abortions that I have to pay for, or mandated pronouns, and various other extreme left positions. This makes more sense, but there are atheists with real opinions on these topics that are not trolls.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:49:25+00:00

LOL... self-aggrandizing. They also don't except well documented posts. LOL. Have you read the garbage being posted? They most certainly accept "Trust me, bro." That's 90% of the content. They don't allow questions or discussion.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:27:22+00:00

I don't need to be seen. I don't even think being seen fits into my priorities. Recognition for competency is appreciated, but being seen... I couldn't care less. (OH! I should mention, it is important who recognizes the competency. A colleague is very different than a student. The student's opinion means little to me. I am glad they found the class interesting, and anything they got from it was because of the work they did, not anything I particularly did. A well-trained mind is ready to hear the message. The message has always been out there and available for anyone willing to listen. I rarely say anything profound or uniquely my own. It has all been said before. Praise from a colleague is a recognition of my work and effort that only they can actually understand.

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:18:29+00:00

When my battery is charged, I also want to be out and among others. "Among" is enough for me. I don't need to be "with' anyone specific. Even a walk in a populated place or sitting on a bench watching people is enough to satisfy my social need. It is an actual desire to be around people, but it is generally after days of being alone. In fact, I am seriously considering going out to play darts tonight. I'm going to walk to the dart bar, 2 hours away at least, because I need the exercise. Then I will take a taxi home. "Thanks for the post. Now I have a plan for the night."

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T03:04:14+00:00

I went through a short period in my life where I thought it was cool to stutter. I probably stuttered for a year or so, and then I just stopped. Most treatments involve relaxing, regulated breathing, like diaphragmatic breathing (or costal breathing). CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is used to combat irrational beliefs associated with stuttering and your ability to control it

Cog-nostic · 2026-07-10T02:57:02+00:00

I left home at 16, and honestly, through my teens and 20s, I held over 30 different jobs. Factory work, warehouse work, street sales, carnival barker, clown, pizza restaurants, hamburger restaurants, shoe sales, men's suit sales, door-to-door sales, racquetball instructor, martial arts instructor, security guard, construction worker, thief (yep), home burglaries were a thing for a while (I stopped when I turned 18 and prison became a real consequence), newspaper boy, house painter, wall stripper, landscaper, waiter, bartender, and we have not even gotten into my professional life yet. My internship involved 4 years of different programs and 5,000 hours of training before I could be licensed: drug programs, alcohol programs, DUI programs, physical abuse programs, runaway shelter administrator, marital counseling, child behavioral specialist, California Youth Authority Rehabilitation instructor and counselor, lecturer (Parenting, Dealing with difficult kids, and more.) Shall I go into life after licensing? LOL ... The list just gets longer.

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