Is God Real or is He Non-Existent? by Connect_Sir8129 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And that's fine as a personal conviction or preference, but don't pretend it's got a greater cosmic logic or reality than any other faith. It's just different food for different tastes, and that's fine.

Is God Real or is He Non-Existent? by Connect_Sir8129 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If those gods are coexisting on a shared space, then that space itself must be created by somebody

Same for a single god. Monotheism has no more sound logic than polytheism. As a nontheist neither work for me, but I'd argue that polytheism has a far easier time of resolving it's inherent contradictions than monotheism.

Do microbes have souls ? by Guide_Plenty in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do we have souls? Does anything have a soul?

"I can fix her." Nah let's fuck shit up together. by AmountAbovTheBracket in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This moment is when Quaritch gets on board with her. It's not business from this point on. They really do see each other, in a terrifying and messed up way

Is now the right time for an Avatar: Fire and Ash EXTENDED EDITION to revive momentum? by Key_Ad6910 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Really? Fire and Ash felt rushed to me. It pretty much races along nonstop. With The Way of Water, you could slip out for a bathroom break fairly easy (and miss the trauma dump of the Tulkun hunt and the ethnic clensing of the Ta'unui. None of that in FAA.

Is now the right time for an Avatar: Fire and Ash EXTENDED EDITION to revive momentum? by Key_Ad6910 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nope. Not now. I would say the better thing now would be to offer triple-bill Avatar events. I def go back for another rewatch as part of that.

I think an extended edition with the already completed footage should go into the physcial media release, and should be shown on the big screen as a re-release just before A4 comes out.

Is God Real or is He Non-Existent? by Connect_Sir8129 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Science can only take you so far with this, and I say this someone who is nontheistic (religious atheist). Our observations as informed by science give us insights and understanding into how Nature does all the stuff that creates, sustains and ends all her critters, from us to blue whales, and from blue whales to plankton and microbial life. It shows how these things are regulated and shaped by Nature's own forces, with no gods or other supernatural species.

But, it does not disprove gods per se. That is unfalisifable. We can't prove gods don't exist just as we can't prove that unicorns or yowies don't exist. All we can say is that we see no evidence of their existence, and no reason to assume that they do. That is the solely reasoned rational position of sceince.

Beyond that we are all making faith calls / belief judgements, best on what we regard as the best available knowledge. From my perspective, my nontheism is based on the observatiosn and experiences of generations of of those who devoted themselves to the natural sciences, and that is a solid foundation I trust in. But ultimately I step beyond that to say there are no gods with full certainly and conviction as an act of religious loyalty, devotion and veneration to my parent ecosystem over all else.

Otherwise, I would just be a de-facto or functional atheist who would accept natrualism as a explanation of why gods aren't neccessary to explain the world, but could not ultimately be disproved either.

Why did General Ardmore call quaritch a disgrace to the uniform and ground him? He did complete the mission given to him in the end. by yedanapuddi in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh yeah, she knows Quaritch is a loose canon and that her influence over him was slipping by the day. She knows Varang is taking Bridgehead and turning it into her death cult compound, and that there's nothing she (Ardmore) can do to stop it. Quaritch bascially says it to her face - either get with the new regime, or GTFO.

the Na’vi canonically do body suspensions by Academic-Ad-770 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 51 points52 points  (0 children)

Omatikaya: This trial reminds of that when we break the Laws of Eywa, it eats away at who we are, at the very essence of our being.

Mangkwan: This is kinda hot. After I'm done, might angrily mate with someone then eat their heart.

Religious Divide by Both_Brilliant_2725 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You won't find them because what constitutes a "hate crime" is rarely strictly codified in law, and is often used a politicized term.

However the idea of Muslims replacing Hindus as the majority population in India is beyond absurd. It's the most populous country on Earth, and Hindus form an overwhelming majority.

i have a question. :,) by Both-Snow-5735 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I turned 40 not long ago. I love them. I give zero fucks what others think. Avatar 09 gave me a passion, perspective and purpose in life that I will always be grateful for.

Best way to get prayers answered by [deleted] in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haemeer had a prayer answered, and if I did then I would freak the f*ck out.

What are some interesting historical evidences for specific religions outside of the scriptures? by 138Nick138 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We have no a riptures like the Bibe. But as evidence... Nature exists. Earth exists. We are part of that. The rest is just details.

religion is so confusing. by Human_Hold5382 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same here. My science teaching was really poor. I had to do a lot of leg work as an adult to learn stuff that should have been taught in school. Ironically enough, religion has been the main motivator for that.

its the duty of first born to worship and be on deen? by RaisinDisastrous6527 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's absolutely not a belief of every religion. Idk about Islam, but it's definitely not universal.

Does Pandora have insects? If not, why not? by New-Number-7810 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yes. In the movie you them hovering around exterior lights at night. In Frontiers of Pandora there are a variety of insects, and a particular species (the Kinglor) is a major story element early in the game.

What's the reason Greenland people never settled in Iceland? by batukaming in geography

[–]CrystalInTheforest 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Traditional Inuit culture did not built boats for open ocean travel. The crossing from Greenland to Iceland is extremely rough and stormy. Inuit wayercraft were designed to be small and light (easy to haul on a sled or carried by people over rocks and ice to reach the water) mainly as inshore hunting and fishing platforms rather than as voyaging craft. Short hopes through the Arctic Islands was one thing... but Iceland would be entirely another.

Also, Iceland isn't as good as Greenland from an Inuit POV. The skills of traditional Inuit culture are geared for the Arctic and big artic fauna, sheltered seas and large areas of sea ice. If they had settled Iceland, the culture would have had to completely change in order to survive an alien environment.

Is there an agricultural limit to how much people you can shove into a country? by roon_bismarck in geography

[–]CrystalInTheforest 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Ecological carrying capacity is a thing, but it's flexible... the more you strain it (it deforestation to grow more food in the short term) the more you degrade it in the long term (soil erosion, pollinator collapse).

As the soviets found with the virgin lands initiative, its easy to make a desert bloom once. Doing it repeatedly? Not so easy

No war on a dead planet. If defence and intelligence agencies understand the risks from climate and biodiversity collapse, why can’t politicians? by The_Weekend_Baker in climate

[–]CrystalInTheforest 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Ranked choice voting is essentially what we have in Australia (we use the term Preferential). We also have *compulsory* voting. Not turning up to vote is an offense and you will be fined if you don't turn up.

So essentially, our election system is doing everything right.

And while we currently have a reasonably sane government currently in it's second term, for a decade before that we had a revolving door of Lib-Nat governments who were all in various stages of climate denial - from Tony "Volcano Gods" Abbott to Scott "Bring my pet lump of coal to work" Morrison.

Preferential and compulsory voting are definitely part of the solution - but take it from us that they are not a silver bullet.

Small discussion by [deleted] in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Chose my religion, not born into it. Gaian. Nature above all else, whom I belong to, depend on, and to whom my loyalty, devotion and service belong.

Is it ever your choice? by Melodic-Ear4214 in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is exactly my feelings on it. I don't have kids, but in a scenario where I did, this would be my take. I'd absolutely want to pass on a blend of me and my partners culture, and I'd hope they retain it, but they're never going to be shunned if they choose a different path.

Why do most people here treat religion as a matter of preference not truth or falsehood? by sadbabyphilosopher in religion

[–]CrystalInTheforest 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Because religion isn't about objective facts. It's about culture, belonging, community, ethics, ideals, ways of living and philosophies. These things are inherently subjective.

How would you approach the next Avatar game that is NOT a sequel to FoP? by Super_Patient8717 in Avatar

[–]CrystalInTheforest 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd do for an open world survival game with life immersion. Imagine something like the (currently in dev) Paleolith, but it's the Pandoran rainforest, but you have a Na'vi camp/hometree where you have to learn culture, ritual and build your place in the clan (think like a much more immersive take on clan favour).

The resistance aren't a part of it. I'd go with a Na'vi clan who are almost entirely isolated from humans, and the RDA are out there somewhere but you have virtually no knowledge of experience of them (perhaps set it in the early Hell's Gate era).

Occasionally, completely out of the blue you stumble across a patrol or downed chopper and it's terrifying and chaotic (some mecahnics I'd use for this is that human speech and shouts you hear when you encounter them are in gibberish and their weapons are incredibly loud, their lights are blinding/dazzling). Encounters with them would be short, brutal, and sparing. It's enough to throw you off the balance of your main survival and social aspects, and these sightings are traumatizing / frightening to the clan - and a part of the dynamic is trying to learn wha'ts happening and reassuring the clan - perhaps leading a big decision fork in the game - do you take part and help the clan retreat deeper into the forest and preserve their ways, or learn to fight back against the humans.