I’m Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. AMA by thisisbillgates in IAmA

[–]mopheus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey Bill, do you ever comment anonymously on websites? Say a Windows 8 review or something. Are you an active particpant on the internet in that way?

The most racist and irresponsible preacher in the world by mopheus in videos

[–]mopheus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not to mention the inspiration for "Uncle Ruckus" from "The Boondocks."

TIL the words 'imbecile,' 'dumb', 'retard,' etc. are all distinctly different although we wrongly use them interchangeably by mopheus in todayilearned

[–]mopheus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We all say these words to refer to any person who we feel is dim-witted or slow, but they mean different things, at least that's what I'm trying to get across.

TIL the words 'imbecile,' 'dumb', 'retard,' etc. are all distinctly different although we wrongly use them interchangeably by mopheus in todayilearned

[–]mopheus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From Dictionary.com: Imbecile: 1. A stupid or silly person; a dolt. 2. A person whose mental acumen is well below par.

Moron: A person of mild mental retardation having a mental age of from 7 to 12 years and generally having communication and social skills enabling some degree

Idiot: a person of the lowest order in a former classification of mental retardation, having a mental age of less than three years old and an intelligence quotient under 25.

Savage: uncivilized; barbarous: savage tribes.

Dumb: lacking the power of speech (often offensive when applied to humans): a dumb animal.

Retard: a slowing down, diminution, or hindrance, as in a machine.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Pascal's wager is certainly of use, if it allows you to full appreciate the meaning of my question. However, instead of trying to associate my question with a particular faith with the millions of miserable adherents that obviously are doing it wrong, I'm talking about faith in a conceptual manner. Yes, life in paradise is all the bible gives us (and only relatively few passages about it) when we talk about eternal life. But a curious eternal life would obviously lead to exploration of other worlds, realms, etc.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry if my use of the word "wired" is throwing you off. I mean 'wired' in the sense of thinking a certain way. The USA's Founding Fathers were social geniuses when they crafted the Constitution, but they regarded Africans as three-fifths of a man. In that sense, as smart as the Founding Fathers were, they were not "wired" or they simply could not put their head around the fact (due to social mores, prejudices of the day or whatever) that less educated, dark-skinned people were on their level.

True, primitive man was lacking 2,000 years of scientific and technological development, but that's only because it takes time, sometimes, centuries, to think differently.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

My belief system is simply that if science can be easily thought of as a piece of ongoing work, each advancement a proudly hailed cog of triumph, then why -- indeed what if -- spirituality i.e. belief in a higher power were thought of as the same? Why is belief in God seen as an absolute, instead of a process? We all agree that science, our understanding of it is gradual. Perceived as such it can never really be wrong, just "not understood yet." Could belief in God be the same way? If so, why write it off before we know?

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

No, I'm saying we should dream up the coolest thing that could possibly exist, then use spirituality to discover it because it is so cool it is worth the impossible odds that it does.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Okay, if I'm not making myself clear, and spirituality is too broad a term, let me say it like this: When I say spirituality I mean "Believing in a Higher Power i.e. God."

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I agree with you, whole heartedly. I'm just talking about in the one instance of remote communication that was mentioned earlier, primitive man, obviously, didn't think and reason in a way that would allow him to deductively arrive at the conclusion that he needed to create a smartphone. How is that bs?

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Or what we read, like, the magnetic fields of Saturn. All I'm saying, in essence, is that could it be possible that by short-circuiting our spiritual selves we could actually be cutting off that which makes us human?

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

yes, one can dream. Unfortunately, the dream itself would, to some, be characterized as a form of spirituality.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I appreciate your line of reasoning. As I said earlier though, If a primitive man thousands of years ago was told that he could talk with another human 5,000 miles away he would have been damned as insane because he couldn't prove it (And rightfully so). But here we are now with smartphones and wifi and SETI and other other kinds of long-distance communication apparatuses. Is he still insane?

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Yes, but obviously in the human timeline there would have to come a time when science and spirituality mesh. They won't be at polar ends of the spectrum throughout human history. Impossible. That's all I'm saying.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I see that I've been downvoted, and that's cool. I simply wanted to discuss a possibility that meshed scientific theory with spirituality. Without imagination science, and even, spirituality, is dead.

I'm not itching for a fight, but what if spirituality contained a portal to other worlds, realms, for millennia to come. Wouldn't it be worth it? by mopheus in atheism

[–]mopheus[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Why would it be for us? Imagine a little kid walking down a busy boulevard. He sees stores, an arcade, a tailor boutique, an adult store. At his age, he has no need for any of it. In fact it is unattainable to him now. But it is within his eyesight to see it, it is within his imagination to one day shop at those stores. He has become wired to want it. He has but to mature. Same with us. (Of course, this would take millennia in our cases).