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____/ Homer on Wednesday 06 Jul 2011 22:41 : \____
> Verily I say unto thee, that Roy Schestowitz spake thusly:
>> ____/ Homer on Wednesday 06 Jul 2011 15:20 : \____
>>> Verily I say unto thee, that Roy Schestowitz spake thusly:
>>>>
>>>> What troubles me sometimes is that to some people taking fantasy
>>>> away (based on false promises like life after death) is a horrifying
>>>> experience
>>>
>>> So don't take it away, but let people believe whatever they want.
>>> After all, death is an inevitability, so it really doesn't make any
>>> difference either way. If there is an afterlife then those who
>>> believe in it will be vindicated upon death. If not then they won't
>>> exactly be concious to suffer the trauma of their delusion, will
>>> they?
>>>
>>>> which does lead me to wondering if that alone (no hellfire and other
>>>> sorts of blackmail) is something worth keeping for the
>>>> mentally-feeble (some of whom are people I love).
>>>
>>> If you love them then you should respect their dignity, and not
>>> presume they're feeble-minded just because they believe in something
>>> you don't.
>>
>> What if they teach children about Hell (and "Heaven")?
>
> What of it?
>
> You make it sound like rape.
>
> What if they teach children about Santa, The Big Bang, Harry Potter and
> other fiction, if it makes them happy?
>
> And moreover, why (and how) would anyone care about such things after
> they're dead (the point at which they discover the truth, one way or
> another)?
>
> So again I ask, what difference does it make, and what business is it of
> yours what /other/ people teach /their/ children, especially if the
> worst possible consequence is that it turns out to be a fictional story
> that will have zero effect on them one way or another, living or dead,
> except possibly having the secondary effect of imbuing them with a sense
> of morality, and help them (deceptively or otherwise) to calmly accept
> the inevitability of death?
>
> I mean, it's not like they're going to come back from the dead and
> demand a refund, if there turns out to be no heaven, is it?
>
> Good job you're not a field medic in a war zone, because you'd be little
> comfort to dying soldiers. There /are/ times, you know, when a lie can
> be more ethical than the truth.
>
> Soldier: Medic, am I going to be OK?
> Roy: No, you're basically fucked pal. Prepare for oblivion, sucker!
> Soldier: [choke]
Medics with good training (nd without religio) all know the importance of
keeping the patient optimistic.
> If the "supernatural" element of religion is a lie (and I assume it is),
> then at worst it's only a compassionate lie with zero negative
> consequences.
>
> As Francis Bacon might have said: If the molehill will not come to
> Mahomet, Mahomet will go to the molehill.
>
> Religion seems to be your personal molehill.
I think it sometimes impedes science like patents do.
- --
~~ Best of wishes
Dr. Roy S. Schestowitz (Ph.D. Medical Biophysics), Imaging Researcher
http://Schestowitz.com | GNU/Linux administration | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
Editor @ http://techrights.org & Broadcaster @ http://bytesmedia.co.uk/
GPL-licensed 3-D Othello @ http://othellomaster.com
Non-profit search engine proposal @ http://iuron.com
Contact E-mail address (direct): s at schestowitz dot com
Contact Internet phone (SIP): schestowitz@xxxxxxxxx (24/7)
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