You should read this link: http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/London/...on/animals.html The writer addresses both sides of the issue before coming to a conclusion you may find interesting.
actually when you think about it the earth and all the animals are in perfect unity with eachother...each regulates the other....if we dropped off the planet i doubt there'd be much of an effect to their cycle of life. i still say animals will go to heaven but i suppose its amatter of definition as regards the "soul"
I believe they do too. As for whales, the amazing stories I have read about their ability to know things that by any logical reasoning they should not, makes me think they also have a very highly developed intellect. The story of the Juan de Fuca strait resident orcas arriving for a memorial service is a great example.
A dog may lick my hand, then bite you the next second. clearly a choice has been made, which to me shows free will of some kind. It could be instinct, granted. It is just my belief, anyway, and by no means a fact.
I retracted nothing, just humbly mentioned that I am not infallible and could be wrong. How could I know for a fact that animals have souls? I believe they do, and that is my stance. I am no fence sitter, Stan, I hold my beliefs strongly, and am unlikely to change them to any great degree. I am sorry you are upset by my views, but I will not retract or change them to suit you. What is your purpose in being so interested in my personal spiritual faith, since it has zip to do with you?
I care too, and I accept that just becuz someone follows a different path, they are just as right as me, excepting my qualifying comments earlier. I care enough to love them for who they are, and accept and support your and their right to their own faith.
I said that too, if you care to reread my views. I never said that anyone who promotes hatred or hurtful actions is acceptable to me. You just refuse to recognize my statements, for some reason.
Clearly, you do not feel that there are certain actions that are considered evil by all cultures. I do. But I am sure that I cannot expand on my definition of bad so that you will get it. If it is out of love, it will likely not be bad, though some loving actions have been found out to be misguided and were done with the best intentions, yet were not good. You and I just disagree on the minutae of the practical reality of good versus evil. In a vacuum, there is obviously no such thing, but this is no vacuum we inhabit, so that philosophical concept is useless to me.
You are clearly not an anthropologist, Stan. If you were, you'd know that morality differs from one culture to another, and that is all I ever said. You are disagreeing with a ghost, cuz no one ever said they promoted the actions you are disagreeing with. You can think what you like, but morality IS defined by ones society, and reflects their culture, and that culture's societal norms. I hope you can see that this IS NOT promoting genocide.
Do you not then call such absolutes ethics? Just curious. I admit my views are 'out there'. The idea that we can all be right is a concept that I have concluded as being my belief, and I realize it is not shared by many. It is likely not considered as being possible by most. I know this. I never would have pegged you for an anthropologist, though.
Though I know exactly what you mean, and to a point I agree, I disagree that anthropology is a bullshit class. I agree philosophy is, since it has always appeared to me to be completely devoid of love or compassion, and treated every subject as though there were no context. I like simple philosophers like Mark Twain, Mother Teresa, Will Rogers, etc. The theoretical, hypothetical, and esoteric aspect of it does nothing for me. It seems very silly to me, actually, with all the terminology and definitions that have no place in the real world. Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Calculus, etc. are definitely courses that require very highly developed intellectual abilities to excel in. I was more successful in English, where the grading is more flexible. It is so much harder to argue with a prof. about an incorrect answer to a quadratic equation, than about an author's intended meaning in a novel. I needed that leeway. To me, as of maybe 10 years ago, though, Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, etc. have gained my respect. These three, anyway, have become indispensible subjects to learn about if we, as humans ever hope to live in harmony. The compassionate, and caring aspect they focus on is desperately needed, in my view. I can also understand you balking at Stan being an anthropologist, as he is very different than any I have met. Terms like idiot and dipshit are ones I haven't heard any anthropologists I know ever use. The ones I know are very quiet, and unassuming characters that show a higher than average level of respect to others.
(zoeeeeee not atropine) hey forgive me if i'm wrong...my knowledge of the bible is patchy but.. The old testament is taken from the jewish bible, the torah. This is fact. however, if you don't believe me, then just assume that my knowledge is of the christian bible. trust me, theyre the same. the point in me saying this is a refer to the torah, and my knowledge is derived from there, and the explanatory texts accompanying it. From memory, the only text referring to animals in comparison to humans is an antiquated and misunderstood text. I have not found this text, but was assured of its presence by my (christian) religious instruction teacher, when she was trying to convince me that humans were superior to animals (I said that breeding and killing off millions of animals for our food was disgusting)... Basically, she said that there was a line drawn in the earth, and man went to one side and animals went to the other, man was separated from animals with this line, being given gifts of reasoning etc, as the line split the earth apart and became a huge canyon, dogs jumped to man's side and that's why they're 'mans best friend'. Her point was that man is superior. My question is, aren't dogs the same then? I would really love for someone to actually refer to a biblical text which defines animals as inferior to humans. Furthermore, I would love for someone to show me a text which says there is actually a heaven and hell. From one believer to another, I really think that it's extremely egocentric and elitist for one to assume they are better than anything else. You're the ones who believe in jesus, who constantly talked about equality etc., am I the only one believing it? Animals don't go to war. Animals only kill what they need, whereas humans kill and destroy in total excess. Animals aren't the ones doing all the things most christians believe are ung-dly- abortion, idolatry, war, hate, anger, glutton, cloning etc- humans are. Which group has morals? You may, mankind as a whole doesn't.
PHd in applied ethics, morality, philosophy, theology and philosophical theology, as well as an MA in Religious Studies, an MA in Islamic Studies (emphasis on History) and a BA in Finance and Marketing. I also hold a certificate of significant excellence from LSU School of Culinary Arts Stan Grossman I have to agree, MM, anthropology is not in this list. Also, I may be wrong, but I get the impression that these degrees are from a Christian institution, just from the focus of them. I apologize if I am mistaken. Every one of the disciplines named are ones that I find to be very arbitrary and for the most part, of little intellectual substance or value. They all appear to be subjects which rely heavily on unproven and unprovable conjecture. Except the business and cooking ones, that is. This does not mean I think they are absolutely useless, cuz I know that there is some stuff in there about love and compassion. I just find that in my research, the majority of the literature on them is esoteric, exclusive, and requires one to just accept the teachings on faith. Not that faith is a bad thing, cuz I have my own version, which is dear to me.
Stan, you are 14, and have that CV? I am impressed, even if I don't hold those particular courses as favorites. Do you have an opinion on what intelligence is? I am curious to know your views on academic intellectual ability and what you feel the definition of intelligence is. You have answered one of my puzzles, which is your aggressive and very self assured style. I was the same at 14.
agreed, of course. To me, love without expectations is even more critical. Two books that I found very good are, "Emotional Intelligence", by D. Goleman I think, and even more enlightening to me, " The Choice Theory" by Glasser.
I agree, and also wish you a very happy life. You have a very fucked up world to grow up in, and I hope that by the time you reach adulthood, us old farts will have cleaned up some of our mess for you, so you don't have to.
Well, I was 8 when I felt that Jesus was special, and had the right idea, so I know what you mean. Although I stopped considering myself Christian by around 11, I still hold Him in very high regard. I also have learned much from virtually every other person you name, and I also find His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Chief Seattle, and Mother Teresa to be great sources of wisdom. Albert Einstein, Helen Keller, Gandhi, Aung San Soo Kyi, Nelson Mandela, and to me, Mark Twain, and John Lennon also shaped my ideals. The mess that I fear you will face is more one of scarce resources, pollution, warfare, and class struggles which will take every drop of problem solving skills available to overcome. A compassionate, loving moral foundation is definitely a good start. Heck, I believe you still have 97 months to turn it all around anyway, lots of time.
If you are a day over 15 I'll eat my shorts. No adult is that immature, unless you have a sociopathic personality.
