mentor: profile 
about mentor
I am a freethinker... (yes I know it's a code word)
Freethought: a philosphical viewpoint that holds that beliefs should be formed on the basis of science and logic and not be influenced by authority, emotion, tradition, or dogma.
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered...
Religion is answers that may never be questioned...
Politically I would self-identify as a moderate, though some other golo members might still consider me a "moonbat". At times my political views tend to be more Libertarian, which is one reason I have so much admiration for Thomas Jefferson. It seems political points of view are treated as stereotypical caricatures by many members. It's always easier to attack your own cartoonish version of the other person's views than to understand what the other person's views actually are.
One of my favorite pastimes is studying the philosophers of history, especially in the area of religion. I spent years mentally "at sea" on the topic, knowing my Methodist upbringing wasn't ringing true in my mind...yet not being willing to entertain the possibility that what I had believed all my life might not really be true. I came across the writings of a man named Robert G. Ingersoll, and realized I had stumbled on what I was looking for. If you have never seen or read any of his speeches, do yourself a favor and do so! You can find his work (among others) at www.infidels.org He echoed all my unspoken sentiments about everything that was wrong with Christianity.
Why I Am An Agnostic (1896)
About the Holy Bible (1894)
I floated for a short while in the deist realm, along with the likes of (the much maligned) Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. After more study of the theist/non-theist debate, and soaking up all the modern evolutionary biology I could get my hands on, I began to realize that the universe is explainable without a god as a first cause...in fact it was more convoluted to insert a complex un-caused being at the beginning! Ockham's razor chops away the unnecessary complexity and leaves a simple conclusion: The universe, in some form or other, has always existed. A hard concept for us to grasp, but much simpler than a creator god who was there when it started - but who had done "god only knows" before that! (pun intended)
The hardest part of letting go of God is letting go of the idea of an afterlife...we all somehow feel we should continue on forever, even after our bodies die. I came to realize that this life is all we have. This bothered me for a bit, but it makes a lot more sense than tripping off into an eternity of existence after just a quick 'blip' of a biological life. Epicurus long ago noted that death need not be feared..."If I am here, death is not! When death comes, I shall not be here." Why fear something we will never "share the room with", so to speak? Mark Twain brought his wit and common sense to the topic as well when he said, "I was dead for millions of years before I was born and it never inconvenienced me a bit!" I expect it will be the same when it's all over. My memory of 2112 will be the same as my memories of 1812! :-) The belief that our lives are just a quick prelude to some vague eternity to come later robs us of the full appreciation for the life we have right here, right now! When we can realize that this is our one and only life, it becomes all the more special and dear to us.
The other difficult part of letting go of religious belief is realizing that there will be no "final justice". Hitler is dead; simply dead. There is no hell for him to go to...his existence is ended except for the horrible memories of all the wrongs he perpetrated on humanity while he was alive. Horror was his legacy. Hopefully his miserable life will continue to teach us what the fruits of racial hatred and fascism really are.
You and I have our own opportunity to leave a legacy as well...hopefully a positive one! Maybe this is our shot at immortality after all - to leave behind good memories in the minds of people who knew us..to bequeath to the future all the best we could muster, seen through the eyes of our children.
But, I digress. If you want something to happen in your life, go out and make it happen! If you want justice, you will have to work for it. There is no celestial umpire that is going to call the game in your favor and fix all that was wrong with your life. Prayer is mind-talk and may help some people, but if you use your mind and your reasoning skills, one day you will realize that you're only talking to yourself. YOU are the architect of your future! Be proud of your successes, and don't beat yourself up over your failures. Life is short, and precious....live it for what it is: a rare and special opportunity!
BTW - I have learned (through experience) that serious, thoughtful golo posts can wind up being censored/removed, not because they contain profane or vulgar content...not because they personally attack anyone...but because they contain unpopular ideas. I have no problem with censoring vitriolic hate-speech, obscenities or threats, but deleting a post because you disagree with a person's ideas detracts from the discussion, deprives readers of different points of view, and makes your blog something less.
Fun YouTube Destinations!
MadTV Carlin sketch.
A few notable quotes.
A few thoughts from Sam Harris.
Suppose we've chosen the wrong god. Every time we go to church we're just making him madder. - Homer Simpson
You can't convince a believer of anything; their belief is not based on evidence but a deep-seated need to believe. - Carl Sagan
Fear is the mother of all gods. Nature does all things spontaneously by herself without their meddling. - Lucretius
About the name Mentor: Years ago, when I was running a bbs, I had a user with this handle. He was an old guy who had a way of bringing just the right mix of wisdom and common sense to a discussion. He's long gone now, and I use the name mostly as a tribute to him.
We have a new atheist/agnostic group on golo! Please apply:
An expanded blog on these topics is under construction on Wordpress HERE. Comments and discussion are welcome! If you prefer, you may reach me directly at free.thought2@gmail.com.
favorites
favorite music: from steely dan to old ac/dc
favorite movies: good sci-fi
favorite hobbies: computers - philosophy - astronomy - audio production
favorite tv shows: any good educational show covering science topics.
favorite restaurants: good mexican restaurants
favorite web sites: pandasthumb.org (recently)
favorite vacation spots: uhhh....vacation?
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GOLO member since July 11, 2007
July 5, 2008 4:02 p.m.
I have beliefs, a world view if you will. They very likely are not going to change to any great degree. It's an exercise in futility and frustration to enter into any dialogue with an opposing viewpoint..... it's just the same o same o. With that in mind, I usually just keep quiet. A particularly boneheaded or obnoxious remark will get a quip out of me, but not much more. Why bother? You can tell a rock all day long that thinks it's a great intellect that it's just a rock, but it doesn't change it's mind.
GOLO member since March 21, 2008
July 5, 2008 11:13 a.m.
GOLO member since July 11, 2007
July 4, 2008 5:46 p.m.
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
July 4, 2008 2:08 p.m.
GOLO member since November 20, 2007
July 4, 2008 8:05 a.m.
;-)
Beth
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
July 3, 2008 11:53 p.m.
Have a good one. :-)
Beth
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
July 3, 2008 10:44 p.m.
Oh yeah...I have had discussions about this and they always turn ugly. 2 candidates with 'active' military records have come up against "W", John McCain and John Kerry. Both men were smeared very effectively by Republican-funded 527 PACs. What you'll find here on GoLo is the conservatives think the Kerry smear was accurate and justified, but not the attacks on McCain. Completely partisan. Oldschool is bellicose and belligerent, but he knows "W" and Cheney both did everything they could to avoid service in Vietnam. Not that I would want to go either, but the tactics used by the GOP to keep this topic from derailing Bush were (and are) disgraceful.
GOLO member since March 18, 2008
July 2, 2008 8:08 a.m.
I get a bit miffed when some of these people post about how a candidate needs to have "Military" experience in order to be the Commander-in-Chief. And then they get all sour when you mention ol' Dubya's fun days as a TEXAS Guardsman (avoiding Vietnam entirely). I wonder exactly what his weekend warrior duty taught him? But... he's been in the military!!
I think I just get my azz on my shoulders when I see stuff that TMed posts. I don't know why I even bother - as she's just all about riling people up. Oh, to not be such a Yankee hothead sometimes!!!
GOLO member since July 14, 2007
July 2, 2008 2:35 a.m.
GOLO member since August 2, 2007
July 1, 2008 1:11 p.m.
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