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No. I have poker night with the ladies, and we don't use money if ya know what I mean. ;) Tampons. Gotcha. Yeah and good thing I was on a luck streak that night. My flow was so heavy the day after. :oops:

I think the Bible is full of many falsehoods too, but it's counterproductive to the argument to make any tiny thing you find seem like it's nonsense. "And after these things I saw four angels standing on FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree." Notice they didn't emphasize holding the four winds of the earth, but jump on how they "imply" the earth is flat? This sounds clearly like symbolism to me. Either that or they had acid back then.

No. I have poker night with the ladies, and we don't use money if ya know what I mean. ;)

That's one of the very reasons I don't believe in heaven or hell. The way heaven is described, it sounds like it would be a hell to some people since we each have our own unique desires and fears. Heaven and hell appeal to the general population's desires and fears to the extreme, which is why I think they're just tools to sell the religion. That's not to say that I don't think it's impossible for there to be some sort of afterlife though. If there is, I'm definitely clueless as to what it would be like. I don't like thinking about afterlife much though - I'm completely fine with the idea that this is all we have, make the best of it, you still "live on" through the people you influenced in your lifetime, etc. etc. It depends on what your definition of light source is. Of course light isn't generated from the moon, but the sun's rays light up the moon which lights up the night sky. Technically a light bulb wouldn't be a light source either - it's the thing inside the light bulb that the light comes from.

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I think your dogs' gambling addictions are far worse than the bird problem.

Exactly. As unfair as it sounds, hearing tragic stories of suffering of others makes us feel grateful that we don't have that kind of life. If we didn't hear horror stories like that, I have the feeling we'd be a lot less appreciate about our lives than we are now. Suffering is necessary. Like having an ugly friend to make you feel good. Pretty disgusting and ultimately a poor design. Well, I'm not saying we should go out and seek those horror stories like someone with low self-esteem goes out to seek ugly friends. As for this being a poor design, I'd rather live in a world perpetuated by the balance of good and evil than live in a stagnant, uneventful, boring world with neither. It's a price you have to pay, which reminds me of TANSTAAFL in a way. Just because humans have the ability to complain, I don't see that as a good reason to not believe in god. It's a means of getting us to strive for what we do want which allows for flexibility, individuality, and self-achievement. Some say that the journey is better than the destination. I definitely think this holds true for the never-ending path to happiness.

Exactly. As unfair as it sounds, hearing tragic stories of suffering of others makes us feel grateful that we don't have that kind of life. If we didn't hear horror stories like that, I have the feeling we'd be a lot less appreciate about our lives than we are now. Suffering is necessary.

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Tool - Vicarious

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The purpose of life is to create more life? That's pretty circular and doesn't really answer the question though.

Occam's razor can go both ways I believe. Is it easier to believe that we are a tremendously rare mathematical mistake or that we are here for a reason? If God created everything then he also created your destiny to deny him. If he punishes you for something that he's done himself, then that's the opposite of divine judgment if you ask me... Also, what about people who die before they even heard about God? Not everyone gets the same equal opportunities.

Yes, don't get me wrong. I wasn't disagreeing with you on that. I just think it's a stretch to say that we don't control ourselves at all.

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Fair enough, but I was mainly getting at the judgment they hold against those people, not the punishment. We judge people based on their actions. Criminals receive negative judgment and are sent off to prison. They are rarely seen as a helpless pawn to their own genes or else the law system and people would probably be more sympathetic generally speaking. But we're a very judgmental race. Saying that we are a slave to our genes kind of justifies committing crime, but of course it's a given that the crime should be countered with law to prevent it.

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Really? How would you explain crime then? If what you're saying is true then why are we putting millions of people in jail if they had no control over it?