Posted by Toph on December 27, 2004, at 6:44:26
In reply to Re: Does evil exist? » Larry Hoover, posted by Toph on December 26, 2004, at 16:01:47
OK, that was harsh. But Einstein sought the truth not myths his whole life, when he wasn't cheating on his wife, that is. You can look at it this way, there's a great dichotomy - matter and no matter plus phenomena, like change, the fertile delta. There is a force to change matter opposed by a force to maintain matter. Where matter is, how it is changing, and how fast it is changing, is, of course, all relative depending on your point of view. I have no way of knowing this but I think that Einstein, like me, like all of us including the most arrogant among us (on Earth not on PB), alternate between believing there is a God and believing there is no God. These beliefs can change in time, thank God, at least from my point of view.
Here's some postcards from a manic mind:
There are three basic drives in man: 1) to procreate, 2) to self propetuate, and 3) to self-pleasurate (I wanted 3 p's). Then there are three basic sins: 1) lying, 2) stealing and 3) hating. Mix them together and a whole lot of bad can happen. Make some rules about the second three (and their variations) and a whole lot of good can happen. I don't care who gets credit for the rules, I'm just glad they're there. The rules need to be relatively flexible depending on your point of view and man-made concepts of mercy, fairness and justice.
Here's what I have trouble with. Is knowlegde an inherently good thing or a bad thing? This apple that spoils the garden, that knocks some sense into Newton, that once split can kill efficiently and indiscriminately, is seductively powerful and dangerous. Is knowledge itself inherently evil or just how we apply it? When we figure out soon how to stop aging, how to clone ourselves to harvest organs to perpetuate our lives, who will govern this science? When we have computers and other technology (if we don't already) capable of monitoring and analyzing everyone's behavior will we use it? If Einstein made the deadly choice between bomb or no bomb presumably driven by the need to self-perpetuate his culture, who will be smart enough to lead the world to a place where truth prevails over lies, sharing is valued more than having, and love conquers hate?
-Toph
poster:Toph
thread:433996
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20041226/msgs/434535.html