mentor: profile 
about mentor
I am a freethinker...a scientific naturalist, if you will.
Freethought: a philosophical 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 for all of us as well. 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!
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Fun YouTube Destinations!
MadTV Carlin sketch.
A few notable quotes.
A few thoughts from Sam Harris.
It's not always easy to be secular in the U.S.
"Of all religions, the Christian should of course inspire the most tolerance, but until now Christians have been the most intolerant of all men." - Voltaire
"I would defend the liberty of consenting adult creationists to practice whatever intellectual perversions they like in the privacy of their own homes; but it is also necessary to protect the young and innocent. - Arthur C. Clarke
The Bible is not my book, nor Christianity my profession. I could never give assent to the long, complicated statements of Christian dogma. - Abraham Lincoln
In religion and politics, people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand, and without examination. - Mark Twain
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 now have a group for atheist/agnostic golo members! Please apply if you would like to be part of it:
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: now playing on youtube...movits! - fel del av gården
favorite movies: good sci-fi
favorite hobbies: computers - philosophy - astronomy - audio production
favorite tv shows: any good educational show covering science topics...the daily show... the colbert report
favorite restaurants: good mexican restaurants
favorite web sites: pandasthumb.org (recently)
favorite vacation spots: uhhh....vacation?
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using one old rule! one simple trick!
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riddle me this...wake up golo - time for some trivia!!
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don't worry........be happy!
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GOLO member since October 12, 2007
August 11, 2009 1:16 p.m.
How did the vacation go?
GOLO member since April 8, 2008
August 18, 2009 9:07 p.m.
I just checked out your wordpress site. It looks like something I'll be in...plus, cool choice for the banner pic.
GOLO member since April 8, 2008
August 19, 2009 7:32 a.m.
Hey...sorry I missed it. Apparently it has been removed. Can't help but wonder if she saw your note and took it down. LOL.
Oh well, sorry you had to go through that.
GOLO member since May 8, 2008
August 24, 2009 8:10 a.m.
The thing is that we actually aspire (or at least most say they do) for a separation of church and state and freedom of religion. So the example broke down because unless I portrayed the atheist majority as active persecutors of the religious then the society would function quite well and in fact be very much closer to the ideals of Jefferson than we have today.
GOLO member since October 17, 2007
August 24, 2009 3:20 p.m.
All I can say to that is it bears an uncanny resemblance to Ozzy Osbourne. The bitterness and anger at the world make perfect sense now - I would probably bitter and angry myself were I in those shoes.
That said, it will get no quarter from me. It's still fun to poke it with the pointy stick. I don't see that ending any time soon.
GOLO member since September 6, 2007
August 29, 2009 2:34 p.m.
GOLO member since October 17, 2007
August 31, 2009 2:59 p.m.
GOLO member since August 2, 2007
September 2, 2009 11:20 a.m.
GOLO member since June 24, 2009
September 3, 2009 9:05 a.m.
GOLO member since April 8, 2008
September 4, 2009 3:19 p.m.
:-)
Beth
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
September 9, 2009 5:36 p.m.
GOLO member since October 17, 2007
September 10, 2009 6:45 a.m.
I wonder if you and I could do this. I respect you greatly and I think I could learn a lot. We are above the base reactions that we normally see. Could this be done in a way that would not turn into people just trying to hurt each other. Not us, but those who may read and respond.
GOLO member since October 17, 2007
September 14, 2009 12:08 p.m.
Google er min venn!
(http://www.babylon.com/affiliates/landing/index.php?id=CD5137&textlink=esgn41064)
GOLO member since April 10, 2008
September 14, 2009 2:36 p.m.
Have a great evening!
GOLO member since July 8, 2009
September 14, 2009 4:40 p.m.
But, I got the BIGGEST chuckle out of your comments explaining -on the blog and on my profile- with that Spock avatar in the corner. Kinda 'transported' me to the Enterprise for a minute or two. *grin*
Did you check out my link from earlier?
GOLO member since April 10, 2008
September 14, 2009 8:04 p.m.
Shoot I can be down right long winded. :) I like all those formats that you described. Maybe we could do a dry run on the a&a group. It is a fact that those in that group would be much better than the public forum. I just like discussing things with you guys. It always make me think which is always a positive thing.
Thanks for at least entertaining the idea. I really like to discuss and explore my own positions and like I said I always learn something which is just fabulous.
GOLO member since October 17, 2007
September 14, 2009 10:31 p.m.
The subject of the blog lends itself to considering sci-fi. It practically demands it. Medical technology WILL continue to advance. Man will never stop exploring new frontiers. Which means that unless there are comparable advances in other life sustaining technologies, (sci-fi today, reality tomorrow) we will outlive our resources. We just won't outlive them for long.
GOLO member since January 25, 2008
September 18, 2009 10:05 a.m.
GOLO member since June 10, 2008
September 18, 2009 12:47 p.m.
No, I believe she is lurking. My remark was based on her post last night accusing drb of being elcid in disguise.
GOLO member since January 25, 2008
September 18, 2009 2:36 p.m.
GOLO member since January 25, 2008
September 18, 2009 2:49 p.m.
Must be those nerdy glasses drb wears when he's on golo.
GOLO member since January 25, 2008
September 18, 2009 3:07 p.m.
I found it a few minutes ago. That's how I discovered I had been defriended.
GOLO member since January 25, 2008
September 18, 2009 3:21 p.m.
GOLO member since March 18, 2008
September 30, 2009 2:06 p.m.
(un)fortunately, that's one part of my brain that I'm unable to disable." - T-man
We have that in common! :)"
Yeah, it kinda pizzes off the wife occasionally, but other than that, it's served me well.
GOLO member since July 13, 2007
September 30, 2009 9:53 p.m.
(c;
GOLO member since November 21, 2007
October 7, 2009 5:27 p.m.
:-)
Beth
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
October 7, 2009 7:35 p.m.
Beth
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
October 7, 2009 9:43 p.m.
GOLO member since June 24, 2009
October 9, 2009 8:10 a.m.
GOLO member since June 24, 2009
October 9, 2009 8:18 a.m.
GOLO member since June 24, 2009
October 9, 2009 8:18 a.m.
well said
GOLO member since November 12, 2007
October 9, 2009 2:31 p.m.
/* bump stumble bump */
/* giggle */
/* knock, knock, knock */
Trick or treat!
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
October 31, 2009 4:01 p.m.
In real life, I don't eat sugar. But in cyber...... The Twix!! /* snarf gobble munch gulp */
Thanks!
GOLO member since July 2, 2007
November 1, 2009 8:04 a.m.
I felt sure that if anyone would recognize the tactical nature of what I'd been up to, it would be you. :-D
The problem with these folks is that they think in 2 dimensions and reactively rather than strategically. Of course the end intention was to encourage an action that served to illustrate my point. In one fell swoop they hurt their own credibility and gave me a soapbox from which to assert the "NOW do you see what I've been talking about all of this time?" position.
GOLO member since November 9, 2009
November 12, 2009 3:22 p.m.
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