Claiming your own reality

I’ve been mentally away, for what seems like way too long, by health considerations. Temporarily knocked into a gutter of personal angst – by my glaring inability to single-handedly challenge and change, the many social ills of our day. And juxtaposed against an awareness that I probably need to type a little faster, if I…

In speaking to the religious beliefs, held by many, that meaning is to be found, mainly, in the joyful happiness of “remaining close to the Spirit of God,” I’m reminded of the woefully inaccurate conclusions of Hobbs. Who attached great social and economic weight to the peaceful security that could be purchased, at the expense of submitting to an absolute ruler. That, if “the meaning of life” is to be had by a continual immersion in that HUMAN phenomena known as “The Holy Ghost,” – or “The Spirit of God,” – for the sole purpose of comforting man from the cold hard realities of this existence, then I liken it to a not entirely decent display of spiritual self-abuse. At least, a disabuse from reality. Achieved by many, through prayer and song. Working oneself into a “spiritual frenzy” with the aid of charismatic preachers, stained glass, dark curtains, choirs, and assorted religious relics – hung about an imposing alter or artifact. “The meaning of life” is not an absolute – or even the same for everyone. It’s what YOU come to decide it is. And YOU generate the sense of worth and ownership you feel, towards those social and personal values you’ve forged, on the anvil of whatever occupies your time, your interest, and your mind. Whether delusional, in the strict sense of empirical reality, or a more rational philosophy. One that embraces the wonderful gift of life – while also recognizing the all too tenuous and brief span, of an individual human life. Life – while we have it. And who’s most abiding source of comfort, is the recognition that – while you are individually “just another step along the way” – the life of the human race goes on. That it’s survival of the species, we should all be concerning ourselves with. More than our dead ancestors. And more than any delusional play-acting about some spiritual afterlife. Whether it be with 70 virgins, somewhere, or a half-dozen sister-wives, on Kolob. Think about it. What’s the difference between believing you – and by extension, everyone else – are God’s own chosen, and simply facing the reality that, as it turns out, we are the ones charged with helping ourselves – and our fellow man. That there IS no God coming to our rescue – to save us from ourselves. And rather than continue on, as a society, engaged in the incessant dog-eat-dog pursuit of the economic and resource predation of our less fortunate fellow citizens, we should actually be EARNESTLY ENGAGED, in the business of seeing that everyone has the opportunity - and the right - to thrive. By helping each other find a way – to help themselves – in this life.

We need a new Social Contract

—  In speaking to the religious beliefs, held by many, that meaning is to be found, mainly, in the joyful happiness of “remaining close to the Spirit of God,” I’m reminded of the woefully inaccurate conclusions of Hobbs. Who attached great social and economic weight to the peace and security that could be purchased, at…

A Concise History of Evolution and Religion

By Scott Kaelen Scott Kaelen – Flogging a World of Dead Horses Note: This is an extraordinary opportunity for us, here at The Salt Lake Daily Issue, to make available to our readers this remarkably detailed timeline – of some 80 seminal benchmarks to the initial rise of life, and its subsequent evolution – over…

Reflecting on our need to be right

  Now that Kate Kelly and the Ordain Women’s movement have, for the most part, concluded their high-profile run at the LDS religious oligarchy – having managed to momentarily make direct and predictably mortal contact with the corporation’s particularly low-hanging, power-ceiling fan – we’ve all had a chance to reflect on what any of it…

Examining artificial human intelligence

    This is a futuristic, sci-fi type of hypothetical, that I’ve broached before, but I’d be interested to hear what some of you might have to say. It has become increasingly apparent that computers will eventually attain to some higher form of, autonomous, artificial intelligence – possibly blurring any line between human intelligence and…