From: Dr. Blake Nelson (bnelson301@yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Dec 07 2002 - 22:12:18 EST
Hi Jim,
--- Jim Eisele <jeisele@starpower.net> wrote:
(Reordered for convenience)
> Hi Blake,
(snipped some stuff about the Bible and evolution)
> Blake, you are obviously very intelligent, and think
> on
> a "high" level. But even the most intelligent folks
> can
> rationalize away reality that they aren't prepared
> to accept.
> Nobody believed in evolution when the Bible was
> written.
> Although I admire your tenacity, we have trouble
> finding
> a starting point for discussion when we can't even
> agree
> about this.
In other words, you are right (even though before you
were, by your current view completely wrong), you know
that you are right and all other viewpoints are the
result of wrong thinking, including wish fulfillment,
dogma, etc?
Honestly, Jim, if you were so wrong before (twice
before, by your count), how do you know you are so
right now? Your current ardency doesn't inspire
confidence in light of your past ardency for positions
you now think totally wrong.
(snipped some stuff about Jim believing that suffering
is the result of "imperfect evolution")
The point of my question was to bring out the fact
that you haven't really thought hard about your
statements. What is "perfect" vs. "imperfect" about
evolution? If you mean evolution is an "imperfect"
process, by what standards would you measure it as
imperfect? Isn't doing so merely anthropomorphizing
wish fullfilment that you assume religion and
religious people do?
If you think about it critically, you have placed
yourself in what is very likely (at least it seems to
me based on what you write) a logically inconsistent
position in regards to ontology and epistemology. I
would strongly urge you to think about (and ideally
read about) how you think you know things and what
your evidence for those things are.
Perhaps, things will become more complex but at least
a whole lot clearer to you as to what the real issues
and concerns are about whether to adopt theistic,
atheistic or agnostic beliefs.
All the best,
Blake
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