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RationalBiker

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Everything posted by RationalBiker

  1. Just for clarities sake, I think you may be referring to WilliamColton's response.
  2. You keep asking such incredibly broad questions that only incredibly broad and simple answers apply. If you don't think it is that simplistic, why then do YOU think a specific child gets cancer? Why do you think specific people meet with accidents? Etc.
  3. Okay, let's look at this with a literal example of "reaping what you sow". Suppose Farmer John, a good farmer, knows the ins and outs of farming, plants properly, tends to his crop properly and the crop is growing fine. Then, just before harvest time, the crop is destroyed by a terrible storm. Has the farmer in fact "reaped what he has sown"?
  4. Thanks. This is kinda why I'm trying to nail down what the poster means by the two terms. Additionally, it would seem to me that the most common usage, at least in the US, seems to be that there is some overseeing hand of justice that rewards or punishes accordingly. So since Karma is such and ambiguous term, and since the OP's other questions are so overly broad, some clarification is needed to attempt to answer his/her question(s).
  5. I've just finished watching the first season and I do enjoy watching the show. I like the dark humor, the story line and how well the characters are acted and developed. That said, while Walt has the capability of being a great problem solver with the use of his mind, he consistently makes bad decisions. I do agree with FeatherFall that the meth side of it is portrayed pretty realistic in terms of the overall consequences of getting into that business and those who use the drug. But without getting too much into the actual storyline, Walt made some hideously bad MAJOR decisions that would likely have been far more "successful" for him short term and long term given the goals he purports to have according to the show. It's not that you can't relate to his character and the choices he has made, but in the same way that some people have lots of money and squander it, so has Walt squandered his brilliance.
  6. Your questions are way too broad to answer, but I would like to ask one question first that may help; are you suggesting Karma and causality are the same thing?
  7. RationalBiker

    Tattoos

    So then wouldn't it be possible in some contexts that a dragon or a butterfly tattoo might be meaningful to someone?
  8. I'd certainly be more likely to buy his than hers.
  9. So the purpose of sex is to make babies then, right? That is the biological function of sex. Any other exercise of sex must be immoral according to your position.
  10. To the tune of "I Hung my Head" by Sting. Early one morning, with money to kill The Wildlife Service, sat up on The Hill They eyed guitar makers, who plying their trade Had ebony wood, so they planned a raid Quickly the rushed in, and grabbed all the goods "You cannot make guitars, from all these dark woods" So Gibson they handcuffed, and charges they read, I hung my head, I hung my head.
  11. I'll hazard a guess at this point and say "not at all". Carry on then.
  12. I don't see that as the logical "reverse" at all. Please explain the logic.
  13. I don't think people should admire such individuals that contribute to the destruction.
  14. For the record, I'm not against enjoying entertainment that features "anti-heroes" if they are well done, have good and reasonably realistic story lines and characters. I enjoyed the entire series of the The Shield, all the while hoping that Vic would go to jail in the end.
  15. In many respects I suspect it is like Weeds, though Weeds is more dark comedy (I assume). That too shows the impact of Nancy's decisions to deal weed on her and her family. That said, from a practical point of view, there is a world of difference between weed and meth. However, like some others on the board, I sometimes cringe at who I see from movies and TV held up to the "Objectivism Light" for comparison.
  16. I can't think of anything much worse that you could say that would damage your credibility on this forum than the above statement. Yes, it is perfectly acceptable for your opinions to be entirely whimsical, it just won't serve you well in a discussion forum devoted to being objective.
  17. I may watch the show sometime to give a more full opinion. However, I have to say that on its face, I don't see the production of Crystal Meth as a heroic, life affirming or positive productive value. I think some folks would benefit from looking into Crystal Meth, what it does, how it affects people, you know... in real life. I'm really doubting that Objectivism as a philosophy would say that just because it isn't violating rights, and just because he's doing to support his family in the face of a terminal disease that it is therefore moral. I'm guessing that somehow his family lives in a vacuum that is completely unaffected by the results of him furthering crystal meth usage and it's impact on the society and culture in which all of the people not in that vacuum have to live.
  18. I would suggest in turn that you think of a set of conditions in which continued physical existence would be intolerable. Think about the mental and emotional consequences of the choice you are positing here as they are very much as metaphysically real as the physical existence that you are referring to as if it were in a vacuum. "Life", "man's life" specifically, is more than simply avoiding death.
  19. Okay, you can think that if you like. However, you should realize there is an objective reality outside of your mind that may well not support your premise here. I think long term, but I EXPLICITLY think that when I'm dead, I'm dead... no more experiences, no more emotions, no more thinking... that's it, the whole enchilada is gone.
  20. The problem is, you are only equating life with mere physical existence and that's it. I would suggest you read some more about what Rand means when she refers to life, specifically man's life. She is NOT talking about morgue avoidance.
  21. My life is my "ultimate cause". The actions that sustain it and make it flourish are "meaningful actions". Why would I need anything else to value life?
  22. I get that, but he says "why do atheists believe THEIR MYTHOLOGY...." which implies he thinks there is a mythology associated with atheism. I think you are correct in that he appears to think that atheism stems (only) from acceptance of evolutionary theory.
  23. Where does he come up with the idea that Atheism is a "mythology". I'm not a theist, end of story. No mythology there.
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