Wednesday, May 30, 2001

Right vs. Wrong: The Subjectivity of God

There’s no such thing as right or wrong.  Anyone who tells you otherwise is forcing their opinion on you.  Something that is right to one person could be completely wrong to another.  For instance, take the issue of abortion.  Many feel it is the right thing to do in certain situations, while many feel it's the wrong choice in every situation. 

Right and wrong are subjective values we all have, subject to change through the course of our lives.  They are relative terms, different for each person, fluid like our changing knowledge.  What information we gather as we get older, and what information we lose, creates a sort of river that deposits our thoughts on random shores, while picking up others to carry them along.  This creates an atmosphere of volatility for all individuals, whose concepts of right and wrong are never set in stone, even among the most stubborn people. 

A man who tells you that you’ll burn in hell for eternity for having sex before marriage hasn’t the slightest idea that he’s projecting his own version of right and wrong on you, not God’s.  God itself is a subjective idea that means something different to everyone.  One man’s God may not be the same as another’s, even if they share the same religion, for the projection of personal values onto their God mutates it into something more distinct.  In a sense, there are billions of Gods- one for each projection that all people have.  Polytheistic religions can even multiply the effect.  That’s why many classical myths have multiple interpretations.  Gods are like works of art that are open to different viewpoints, reflecting the values of people depending on how they are imagined. 

 

Monday, May 28, 2001

Assumptions

Assumptions are the mother of all mistakes. When we falsely assume something, it creates a trap for us every time.  Assumptions can result in us losing things we wanted, doing extra work, and appearing inconsiderate to others.  Often, we assume the worst of someone when we are mistaken.  For example, we could assume they intentionally did something to harm us when in actuality it was just an honest mistake they made.  What’s worse, we could end up not speaking to this person ever again.  It could be someone we love; someone we’ve lost because of one harmful thought. 

Never jump to conclusions when dealing with people. Always reserve judgment until you are absolutely sure about a situation and know the whole story.  Never judge people over hearsay either.  Words have a way of getting re-arranged the more they are tossed around.  Keep an open, skeptical mind about all you see and hear.  Believe in nothing, for your beliefs are what create the firmest assumptions of all. 

Software

My body is the motherboard, With circuits that calculate The answer to every imbalance. My eyes are the monitor With rods and cones intercep...