Generational Dynamics World View News

[John]

** 03-Mar-2020 World View: The inevitable

> You assert that all is fate and there is no "plan" for "the
> world", while simultaneously asserting that certain things MUST
> happen because they are inevitable!

> Are you simply saying that there IS a preordained "plan" but there
> is no "agent" or "planner" of that plan?

> ..that would be my guess.

If a river flows to the sea, then it's doing what it has to do. There
is no "free will" or "choice" involved in what path the river takes.
If there's an earthquake that randomly changes the course of the
river, then the river flows according to its new course. There was no
preordained plan, no "agent," no "planner," but there's also no
"choice" or "free will." The river does what it must do.

> The true tragedy cannot be prevented because those who foresee it
> choose not to do "whatever it would take" to stop it, because
> doing so would "spoil the moral of the story", which means: "make
> a character incongruous with itself."

Sorry, I disagree. I've known too many people who are "called" or
"driven." You would understand this better, if you were Greek.

You're Catholic because (I assume) you were born into a Catholic
family. Your religion was chosen for you, by your family, your
culture, your community. You never said to yourself, "Gee, which
should I choose to be -- a Catholic? a Jew? a Muslim?" You were
Catholic because you had to be. And it's not because your being
Catholic makes for a better or more interesting story. You're
Catholic because you must be, and because it was chosen for you by
"fate."

[Guest]

Don't forget firearms and ammo. Especially if you live near a large city with a feral population.

These people are killing themselves in the most comfortable time in human history, what do you think they are going to do when the food stamps and welfare stop coming in?

Ah, yeah. And here is where the rubber will hit the road. 'The ferals' live off of the taxpayer dime and not only are they a pack of ingrates, but they feel entitled to even more, if not all, of the taxpayers' wealth. If the center gives way, then most of these feral types will starve to death in a few weeks.

I have lived in failed states, and I have watched the violence that societal collapse can cause. I know that the violence in the US will be much, much worse because of the racial divisions. (Okay, I know I shouldn't have said that, but I did.) I have lived in failed states and watched tribal slaughter with my own eyes. These people were racially the same; however, there tribal differences were big enough to rape and murder each other.

The only way to survive is to leave the cities while you still can. A simple wheeled trailer and a few weeks of rations will be enough, especially if you are fat. Western Europe will be bad, too. The immigrants will do what they do in good times: riot and loot.

It beggars belief that so many people would allow their children to be butchered just to avoid having someone call them racist. Get out of London, LA, NYC, Chicago, and Paris.

[FishbellykanakaDude]

... If a river flows to the sea, then it's doing what it has to do. There
is no "free will" or "choice" involved in what path the river takes.
If there's an earthquake that randomly changes the course of the
river, then the river flows according to its new course. There was no
preordained plan, no "agent," no "planner," but there's also no
"choice" or "free will." The river does what it must do.

I understand your position. Luckily for me, at least, we don't have to agree on this to live as human beings in this universe together. Yay!

You have "faith" that all physics is fully deterministic, and my "faith" is that there are non-deterministic "things" in physics.

I don't argue matters of faith, other than to point them out,.. or tease them out.

> The true tragedy cannot be prevented because those who foresee it
> choose not to do "whatever it would take" to stop it, because
> doing so would "spoil the moral of the story", which means: "make
> a character incongruous with itself."

Sorry, I disagree. I've known too many people who are "called" or
"driven." You would understand this better, if you were Greek.

You're Catholic because (I assume) you were born into a Catholic
family. Your religion was chosen for you, by your family, your
culture, your community. You never said to yourself, "Gee, which
should I choose to be -- a Catholic? a Jew? a Muslim?" You were
Catholic because you had to be. And it's not because your being
Catholic makes for a better or more interesting story. You're
Catholic because you must be, and because it was chosen for you by
"fate."

My ancestors were Catholic, but I am at least four generations from anyone who practiced any religion at all.

I actively chose to be Catholic (went through the "process") because I sought a cultural framework/context that brought me closer to my "ancient" ancestors (Irish), that allowed the "freedom" to contain my "special" personal beliefs. Once again, I consider myself a "Tengriist Catholic", which is probably just the other side of making me an abject heretic. <chuckle!>

There is a "path of least resistance" aspect in all things, which is the major force in nearly everything, but there are some twitchy fussy highly volatile things that amplify "coherent non-deterministic" vectors/forces into having macroscopic effects.

And it's the "coherency" part of that amplification that points toward the cascading "authority"/"authorship" of the story of the universe.

Is that a romantic notion of how the world works? Of course!

There is no non-romantic notion of how the world works. "Considering the workings of the world" is the very definition of "romantic". What is the romantic looking for? Love. What is love? The "non-mundane".

The romantic rejects the tyranny of the mechanism, while using the tools of the mechanism to find our demarcation from the mechanism.

..yeesh,.. that's a mouthful!

[Guest]

I'm ethnic Portuguese and all of my Portuguese ancestors were Catholic, but I am Protestant. Being a Portuguese Protestant Christian has made me into a societal unicorn. Other Portuguese, even ones that are atheists, look at me a bit sideways. But most really don't care. Catholicism is more to do with cultural identity than true faith in many cultures.

My father left the Catholic Church and he never looked back. He had no regrets. He died without receiving Final Rites. He had no interest in them.

I wasn't raised to be anything in particular, but I did grow up thinking of myself as a Christian. I chose to be Protestant at 19. It was a good decision because the current Pope is a left-wing lunatic.

Yes, the Greeks can be a weird bunch, but I find young Greeks to be more hedonistic than religious. Young Greeks seem more interested in hip hop than philosophy. The affliction John speaks of is the ailment of the older generations. You have to be at least 60 to think that way now. Young Greeks also seem to be few and far between, as Greece has an aging demographic and most Greeks I meet now are childless, as am I.

Becoming Protestant has put me at odds with some Portuguese, but I really don't care. And most Portuguese don't either.

Religion is important to me and a few others. But in my travels, I meet few who really care about any religion in its truest sense.

[FishbellykanakaDude]

I'm ethnic Portuguese and all of my Portuguese ancestors were Catholic, but I am Protestant. Being a Portuguese Protestant Christian has made me into a societal unicorn.

Do they hunt you for your magical face-spike?

Other Portuguese, even ones that are atheists, look at me a bit sideways. But most really don't care. Catholicism is more to do with cultural identity than true faith in many cultures.

Yeah,.. the idea of a Portuguese speaking in tongues is a little strange, although everyone ALREADY thinks speaking Portuguese IS speaking in tongues,.. so...

(( I'm trying to lighten the atmosphere around here! Work with me, work with me... ))

My father left the Catholic Church and he never looked back. He had no regrets. He died without receiving Final Rites. He had no interest in them.

I wasn't raised to be anything in particular, but I did grow up thinking of myself as a Christian. I chose to be Protestant at 19. It was a good decision because the current Pope is a left-wing lunatic.

I'm gonna guess you're relatively young. Ninety-nine plus percent of the adherents of "big religions" see their religion as background white noise (maybe brown noise). Especially the young.

The real question about ones religion, though, is how it informs your view of "how the world works".

Does it "help" answer questions like: Why am I here? What is with this "suffering" thing? How do I get around this "weight of the world" anxiety that comes and goes? What should I do with my time? ..and others.

Yes, the Greeks can be a weird bunch, but I find young Greeks to be more hedonistic than religious. Young Greeks seem more interested in hip hop than philosophy. The affliction John speaks of is the ailment of the older generations. You have to be at least 60 to think that way now. Young Greeks also seem to be few and far between, as Greece has an aging demographic and most Greeks I meet now are childless, as am I.

All youth are like that. Not just the Greeks.

Becoming Protestant has put me at odds with some Portuguese, but I really don't care. And most Portuguese don't either.

Religion is important to me and a few others. But in my travels, I meet few who really care about any religion in its truest sense.

Ah,.. but when you realize that ones religion is REALLY just the accumulated mass of beliefs that you actually DO believe, you quickly discover that people DO care about their "religion", especially when you somehow threaten those beliefs.

In fact, when you illustrate how disconnected and mutually conflicted their actual beliefs are with each other, they can become hysterically (in the humorous and not humorous senses of the word) fanatical and violent.

[Tom Mazanec]

So I had no free will when I called the police on you, John?

[Guest]

Ah,.. but when you realize that ones religion is REALLY just the accumulated mass of beliefs that you actually DO believe, you quickly discover that people DO care about their "religion", especially when you somehow threaten those beliefs.

In fact, when you illustrate how disconnected and mutually conflicted their actual beliefs are with each other, they can become hysterically (in the humorous and not humorous senses of the word) fanatical and violent.

We are living in post-Christian Europe (and perhaps North America, especially Canada). Christianity has lost its hold of white people. That's a fact. It's obvious. When my father left the Church, he didn't become an atheist. He converted to another religion. Today the average European isn't even baptized. In Eastern Europe, religion is part of cultural identity, not a sincere faith.

Consumerism is the new religion. That's why the world is so screwed up. Religion drew in people who were willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Now people will stab you in the back for a smartphone. The world has become a shallow and directionless place. Young Greeks have not 'always been like that.' No. Today young people give God and religion very little thought.

We are living in a new Age of Enlightenment.The problem is, people have access to a lot of information, but still only use it to buy lipstick or play computer games. Or look at porn, buy drugs, and gamble. The average person is an empty headed, unskilled, narcissistic loser. We are all in trouble.

[John]

** 04-Mar-2020 World View: Asperger's Syndrome Robot

> So I had no free will when I called the police on you,
> John?

You do one dangerous, crazy, irrational thing after another because
you're totally under the control of your severe Asperger's Syndrome.
You're a robot with no free will whatsoever, because of your severe
Asperger's Syndrome. You should check yourself into an institution
for your own safety and the safety of others, because your actions are
dangerous and unpredictable.

[John]

** 04-Mar-2020 World View: Protestant vs Catholic

> I'm ethnic Portuguese and all of my Portuguese ancestors were
> Catholic, but I am Protestant. Being a Portuguese Protestant
> Christian has made me into a societal unicorn. Other Portuguese,
> even ones that are atheists, look at me a bit sideways. But most
> really don't care. Catholicism is more to do with cultural
> identity than true faith in many cultures.

> My father left the Catholic Church and he never looked back. He
> had no regrets. He died without receiving Final Rites. He had no
> interest in them.

> I wasn't raised to be anything in particular, but I did grow up
> thinking of myself as a Christian. I chose to be Protestant at
> 19. It was a good decision because the current Pope is a left-wing
> lunatic.

Why did you choose to be a Protestant rather than a Catholic? As a
Christian in a Catholic country, wouldn't you have been better off as
a Catholic?

[richard5za]

** 04-Mar-2020 World View: Protestant vs Catholic

> I'm ethnic Portuguese and all of my Portuguese ancestors were
> Catholic, but I am Protestant. Being a Portuguese Protestant
> Christian has made me into a societal unicorn. Other Portuguese,
> even ones that are atheists, look at me a bit sideways. But most
> really don't care. Catholicism is more to do with cultural
> identity than true faith in many cultures.

> My father left the Catholic Church and he never looked back. He
> had no regrets. He died without receiving Final Rites. He had no
> interest in them.

> I wasn't raised to be anything in particular, but I did grow up
> thinking of myself as a Christian. I chose to be Protestant at
> 19. It was a good decision because the current Pope is a left-wing
> lunatic.

Why did you choose to be a Protestant rather than a Catholic? As a
Christian in a Catholic country, wouldn't you have been better off as
a Catholic?

I am a Jesuit educated Catholic of British origin married to a Portuguese Catholic. The first thing to understand about Catholicism is that there are hundreds of different forms or spiritualities. There are more orders in the Catholic Church than you can shake a stick at. I am an evangelical, charismatic and Gospel focused Catholic who regards ritual as unimportant and the Gospel message of charity and love as all important. Many Catholics regard this a peculiar, but so what we have our community. I do not discuss faith matters with his many Portuguese relatives whom have a different view. With my Portuguese relatives I focus on being friendly, kind and supportive. We have a lovely relationship and as a British colonial I am fully accepted by them