Thought I'd point this out: (I skipped ove rthe last few posts. Can you blame me?)
http://www.cracked.com/article_16239_5- ... oomed.html
Proof #2. The Prison Experiment.
Belief in a higher power that punishes us all for every little bad thing we do keeps human's bloodlust and innate evil at bay. I believe this is one of the two main reasons why religions exist. It keeps order in society.
Jack Thompson: Maybe he's right...just a little?
Moderator: Moderators
Sorry, was going by the understand between my friends that "a few" is "about 8." In either case, you are looking at recent generations.Sparkfist wrote:Chapel, first off women got the right to vote, earily 20th century, not a few decades ago. And to restate myself, I said not everything was perfect. I'm making the comparison that in years gone by there were social ties that had people working together for the greater good. Granted in the 40s it was to fight the Nazis and Japanese, in the 50s it was the Koreans and then we had that whole three decades of fighting communism.
In those days we had a focus on the community. Now everyone is trying to do things themselves, and in some cases that might be worth admiration, but what is the point of forming a society if all we're going to do is lookout of ourselves and not help others?
However, as to point of society being to help people. I agree 100%. Where I disagree is that people do still help people. The internet is a perfect example of this. If there is anything you want to do, there is either a how-to, enough help and encouragement for you to write one or the information on why it is impossible. (And I'm not just talking about these forums
) So, we may not be as doomed as you think.Edit: Kurt, I think the major thing about most of those experiments is that we as people feel powerless in comparison to some faceless corporation/big government and are always willing to let someone else do the dirty work. But again, I don't think this makes us doomed.
Although: http://www.qwantz.com/archive/000977.html
Last edited by Chapel on Sun Jun 01, 2008 11:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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jones
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The solution to this problem is quite simple (complex to implement and maintain however) although no politician would ever have the guts to suggest it.
What we need is for there to be pregnancy licenses. Yes, just like in Demolition Man.
Please keep in mind I am a person who generally wants the government to keep it's nose out of peoples' affairs but anymore this seems to be warranted. The reasons for it are numerous.
1. The world is already over-populated.
2. Many of these people who have children merely "live off the system" and oftentimes exploit that system by having MORE children. A system that is provided by the taxpayers and government of this country mind you.
3. You are required by law to have a license to drive a car, get married, fish, etc... Yet, you need nothing more than the inability to use protection to have a child. Doesn't quite add up.
Is it a perfect solution? No. It would be a difficult program to administer. It encroaches on peoples' rights. What are the criteria for deciding who gets to have a child and who does? If I felt like developing this into a bill/thesis I would get into that, but I will hold off for now.
In the end I'm sure such a solution would have it's own issues to contend with that couldn't have been foreseen no matter how much effort might have been put into finding them early on. That is the issue though. There is no perfect solution. There are only calculated measures to be taken.
As far as the religion debate goes. I am quite happy with the fact that it is out of schools as it has no place in them. The only schools it belongs in are those run by churches. Parents have the option of sending their children to them if religion is an important aspect of their lives.
I went to just such a school for 7th and 8th grade. I was public schooled all the other years. The only reason I went there for those two years was because I just needed something different and it was the only thing available to me at the time. I am not a religious person and I generally tried to avoid all aspects of the church while I was there, but I was exposed to certain aspects of it. I don't think it made me a more moral person, but I think it helped me get some exposure to a world I hadn't dealt with before.
I already had sound morals early on in life thanks to my parents. They instilled a sense of right and wrong in me in their own way. I watched R rated movies for the time I was around 6 years old. I have listened to supposedly evil music since I was 14. To top it off I've played video games ever since I can remember.
Never once have I wanted to do harm to anyone. For what its worth I didn't even have a drop of alcohol until I was 23. I've never done drugs and better yet I've never stolen a car.
I've often said that I would be an awesome character witness for the entertainment industry. They could call me to stand whenever they get sued by these losers who say they were influenced by music/movies/video games to do whatever stupid thing they're suing over.
My last thoughts on religion...
Although I don't believe in it, I think religion in and of itself is a good thing. It is the churches that are the problem. They manipulate religion (and its message) to their own ends. They do this because they are run by people and as we know people generally have an agenda.
The reason for religion is simple in my eyes. It gives people hope that there is more to life than just what happens here on Earth. It allows them to believe that there is a purpose for this, because otherwise what's the point really? It is a crutch and a very useful one at that. I don't begrudge anyone their religious beliefs. Each person arrives at their spiritual stance on their own terms and that is how it should be.
So keep religion out of our schools and government. Don't make kids do the pledge of allegiance (it is pointless). Instead, teach the children about how that flag came to be and about all the people who have sacrificed so much for the country that flag stands for over the years. Give the flag some meaning, rather than just using it as some BS patriotic symbol.
People in this country are too symbol-minded these days. But that's a topic for another thread.
I realize this post was probably all over the map, but it is late and this is what spilled out of me for better or worse. If you don't like it... Blame the entertainment industry.
What we need is for there to be pregnancy licenses. Yes, just like in Demolition Man.
Please keep in mind I am a person who generally wants the government to keep it's nose out of peoples' affairs but anymore this seems to be warranted. The reasons for it are numerous.1. The world is already over-populated.
2. Many of these people who have children merely "live off the system" and oftentimes exploit that system by having MORE children. A system that is provided by the taxpayers and government of this country mind you.
3. You are required by law to have a license to drive a car, get married, fish, etc... Yet, you need nothing more than the inability to use protection to have a child. Doesn't quite add up.
Is it a perfect solution? No. It would be a difficult program to administer. It encroaches on peoples' rights. What are the criteria for deciding who gets to have a child and who does? If I felt like developing this into a bill/thesis I would get into that, but I will hold off for now.
In the end I'm sure such a solution would have it's own issues to contend with that couldn't have been foreseen no matter how much effort might have been put into finding them early on. That is the issue though. There is no perfect solution. There are only calculated measures to be taken.
As far as the religion debate goes. I am quite happy with the fact that it is out of schools as it has no place in them. The only schools it belongs in are those run by churches. Parents have the option of sending their children to them if religion is an important aspect of their lives.
I went to just such a school for 7th and 8th grade. I was public schooled all the other years. The only reason I went there for those two years was because I just needed something different and it was the only thing available to me at the time. I am not a religious person and I generally tried to avoid all aspects of the church while I was there, but I was exposed to certain aspects of it. I don't think it made me a more moral person, but I think it helped me get some exposure to a world I hadn't dealt with before.
I already had sound morals early on in life thanks to my parents. They instilled a sense of right and wrong in me in their own way. I watched R rated movies for the time I was around 6 years old. I have listened to supposedly evil music since I was 14. To top it off I've played video games ever since I can remember.
Never once have I wanted to do harm to anyone. For what its worth I didn't even have a drop of alcohol until I was 23. I've never done drugs and better yet I've never stolen a car.
I've often said that I would be an awesome character witness for the entertainment industry. They could call me to stand whenever they get sued by these losers who say they were influenced by music/movies/video games to do whatever stupid thing they're suing over.
My last thoughts on religion...
Although I don't believe in it, I think religion in and of itself is a good thing. It is the churches that are the problem. They manipulate religion (and its message) to their own ends. They do this because they are run by people and as we know people generally have an agenda.
The reason for religion is simple in my eyes. It gives people hope that there is more to life than just what happens here on Earth. It allows them to believe that there is a purpose for this, because otherwise what's the point really? It is a crutch and a very useful one at that. I don't begrudge anyone their religious beliefs. Each person arrives at their spiritual stance on their own terms and that is how it should be.
So keep religion out of our schools and government. Don't make kids do the pledge of allegiance (it is pointless). Instead, teach the children about how that flag came to be and about all the people who have sacrificed so much for the country that flag stands for over the years. Give the flag some meaning, rather than just using it as some BS patriotic symbol.
People in this country are too symbol-minded these days. But that's a topic for another thread.
I realize this post was probably all over the map, but it is late and this is what spilled out of me for better or worse. If you don't like it... Blame the entertainment industry.
