I believe ...You are only a Believe .

Dexter Sinister

Unspecified Specialist
Oct 1, 2004
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Regina, SK
...not lately Dexter; you do such a good job.
Sorry for confusing you with logic China, but you wrote, "An intelligent mind is always searching, learning, never concluding; the moment it concludes, it stops being intelligent." Then we had this exchange:
Me: That sure looks like a conclusion to me.
You: It sure is Dexter Sinister; and an intelligent mind avoids this predicament.

In other words, you claimed that coming to a conclusion is unintelligent (so presumably we could fairly say it's stupid), then agreed that you'd come to one. You've created a self-referential, self-refuting paradox: by your own logic, you stopped being intelligent when you came to the conclusion that coming to a conclusion is a predicament the intelligent mind avoids. Do you really expect anyone to take seriously an argument that self-referentially claims to be stupid?
 

s_lone

Council Member
Feb 16, 2005
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Montreal
Belief can be very pragmatic. For example, most scientists believe that the laws of physics are the same throughout the universe wherever you are at whatever time. They might be wrong, but their belief serves their mode of investigation which so far has proved itself to be fairly useful and accurate. If eventually some form of data contradicts their belief then they will need to change their belief... But that doesn't quite seem necessary at the moment because their belief is useful.

I believe my beliefs are necessary to support a coherent view of the world. In the end, I choose to believe in a certain interpretation of reality in order to live my life coherently and efficiently...

Here are some of my beliefs that have shown themselves to be quite reliable:

I exist. I feel. I think. I need to breath air, drink water, eat food and sleep in order to be functional... etc. etc. etc.
 

Cliffy

Standing Member
Nov 19, 2008
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Nakusp, BC
Here are some of my beliefs that have shown themselves to be quite reliable:

I exist. I feel. I think. I need to breath air, drink water, eat food and sleep in order to be functional... etc. etc. etc.

These are absolute necessities in third dimensional reality, but what if third dimensional reality turns out to be a figment of our imagination, a programed response to the Matrix? Science is good at figuring out a reality that may just turn out to be fiction.
 

talloola

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 14, 2006
19,576
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Vancouver Island
I believe my beliefs are necessary to support a coherent view of the world. In the end, I choose to believe in a certain interpretation of reality in order to live my life coherently and efficiently...

Here are some of my beliefs that have shown themselves to be quite reliable:

I exist. I feel. I think. I need to breath air, drink water, eat food and sleep in order to be functional... etc. etc. etc.

I'm trying to imagine your life 'if' you didn't believe those things, well, maybe
there are people out there who are like that, but they probably are not out
there, they are locked 'in' somewhere, for their own protection, from themselves.
 

Scott Free

House Member
May 9, 2007
3,893
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BC
You replace one belief with another. You can't be without a belief. What you call 'you' is only a belief.If you say :" I don't know who I am ", that's still a believe . If the belief goes, you go with it. That is the reason why, when you are not satisfied with one belief-structure, you replace it with another.
Oh boy..., don't believe in anything .....

You start by talking about belief, then "a believe" (object?) then belief-structures... are these all the same thing?
 
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china

Time Out
Jul 30, 2006
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Dexter Sinister ;
In other words, you claimed that coming to a conclusion is unintelligent (so presumably we could fairly say it's stupid), then agreed that you'd come to one. You've created a self-referential, self-refuting paradox: by your own logic, you stopped being intelligent when you came to the conclusion that coming to a conclusion is a predicament the intelligent mind avoids. Do you really expect anyone to take seriously an argument that self-referentially claims to be stupid?

The "conclusion" is .....when tired ,my English "has a life of its own" .
 

china

Time Out
Jul 30, 2006
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Why "believe"?..... is belief necessary at all? Why do we have beliefs? Probably you believe in something because you can't see `what is'. If you saw actually `what is', `what is' in the sense what is actually going on, both outwardly, and inwardly, then what is the necessity for a belief at all? You don't believe the sun is rising. It is there, and you have seen it. Therefore the whole problem of belief seems to me so utterly erroneous, it has no place with a person who is actually observing the whole structure and the nature of thinking, living, suffering, the existence, the sorrow, and all the rest of it. Belief appears as a means of escape from the reality of `what is'.So to understand actually `what is' one has to be rid of all these silly beliefs and fears, and hopes, and be able to look actually, not theoretically, not abstractly, but actually look what is taking place inwardly and in the world outside .
 
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china

Time Out
Jul 30, 2006
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[FONT=Arial,Sans-serif][/FONT]

Cliffy
[FONT=Arial,Sans-serif]This is what you are getting at.
[/FONT][FONT=Arial,Sans-serif].[/FONT]
Nope ,not a clue of what you are talking about ;but I'm sure you are well versed on the subject ,( your relatives ?)



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s_lone

Council Member
Feb 16, 2005
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Montreal
These are absolute necessities in third dimensional reality, but what if third dimensional reality turns out to be a figment of our imagination, a programed response to the Matrix? Science is good at figuring out a reality that may just turn out to be fiction.

Perhaps... Believe me, I'm more than open to wild ideas about extra dimensions and subtle energies...

But in the end, even if all that's going on is a figment of my imagination, I can't escape the simple realities of the 3 dimensional world i'm a aware of. I might as well embrace them and build my belief structure around them. I could believe the outer world to be one huge illusion, but that wouldn't change the fact that a piano falling on my head will kill me.
 

Nuggler

kind and gentle
Feb 27, 2006
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Backwater, Ontario.
:-(.......My one and only prayer
Is that someday you'll care
My hopes, my dreams come true
My one and only you
No one will ever know
How much I love you so
My prayers my hopes my schemes
You are my every dream
But it's only make believe





Thanks, Conway.;-)
 

china

Time Out
Jul 30, 2006
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One thing, it seems to me, that most of us eagerly accept and take for granted the question of beliefs. I am not attacking beliefs. What I'm are trying to do is to find out why we accept beliefs; and if we can understand the motives, the causation of acceptance, then perhaps we may be able not only to understand why we do it, but also be free of it. One can see how political and religious beliefs, national and various other types of beliefs, do separate people, do create conflict, confusion, and antagonism - which is an obvious fact; and yet we are unwilling to give them up. There is the Hindu belief, the Christian belief, the Buddhist, various political ideologies, all contending with each other, trying to convert each other. One can see, obviously, that belief is separating people, creating intolerance; is it possible to live without belief? One can find that out only if one can study oneself in relationship to a belief. Is it possible to live in this world without a belief - not change beliefs, not substitute one belief for another, but be entirely free from all beliefs, so that one meets life anew each minute? , so that there is not the cumulative effect which acts as a barrier between oneself and that which is.