Tuesday, April 24, 2007

upsetting others and feelings

I think that it's interesting that talking about faith is dangerous. I have found that when I explain how I feel about faith (I think it's an emotion and not real), that people are offended. Why? It's just what I think.

When people criticize my atheism, I can support how I think. I can say why I am an atheist. I don't have to say things like "I believe there's no god," or "I feel like there is no god." That's not a supportable stance. It means nothing. I might feel that the color orange is a nice color. My husband would disagree.

I can, however, say "There's no evidence for god," or "The burden of proof is on you to show me there is a god."

I've had religious feelings in the past. I really felt them and really believed them at the time. How do I explain that? Feelings are, unfortunately, chemical reactions in our brains. If I had an accident and was brain damaged in some way, my personality would change. Some drugs and hormones can alter a person's feelings. Feelings are the least trustworthy way of understanding and perceiving the world. They mean something only to the person having them.

And, in addition, some feelings are misplaced or incorrect. I don't know how else to describe it. I've learned to laugh when something annoying happens. For example, when my daughter spills red juice all over the carpet after I've cleaned it. I used to get angry inside. But this isn't an appropriate feeling. Why should I be angry? My daughter didn't do it on purpose. I started to laugh, even when I felt angry when something like this happened. Now, I laugh naturally when something is spilled or broken accidentally. I don't feel angry anymore.

I changed my feelings and my feelings about certain stimuli. It's easy to do. If it's easy, isn't it suspect? Aren't our feelings naturally suspect?

I think that people who are offended by my criticisms of faith and belief are upset because they feel that I've attacked their feelings. That I'm trying to invalidate something of theirs. I suppose I am--at least in the sense of invalidating it. The feeling isn't a way to perceive reality. It's a way of reacting to reality.

I'm not upset when someone criticizes my thinking about atheism because it has nothing to do with feelings. It's just about my critical thought as it relates to religion. I might be wrong and if it can be logically pointed out to me, I'll concede. But religion has no logic. It has only feelings.

Feelings get hurt, no?

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Some interesting science links

It's been a long time since I blogged. It's been pretty busy at home.

Finally, this morning I sat down with a cup of coffee and read some cool science articles.

Milky Seas
This is a video with a transcript (in case you can't watch the video) about nearly a zillion bacteria that create bio-luminescent displays in the Indian Ocean. Very interesting. I'd love to see actual footage of this. They do have a satellite photo of a huge mass of bacteria. Yes, zillions and zillions.

Antibiotic Bacteria Cultivated by Insect
The European Beewolf, a solitary wasp, cultivates an antibiotic producing bacteria in its antennae that it uses to "inoculate" its young against infection. I saw another interesting application of antibiotic use in ants. The awesome film, Ants! Nature's Secret Power, shows ants collecting tree resin which they use around the entrance to their nests. As ants pass over the pieces of resin, they are disinfected. The resin kills many harmful bacteria that the ants would otherwise be bringing into the nest.

I'd like to share more... maybe in another post. My son's awake now and coffee time is over! ;)