First, I stopped talking about "Astrology" in post 101 with this :
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I don't know I'm not into astrology, never have been.... doesn't mean I don't think there isn't merit in it.
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Secondly, I have no problems with honest debate, but when people start posting:
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Really? so witches, warlocks, and werewolves, imps, fairies, (the rest have actual whole cultures that believe in the affects and realities of) dragons, elves, trolls, healing balms made of endangered species, Indian Fakirs, and Filipino Faith Healers, are all things that are fostered by beliefs.
So one day those will be scientific fact?
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When I said no such thing, the closest I even came to saying something along those lines was:
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I choose to believe in things until proven they don't exist. I believe in life on other planets, I believe in other dimensions, I believe that everyone has some form of psychic powers and we are very limited in the power of our minds because we have been taught for generations to be, I believe there is some truth to any old wife's tale, to the dragon's of yore, to the Gods of the ancient civilizations, in reincarnation, in fate/destiny and in magic.
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I have issues because it no longer becomes a debate with respect of others.
When called upon to show me where he got that he took part of a sentence out of context, the whole sentence reads:
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I also believe that by creating an atmosphere where people can talk about their experiences and be able to work through them without being mocked without being harassed, without being told they are freaks, nuts, etc.... we as a society gain because eventually, some of what is believed "scientifically impossible" may tomorrow be "scientific fact".
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Therein lies my argument, just because you choose to believe that "there can be no "proof" to these things, doesn't mean that these things cannot exist.
Therein, lies my argument, I'm not going to label someone if they choose to believe in something I don't. The problem in society is not people believing in "the occult, witchcraft, tarot, Astrology, etc." The problem is people labeling those that believe without discussing and exploring why the person believes that way to begin with.
I stated my beliefs here:
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I choose to believe in things until proven they don't exist. I believe in life on other planets, I believe in other dimensions, I believe that everyone has some form of psychic powers and we are very limited in the power of our minds because we have been taught for generations to be, I believe there is some truth to any old wife's tale, to the dragon's of yore, to the Gods of the ancient civilizations, in reincarnation, in fate/destiny and in magic.
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I gave my reasoning in the very next one.... nowhere do I claim it is "scientifically rational":
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I choose to believe in those because for me it makes life more enjoyable and less of a bore. If I can sit and daydream about life elsewhere or sit for an hour and meditate and believe my soul has been healed and I am in a better place psychologically and physically, then I have all the proof I need.
If I go to get my palm read or my star chart done or my tarot read and I like what I hear or see and I believe them and in some way I find satisfaction in it because it gives me a sense of security in how I am living my life, then, that's all I need.
On the other hand, if I choose to want to prove them wrong because I don't like what I see and I work to change things in a positive way... then whether they were fake or not it inspired me to change. And anything that inspires positive changes is a good thing.
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I even went so far as to say this (which is the whole of my argument):
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If I go to get my palm read or my star chart done or my tarot read and I like what I hear or see and I believe them and in some way I find satisfaction in it because it gives me a sense of security in how I am living my life, then, that's all I need.
On the other hand, if I choose to want to prove them wrong because I don't like what I see and I work to change things in a positive way... then whether they were fake or not it inspired me to change. And anything that inspires positive changes is a good thing.
And again, as long as one doesn't preach to know what belief is best for others.... I don't care what others want to believe.
It's like I tell Jehovah's Witnesses.... I believe in my reality, you believe in yours... our realities may touch but I promise I won't force mine on you so long as you don't force yours on mine.
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Now, while our realities may collide and touch, it doesn't mean my beliefs have to affect yours or yours have to affect mine. Nowhere was I pushing a belief and telling anyone they had to believe, I just put forth that there is nothing wrong in having an open mind and thus maybe learning from each other. And learning from each other dear friend, IMHO, is what life and evolution is all about. You can never learn from one another if you go in with closed mind.
I am open to discuss my beliefs and why and how I came to my beliefs... but I expect the ones I am talking to, to have the respect I show them and to teach me as I teach them. Not shove shit down my throat and expect me to eat it without question and bow down to their beliefs. You won't change what I believe or how, but I may learn some very interesting things and I am always open to that. Again, IMHO, life is about learning from each other... not demanding and trying to prove the "I'm right you're wrong" ego feeding bullshit.
But when one want to shove "scientific proof" down another's throat and tell them that their beliefs are wrong, then they react in a negative manner. Negativity begets negativity and it repels any positive action that can take place. (BTW that's Science in action there....like patterns and actions are drawn to each other, opposites repel each other.)
So we can get out of this thread, that scientifically there is nothing to prove that astrology, ESP, life on other planets, any paranormal, metaphysical, occult study or even a God exists, however, unlike those with small minds who rely solely on Science, I choose to believe that perhaps they do exist we just are not open enough as a society or intelligent enough as a society to understand them. Thus what we cannot explain we decide to label as impossible, old wives tale, etc etc so that we can feed the ego of MAN and ourselves.
In the end it comes down to this, one must ask themselves why they are so eager to destroy the beliefs of others, especially when those beliefs do not even affect you.