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Old 11-21-2007, 09:17 PM
willie24 willie24 is offline
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Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 726
Default i think you are wrong

i think your view of the world is flawed- not the idea that there is no afterlife, or the idea that the world is infinite - but i think you place too much eternal importance on your "self" (including your family).

try to separate your philosophical thought from your biological desires. every thing "you" are - your pain, your desires, your love for your children, is biological. that doesn't cheapen it - it's OK to be human and seek human desires/causes. in fact, everything worth doing falls under this category. embrace being human...because it is what YOU are.

but, at the same time, you have the ability to concieve of the world beyond "yourself". does it pain you that when "you" die, this world might continue? couldn't it bring you joy instead?

it seems to me that consciousness is not unique to the biological me (meaning the living guy with my name, born on my birthday). if we assume that it isn't - that it exists in some form beyond me, what are the implications?

im not exactly sure, obviously...but consider a this campfire conversation i was once part of:

girl #1: i believe in reincarnation. (she gave no logical reason for believing it, other than wanting to believe it)
girl #2: me too! i want to come back as a cat
me (jokingly): as a cat, will you remember your life as girl #2?
girl #2: probably not
stoner guy: then will it really be you?

this was a sort of epiphany for me, because it pointed out a logical flaw in the way most of us view ourselves relative to the world. i don't think i can put it into words, so here's hoping it hit you too.
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