University of David

May 26

Type II atheism is the denial of spirituality, typically by asserting a variant or update of the eighteenth century argument that “man is a machine.” The problem with this type of atheism, as existential philosophers have sensed, is that it leads to the abyss. There is no meaning in a world of machines. I believe that human actions have meaning. They express purposes and values. We are a species born to assert our values, not to discharge psychic energy.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201205/two-types-atheism-and-what-is-wrong-each

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Regardless, we are not moving from an American to a Chinese era. Instead, we are moving from a collection of national economies to a global economy. That is what the Arab spring is all about. Everybody wants roads, cars, schools, houses, televisions, i-pads, and hospitals. They see it on television, on the Internet and in movies. They want cars, not camels. They want trucks, not donkeys. They want to vacation in Vegas, not a local rat hole. Global companies are rising to meet the global demand. Governments that stand in the way are falling. Apple, Google, Siemens, Toyota, and so on, will replace USA, Japan, and China as the dominant powers. Global companies for the global economy. Individuals who hitch their futures to the global economy will prosper. Those who hitch their futures to local or national economies will fall behind.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201204/its-global-economy-stupid

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A cartoon in a recent issue of The New Yorker shows two women in exercise clothes walking side by side. One says to the other, “I’m thinking of letting myself get old.”

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mid-life-what-crisis/201205/letting-ourselves-get-old

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Kenny Rogers - The Gambler
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Kenny Rogers: The Gambler Lyrics
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Is It Local? - Portlandia on IFC
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Does Going Organic Make You A Jerk?

It’s should be all good, right? Not at all, and here’s why. When folks start shopping and eating organic, a self-righteous change begins. In other words, they become snobs. They look down on those with the processed food, the frozen dinners and even those who do not bring their own reusable bag and become downright judgmental. (Check out this 6 minute satirical clip from Portlandia). And even more importantly, their self importance and harsh judgment was not just food related; it carried over to other areas of their life, as well.
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Historically unprecedented. In his day Alexander was great, but he didn’t have an I-phone to keep Macedonians informed of his conquests. Napoleon dominated Europe, but without an I-pad he made strategic errors at Waterloo. Apple is the most impressive commercial enterprise ever. Worldwide, people can’t get enough of Apple products. Apple isn’t the only noticeable company soaring through our times like a rocket ship through a vacuum. The bad boys of Google are watching everything we do. They are on the Internet, YouTube, and in our wallets at the checkout counter. Taking on the Chinese government one day, and the EU the next, Google just goes on and on buying whatever it wants and running over most everything in its path.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201203/google-versus-apple

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I suggest we define theism and atheism to eliminate IQ as a factor. The theist holds that life has meaning, and that science, based as it is on cause and effect, cannot explain meaning. Theism is the belief that meaning isn’t a natural phenomena.The atheist holds that meaning is just an experience science someday will explain. Is the meaning of life real or an illusion? Does your life have meaning? If you say “yes,” you are a believer. If you say “no,” you are a true atheist.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201204/why-all-the-atheists

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Instead of asking, “Does God exist,” I would ask, “Is life meaningful?” “Does everything in the universe come down to particles banging into each other devoid of any purpose or significance? Neither science nor logic can answer this question. Psychology can help us understand how meaning is experienced, but it cannot tell us what is meaning. Ultimately, you must make an existential choice: Either you embrace the meaning in your life, or you deny or ignore it. This is THE choice. Do you have faith in your life as meaningful ?

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201205/what-is-the-essential-difference-between-atheists-and-believers

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Religion is based on the fundamental idea that life has meaning. The opposite is the belief that life is meaningless (the abyss). You may choose to disagree with this or that religious dogma purporting to explain the meaning of life, but since you can’t explain the meaning of life either, maybe you shouldn’t be so critical of religion’s effort to do so. Those who deny both God and the meaning of life, are expressing, I think, a logically consistent viewpoint. The discrepancy is that they don’t live as if they really believed their life to be meaningless, unless they are depressed.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201205/what-is-the-essential-difference-between-atheists-and-believers

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It is easy to be atheist and attack sky gods, deny superhuman intelligences, and find contradictions in fundamentalism. It is much harder to explain how it is that human life has meaning.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/who-we-are/201205/what-is-the-essential-difference-between-atheists-and-believers