VintagePunk said:
I don't get why his view is bleak.
I've thought it through in the past, utilizing my most cynical view of life while thinking up the worst possible scenarios and here's what I gather (please keep in mind that this does not, in any way, shape or form, dwell on the positives of an atheistic outlook, but merely the negatives). You, me, all of us are essentially based on an accident, a reproductive system that originated from the way cells and, ultimately, atoms assembled themselves. You have 60-80 years of life, and you get to live it as a person with a flawed, imperfect viewpoint of life, limited knowledge, and you get to spend a significant (though varied) amount of your life sick with countless diseases, a birth defect, or perhaps a debilitating injury you received later on in life. Many people don't even get that 60-80 years. And for what? So your brain can one day shut down and your body become part of soil. If you don't make a mark in your allotted time, people will inevitably forget you even existed, as even your own family line will one day die off. The moments of joy you have here are basically just sensations that are enjoyable for the present, but really don't matter much in the long run, and even posting here on this forum is kind of a waste, really. But we already know that.
(It is no matter what outlook you have, but we just can't resist.
)
It's a wonder to me why folks take so much pleasure is bashing and badgering those with a theistic belief system. If anything, I would think that, rather than attempting to disprove the belief system of their choosing, they would much rather attempt to validate it, as it is indeed a much more hopeful outlook on things. People always say that evolution makes creation more amazing, (and perhaps it does, because the chances of things occurring in that manner and manifesting themselves as they do to us today are slim indeed, and certainly would have needed those millions of years to get going), but it leaves me with the question of "why should I care if it's amazing"? Nature is sure lovely to look at (yet occasionally quite horrific) but, ultimately, who the fuck cares whether or not it exists if it has no purpose? Who the fuck cares what I do if no one's going to remember it or if it ultimately has no effect on the future?
However, I don't believe any of that. Perhaps I'm just a no BS kind of guy, but I can't live in simply the now. I need to hope that what I'm doing at this moment has some effect on what happens to myself and others far longer than however many years of life I've been given. I wouldn't be able to get out of bed in the morning. Therefore, I have great respect for those who believe differently than I, simply because I would be incredibly depressed if I forced myself to believe that way. I don't believe that most of the world is like me, and I believe that if it were somehow proven that God is a farce (though, based on the definition of science and its general purpose alone, it would be impossible to use natural means to prove or disprove something immaterial) people would be able to piece their lives back together and change their perspectives accordingly. It's just not something that I would adjust well to. This is largely because of my own long-running struggle to cope with the idea that I will indeed die someday, and partially because of the way that I've been wired up. Others wouldn't be nearly so negative about it.
Sorry for the essay answer, but I wanted to give you all an idea of why I believe the way I do. It's mostly because of some personal experiences that I would rather keep as such, but there's also a negative streak in me that is attracted to the positive (and perhaps naively optimistic), if you get my meaning.