I agree 100%. Pure deconstructionism leads to nihilism. Pure materialism removes all wonder, imagination, and leaves us with a sense of the utter pointlessness of life.
On Thu, Jan 1, 2009 at 8:33 PM, ornamentalmind <[email protected]>wrote: > > As valuable as skepticism can be, as Neil has said elsewhere, > deconstruction can be used to the point of nihilism. And, the > selection of such a methodology along with using it as an ontological > foundation in this context results in ignorance. > > It may appear to be a preferable way of approaching reality. Then > again, to many, common hedonism is seen as a virtue. > > > > On Jan 1, 1:08 pm, chazwin <[email protected]> wrote: > > Harking back to what I said in another thread about choice and > > interest in the selection of "appropriate evidence" I would imagine > > that much of this stuff is likely to be highly biased in selection. > > One wonders how he defines non-religious for his comparisons. > > One wonders if the study tends to define a religious person as one who > > is s regular church goer, or dedicated observer of his/her religion, > > in which case the study would be choosing people with self-control: a > > self fulfilling prediction. > > Did the study acknowledge the fact that there is a higher percentage > > of the religious in prisons than in the general population? Are cons > > achievers who exhibit self-control? > > 8 decades of selection. Probably not worth the paper it is printed on. > > > > On Jan 1, 8:36 pm, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > > > I found the following (I've cut it down) and think it may be of > > > interest. > > > Self-control is critical for success in life. University of Miami > > > professor of Psychology Michael McCullough finds that religious people > > > have more self-control than do their less religious counterparts. > > > These findings imply that religious people may be better at pursuing > > > and achieving long-term goals that are important to them and their > > > religious groups. This, in turn, might help explain why religious > > > people tend to have lower rates of substance abuse, better school > > > achievement, less delinquency, better health behaviours, less > > > depression, and longer lives. > > > McCullough evaluated 8 decades worth of research on religion, which > > > has been conducted in diverse samples of people from around the world. > > > He found persuasive evidence from a variety of domains within the > > > social sciences, including neuroscience, economics, psychology, and > > > sociology, that religious beliefs and religious behaviours are capable > > > of encouraging people to exercise self-control and to more effectively > > > regulate their emotions and behaviours, so that they can pursue valued > > > goals. The research paper will be published in the January 2009 issue > > > of Psychological Bulletin. > > > The importance of self-control and self-regulation for understanding > > > human behaviour are well known to social scientists, but the > > > possibility that the links of religiosity to self-control might > > > explain the links of religiosity to health and behaviour has not > > > received much explicit attention. Among the most interesting > > > conclusions that the research team drew were the following: > > > • Religious rituals such as prayer and meditation affect the parts > of > > > the human brain that are most important for self-regulation and self- > > > control; > > > • When people view their goals as "sacred," they put more energy > and > > > effort into pursuing those goals, and therefore, are probably more > > > effective at attaining them; > > > • Religious lifestyles may contribute to self-control by providing > > > people with clear standards for their behaviour, by causing people to > > > monitor their own behaviour more closely, and by giving people the > > > sense that God is watching their behaviour; > > > • The fact that religious people tend to be higher in self-control > > > helps explain why religious people are less likely to misuse drugs and > > > alcohol and experience problems with crime and delinquency. > > > The question is essentially how the same social force that motivates > > > acts of charity and generosity can also motivate people to strap bomb > > > belts around their waists and then blow themselves up in crowded city > > > buses. By thinking of religion as a social force that provides people > > > with resources for controlling their impulses (including the impulse > > > for self-preservation, in some cases) in the service of higher goals, > > > religion can motivate people to do just about anything. > > > > > There are some obvious critiques, yet I feel something important lies > > > in this.- Hide quoted text - > > > > - Show quoted text - > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Minds-Eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
