>> ^Lodurr: There are lots of unique examples of altruism in nature, but not every animal or living thing displays altruism. The only ones that display altruism do so because it benefits the species in the long run. Just because altruism can exist without manmade laws doesn't mean it always does.
If you took a step farther back, you would see that religion and laws are a part of nature in the sense that they're a part of culture, and we require culture to survive. Of course that's very different than saying any of the religions are right.
It's more strange to suggest that religion was unnecessary for our survival. If it wasn't necessary, it would not have existed (and persisted). Whether it's necessary for our future survival is another topic. It's not yet as vestigial as our tailbones, and in any case, it needs to shrink naturally just as our tailbones did while we adapt to its absence.
Just because something is beneficial doesn't mean it will develop in every species. Adding gills to humans would certainly benefit us, for example. Not having gills wasn't enough of a problem to wipe us out, is all.
Religion's existence doesn't prove its necessity, either. As a form of control it might have been beneficial to society in general. You can do something illegal and potentially get away with it, but you can't hide from God so it's a more effective deterrent than any legal system. That doesn't guarantee that we wouldn't have made it with just laws, though.
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Randy Marsh takes one (bananna) for the team
They're also definitive proof of a divine creator.
60 Minutes - Brain Man (Savant) part 1
A Question of Numbers (Geek Talk Post)
This video is a dupe of the one above, btw... if someone could take care of that.
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M.C. Escher Interview
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I don't get an ad. Firefox + AdBlock Plus FTW!
Adblock didn't stop it for me. It seems it doesn't play the ad every time. I've played it 5x and only got the ad twice.
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My Religion is True, Yours a Mistake!
It's more like
Islam: x + y = 2
Christianity: x + y = 4
Scientology: x + y = 6
Atheism: x and y are unknown.
Judaism: x + y = 3. Is there a group discount available?
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Check your MSNBC clips... (Election08 Talk Post)
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Natural Morality
There are lots of unique examples of altruism in nature, but not every animal or living thing displays altruism. The only ones that display altruism do so because it benefits the species in the long run. Just because altruism can exist without manmade laws doesn't mean it always does.
If you took a step farther back, you would see that religion and laws are a part of nature in the sense that they're a part of culture, and we require culture to survive. Of course that's very different than saying any of the religions are right.
It's more strange to suggest that religion was unnecessary for our survival. If it wasn't necessary, it would not have existed (and persisted). Whether it's necessary for our future survival is another topic. It's not yet as vestigial as our tailbones, and in any case, it needs to shrink naturally just as our tailbones did while we adapt to its absence.
Just because something is beneficial doesn't mean it will develop in every species. Adding gills to humans would certainly benefit us, for example. Not having gills wasn't enough of a problem to wipe us out, is all.
Religion's existence doesn't prove its necessity, either. As a form of control it might have been beneficial to society in general. You can do something illegal and potentially get away with it, but you can't hide from God so it's a more effective deterrent than any legal system. That doesn't guarantee that we wouldn't have made it with just laws, though.
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Not that anyone suggested it would work, it clearly says Android and iPhone above, but figured I'd give it a shot.
Who Left This Hole in the Ground, Mr. President? (8:45)
Keith Olberman on Rudy's Campaign Ad...
O'Reilly calls McClellan "WEAK!"