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God's Lonely Programmer

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Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#111

Post by davidw »

innguest wrote: post #90
kstenerud wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm barely able to contain my rage at this moment, so I'll make it short. The ONLY time you're allowed to intervene is when someone's life and self image is visibly deteriorating. If it's stable, leave it the fuck alone. I've gotten into the habit of hiding what I've got because of people like you, and judging by the downvotes I'm getting, you're not alone in perpetuating the stigma and condescension. Every single "o…

It really makes it patently obvious, when the subject is a mentally ill person that is doing well for themselves, that the agenda of the collectivist is really about controlling how other people live, and the fact that they are mentally ill, or poor, or gay, or any other special group, is just an excuse to meddle with their lives. This doesn't affect just minorities. Oh, you want to marry someone? Well, then society…

From the article:

> Unable to work, he collects Social Security disability

He's doing ok because the 'collective' takes care of him.

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#112

Post by zerouniverse »

Covzire wrote: post #57
daveloyall wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I find this guy's moments of clarity amazing. Oh, that's because: > I'm not very familiar with mental illnesses [...] :) Schizophrenics are frequently lucid. Well, a modified sort of lucid... It's as if they are rational folks for whom first principles or axioms have been shaken up, and indeed are malleable all the time. It doesn't sound like Terry would ever think that his dinner plate would sprout legs and walk a…

I wouldn't classify his belief in God as a "crazy idea" in the purest sense of those words. Scientifically, a God powerful enough to create this universe could easily and rationally be powerful enough to make certain demands of said creation, one of which might rationally be that the created beings need faith in God to achieve their designed capability. There is a wonderful uniformity to the universe that allows comp…

The notion in your first paragraph sounds like a reasonable assertion to me although it does presuppose the rather dogmatic notion that an omnipotent Creator would "demand faith" rather than "grant a gift of free will / gift of being able to forget he exists".

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#113

Post by ta75757 »

sillysaurus3 wrote: post #87
kstenerud wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm barely able to contain my rage at this moment, so I'll make it short. The ONLY time you're allowed to intervene is when someone's life and self image is visibly deteriorating. If it's stable, leave it the fuck alone. I've gotten into the habit of hiding what I've got because of people like you, and judging by the downvotes I'm getting, you're not alone in perpetuating the stigma and condescension. Every single "o…

That's all you have to say. "No, thank you. Please leave me alone." And then you're left alone. We live in a world where we help each other. Offering help isn't a bad thing. Some people aren't as strong as you.

In that case you have to say "no thank you" every time someone new comes along and they decide they need to be helpful without any indication from you. And that can get irritating really fast. Imagine how sick tall people must be of being asked their height. Now add to that pity and condescension.

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#114

Post by 67726e »

lomnakkus wrote: post #85
67726e wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My parents raised me to be a racist. It's not my fault, it's my upbringing. Any attempts to otherwise convince me are just a conspiracy brought on both those pesky inferior races. Wanna play have a philosophical debate? Or can we agree that someone who espouses racist ideology is, in fact, a racist.

Wrong. People may say racist things without necessarily being racist. The difference between "being X-ist" and "saying X-ist thing" is basically predicated on having a "persistent belief that X" or having a "momentary belief that X". (I'm using "belief" in the philosophical sense.)

When you consistently espouse racist ideology, you're a racist. Or maybe a performance artist disguised as a Kazakh journalist, but most probably a racist. It could be that he just says these things all the time for the hell of it, or it could be that he believes what he says. I'll leave determining which is more likely as an exercise to the reader.

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#115

Post by sillysaurus3 »

kstenerud wrote: post #110
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's all you have to say. "No, thank you. Please leave me alone." And then you're left alone. We live in a world where we help each other. Offering help isn't a bad thing. Some people aren't as strong as you.

I wish I could impart upon you the disempowering effect of condescension. When you "offer help" to someone who is happy with where they're at, and not in distress, you're basically telling them that they probably can't make it without you stepping in to support them. You're telling them that they, the wretched ones, are dependent upon the real people, who come down from on high to help them sort their obviously broke…

I appreciate the perspective. I'm here to learn and to understand. It's very difficult to understand this, but I can see how it might be true.

If that's the case, the only alternative seems to be not to offer help to anyone. Is that preferable, especially if the entire world starts behaving like that?

It just seems like "Hey, do you need any help?" can't possibly be a negative. But I'm willing to accept I could be wrong about that.

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#116

Post by kolev »

lomnakkus wrote: post #85
67726e wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My parents raised me to be a racist. It's not my fault, it's my upbringing. Any attempts to otherwise convince me are just a conspiracy brought on both those pesky inferior races. Wanna play have a philosophical debate? Or can we agree that someone who espouses racist ideology is, in fact, a racist.

Wrong. People may say racist things without necessarily being racist. The difference between "being X-ist" and "saying X-ist thing" is basically predicated on having a "persistent belief that X" or having a "momentary belief that X". (I'm using "belief" in the philosophical sense.)

I agree. A racist is somebody who can be judged by their actions. There are many people who sound like racists, but who haven't done anything and are completely incapable of discriminating anybody based on their race. Interestingly, xenophobia in Western Europe is a bigger problem than racism.

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#118

Post by jcromartie »

anigbrowl wrote: post #102
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every time his story comes up, there are people who respond with answers along the lines of "what can we do for him? can we find him assisted employment? can we raise money for him?" etc. While these comments are surely well intentioned, they end up being mostly condescending and out of place, as if talking about a completely helpless being. He is openly racist. He can't find a job on his own, unless it's among other…

That's a problem in the same way that Tourette's Syndrome often creates employment problems (some people with TS have an uncontrollable urge to swear a lot, a problem known as coprolalia - this can make it hard to get served as a customer in a store, never mind hold down a job). You gotta treat God as entertainment, mostly. He's not prophetic in this. I caution against latching onto any particular thing He says. If I…

Coprolalia: Latin for "poop talk"

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#119

Post by [deleted] »

unclebucknasty wrote: post #99
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every time his story comes up, there are people who respond with answers along the lines of "what can we do for him? can we find him assisted employment? can we raise money for him?" etc. While these comments are surely well intentioned, they end up being mostly condescending and out of place, as if talking about a completely helpless being. He is openly racist. He can't find a job on his own, unless it's among other…

>what can we do for him? can we find him assisted employment? What's really funny is that, from their perspective, "helping" him involves better integrating him into the world we all accept. But, there's nothing particularly "sane" or even healthy about that world.

[deleted]

Re: God's Lonely Programmer

#120

Post by nekopa »

lmm wrote: post #88

The lionization of this guy reminds me of the reporting of the Charge of the Light Brigade. All those noble British soldiers, following orders even unto death, what courage, what majesty... when what should really have been said was: what a bunch of bloody idiots, who got themselves killed for no reason. And so the same foolishness repeated throughout the first world war. So let me say it: this guy, whether through h…

Hold on, let me get this straight: You think that someone who does what he does because he honestly believes he is doing god's work (because of a mental illness) is a dumbass?

Next you'll call John Nash fucking retarded for being afraid of men in red ties.

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