John's Beliefs & Philosophy

Above all else, my philosophy is rooted in the basic premise that people should be left alone to do as they like. So long as one's actions harm noone else (and no, doing something you object to and pissing you off does not constitute harm).

Politics

Politics is a game played for thousands of years and to the ruination of many a civilization, yet at once politics are tied intrinsically to something of human nature--inescapable.

My political views have evolved greatly over the years until I feel that I today have reached a point where they reside upon a foundation of my personal beliefs and values rather than upon any party line. As a child, I grew up a "Democrat" due to familial influence without ever really thinking of what their stances on the issues meant. Around age fourteen, my encounters with the writings of Robert Heinlein opened my eyes to personal responsibility and self-determination, two key elements that have led me to where I am today.

If forced to choose a party alignment, I favor Libertarian due to their basic credo of individual freedom; yet like most Libertarians (and unlike most Democrats or Republicans), I do not agree with all of their stances.

Religion

Nature is a harsh mistress. Humanity has had it rough throughout the ages, from predation to disease to disasters. Yet though smallpox and plague may have killed more in sheer numbers, we of humanity itself have inflicted the harshest treatment upon ourselves. The one undeniable fact of history is that religion, its practice, and its followers are responsible for more grief and death than anything else man has ever dreamed up.

I was raised a Methodist and have worked hard the past few years to escape the cruel indoctrination that is established religion. Adults should be free to choose their beliefs; children cannot, and exposing them to the virus-like system of organized religion is downright cruel and cripples their minds with a disease from which they may never recover.

Does this mean I'm an athiest? No--far from it. Nor do I have anything truly "against" religion; I feel it's your choice as to what you believe--yet indoctrination takes away that choice. I object to forcing beliefs upon anyone, which is the exact opposite of what is espoused by 99.9% of all organized religions. Children do not have the capacity to disbelieve in Santa, much less the pap fed them in Sunday School.

Religion to most people is a crutch, a way to look at the world without critical thought and without confronting questions like, "Who am I?" and "Why am I here?" in meaningful ways.

The chisel that brought down the wall of religion for me came about through a series of questions I asked of myself in attempting to reconcile the doctrines of religion (and not just Christianity) with reason and rational belief. The final straw that broke the camel's back was my experience with creation "science," whereby people claiming to be "scientists" (most with diploma-mill degrees) lie their socks off to try to defeat science and put their own stupid ideas on the throne. Though I don't believe in the concept of "sin," these people do, yet they knowingly and willfully lie and fabricate "evidence" to advance their cause. The only more despicable people are those who commit violence in the name of religion, from abortion-clinic assassins to gay bashers to those nuts in the Middle East and here back home who would fly planes into buildings because of "God."

In short, any logical person must come to the conclusion that even if a deity (or deities) exist, s/he cannot be that of the Christian Bible or related text (Koran, Torah, etc.)

And finally, why do we need a concept of "God" anyway? Is the universe not amazing enough in and of itself, as is life? Simply because we can't explain something or aren't smart enough to comprehend the fundamental nature of Nature is no excuse for creating the fiction of some anthropomorphic deity at whom we can always point and say, "Goddidit" in answer to all of our uncertainties.