Acceptability/Legitimacy of Supernatural Beliefs

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It's all about cause and effect, no? And what exactly is it that makes things affect one another, why is there cause and effect? Dunno. That's just how it is in this universe.

So can anyone tell me why established religions should be treated with more respect than astrology?

― oops (Oops), Thursday, 28 August 2003 02:21 (9 years ago) Permalink

better stories and robes.

― RJG (RJG), Thursday, 28 August 2003 02:23 (9 years ago) Permalink

Can anyone tell me things about stuff and what alcohol does, for instance?

Because I am A Poet
The gerbil of Mars was a generalissimo of
jelly bean jars
And he had two bits of sense
and two seconds of the dense
FOG.

In an angry Iron Dog, where I navigated from...
Lyons Road to Gehenna is an arbitrary
assignment
To the Nova Scotia Lox of planetary alignment
Where gerbils run free
on the sands of Gallilee
Is the place where things are done
on the basis of consignment.

This folly of jackyls and nymphs of the sea,
who sings songs of adornment
to the necklacess on Necklace Eve,
They participate in the mother of all
tournaments.

Anything happens and shit is possible,
So here is it wot built a foundry wot built its
foundation on such formulations, for starters,
unstoppable:

There's a button of censors
(which I don't have)
'tis a Band-Aid
for the flummoxed shooter of nonsense
(which is all salve)
I am a shoo-bee,
A doo-bee,
A rompity-stompity floo-bee.

I am a Rompity-Stompity Romper Room.

― Natola (Scaredy Cat), Thursday, 28 August 2003 02:33 (9 years ago) Permalink

So can anyone tell me why established religions should be treated with more respect than astrology?

I'm not sure it can be done, but i think the strongest argument would be to say that there are ratiuonal arguments for believing in god. i cant think of any for astrology.

― ryan (ryan), Thursday, 28 August 2003 16:53 (9 years ago) Permalink

I could come up with just as rational arguments for astrology. (Okay, maybe not ME, but someone could)

― oops (Oops), Thursday, 28 August 2003 19:03 (9 years ago) Permalink

PHEAR my PHOTONS beaming at YR BRANE.

― Ricardo (RickyT), Thursday, 28 August 2003 19:25 (9 years ago) Permalink

Legitmacy: Well, that's why is is called a *belief* and it isn't subject to anyone else's approval. You make your decision to believe in atheism, Zoroaster, The Mall, God, Confucious, Maya, Hunaphu, whatever and you live your life by its moral code. What's the problem?

Acceptability: People are mostly intolerant, and atheists are just as intolerant as rabid fundamentalists.

― Orbit (Orbit), Friday, 29 August 2003 15:12 (9 years ago) Permalink

atheists CAN be just as intolerant.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 29 August 2003 23:13 (9 years ago) Permalink

What about those people who just refuse to take a position?!?! Those intolerable bastards won't side with me no matter WHAT position I take.

― Scaredy Cat, Friday, 29 August 2003 23:16 (9 years ago) Permalink

"So can anyone tell me why established religions should be treated with more respect than astrology?"

Some established religions have traits similar to astrology.

― A Nairn (moretap), Saturday, 30 August 2003 00:16 (9 years ago) Permalink

8 years pass...

In an attempt to get along better with my mother (ARIES), I have taken up astrology. She has an ipad now and I have to help her find good web pages.

As a Libra, though, the reward is in the artwork and writing on some of these pages.

I enjoy tarot readings myself, but as entertainment.

― โตเกียวเหมียวเหมียว aka Bulgarian Tourist Chamber (Mount Cleaners), Monday, 21 May 2012 16:07 (1 year ago) Permalink

2 weeks pass...

I'm learning about my moon sign today:

You may be familiar with your 'Sun Sign', but what is a 'Moon Sign'? The Moon is said to rule your personality, while the Sun rules your individuality, while the Ascendant Sun dictates our outer appearance and mannerisms (learn more about the Ascendant by clicking on its icon in the horoscope main menu).

You may be surprised to learn that you may illustrate more of your Moon Sign qualities than your Sun Sign (it should be noted though that the vast majority of the populous manifest their Sun Signs). By reading the description of your Moon Sign you will be able to judge how much the Moon affects your personality. The descriptions are quite general, but may ring true nonetheless.

― โตเกียวเหมียวเหมียว aka Bulgarian Tourist Chamber (Mount Cleaners), Wednesday, 6 June 2012 20:46 (11 months ago) Permalink

To answer the original question, the order of acceptability in the Western world seems to be something like:

Luck > deities that are intangible and don't affect people's everyday affairs > destiny/fate/horoscopes > ghosts, angels and other intangible spirits that may momentarily affect people's everyday affairs, but generally stay out of the way > paranormal powers in humans > deities in physical form > demons and other monsters in physical form.

― Tuomas, Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:06 (11 months ago) Permalink

Oh yeah, add "reincarnation" after destiny/fate.

― Tuomas, Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:07 (11 months ago) Permalink

> safe investments > talking cars

― lag∞n, Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:09 (11 months ago) Permalink

> animals wearing people clothes

― Julie Derpy (Phil D.), Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:19 (11 months ago) Permalink

> the legitimacy of sock puppets

― nerds being macho (remy bean), Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:29 (11 months ago) Permalink

you can take away my everything but don't take away my supernatural beliefs

― chris paul george hill (dayo), Thursday, 7 June 2012 12:49 (11 months ago) Permalink

My wife has a great many supernatural beliefs, but over a period of many years I have persuaded her to be self-skeptical enough that she does not use these beliefs as the basis for practical decision-making, and when she meets others who share her beliefs and set themselves up as teachers or gurus, she is very sensitive to whether these people have ulterior motives, such as money-making or power-seeking.

Under these conditions, I am very content not to directly challenge her beliefs in spirits and mysterious powers. If you treat them merely as interesting hypotheses that might have some explanatory power, but it is not clear whether other explanantions might not be stronger, then these become much more like intellectual exercises than belief systems.

― Aimless, Thursday, 7 June 2012 16:40 (11 months ago) Permalink

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