>The point being that religion -- whether you consider it the core of
>your being or a mental illness, is beneficial to humankind.
>The ends justify the means eh?
Not exactly "the ends justify the means," no, but a recognition that
pure reason may not be sufficient to the task, that we may be "wired"
to respond to more than mere facts.
> Perhaps if it takes blatant lies to make a society function smoothly
> then there is something fundamentally wrong with the society?
Depends on how fscked-up the society is, perhaps.
They're only "lies" to those who narrowly equate truth with factuality.
But there I go again, being nuanced, damned Liberal that I am.
Perhaps they are not so much "blatant lies" as feelings and unprovable
-- and, of course, un-disprovable -- ideas that ennoble us. The
article was very clear that it didn't matter that the subjects of the
experiment actually believed the religious ideas, only that they were
"primed" with them or the beneficial effects of generosity and
cooperation to kick in.
It's closer to the AA idea of a "higher power" (even if your higher
power is a salt shaker) -- not necessarily something that you think
_is_ God, but something that takes you outside yourself, helps you
experience IAAMOAC.
Dave Land/William T Goodall
The concept of a "higher power" and the "12 steps" are preferable to
"jaysus" and "the top ten" (commandments) but they still rely on faith,
to some extent. i believe in the "big bang" theory of creation, and
the "laws of thermodynamics".
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS: The real reason that we can't have the Ten
Commandments in a courthouse...You cannot post "Thou Shalt Not Steal"
"Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery " and "Thou Shall Not Lie" in a
building
full of lawyers, judges and politicians -- it creates a hostile work environment
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