Rick's Blog

Religion at its best is nothing more than a means by which the less fortunate can place themselves on an equal playing field with the very fortunate. And by extension of that equal playing field and by its nature, the less fortunate can actually vote themselves over the very fortunate by judging themselves against the standard of that equal playing field. For example, in the religion of Christianity, the equal playing field is created by the belief that all people are sinners and therefore all people are unworthy in the eyes of God. Humans are made worthy because of the sacrifice of Christ. Through Christ, humans can please God by focusing on that relationship with him. So in the end time, those less fortunate who focus on their relationship with God will be considered greater than those who did not, including the very fortunate. So, for the less fortunate, you don't need their power, their money, their looks, their fame, their talents; all you need is to speak words to yourself wi...

Isaiah 44:24 (NASV): "Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the One who formed you from the womb" What exactly does it mean to be "formed from the womb"? Clearly a reference to birth and development, but when does that development begin, and what is being developed? Here's what we know: conception of all life on this planet is cellular in nature, whether that's fauna sperm and egg or asexual reproduction or flora pollen or seed or even just cellular division. It's cells, and we know how they work. Cells are made of multiple systems which exist on the molecular level, and molecules are made of elements, and we know how that works too. We can explain the whole process of how a human baby starts and grows, and it's basically the same process as exists in every other mammal or animal or plant species; there is nothing special about human development. So if that development, that "forming", starts at conception, what is being developed oth...

Not only no but of course not! The afterlife is a completely nonsensical idea, contrary to everything we understand about life, unsupported by multiple branches of science and is actually a dangerous idea: the 9/11 terrorists did what they did because they believed they were going to better life after this one. Consciousness is an emergent property of the brain. When the brain deteriorates, our consciousness deteriorates, and when the brain ceases to function, consciousness ceases to emerge. Done. 

The only things that control language are facts and evidence-based reasoning. 2+2=5 isn't a "freedom of speech" issue. It is wrong, and math based on it creates engines that explode. The reason language becomes narrow is because we don't tolerate ideas that cannot be justified. The earth is not flat. Germs, not demons, cause disease. Gender is a spectrum, not binary. All three statements are supported by overwhelming evidence in their fields. If you feel disrespected by science because it does not tolerate falsehoods and fantasies, that's a YOU problem.H

When one can reflect on the incalculable number of atomic occurrences, particles, compounds, self-replicating molecules, mitochondria, through the entire path of evolutionary development, it took to get here The gas clouds, the prior supernovas it took to create the higher elements, the Goldilocks zone, multiple mass extinctions, opposable thumbs, language And time, an unfathomable amount of time, in a functionally infinite universe To be this sentient being, to be the 'I' behind my eyes, to be the part of all that universe through which it analyses itself And to do so via the being that you are, the part of the universe that reflects not only upon its grandeur as a whole but also upon its own emergent quality Consciousness To be and to reflect on the self as the observant within that universe When one can just barely understand that, one can find all peace and beauty in reality, in life Because you are unique, in the truest definition of the word unique The c...

"100% of all climate change models have been wrong" Yes, in the same way that 100% of the directions of every airplane is wrong and does not lead exactly toward the proper destination. Flight is a constant adjustment and readjustment to a perfect, hypothetical flight plan from origin to destination which is to say that the actual flight plan is, by definition, a model . The actual flight plan based on that model is always wrong - due to wind, wind speed, weather patterns, the rotation of the earth, etc - which is why constant adjustment is required to reach the destination. Clearly, the general direction of the model is correct, evidenced by the fact that airplanes operated by professional pilots almost never mistakenly land at an improper destination. Likewise, no climate change model is going to be 100% accurate in its predictions, but clearly as every chart of any meaningful data shows, global atmospheric and oceanic temperatures are rising, the rise is caused by an unn...

This explains the current political wars of ideology. The non-engaged majority is simply being drowned out by the engaged minority with a bigger megaphone. This is a sign of the virus adapting to the evolutionary pressures of the modern consciousness environment. Yell louder. Dig your heels in firmer. Utilize fear over rationality. Because fear is what the virus is. That is the adapter that the phage engages to pass its code into a cell, just like fear of the unknown is the key to opening the door that unlocks consciousness to accepting the virus into its set of rules that are the basis for judging reality. This fear is the cause for the adherence to the ideologies of "going back to the safer times and ways of the past" and reluctance to adapt to change going forward. That reluctance to accept reality is what leads to rejection of reason and science, rejection of alternative genders, rejection of women having consent of their own bodies, and to embracing the illogical of the ...