What is atheism?

 

     I think many people are confused about what atheism is. Atheists are similar to religious people, such as Christians and Muslims, in the sense that they reject gods. Atheists just take the rejection one step further and eliminate one more god than the religious people do.

     When Christians and Muslims understand why they reject all the possible gods except for one, then they'll understand why atheists reject their god.

     The opposite of atheism is actually not theism, but pantheism. A theist is someone that accepts one or more gods, but not all of them. A pantheist is someone that accepts all of the possible gods, while an atheist is someone that rejects all of the possible gods. A theist, such as a Christian or Muslim, rejects many gods, but not all of them.

     An atheist isn't someone that cherry-picks and just doesn't believe in Christianity or Islam - they don't believe in any of it. Any religion. Period.

     Therefore, the highly uneducated will define an atheist as someone that does not believe in God, because they are not cognizant of the fact that there are many other possible gods to choose from. Would anyone define an atheist as someone that doesn't believe in Zeus? Of course not - that would be ridiculous. Just as ridiculous as defining an atheist as someone that doesn't believe in God.

Current Status of my Breath of the Wild File on Nintendo Switch

Breath of the Wild on the Nintendo Switch is the best video game I've played so far in my years of gaming. I started playing it in September 2017 and I am still making strides towards becoming better and finishing more of the game. I will probably not do everything that can be done in this game. 

This is the status of my file (what I consider worth reporting) as of 10/7/2018:

Time: 310 hours

Main Quests Cleared: 20/20

Shrine Quests Cleared: 42/42

Side Quests Cleared: 89/90

     Need to complete the Final Trials

Memories: All Recovered

Master Mode: Not Yet Attempted

Maxed Out Armor Sets:

BARBARIAN

CLIMBING GEAR

DESERT

FIERCE DEITY

FLAMEBREAKER

ANCIENT

HYLIAN

RADIANT

RUBBER

SNOWQUILL

SOLDIER’S

STEALTH

ZORA

The FLAMEBREAKER gave me a lot of trouble, due to the difficulties experienced trying to obtain Smotherwing Butterflies.

The FIERCE DEITY and BARBARIAN were also difficult, due to needing dragon parts. You need to gain an intimate understanding of where and when each of the three dragons appears, along with the best place to take shots at the dragons in order to get the parts you need.

Currently working on upgrading armor sets that require Star Fragments, which are exceptionally difficult to obtain quickly. 

Korok Seeds: 442/900

After obtaining roughly 380 korok seeds, I used the map included with the Official Guide to help me locate enough to finish adding all the inventory slots. Inventory slots are maxed out at 441 seeds. I tried to find the seeds by just running around with the KOROK MASK, but even that was a very slow process. Even the guide barely sped things up, since you still have to solve the puzzle once you get in the vicinity of a seed.

Completion Percentage: 62.10% (out of 100%)

I would need to find the remainder of the korok seeds, along with the Talus and Hinox monsters I have not yet found. I only have the Molduga Medal in respect to monsters eliminated. There is no Lynel Medal, which I find strange. 

I have defeated Ganon. Once you beat Ganon, the game ends and a Star is placed by your file. Everything you have done is saved and you're free to continue playing the game, except that Ganon needs to be defeated again. This is tremendously awesome, as it gives players an opportunity to discover more of the game without needing to start over completely. Due to the open world nature of the game, Ganon can be defeated rather quickly, without having experienced much of what the game has to offer. People that regret having rushed through the game are thus able to start over without losing any progress, should they decide to make a more thorough investigation of what the game has to offer. This is Very Smart game design. 

School Shootings Are Not New

I apologize for the lateness of this post, as I intended to post this in February 2018. The data below is from Wikipedia, as of March 2018.

The purpose of this post is to show that humans have been shooting each other in schools for a long time, and those shootings have increased as the population has increased. Another purpose is to shut up those idiots that think humans are different now than when they were growing up. The bottom line is that if people can access guns, then people will get shot. It doesn't matter if the year is 1818 or 2018. 

U.S. Population

1780 – 2.7 million

1790 – 3.9 million

1800 – 5.3 million

1850 – 23.2 million

1900 – 76.2 million

1950 – 151.3 million

1960 – 179.3 million

1970 – 203.2 million

1980 – 226.5 million

1990 – 248.7 million

2000 – 281.4 million

2010 – 308.7 million

2017 – 325.7 million

Number of Reported School Shootings in the U.S. + Number of Deaths

1700s – 1             (10 deaths)

1800-1850 – 1    (1 death)

1851-1899 – 36 (30 deaths)

1900-1950 – 61 (51 deaths)

1950s – 17           (14 deaths)

1960s – 18           (44 deaths)

1970s – 30           (37 deaths)

1980s – 39           (49 deaths)

1990s – 62           (88 deaths)

2000s – 63           (107 deaths)

2010 – 11             (8 deaths)

2011 – 7               (5 deaths)

2012 – 11             (42 deaths)

2013 – 26             (19 deaths)

2014 – 37             (17 deaths)

2015 – 21             (21 deaths)

2016 – 15             (9 deaths)

2017 – 9               (15 deaths)

2018 (so far) – 12             (26 deaths)

2010s (so far) – 149         (162 deaths)

Things to note:

The U.S. population has more than doubled since 1950. Prior to 1950, there were a total of 99 reported school shootings and there have been 377 reported shootings since 1950. Non-school shootings are not included here but I imagine a similar trend would become apparent, meaning, more people means more shootings. It’s also important to consider that most people were probably unaware of the shootings prior to 1990, due to not having internet access, and also the fact that Twitter, Facebook, and similar means of rapidly sharing information with millions of people did not exist.

Fictional Character Strength Tier System

     I recently realized something peculiar about people that believe in gods. They typically dismiss lesser powerful beings and embrace the more improbably powerful beings that work with infinities.

     Example: Superman does not function in the infinite realm; none of his abilities operate at the infinite level. Yet no one believes in Superman, who is far more probable to exist than a god, such as the Christian god, that operates in the infinite realm.

     Since religious people, such as Christians and Muslims, have no problem accepting organisms that operate at infinite levels (gods), why do they dismiss organisms which operate at levels that do not approach infinity (such as Superman)? The fact that I can ask such a question shows how fundamentally flawed the religious mind is. Religious people haven’t yet figured out that religion is actually fiction – that’s the main problem.

     I can put this into a generalized tier system:

Tier 1 – Base Human Strength

     These are fictional characters that are as strong as a human, such as Batman or Lara Croft. A regular person could kill them.

Tier 2 – Superior Strength

     These are fictional characters that are much stronger than humans, and could not easily be killed by any regular person. Examples are Superman, Wolverine, Magneto, Predator and Thor. Some of the organisms at this level may refer to themselves as gods, considerably overestimating their abilities. Movies and fiction books are overpopulated with Tier 2 characters. A scientific explanation for some of the Tier 2 abilities comes from the use of femtotechnology, but not complete mastery. In other words, if regular humans gain access to femtotechnology, then some people may gain Tier 2-like abilities. 
     An interesting character to mention at this point is Iron Man. He's a good example of a Tier 1 organism with Tier 2-like abilities. The person inside the suit simply has base human strength, but the suit itself provides for abilities reminiscent of Superman.
     Note: The strength variations at the Tier 2 level are significant. There is a big difference between Superman and the Predator, but each of them can easily kill a human, and each of them can easily be killed by a higher Tier organism.
     Further Note: It may seem like a stretch for me to include the Predator in the Tier 2 category, but one must remember that in the 1987 movie, it was very difficult to kill. Realistically, Arnold would've lost. But that's Hollywood and they can't kill the star. 

Tier 3 – Godlike Strength

     These are fictional characters that are much stronger than Tier 2 characters. A regular person wouldn’t be able to kill them, and even a Tier 2 character would have considerable difficulty dispatching one of them. Examples are Dr. Manhattan and Apocalypse. These are rarely seen in movies. Characters at the Tier 3 level have mastered femtotechnology and understand Planck scales on an intimate level. They do not understand infinity, though they understand it much better than any human. 
     It's worth mentioning that there might exist a type of suit, similar to Iron Man, for Tier 2 organisms. Example: Superman wears a suit that gives him Tier 3-like abilities. Superman, even though he is quite powerful, would not be able to defeat something like Dr. Manhattan without special technology. 

Tier 4 – Gods

     These are fictional characters that operate at infinite levels. Due to the nature of infinity, they can’t be killed by characters even in Tier 3. They have the ability to create universes and/or manage the life and death of organisms. Examples are Zeus, Osiris, God, Allah and Marduk. Tier 4 characters were primarily created by people working in the dawn of civilization and up until as recently as 2,000 years ago. Modern people often mistake Tier 4 characters as being real, and it is still possible to be punished for not believing in or saying bad things about, Tier 4 characters. Many modern people still mistakenly believe that morality is somehow connected with a belief in Tier 4 characters. Tier 4 characters understand what happens beyond the Planck scales, and also understand infinity.
     And, since I can think of it, there might exist a suit that gives lower Tier organisms Tier 4-like abilities. There is an easy example I can think of: Thanos. Thanos is a Tier 2 organism, but when he dons the Infinity Gauntlet, he becomes like a Tier 4 organism.

Tier 5 - Stronger Than Gods

     These are fictional characters that operate at higher levels of infinity. They are vastly, and unimaginably, stronger than any of the religious gods or anything previously imagined by a human being. The argument I use to imagine the Tier 5 category stems from mathematics: infinity comes in different sizes*. Such organisms would not be concerned with universes, but would operate at structural levels that exceed even the multiverse. They would manage structures that contain multiverses and thoroughly understand infinities akin to the set of Real numbers. Tier 4 organisms would not be recognized as having intelligence by a Tier 5 organism. No movie or book has ever described or shown a Tier 5 organism.
     The Tier 5 category has no conceivable end. There is no Tier 6.

*An example of an infinite set being bigger than another infinite set is the difference between the Natural numbers and the Real numbers. 

The Superman Benchmark - A Minimum Requirement for the Existence of Gods

     In order to show that gods are not real, I am going to start with Batman. Batman was introduced in 1939 by Bob Kane and Bill Finger (though they could’ve had the idea earlier). When Batman was revealed in 1939, it was understood that he was fictional and not actually real. It was not necessary to prove that Batman was not real; such a proof is not required due to the fact that fictional things are not real. Each fictional character created after Batman follows the same pattern: it is understood that they are not real and proving that makes no sense. This is what is established so far:

1 .            Batman was introduced in 1939 and there is no need to prove that he is not real.

2 .            All fictional characters introduced after 1939 follow the same pattern.

     Based on the fact that fictional characters introduced after Batman follow the same pattern, it is also true that going backwards in time yields the same result. It is also not necessary to prove that fictional characters introduced before Batman are not real. As an example, it is understood that the monster from Frankenstein is not real; no one needs to prove that. Again, here is what has been established:

1 .            Fictional characters, created after Batman, and before Batman, all follow the same pattern: there is no need to prove that they are not real.

2 .            Another pattern emerges: the creation of fictional characters does not cause them to appear in reality.

     We can go backwards in time to the earliest days. Back then, when somebody created a fictional 

character, it did not become real. Therefore, all the gods, including the Christian god, which people like to call “God”, are not real. There is no need to prove this anymore than there is no need to prove that Batman is not real.

Consider this:

                The Superman Benchmark

     If gods were real, then that would mean the act of creating fictional characters would cause them to become real. In terms of raw power, Superman is a mid-grade creation. He’s not the most powerful thing that humans can imagine, but he’s still awesomely powerful when compared to the average person. If the act of creating fictional characters actually brought them to reality, then we would, at the least, see some kind of mid-grade creation. The problem is not that we aren’t seeing any gods, but the fact that we aren’t even seeing something fictional that is less powerful than a god. If the Superman Benchmark is passed, that is, if we see something about as powerful as Superman, then there’s at least a chance that gods can be real.

     Note: all of the above is my invention. I came up with the Superman Benchmark as a minimum requirement for gods to exist.

P.S.

     There is only one actual difference between any of the gods (Christian “God” included) and Batman. We know who invented Batman, but we don’t know who invented the gods (their names, date of birth, how they did it, why they did it, etc.). If social media existed 10,000 years ago, and we had detailed records of the thought processes of the creators of all the gods (yes, Christian “God” included), then I would not have needed to write this.

P.P.S.

     Another interesting thing to consider is how easily the human brain can be fooled. Humans can have real feelings for things that are not real. When you feel like you have a relationship with your god, just remember that people cry in movie theaters when superheroes die.

The Age of Disinformation

It’s become evident to me that the so-called “Information Age” in which we exist will no doubt perplex future historians. Despite having access to an astonishing amount of factual scientific information, there are still:

1.       People that believe in gods. These people are separated into cults that worship different gods, such as Christianity and Islam. They can’t all be right, but they can all be wrong.

2.       People that think sexual preference is a choice. What gets you hot is no more a choice than what foods taste good. As an example, I didn’t choose to be attracted to women anymore than I chose for pizza to taste good.

3.       People that think the Earth is flat. They can’t be helped.

4.       People that think evolution didn’t happen. Evolution has been experimentally verified.

5.       People that believe in astrology. They can’t be helped.

6.       People that believe in a third gender, or multiple genders. There is an immediate flaw. In order for a third gender individual to reproduce, they would need to find a fourth gender individual. Since the third gender people don’t consider themselves male or female, they will still need to find a member of the opposite sex. If a third gender individual attempts to mate with another third gender, that will be homosexuality and no offspring will be possible. Thus, the third gender must find an elusive fourth gender. This sounds like bullshit for a good reason.

7.       People that think science is a belief choice, like religion. Science describes processes that are real whether you believe in them or not. Or even whether you exist or not. As an example, I don’t believe in science anymore than I believe Jefferson City is the capital of Missouri. It makes no sense to believe in something that is real. It only makes sense to believe in things that are not real*. As an example, I believed there was a monster somewhere in my room as a child, possibly in the closet. Many adults do the same thing, with their gods. Imagination is powerful. But reality is even more powerful. Science is a process by which humans describe reality, based on observation and experimentation. This is the primary problem: many people don’t know what science is. They love what it does, since they use cell phones and cars, for example, but they hate any results that conflict with their beliefs, such as evolution.

8.       People that believe in prayer. I have stated countless times that prayer is an act of self-amelioration. It makes people feel better when they pray. But they don’t believe in it. Not for one second. No one actually believes in prayer. Sure, they do it, and act like it. But if it came down to it, and they were offered a choice…. You need heart surgery or you are going to die….do you choose surgery or prayer? You choose surgery, of course. Another example…you would like to fly across the country. Do you choose an airline service with pilots that use modern instrumentation or pilots that use prayer instead of any technology? These examples show that no one actually believes in prayer, and further demonstrates how worthless beliefs are.
9.    People that believe aliens built the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge, and other historical structures on the Earth. It is understood how the large stones were transported, where the stones were cut out of the rock, and how the structures were made. The "why" is not thoroughly understood, of course. We can easily duplicate these structures today, and certainly make them better. The reason why we don't do this is profit based. Who's going to pay all the people needed to get the job done? What will the investors get out of it? 

*That’s the unexpected outcome of the nature of belief. One would expect the opposite to be true, that it only makes sense to believe in things that are real. But if something is real, then you don’t need to believe in it. But for something that isn’t real – that thing, whatever it may be, absolutely depends upon your belief in it.