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Are you a Bright?

Are you a Bright?

  • Total voters
    30
A bright is a person whose world view is free of supernatural and mystical elements
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In other words, someone so arrogant that they think they understand every aspect of the universe that surrounds them? No, I'm not one of them.

I believe the world is governed by the laws of physics, I just don't think that the human race has come anywhere close to figuring out what the laws of physics actually are. With this in mind, I would define the laws of physics as being 'supernatural' in that they are above and beyond the natural world as observed by humans, while at the same time defining it. I don't think there's a flying spaghetti monster or a big bloke with a beard running the show, but I do believe there are causes and effects in our lives that we still can't even fucking imagine.

And I wouldn't have it any other way :cool:
 
The mod wasn't exactly being serious, in case that was in doubt.

I'm sure "a bright" would be just as happy being called "a cuntish" as, clearly, the noun has no relation to the adjective after all.
 
SpookyFrank said:
In other words, someone so arrogant that they think they understand every aspect of the universe that surrounds them? No, I'm not one of them.
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Not at all!!!

I do NOT think that anyone understands "every aspect of the universe", that is to misrepresent my position, I am merely stating that I do NOT believe that the supernatural has anything to do with it.

In other words I don't know the details, but I believe that there is no 'magic' or 'God' like force.
 
Hi-ASL said:
There's nothing more pathetic and ridiculous than an organisation of people who don't believe in something - whatever they choose to call themselves. It's a personal issue. It doesn't need a club. :rolleyes:
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I agree, we should unite and form a committee. :D
 
The article makes it clear that the concept is open to agnostics who decide to take a position of don't know on key questions.

However, stating that you don't know, but it won't be a mysterious magic force is not unreasonable.
 
SpookyFrank said:
In other words, someone so arrogant that they think they understand every aspect of the universe that surrounds them? No, I'm not one of them.

I believe the world is governed by the laws of physics, I just don't think that the human race has come anywhere close to figuring out what the laws of physics actually are. With this in mind, I would define the laws of physics as being 'supernatural' in that they are above and beyond the natural world as observed by humans, while at the same time defining it. I don't think there's a flying spaghetti monster or a big bloke with a beard running the show, but I do believe there are causes and effects in our lives that we still can't even fucking imagine.

And I wouldn't have it any other way :cool:
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Totally agree with this. And to put another slant on it...we call things we dont understand or logically believe supernatural....yet maybe there is a perfectly sound explanation to be found somewhere in physics that we just don't understand yet...hence the supernatural may one day become the natural.

I think the statement that there is no supernatural in the world, merely means that you (in general) refuse to except any possibilities that we are unable to explain.

Seems pretty closed minded to me.

Even if you need to see something to believe it...which is a perfectly valid standpoint....writing everything off as nonsense because you havn't experienced it, or because there is no current logical explanation, is to deny that the human race has masses of untapped intellectual and spiritual potential. Doesn't seem very bright to me.

Of course no-one wants to be naive and believe everything they read, no-one wants to be that much of a fool....but simply admitting the possibility that we dont understand everything, and we may have new ways of explaining the seemingly supernatural in the future, makes a person much more interesting :)
 
#64 addressed this issue.

I am quite happy to state that I don't know on a lot of things, are you?
 
Gmarthews said:
Not at all!!!

I do NOT think that anyone understands "every aspect of the universe", that is to misrepresent my position, I am merely stating that I do NOT believe that the supernatural has anything to do with it.

In other words I don't know the details, but I believe that there is no 'magic' or 'God' like force.
Click to expand...

#64 addresses only that you are happy to say that you dont know what is, but still you insist you do know what it isnt. Doesn't make sense.
 
Chilliconcarne said:
still you insist you do know what it isn't. Doesn't make sense.
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It does to me!

Imagine I have a list of possibilities, but I omit fantastic ones on the basis that they are in my opinion fantasies.

If you wish to keep open the possibility of magic, then you would vote "not a Bright."

I don't see a problem with this position. You want to keep more options open, while I don't want to be distracted by what I would consider to be irrelevant arguments.
 
invisibleplanet said:
But magic can be seen as a metaphor for the manipulation of any moment to produce an effect that appears unrelated to 'the cause'.
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To the caveman, an ak47 is magical.
 
Gmarthews said:
It does to me!

Imagine I have a list of possibilities, but I omit fantastic ones on the basis that they are in my opinion fantasies.

If you wish to keep open the possibility of magic, then you would vote "not a Bright."

I don't see a problem with this position. You want to keep more options open, while I don't want to be distracted by what I would consider to be irrelevant arguments.
Click to expand...

Ok thats fair enough and I see your point now. I just think one of those possibilities I would like to keep on my list is that we don't know anything for sure atall, so how can we say for certain what isn't possible?

Based on the laws of physics as we currently know them, its not possible for man to fly unaided, or breathe underwater unaided, or conjure things out of mid-air. Id say that's pretty certain never to change (though you never know lol) But there are other possibilities such as psychic phenomena, apparitions, things that are real to many people yet laughed off by the general populas. Things you could call supernatural are being experimented with as we speak. We may one day understand what an apparition is, how it is, why it is, and it may become just another part of our everyday world. One day we may be using psychic abilities on a daily, accessible to all basis. Pretty far-fetched but the seeds of the possibility have already been sown. Meh maybe I am deluded, or an eternal optimist, or read too many sci-fi books lol

Just wanted to make the point that its not all about god and magic, sometimes the supernatural is right in front of us.
 
Kizmet said:
To the caveman, an ak47 is magical.
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It might seem magical, but it isn't, and I haven't the intelligence of a caveman.

Of course I keep an open mind until I decide.
 
Gmarthews said:
It might seem magical, but it isn't, and I haven't the intelligence of a caveman.

Of course I keep an open mind until I decide.
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You make an excellent point. You also don't have the intelligence of someone thousands of years from now (if we're still around) who may say the same thing about us and something they are familiar with but we would pass off, if we saw one, as alien or magical.
 
So things are magic if you don't understand them, then that makes this computer magic too.

I don't mean magic like that, I mean magic from the POV of introducing some dubious supernatural force. We don't know the creator of the universe, while we DO know the creator of the AK47 (Kalashnikov).

Inventing a supernatural creator is just a dubious story, rather than accepting that we simply don't know why the big bang happened.
 
Gmarthews said:
It might seem magical, but it isn't, and I haven't the intelligence of a caveman.

Of course I keep an open mind until I decide.
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Oh, but you do have the intelligence of a caveman. You just don't have the knowledge of a caveman - that's the difference.
 
Gmarthews said:
It might seem magical, but it isn't, and I haven't the intelligence of a caveman.
Click to expand...

We can discuss that bit later... ;)

If something 'seems' magical.. then it is magical.

Putting the word 'seems' in front of it is a falsehood because unless you know the explanation - it IS magic.

Mystical and supernatural are really just words for the effect of the unknown.
 
Kizmet said:
We can discuss that bit later... ;)

If something 'seems' magical.. then it is magical.

Putting the word 'seems' in front of it is a falsehood because unless you know the explanation - it IS magic.

Mystical and supernatural are really just words for the effect of the unknown.
Click to expand...

/signed :)
 
invisibleplanet said:
Oh, but you do have the intelligence of a caveman. You just don't have the knowledge of a caveman - that's the difference.
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What do you mean by caveman? :confused: From Wiki: A caveman is a popular stock character based upon stereotyped concepts of the way in which early prehistoric humans or homininans may have looked and behaved. The term is sometimes used colloquially to refer to the Neanderthals or Cro-Magnon (i.e., Homo sapiens of the Paleolithic era).


Which do you actually mean? Neanderthal? Homo Sapien? :D

Did these (currently unidentified) people have language? Do you not agree that human consciousness, linguistic development and intelligence are all tied together?

Are you one of those people who thinks animals have human consciousness too? :D
 
Redefining mystic and supernatural is not really on.

Here are the true definitions of those too:

mystic: involving or characterized by esoteric, otherworldly, or symbolic practices or content, as certain religious ceremonies and art; spiritually significant; ethereal.

supernatural: of, pertaining to, or being above or beyond what is natural; unexplainable by natural law or phenomena; abnormal.
 
Gmarthews said:
Nope, they are terms for the physically impossible.
Click to expand...

Supernatural perhaps, but not mystical.

mystical

adjective
1. relating to or characteristic of mysticism; "mystical religion" [syn: mystic]
2. relating to or resembling mysticism; "mystical intuition"; "mystical theories about the securities market" [syn: mystic]
3. having an import not apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence; beyond ordinary understanding; "mysterious symbols"; "the mystical style of Blake"; "occult lore"; "the secret learning of the ancients" [syn: mysterious]
 
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