Ubuntu 11.10 makes Unity compulsory

[J]

On Tue, Apr 5, 2011 at 10:44, Douglas Pollard <dougpol1 at verizon.net> wrote:
> I think religion fills a need for those who believe in it and I don't think
> it harms anyone else.

You may want to look into how membership in various "religious groups"
(read cults) affects the lives of family members who are not part of
that group.  Religion certainly fills a need for people who belive in
it, but it can and does harm other people.

> I have done a lot of reading and searching and the basis for all of them is good.

To paraphrase: "The road to Hell is paved with the best of intentions"

> Why would a person invent a religion that is bad for him.

Not so simple but humans fall into generally two categories.  Leaders
and Followers.  Leaders have an innate desire to control and need the
feeling of power to be satisfied (though seldom are).  Followers need
someone stronger, and alpha, to take charge and tell them what to do.
It's no different than pretty much any other species that has a
similar social structure.  Whether that Alpha is chosen by the group
or takes control by force or intimidation is irrelevant.  Some people
need to be controlled and some need to do the controlling.

> People using religion to do what the want is another matter.
> People invaded the middle east in ancient times because they wanted to.

Europeans (the Crusades) invaded the Middle East in ancient times
primarily because Muslims had taken over what the Roman Catholic
Church considered the Holy Land and at first at the request of the
Byzantine Empire (part of the former Roman Empire) to help repel
invasion by the Turks.  People joined the cause for various reasons,
including greed (the spoils of war), power, prestige and because the
Church promised that if the common man took up arms against the
"heathen invaders" they would be absolved of all sins and live forever
in Heaven, something that went a long way back then.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crusades

> The used religion to justify that purpose. Why did they have to justify their
> action?  How about because religion says its bad to go off pillaging and
> raping.

Not all religions say that, and the predominant at the time Jewish
religion was OK with a LOT of things that modern society would blanch
at.  Religion changes with the times like anything else.  The
Christianity of today is a blasphemy compared to the Christianity of
1000 years ago (or would be considered so by believers back then).

> Religion  was used to blow up the towers and that again was what
> they wanted to do.

Yep, as well as used to enslave millions of people throughout history,
start wars, execute dissenters, torture, maim, well, you get the
picture.

> I believe in evolution to a point but when it crosses over to explain the universe they loose me.

The theory of evolution has nothing to do with explaining the universe.

> I consider the bigh bang belief just another religion.

Except the Big Bang is a Theory backed by a lot of research and
evidence that point to it being correct (or at least incredibly
likely) but the Big Bang Theory does not say one thing about God.  It
simply describes a cosmic event that possibly kicked off the universe
as we perceive it today.

> Is there a God, I don't know could there be one I don't know, Can we possible know I doubt it.

Sure we can.  We can create God (at least in one form...)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_cult

> Before there were men there was no math, I think. We invented math is it a surprise that it proves what
> science.  A different kind of man than us might prove something else with his math.

We didn't "invent" math, we discovered it as a way to describe the
physical world around us.  People don't "invent" numbers.  Those
numbers are already there, people just learn how to describe the
concept of those numbers in a way that we can comprehend.  if I stand
next to you, we make two.  Two is a concept created to describe the
fact that you and I are not standing alone, but standing together in a
group.  Add in another person and we have three and so on.

> I was raised in a born again church but I was never born again, I just
> never had that kind of faith.   We all believe in something even if it's
> only faith in our own existence, We can't prove it to any other species.
>  Maybe some day we will get in touch with some some place and we may prove
> ourselves to each other.  Or we may prove we don't exist and are just a
> figment of a few stary electrical charges. We may not be able to prove that
> either.

Personally, I like to think that I'm a figment of my own imagination :-)

Cheers