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From: jim@ISM780B.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.philosophy
Subject: Re: Something Supernatural
Message-ID: <27500085@ISM780B.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 23-Jun-85 13:24:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: ISM780B.27500085
Posted: Sun Jun 23 13:24:00 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 27-Jun-85 05:35:41 EDT
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Nf-From: ISM780B!jim    Jun 23 13:24:00 1985


>    Consciousness, the subjective experience of existing, pure awareness,
>    is supernatural, since it is in principle not objectively verifiable.

I very much agree with Michael.  This fundamental uncontrovertible fact
of human existence is, I think, the driving force behind the powerful
but pointless search for God and the paranormal.  Since we have this
massive chunk of unrationalizable subjectivity right in our core,
we seek futilely to mechanize it but giving it purpose (God's),
or form (the soul), or method (ESP), or by simply denying its existence
altogether (extreme behaviorism).  But all of this junk won't change the
awesome fact that, for no demonstrable reason, there is a subjective you and
some day there won't be, and there is not a damn thing you can do about it
(the latter; it is relatively easy to do the former, to destroy the ego
on your own, although the common reluctance to do so just helps underscore
how totally trapped we are within our physical manifestation).
The human brain give rise to the mind.  Why?  It isn't necessary.
Merely because the cosmic joker wanted a good laugh.

-- Jim Balter (ima!jim)