Channeled by the constraints of
physics man is nothing more than a "meat puppet." Everything he thinks, does and
says are what he must think, do, and say. If everything is material, nothing can violate
material law. Not one thought, decision or action can exist without having been
necessitated by a cause. Thoughts and actions may even be caused by a complex vectoral
sum of multiple factors: past experience, training, body chemistry, and perhaps even such
factors such as ambient air temperature and what was eaten for breakfast. But the
fact remains; our thoughts/actions are what they are because they could not have been
different under the particular sum of factors.
This materialistic viewpoint sees
our every
thought, word, and action as merely the mechanical result of a complicated causal
chain of prior events. Moreover, because we are not "free" we are not
accountable for our actions. If the next generation of |
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leaders buys into this
materialist view of man, the cultural implications will be explosive. It would start with
the call to "reprogram" criminals and deviants. But since all of us are
machines anyway, why stop there? Why not program us all for optimal performance and
cooperation in smoothly running society.? An affront to human dignity? Politicians
would simply argue that since we are all responding to programs anyway, we might as well
ensure that our programming suits us for optimal functionality an improved society.
Think it can't happen here? Ideas
have consequences. Convince enough future judges, lawmakers and lawyers that people
are not responsible for their actions and they will become more paternalistic.
Communists used to send people to "re-education" camps when they didn't tow the
line. Dissidents
who held to religious beliefs were deemed "mentally ill" and treated with
mind-altering drugs. Think thought |
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control only happens in other
countries?
Think of the PC crowd on campuses who attempt to
regulate expression (with a double-standard, I might add). Insult a protected
group and you have to answer for it. Call a Christian a bigot or a homophobe
and nothing will happen to you. And talk about thought control--Think of the implications
of the term homophobia. A phobia indicates an irrational fear--a type of mental
condition (Call the psychiatrist!). Imagine the power of a future thought police
charged with reprogramming inconvenient attitudes.
So what should we be doing?
Simply put, we need to examine our beliefs (or lack of them). If we are given a
dignity and free will by God, we need to assert that in the public arena and not only in
our churches. We need to ensure that these concepts fully inform our laws and our
jurisprudence. And we need to insist that a materialstic/deterministic philosophy of
life does not stand unopposed in our classrooms -PVETJ
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