Can you answer these random life questions?

1) We’re a violent species. It would be nice to think that we will improve, but I don’t see much evidence of that. At the same time, we face increasing competition over resources like food and water, so I’m not optimistic.
2) Not death, exactly, but I am afraid of a wasted life. Death itself is inevitable; you die, you decompose. End of story.
3) No. I’m more likely to be struck by lightening or be eaten by a shark.
4) There’s no such thing as God. Religions are a human construct (and cause untold suffering).
5) Because we’re just another type of animal.
6) I have no idea what your question means. Science is truth.

1—There is so much violence going on in the world. Do you think things will get better or worse?
It is going to get much, much worse, in the future today will seem like a party popper next to a meteor strike.

2—Are you afraid of death or eternity?
Nope, looking forward to it, because I know I am covered by the Blood, so I know where my expected end will be in eternity.

3—Are you afraid of a terrorist attack happening near you?
Nope, if they attack I hope they use explosives or they are one hell of a good shot, I want to make sure they liberate me from this body of sin and death and usher me to the Throne Room.

4—Do you really believe God watches over people?
He watches over some people, but not all, some He knows will never be His, so He turns them over to a reprobate mind.

5—Why do humans treat each other so cruelly?
It is man’s natural state to be self-absorbed, and self-centered.

6. Do you believe there is any truth in the world we live in?
Any truth that does exist in this world, people do not want to know or care exist.

As I have pointed out numerous times before, violence has been declining for the last 400 years as a product of the Enlightenment. Steven Pinker wrote a book about it, The Better Angels of Our Nature. Here is a video.

I am an atheist and I fear death.

Of course there is truth out there, but you do have to be wary of those who distort it.

It would be awesome if you could post these questions separately, so we could give each one the discussion they deserve.

@syz, incredible answers!

1. If we elect Trump things are gonna get way worse. Otherwise I think they’ll probably stay about the same for a long time. Hard to say.

2. My personal belief is that death with be like pre-birth, and in that sense there is nothing to fear, I won’t be aware of it. I am afraid of the process of dying of course. I also am a tiny bit afraid of what happens if I’ve been wrong about my personal beliefs this whole time and there’s actually a hell for me. I don’t believe in it, but I’m a mere mortal and have been known to be wrong.

3. No, they are overhyped by the media. I do live in a high-profile area now (Boston area) which has been attacked (the marathon bombing was before I lived here). But I still know that my chances of personally being hurt in a terrorist attack are very small. I’m far more worried about random crazy people on the subway, of which there are many.

4. No, I don’t believe in any god, and if I did, I’d find the idea of a god who “started” it all but doesn’t care about our day-to-day lives much more palatable. Because otherwise there’s an all-powerful being who lets kids get cancer as part of some “plan,” and that’s too shitty for me to accept.

5. I think most violence is driven by fear – fear of the unknown. A lot of people probably think they are attacking first as defense against an attack they’re sure will come.

6. This question is confusing. There are plenty of things that are real in the world, I guess you could consider those things to be “truth.”

1. There is so much violence going on in the world. Do you think things will get better or worse?

I don’t think things will necessarily get better or worse. Things will get different to a larger extent. However history does have a habit of repeating itself. But the world will continue to change. For some it will be an improvement for others it will seem like a major step back.

2. Are you afraid of death or eternity?

I am not afraid of either death or eternity. I don’t know what happens when any living creature dies. If when I die I simply non-existent, I’m ok with that. I’m ok with that, because it will be exactly the same as it was before I was born. As for eternity? I don’t believe in a religious sense of heave, hell or limbo. So I have no fear of what lacks probability. I am however open to the possibility of reincarnation. I don’t have it scary, I simply find it an interesting concept. A concept I only have control of in terms of thinking about it. Whether it is part of reality or not, is unknown and uncontrolled by me.

3. Are you afraid of a terrorist attack happening near you?

Yes. The ISIS attacks are totally random now. No city, no province, no country or continent is safe. Anything that doesn’t support ISIS is an enemy of ISIS and will be violently attacked by any means. That includes Ireland and many other nations. Any nation that has not been attacked by ISIS is simply because they haven’t gotten around to it yet.

4. Do you really believe God watches over people?

I believe in a concert of a higher being responsible for being the first cause of the creation of the cosmos. I am however a deist and reject many additional religious beliefs. So I completely reject this idea of God watching over anyone. Ion’t believe in miracles, revelation or prayer. We are but a dot in the universe and I believe it is arrogant to believe that the originator is our personal genie. Nobody is waiting to grant our wishes. We must make our own life, existence, we must seek out and attempt to accomplish our desires and goals.

5. Why do humans treat each other so cruelly?

Humans have tendency to fear they unknown (or misunderstood). I hate to quote star wars but “fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate and hate leads to suffering”. This may come from a work of fiction, but they are very wise and very true words.

6. Do you believe there is any truth in the world we live in?

Truth? If yo are talking about objective truth. Yes there is objective truth for certain concepts. In order to find out if something is true or not; one needs to use the best truth seeking method. The scientific method is the best truth seeking method. There are certain aspects about the world and reality in general in which have been confirmed as truth.

1. No. I never think of future. We can only “calculate” what is most likely to happen, but we can not know for sure what will happen. Future is way complicated to predict with certainty. I can only hope it will get better. And i strongly hope that.

2. I am afraid of eternity. I don’t want to live forever. It’s stupid and useless. I want to die and see the other side.

3. It is very, very possible. I can only hope it doesn’t happen. I am not afraid, though.

4. I believe God is somewhere else, minding it’s own business. If I were god, I would turn my head away long time ago. I believe, but I have no real idea.

5. We are bags of meat and feces. All of us.

6. I have no idea.

1— There is so much violence going on in the world. Do you think things will get better or worse? Personally, I think they will get better. However it might get worst before it gets better.

I think things will get worse before they get better. I think we should stop interfering in the conflicts of others and should stop selling them weapons. That would be a start.

2— Are you afraid of death or eternity? I am pretty scared of death. Especially not knowing what comes after. Personally I hope there is a heaven. So much people I want to see again. Eternity is such a scary thought when I sit and think about it.

I’m not very frightened of either.

3— Are you afraid of a terrorist attack happening near you? I am pretty scared and a bit alarmed. Especially when it comes to these lone wolf attacks. They can happen anywhere, anyhow and at anytime. I am most afraid of someone attempting to attack our Church.

Not much, the odds are greatly against it.

4— Do you really believe God watches over people? I would like to think so but not so sure anymore. I wonder why God would choose to save some people and let others die. People say there is a reason, however I cannot understand what that reason could be.

I don’t believe God takes a special interest in me or in anyone else.

5— Why do humans treat each other so cruelly? I just hope one day the human race could put aside our difference and live together in peace. I know complete peace is impossible. However something close to that would be nice. Would love all the major wars to end. The likelihood of that happening is small. Since many people are filled with greed and hate.

Mostly they don’t treat each other cruelly, mostly they live in peace.

6. Do you believe there is any truth in the world we live in?
There is truth out there, however the media makes it really hard to determine what is true or not.

Don’t be too hard on the media, many reporters risk their lives to bring the truth to you.

1 – Things are already getting demonstrably better. Fewer people are dying in wars at present than at any time in history.

2 – No. Not a bit. I happen to believe there is something more after death, but it is nothing like common thought imagines it to be.

3 – Not in the least.

4 – Not in the way common thought believes God watches over us. I cannot explain it and don’t care to.

5 – Fear. We are afraid the other will take something we already have or will prevent us from getting what we desire.

6 – Yes.

This list of questions is very depressing. I suggest you go walk in a park for an hour. Get out in the sunshine.

1— There is so much violence going on in the world. Do you think things will get better or worse? No matter who writes or claims what, there is violence in war and violence that is person-to-person. We seem to have become more careful about violence in war in the West since this photograph: https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=Ly6UKcLH&id=CC9A6F94106D9BC6FB6FB3DA578233AF6206558D&thid=OIP.Ly6UKcLHaZqcGUIsDcRAwAHaFz&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2fwww.classicalpursuits.com%2fwp-content%2fuploads%2f2012%2f06%2fVietnam_girl_napalm.jpg&exph=288&expw=367&q=Vietnam+Viet+Nam+war+two+girls+running+photo&simid=607993258232709766&selectedIndex=3&ajaxhist=0
But person-to-person violence has grown.
2— Are you afraid of death or eternity? No.
3— Are you afraid of a terrorist attack happening near you? For me, it is a waste of both time and nerves to live in fear of the “maybes.”
4— Do you really believe God watches over people? I believe G-D is absolutely sovereign in all things.
5— Why do humans treat each other so cruelly? Some do, some don’t.
6. Do you believe there is any truth in the world we live in? Yes.