Originally posted by Dr McBeefington
Xenu?
I can't afford to be a Scientologist.
Neph:
I thought I was allowed to speculate since thats what you were doing.
I lol'd.
Blax;
Not really. Even with all of the "just right" planets that have been discovered, if you actually consider just how many planets we assume there are in the universe, the odds are still hundreds of billions of times not in our favor.Like, for every planet that has conditions that can support life, there are many billions that don't have such conditions.
Furthermore, until we actually find life on one of those planets, the fact still stands that our situation is incredibly unique within the universe.
In fact, other planets that are able to support, actually scores a point for the idea of ID, because if we find a thousand planets that can support human life, and yet they're barren, the question of why Earth has life on it but these other Earth-like planets don't, arises.
Uh, no. You cannot "prove" ID without proving God, his abilities, his intention, and his hand on the world so to speak. If you find a world that's ripe for life and doesn't contain life at all for some specific reason, it's unlikely that it will be because God slept through that particular Sunday; it's more likely that something occurred which delayed or destroyed life development on a given planet. The building blocks of life are found in the galaxy everywhere. Even water itself is found.
If we explored all 14 billion parsecs that make up the radius of the known observable universe (that we can actually detect at this point), ignoring the fact that we'd have to be Godlike ourselves to accomplish this (as it's well beyond our ability to travel that far without Reaper tech), it seems to baffle the mind that we would arrive on a planet, see microorganisms or their fossils and go "Yeah, they didn't make it. God 1, science 0!". You know, right before we get back on the spaceship that can travel faster than light exponentially.
Also, ID doesn't predict God in any way, nor does it indicate God's moral compass. If God exists, then it's possible he's a disinterested scientist, and we're a petri dish that he's left behind as he's moved on. He may only be God because he was the first being to acheive a level of molecular or technological mastery that allowed him to manipulate creation itself. Might makes right personified.
Or you know, we could use Ockham's Razor.
Originally posted by Stealth MooseI'm not trying to "prove" anything, so that doesn't really matter. I'm pointing out that the existence of other life-sustaining planets in the Universe does not disprove, or even cast doubt on, the idea that none of this is accidental; which is what Neph was trying to assert.
Uh, no. You cannot "prove" ID without proving God, his abilities, his intention, and his hand on the world so to speak.
It's mind boggling to me that every time a discussion about intelligent design comes up, some ID opponent tries to turn it into an empirical debate. This is not an empirical debate.
If you find a world that's ripe for life and doesn't contain life at all for some specific reason, it's unlikely that it will be because God slept through that particular Sunday; it's more likely that something occurred which delayed or destroyed life development on a given planet.More likely? According to what?
Originally posted by RE: Blaxican
I'm not trying to "prove" anything, so that doesn't really matter. I'm pointing out that the existence of other life-sustaining planets in the Universe does not disprove, or even cast doubt on, the idea that none of this is accidental; which is what Neph was trying to assert.It's mind boggling to me that every time a discussion about intelligent design comes up, some ID opponent tries to turn it into an empirical debate. This is not an empirical debate.
You're right. ID has no empirical basis. Which it's mind boggling that it's considered any more seriously than ancient alien theories. Could it potentially be true? Sure. Would it be nice if it were true (and God wasn't a huge dick like depicted in the OT)? Absolutely. Is it a valid alternative to scientific theory? No, not even close.
If you agree with the above, there's no real debate. Just you know, keep it real bro.
More likely? According to what?
We have far more empirical evidence of life-threatening naturally occurring things such as mega volcanoes, mass coronal ejections, meteor strikes and massive temperature changes, all of which can kill off large portions of or even the whole species. In other words, it's far more likely that a growing sentient civilization is killed off by natural events or by themselves (nuclear holocaust) then achieving the kind of proficiency to colonize the entire galaxy. Considering you have intelligent life here on earth that isn't even industrialized yet while other countries have real-time internet streaming and a permanent presence on the International Space Station, it's not unrealistic to think that life may be more common than the traditional nay-sayer argument gives, but simply not as advanced. We may be the more fortunate ones.
But the bottom line is evidence of alien life doesn't prove or disprove ID. So it's ultimately a false conclusion.
Originally posted by Nephthys
Ah, but as you say, we havn't found evidence of life on them yet. Why would a God create planets capable of creating life and yet not use them to support life?
Possibly what Blax said a second home for us if we ever figure out how to get there.
Or perhaps just a sign of His Majesty and Greatness. Everything he's capable of.
Size and numbers really wouldn't mean anything to God. It's all just in the palm of his hand (metaphorical)
But the Vastness of the Universe is certainly something amazing for us to ponder on one way or the other.
Originally posted by NephthysReally? You must be unnaturally tolerant of brother-sister lovin'.I've decided that in a show where the main character ritually dismembers criminals, stuffs them into bin bags ad throws them into the sea, the Dex/Deb subplot is the creepiest thing ever. I think it took the 6 months for the creepy to really sink in.
And that gif is fantastic. Though I've never understood the hate for Lumen.