From: J. R. Molloy (jr@shasta.com)
Date: Mon Jan 24 2000 - 12:37:30 MST
From: Clint O'Dell <clintodell@visto.com>
>Some people think they insult themselves if they accept the
>truth. We indeed are nothing more than a complex arrangement
>of physical properties and their effects. It is not
>insulting oneself to acknowledging this, the same as we are
>not insulted by acknowledging our species derived from an
>earlier primate. When we can openly accept all facts then we
>can make some real progress.
It was difficult for people to accept that the Earth is not the center of the
universe. It was difficult for people to accept that time is not a constant, but
can vary according to velocity. It is now difficult for people to accept that
life amounts to a self-organized collection of molecules. As Dante observed long
ago, "All have delight in proportion as their vision penetrates into the truth."
So, we'll keep on discovering deeper truths, because it delights us to have a
more accurate vision of reality.
--J. R.
"We never stop investigating. We are never satisfied that we know
enough to get by. Every question we answer leads on to another
question. This has become the greatest survival trick of our species."
-- Desmond Morris
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