From: Nicq MacDonald (namacdonald@stthomas.edu)
Date: Wed Dec 06 2000 - 16:32:14 MST
> My conclusion is this:
>
> There's no logical reason to believe that there's a substantive
> difference between me and my just-restored backup.
There is a substantive difference- the difference is as great as between two
identical twins- exact copies of each other at one point in time, but
branching off to lead two separate existences.
> There is a subjective sentimentality issue with which I can
> empathize. I'm sure that the love and continuity of what we view as
> our own bodies and minds are deeply rooted in our evolutionary past.
It's not "sentimentality", it's a truth of perspective.
> Instead, I've seen only the use of equivocation for words like
> "consciousness" and "continuity" in some hopeless effort at
> maintaining a logical argument.
It's the semantics that blow the argument apart- I'd suggest trying to
remember your own existence from time to time. If I had a better vocabulary
and more experience in logic, I could argue this point better.
-Nicq MacDonald
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