Quote:
I can see where that might seem silly to some people.
Well, yes and no. I have no belief in an afterlife, so maybe it does seem a little irrational to me. On the other hand, you're talking to a woman who is reluctant to slay little electronic "people" in a swords-and-sorcery computer game unless they attack first. :diz So I guess silly is as silly does.

I've been a functional atheist for most of my life. It's only been during the past five or six years that I've actually bumped into very many proselytizing literalists, and those are generally confined to the Cyberverse. Those few, however, can create very volatile atmospheres. Many seem to have a rigid idea in their minds about what atheism means and how atheists are supposed to behave, and they most often approach the topic with all the subtle finesse of a big, goofy dog in a roomful of cats. The aforementioned cats thereafter tend to regard any dog with suspicion, alarm, and pawsful of needles. :lol

I have a good Pagan friend who believes we're all going to the same place when we die, and has visualized it as a kind of pub where we can discuss the lessons of our various lives over a few pints, shoot some pool, and think about what lessons we want or need to learn in our next incarnations. I find that extremely appealing, but I can't believe it. No more can I believe in limitless personal existence, eternal torment for transgressions spanning a maximum of thirteen decades, or a deity who confines his attentions to a backwater speck in the universe. As far as I can tell, we're all here for a few decades whether we like it or not, and if there's such a thing as duty, it's to make things a little easier or better in some fashion for the people who are in the same boat. Doing that makes me feel good. *SHRUG!* Not so different from many believers, who probably do it for the same reason and call it "God".

Mac
It's not Area 51 I'm worried about- it's Areas 1 through 50.