The illusion of identity

It's only a matter of time. Don't waste it chasing ghosts here.

I am not a photographer nor a graphic artist by trade, but I dabble in both.

Nature is awe inspiring on it's own...nature photos don't need photoshopping any more than photos of women need photoshopping...they look beautiful as-is.

Stephen Hawking, Stephen Hawking, Stephen Hawking.

It's not Hawkin. Or Hawkins.

You should read a lot of books.

That way you can think the same as other blokes and pretend to be sophisticated.

As opposed to reading nothing and not thinking at all.

That's another non sekkatour, seen dozens this week.

I guess lluvsmetuna meant you have to read a lot of books about pretending to be sophisticated

Someone do me up a bowl of tuna please, I'm busy reading Batman and Robin.

Comic books are a start anyway.

Tuna is served! Time to catch a flick.

   Here, there and everywhere; so what's new about that?    

Landza is a bonehead!😉

So if it were true that in reality the person that you think you are doesn't exist, and you are chemical reactions in a universe which in which causality rules, how would that make you feel?

Materialism doesn't produce feelings, ergo Cogito stupido!😋

How not? Feelings are related to the brain, heart, the nervous system etc.

Are these not material things?

So there are now two threads to the conversation, leaving aside the God stuff, one that perhaps we may not in fact control anything and don't infact exists in a meanigful way except as part of the wider universe, two that perhaps the universe itself is not impartial from us but rather that we to some degree create it.

This is a most interesting discussion. Although the arguments regarding the existence of God (mainly watch/desert island based) are strong and the arguments for string theory and its holographic universe are strong, blind acceptance of both or either of these theories restrict development in thought and Physics (as expounded on BBC radio this morning). In order to discuss freely, faith-based concepts must be discarded - "Personally I think" or believe matters not a jot in such a discussion and rather supports the argument that we do not have any free will because we would then be forced to react in line with such restrictive concepts that only serve to give us a blinkered view of the world. Much more can be gained by doubting everything. If we had not doubted the church, we would be happily admiring celestial spheres every night instead of watching satellite telly. So my input is basically, that to make progress in this argument or any field, it is wiser to start from the premise that we cannot be certain of anything so "I might think therefore I might be" before even accepting Descartes' meditations as being completely irrefutable proof. This is surely a beneficial exercise for followers of a religion. If you return to the same conclusion that God exists every time you question His existence, then surely your faith will become stronger and stronger. 

Agreed. I experience this every day.

I'm sorry that you had no better way to respond than this, but you really left yourself no room for any logical rebuttal and this is probably the best you could come up with.  

Take heart, people will eventually forget about it and only retain a vague recollection of your failure here.

           btickler;  please don't antagonize him. Post 109 scares me,--"Dude, I am so smart on this"    Part of me says, "Really, Enlighten us grasshopper".  Then another part of me says, "NO!.. he's only been here a week, NOoooo.