Descent to Nihilism

[MommaSquid]

Thanks for the link.  I only wish I had seen that stuff before Christmas!  Oh well, there's always next year.

[BGMA]

Generally speaking, how do atheists avoid descending into the nihilistic abyss? If God does not exist, if all we are are meat machines - produced by cosmic accidents - which are here today and gone to oblivion tomorrow, if all of existence is utterly meaningless, why debate atheism? The "truth" or "falsity" of atheism is meaningless. Rationality is irrational. Morality is convention. Purpose is delusional.

How do you avoid the despair of a Samuel Beckett?


"The horrid doubt always arises whether the convictions of man's mind, which has developed from the mind of lower animals, are of any value or at all trustworthy. Would anyone trust the conviction of a monkey's mind, if there are any convictions in such a mind?"

- Charles Darwin, 1881

Here's a link for you, if you're looking for something positive but atheistic:

http://www.freewebs.com/thebgma/a32inspiration.html

Kinda the opposite of nihilism, I guess...

[0dan1]

i AM a nihilist.

in the sense that i believe there is nothing after death, nothing in this life matters at the end of the day, and that is all there is to it =]

this is NOT a depressing thing.

Nothing matters? theres no point to anything? no point me being alive?

AWESOME!

therefore, i might as well enjoy the chemically formed 'emotions' and sense of pleasure i can experience in my short life... and have a bloody good time whilst i can. I find the fact that nothing matters a joyous thing, it means i can literally just enjoy myself, it means whenever something sad happens, i can drag myself out of sadness with the REASSURANCE that none of it will matter in the end.

nihilism is cheerful =D

[jrosebud]

I always think that those that ask the nihilism question are having a problem with scale.
A particle physicist would tell you that the desk in front of you is almost all empty space. Do we sit around worrying about that? No, at the scale we live at the desk is perfectly solid.
Now, the universe may have no meaning at the ultimate scale, but at the scale we live at it has tons of meaning. Just because the sun will explode in a few million years does not mean we can not find meaning in this day.

*adds to favorite message-board quotes*

[saturnine]

Personally, I have a hard time with nihilism. I suppose it makes me hesitant and makes making decisions hard. Explained: If I have a choice to make, and there is no higher power setting me on a course, no real system of values that exists, and no point to anything in the end, then what is guiding me? How will I know I made the right choice? What if every choice I ever made is wrong?

Supposing that there is no real moral system besides those that people, societies, civilizations and nation-states have made up, then what is to stop one from becoming a completely self-serving person? To some extent, I think that a lot of people have done this, and walk a thin line between what's legal and what's not. This is different from what is desirable, where people cross the line all the time. However, looking at the way that some religious people act, it seems that maybe they are even worse acting. I find it difficult to believe that some of these people actually believe in the religions they say they do.

The meaning that I find is what exists in my life, what I find interesting and what makes me care. For example, if a government project wanted to build a highway which would require the demolition of many homes in your community, I think even a nihilist would care and maybe even take action since unless he/she decides to move, then the whole neighbourhood gets degraded.

[donkeyhoty]

If I have a choice to make, and there is no higher power setting me on a course, no real system of values that exists, and no point to anything in the end, then what is guiding me? How will I know I made the right choice? What if every choice I ever made is wrong?

1) You, and society at large, are the guides.  2) Once again, you, and society at large, decides if you made the right choice, insofar as there is a "right" choice.  3) So what.

If we take a more existensialist path to this topic then the only determinate of meaning in your life is you.  There is no one but you who is responsible for your actions.  Meaning in your life is determined by you and your actions and responses to the world around you. etc. etc.

[jcm]

Generally speaking, how do atheists avoid descending into the nihilistic abyss? If God does not exist, if all we are are meat machines - produced by cosmic accidents - which are here today and gone to oblivion tomorrow, if all of existence is utterly meaningless, why debate atheism? The "truth" or "falsity" of atheism is meaningless. Rationality is irrational. Morality is convention. Purpose is delusional.

How do you avoid the despair of a Samuel Beckett?


"The horrid doubt always arises whether the convictions of man's mind, which has developed from the mind of lower animals, are of any value or at all trustworthy. Would anyone trust the conviction of a monkey's mind, if there are any convictions in such a mind?"

- Charles Darwin, 1881

Oh yeah, when I first turned atheist, I started smoking a lot of crack, drowning kittens and raping the elderly. Those were the good ol’ days! I don’t do that kind of stuff anymore, I really hated all the jail time.