Monday, June 27, 2005

Fractal Sociology

Self similarity which fractals represent is everywhere from a coastline to a mountain range where the large is a magnification of the small but self similarity or the tendency of nature to use the same laws in the large or small is not restricted to the physical world.Self similarity also functions in the society where large groups are made up of smaller groups which in turn are made up of smaller groups yet.We see this fractal nature reflected in countries which are collections of people based on racial,linguistic and or religious similarities.The largest group we have at the present time is the whole earth made up of distinct societies each interacting with each other in various degrees of trade or conflict.Now according to this theory a county made up of the same groups as the world at large should approximately mirror the larger world with different groups interacting in the microcosm as they do in the macrocosm and how else could it be.So multicultural societies must of necessity feel the strains of the larger world only internally with each group advancing it's own agenda just like in the real world. Any country with a number of large groups some of which seem to be incompatible with each other will of necessity organise into self similar groups based on the criteria mentioned once again like in the greater world.These areas are called enclaves and this self organizing effect is quite manifest already in countries with many newcomers. As a limit these different groups will not want to be ruled by others but wish to have their territory once again like in the greater world.Taken to it's logical conclusion there will be fighting just like in the greater world.

When Sociopaths And The Naive Meet

Have you ever met a sociopath that is someone who truly hates other people and their success or even existence and will do anything to destroy everything they can.If you turn your back on them they will slip some of your silverware into their sock or try to steal your money or cause dissention in your family or environment.We have all met the child at school who tries to get you to do something which you know is wrong either under threat or most likely by pretending to be your friend.If you agree to his wishes then he will have something for you to destroy and if you are caught so much the better because now he has two satisfactions.Something is ruined and you are in trouble so he can laugh either way.There are three kinds of sociopath the "honest" kind who does the dirty work him or herself and if caught will take the punishment .The second kind is more dangerous as he gets you to do his bidding but it is still fairly obvious what he is up to.The third kind is by far the most dangerous and evil because he works you over and you think he is doing you a favour and you thank him and maybe even put him on a pedestal as a great man. This invariably involves giving you rights and others too with the end result that your rights have diminished in yet you can't explain why.Of course he can't ruin a society on his own and he has turned to ruining societies since this is the ultimate thrill.He needs help and this is where the naive come in because they are always ready to pitch in to something ridiculous and help the leader or cause.By using the silly and the young a sociopath can leverage himself a million fold and be honored too.Quite satisfying!Was there anybody in your country who gave you rights and strangers too and now the wheels seem to be coming off your society in yet you can't explain why.Then you are in a zone where a sociopath was at work and very few will ever articulate let alone understand what happened and will probably disagree perhaps vehemently with you.If you see people who fight against their own interests sometimes fanatically then you have seen the handiwork of a brilliant sociopath.

Thursday, June 16, 2005

Why Religions Ban Gambling

There seems to be some confusion as to why religions ban gambling among their people.The trite answer is because it just is or perhaps because it leads to addiction and the almost certain loss of one's money and perhaps family.This no doubt happens but there is another reason which of course is unmentioned and a little deeper but nonetheless true.It is the synthesis of our experience both in the real world and in the world of human psychology.One thing which is known almost to a certainty is that if you gamble long enough you will lose and the greater the losses the greater the chances that prayers to God will follow.The problem is religious "leaders" know your prayers will go unanswered and the tumbling dice will fall where they will your prayers notwithstanding.This has surely happened many times through the centuries in yet there is not one case of a single person winning consistently because of prayer.So what is the use in believing in a God who can't even change the roll of dice or the turn of a card or where a roulette wheel stops? So better to ban gambling outright and say that message comes from God and call it a sin before anyone asks any embarrasing questions.A pre-emptive strike on any thorny inquiries from the more thoughtful in the flock. If this is the real reason to ban gambling and it seems logical then religious people are the most hypocritical people on the face of the earth. If religious people really believed in God they would ask him to let them win and they would give all the money to charity instead of laying a guilt trip on everyone to hand over some loot.This should be an easy job for God and a satisfying way to get money from evil gambling houses to give to his favorite charity since he does'nt seem to be very good with money anyway.

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Godel's Theorem Proves There Will Never Be A Last "Prophet"

It is asserted by some that there was a last "prophet" but is this true or is it even possible that such a person could exist? Well if God is infinite in qualities and depth and knowledge then one can only aspire to him but never reach him.One must have less knowledge than God no matter how wise that person is.Likewise in mathematics Godel's theorem says that mathematical knowledge is infinite and that there are true and unprovable sentences always beyond our ability to understand their truthfulness.So there will never be a final mathematician who knows everything about the natural numbers!Likewise by analogy there can be no final word about god since by definition he must be at least as complex as the natural numbers and hence no final prophet.God like the set of arithmetical truths is infinite so the number of things which can be said about him are infinite so of necessity there must be an infinite number of prophets each more knowledgeable than the previous.So finally logic and thinking make their presence felt in religion and destroy a long held erroneous belief.The problem is in an axiomatic system which religion purports to be if there is even one error or inconsistency then anything can be proven and the whole system falls apart.Anyone who tells you there is a last prophet or it's equivalent even the possibility of such a person is of necessity ignorant and everything they say should be suspect.So now that logic has torn a hole in religion or perhaps expanded it when will religion rise to the new reality?

Friday, June 03, 2005

A Modern Religion Demands A Modern Symbol

All religions of course have a symbol with which they represent themselves notwithstanding the fact that there are no images which their adherents are to pray to.Crosses, stars, astronomical images and all sorts of simplistic imagery are the common denominator of religions today and that is because they are artifacts from the age they were created that is the iron age .These symbols are a representaion of the consciousness of their founders and early converts and should actually be a source of embarrasment to any thinking person.Surely God and his infinite subtlety should be represented by something a little more thoughtful than a simple object that a child can draw and that is not a difficult concept in yet that seems to have escaped the so called religious scholars.A true representaion of God will be a representaion of the universe and it's creation since as shown earlier by the principle of least action God's mind and the universe are synonymous.Now if the universe is a form of Henkin sentence which derives it's own existence then a true symbol of God would be the geometric form of such a sentence.A true symbol of God will be so compelling that it will be unstoppable and will be found in the mind of a mathematician since god is the ultimate mathematician not in a seminarian.The idea of God must move past the iron age to the modern times and beyond since if he is infinite we can never know him completely and there can never be a final prophet only the latest.

Thursday, June 02, 2005

Who Are The Real Molesters?

Lately we have been hearing of a famous celebrity who is on trial for molesting young men but compared to others his crime is almost nonexistent.I am talking of religious types who have a fixation on young people's genitalia and their desire to mutilate children's private parts.We are not talking about touching these children's genitals but actually taking a knife to them because supposedly God wants these parts lopped off.Of course this is circumcision and is done to babies without anesthetic because they are the most helpless members of society and except for some crying cannot complain.A real proof of faith would be for grown men to be circumcised perhaps when they turn 21 then we would see how much faith normal people have and that ritual will go away real fast.Leave the baby mutilation in the past.Of course one has to ask what sort of mindset would want to take a knife to a baby's penis and how it ties into the religious mindset in general and just how legitimate in general is an ideology which commands one to do such a thing.Not very pretty and certainly controlling and does God care if you have been circumcised and what kind of God would care. He must have bigger fish to fry than that and why is God so un-selfactualized that he would want your penis mutilated or is the un-selfactualization just a manifestation of religious dogma.