An odd argument

I recently heard this guy at school goin on and on about how he doesn’t believe in God or the concept of an all-knowing God who has knowledge of the future. He argued that instead he believes in the principle of uncertainty and that everything is randomized. This guy was debating quite confidently in a very cool and calm manner and it seemed like he had really thought about what he was saying.

I thought about what this guy said and later realized an obvious contradiction in this belief. If one believes in the principle of uncertainty then one can’t be certain about the non-existence of God as being absolutely certain about anything would violate the principle of uncertainty! I think many atheists realize this which is why I’ve seen adds that read ‘There probably is no God’ as opposed to ‘There is no God’.

The theological and philosophical implications of the principle of uncertainty are quite profound. People’s faith in God often weakens because of this principle as it implies that everything is just random and there is no order in our universe. The traditional understanding of cause and effect are jeopardized all of sudden.

However, this principle only increases my faith in God and allows me to appreciate the beauty and splendor of our universe. This principle is a like a veil that God has placed on nature. Its a limit, a barrier, a reminder to man of his limitations. A reminder of how ignorant we are and a reminder that this universe has been designed so intricately by its Creator that our limited brains will never be able fathom how it truly works. This principle is a sign that us arrogant humans need to humble ourselves and submit to God rather than rebelling against Him.

 

The Facebook Catastrophe

Mississauga, ON: A recent study headed by the renowned social scientist Timothy Wilkinson has made a startling new discovery. Wilkinson’s team interviewed around 200 university students who had recently undergone dramatic relationship fallouts. Most of those interviewed had just ended a long serious relationship with a loved one. Shockingly, the study found one common culprit that was to blame for all of these break-ups: FACEBOOK.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, its Facbook! The social networking site that we are all addicted to, the site on which we naively stalk strangers for hours, the site without which our lives would cease to exist is finally taking its toll on us. Confused? Some of the excerpts from this shocking study should explain.

Mario, who is still recovering from a nervous breakdown, explains why his girl friend of 5 years dumped him. “It was too much for her….she just couldn’t take it anymore. The fact that I didn’t have a picture of the two of us as my display picture just killed her. Hatred and resentment was just building up in her heart for months. She just lashed out on me one night. We had already gone through a huge fight when she forced me to change my relationship status. Why does the whole world need to know who I am dating.???…..Ahhh… how I wish I could go back to 2006… ”

Vanessa also just ended a relationship with here best friend of 18 years. She explained, ‘Ayesha and I have been friends since the first grade. I never thought that a superficial social networking site could come between us. I mean why does it matter that my boyfriend is number one on my top five friend’s list? I just bumped Ayesha down to the second spot just cuz he bumped me up to first on his page. So I figure I’d reorder the list out of courtesy…. I didn’t know it mattered so much to her….why does some fuckin virtual friends list matter to people…..’

Andres story is yet another heart breaker. He wiped the stream of tears that flowed down his cheeks as he explained to us why his parents disowned him. “So…hmm…mmyy… sorry its really hard for me talk right now….just give me a few moments…. So my parents recently got Facebook. My mother sent me friend invite shortly after. I hesitantly accepted. Next thing you know, they disown me after finding out I had changed my religious views from scientology to vegetarianism. I mean Lord Xenu is great but… I just didn’t feel at home there…”

Dr. Wilkinson gives us his insights into this relationship pandemic, “I have successfully identified a new psychological condition, I call it the Facebook Syndrome. We see more and more people being victimized by it everyday. The condition is rooted in man’s egotistic desire for attention. People update their feelings on their statuses right as they change; pictures are posted not to share but to show-off. We are finding that some people now feel obligated to update every bit of personal information about themselves on Facebook. Society expects that from you now, and if you don’t live up to that expectation you’ve commited a sin. If your relationship isn’t Facebook official, its not a relationship at all. I’ve started a new group on Facebook to mitigate the effects of this epidemic. Its called ‘Let’s Ban Facebook!’, please join the group and help combat the Facebook Syndrome.”

 

Baby gets hit by a train

This incident is really reminds be about the uncertainty of life and the reality of death which we are all heedless of. You’re standing at the platform waiting for the train and next thing you know, you almost loose your child. I mean seriously, just imagine what the mother went through for those few minutes where she thought her child was crushed underneath the train. Imagine being in those shoes for a few seconds. I would have just collapsed right there. I am having a hard time looking at the video.

This also reminds me how little control we have over our lives. Its a miracle that the baby survived. No one would have expected that, not the mother nor any of the people standing. We like to think we’re in control, but really nothing lies in our hands. It really reminds me that God alone is the one capable of protecting and He’s in control. We can’t even control our heart beats, let alone other things. We really ought to humble ourselves.

 

thought experiment: our perfect world

Nature has been designed to perfection. Every little detail in our planet has a purpose and has been thoroughly worked out. The distance from the sun, the gravitational constant, the composition of the gases on our atmosphere, the list is never ending. Had anything been slightly different, life as we know it would not be able to exist. To some this wonderment increases their faith in the Creator, to others its just a series of lucky coincidences.

I was trying to think of how different our world would be if one was to change one minute insignificant detail. There are probably hundreds of examples but here’s the one I came up with. Imagine a world where the boiling point of water was different, higher than 100 degrees lets say. How would that change things? or would it all ? Think about it for a moment.

Here’s how I think our world would be effected. The first thing which comes to mind is the effect of this change on the water cycle. The first part of this cycle is water evaporating from the oceans and rising up to create clouds. However, a higher boiling point would mean that the energy we currently receive from the sun would not be sufficient to cause the water to evaporate and hence the cycle would be disrupted. Clouds woulds fail to form and that automatically leads to a multitude of problems. First, it would cease to rain. No rain will lead to droughts. Droughts mean no crops for the consumption for humans or animals. Animals will begin to first die out and humans would eventually follow suit. Life has we know it will come to end.

Thinking about this throws me off completely. A detail as small as the boiling point of a substance that we take for granted is essential for the survival of humans. Water indeed is a great blessing. I haven’t worked out the exact change required in the boiling temperature or the amount of energy we receive from the sun. Perhaps I have made a logical error and the effect might not be as dramatic. Needless to say, one cannot deny the profound effect this small change would have on our existence. Can you think of any other examples where an apparently insignificant change could lead to a dramatic effect?

“Behold! in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of Night and Day,― there are indeed Signs for those with understanding” (Quran 3:190)

 

Why people cheat…

Cheating is one of the most common reasons why couples break up. It is a phenomenon which is becoming more and more widespread everyday. Infidelity is so common that it makes me wonder if it’s even possible for one to be in a relationship without being either guilty or a victim of it. I’ve been thinking about why people cheat, why it is so widespread and how one is to prevent it. Following are some of my conclusions.

There is one fact that I am certain of. Everyone is capable of and has the desire and potential to cheat. It’s a part of human nature and denial of this fact is in my opinion where it all starts. Humans have been created with certain desires that can only cause harm and part of being pious and righteous is to be able to overcome these desires and to rise above them. Man is a social and sexually active animal. It’s only a matter of time before he/she finds someone with whom they are more compatible and from whom they can derive greater sexual gratification; and that is the time when the desire to cheat is ignited. Women are spiritually stronger than men and henceforth have stronger self control which explains why we hear about men committing adultery more often.

Many people think that only certain type of people can cheat. It is true that there are people with lower standards of morality that are more likely to cheat and don’t consider it to be a sin of any kind. However, the truth is that you could be the most righteous person on the planet but still cheat. It might take more for you than it would for someone else, but you are still capable of doing it. One might think that people cheat because there is something missing from their relationship. Maybe the lack of love, trust or sexual satisfaction is what propels them to cheat. While I agree that this is true and many times the main factor, I also believe and know that you could be happily married with no problems in your relationship and still cheat.

So, how is one to prevent cheating if everyone is capable of doing it? Cheating can only happen if you allow for environments in which it can happen to exist. It’s sort of like how bacteria can reproduce and grow only in the right conditions. If you want to get rid of the bacteria you don’t kill it, you just change its environment i.e. add heat to it and the bacteria dies as it cannot exist in the new environment (apologies for any scientific inconsistencies in that analogy). Many times people end up cheating because they were intoxicated at some party and just managed to hookup with someone. If you want to avoid that type of cheating, avoid going to places like that or just don’t drink.

Here’s the second fact that I am certain about. There is always someone out there with whom you will be more compatible and will have better chemistry with. There is always something missing from a relationship and things are never perfect. In other words, you can always do better. This is something that people wouldn’t be willing to recognize because it takes away the specialness of the relationship and they probably shouldn’t. But it’s something that people need to be aware of. When you commit to someone you shouldn’t be under the illusion that you are committing to them because they are the perfect person for you, rather its because you love them for what they are. There is someone out there who is ‘perfecter’ than this person but you shouldn’t want perfect, you should want THAT person.

The reason I mention that second fact is because people have this attitude where they tell themselves that since they are with the perfect person there is no way they could cheat, since there is no one else they could get along with. That, however, is not true and it’s only a matter of time before they run into someone better. In order to prevent cheating, couples need to put limits and barriers on themselves. Rules such as ‘don’t spend time alone with the opposite sex’ are important. This may sound extreme to some people but when two people spend a whole lot of time together, feelings will inevitably develop. And more often than not, people tend to act on these feelings. The Prophet Muhammad is right when he says that two people of the opposite sex are never really alone, the third person is Satan who is pushing them to give into their desires. People need to recognize these things as it is the denial of our own true nature that leads to cheating.

It’s important to find a moderate ground when coming up with limits and barriers. These rules shouldn’t be enforced by the couple on each other as this can result in a very controlling relationship. People should recognize these things and enforce it on themselves. For e.g. instead of your wife asking you to not go for drinks after work with your female co-worker, you should recognize that this ‘friendly’ gesture might lead to something and just not go yourself. One only needs to take these simple and small steps and that I think seems to be a reasonable way to prevent cheating from happening.

 

Irony of The Problem of Evil

The problem of evil is an old theological problem that has plagued God-conscious people for centuries. It’s the anthem of the atheists and a threat to many religious people, particularly to those that follow the Judeo–Christian tradition. In this tradition one of the attributes of God is the All-Good and All-Powerful and this leads to the following problem. If God is All-Good and All Powerful then he would not allow evil to exist. But since there is evil in our world, a God does not exist. This argument is probably one of the strongest philosophical arguments against the existence of God and with atheism and secularism on the rise it continues to be debated today.

The question that arises is, ‘What is Evil’? Proponents of this argument will tell you that it is something that causes harm to human beings. A tsunami, a famine, a flood, disease, poverty, rape, murder etc; the list is never ending. Here is where the irony arises. If you look at the atheist movements of recent times, you will notice that they have risen from industrialized Western nations. What is interesting is that none of the ‘evils’ that these people talk about have actually affected them. Poverty, famines and widespread disease is not something that has, for the most part, personally affected the people that are leading atheist movements in industrialized nations. Its something they see people, in Africa for example, suffer through and hence arrive at the conclusion that there isn’t a God.

One would think that this argument would be lead by people in poor developing nations where they experience ‘evil’ on a day to day basis. This, however, is not that case and in fact some of the poorest countries have the most devout believers. Also to be noted is the fact that most of the religious historical figures were generally poor as well. One would think that people deprived of the blessings of God would be the ones who turn against Him; and the blessed ones would be the ones who would be stronger in faith and would be thankful. But what I see is that the it is usually the wealthy ones that become arrogant and turn away from God while the poor bedouin is the one who turns to Him. I end with the following words from the Quran,

“Be sure We shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere, who say, when afflicted with calamity: “To God We belong, and to Him is our return” – they are those on whom (Descend) blessings from God, and Mercy, and they are the ones that receive guidance” (Quran 2:155-157)

 

Freedom

What does it mean to be free? I was reading ‘The Life of Pi’ and Yann Martel makes an interesting point. He was talking about how people perceive animals in the zoo as being chained and imprisoned. People think that they are being denied their freedom because they are in a confined space. He argues however, that since animals are territorial, a biologically sound and spacious zoo enclosure just decreases the size of the animal’s territory. The zoo serves as the animal’s shelter, provides food and a safe place to procreate. It defends them from the diseases, predators and natural disasters. The zoo is actually a safe haven for animals. They might not have the freedom to go where ever they want to, but they automatically would not want to leave a place that fulfills all that they require.

I am not arguing about whether or not it’s moral to cage animals in a zoo. The thing I am trying to get is what it means to be free. Imprisonment is considered to be the opposite of freedom but as I showed in the earlier example, it’s not that obvious. We are told over and over again that we live in a free society. Freedom of speech, religion, education … the list goes on. While I believe that those are great values, I don’t think that having them makes us free beings.

Look at the society around you. Every one’s a victim of materialism and consumerism. Our men are slave to sex, pornography and gambling. Our women are slaves to fashion, cosmetics and weight loss. Young boy and girls are slaves to pop culture. Kids spend too much time trying to imitate their role models; Miley Cyrus and Jamie Lynn. A thirteen year old girl’s goal in life is to have a boyfriend. Young boys sit on their asses all day and play video games. Families are in debt that they probably will never recover from since they can only manage to pay the interest every month. People are so busy planning out their retirement that they can’t enjoy their present lives. They spend 45 years of their life planning out the 15 years they probably won’t get to live completely. No one can breathe without technology. Facebook and cell phones have taken over our lives. People aren’t as free as they think they are.

Our society is physically free but is intellectually and spiritually imprisoned. Every person from every walk of life is tied into some part of the materialistic web spun by either the media or the corporate world. You could be the guy who can’t think about anything else but getting buff or the girl who is addicted to breast implants and weight loss. It’s important for us to recognize these traps and rise above them. When your body is caged at least you can see that you are confined. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work the same way when your soul is a prisoner.

 

10 Facts

Following are 10 realizations/observations that I have made.

1.  If everyone stopped moving simultaneously, time would stop

2.  No body is smart enough to understand why negative times negative is positive

3.  Everyone thinks that every one else is a party animal. People like to believe that they are better than the ‘other’ people that party.

4.  The rate at which time passes increases as time moves on

5.  People that you think are bad and those that you look down at are people that you don’t really know

6.  Subtraction is an illusion. Its really just the addition of negative numbers

7.  You need faith to be an atheist

8.  The perfect soul mate you are looking for does not exist

9.  Due to the conservation of momentum, it is possible for you to fart your way through space.

10.  Lowering your expectations and standards is the key to happiness

 

The Beaver Vs Uncle Sam

American Idol, American Apparel, American Idiot, America this and America that. Why is there never a Canada something? ‘American Eagle’ is pretty popular in Canada; but how come no ones opened up a store called the ‘Canadian Beaver’? Would such a store be popular amongst Americans? Why is the 1st of July not celebrated with as much pride as the 4th of July? Why did a Canadian not think of writing ‘Born on the 1st of July’? (Pamela Anderson could have written that one…)

I am trying to point out the fact that Canadians aren’t as patriotic as the Americans. I hope I don’t offend anyone, but I think it’s true. A lot of people aren’t even sure what Canadian really is. So why is it that way? People would say because a big percentage of the population descends from immigrant parents or are recent immigrants. It is true, early Canadians (excluding First Nations, who btw in my opinion are the ‘Real Canadians’) emigrated from parts of Europe and later Canadians from parts Asia. One might argue that it was due to this mix of ethnicities that people failed to come together to create a Canadian identity. Perhaps it was not possible for them to pledge allegiance to two nations at the same time. However, this argument does not work because the American population has a similar history as well. In fact, America has a larger immigrant population and has historically attracted more immigrants than Canada. If anything, their population is more diverse as, unlike in Canada, they have a larger black population as well.

The other reason might be because Canada is not as old as America. Its true, America is approximately a hundred years older than Canada. However, Canada is still a 141 year old country…that is a pretty old. There are countries which are a lot younger than Canada, but the people are more patriotic than the average Canadian. So that argument doesn’t work either.

So what is the real reason Americans are more patriotic than Canadians? WAR! That’s right. After a lot thinking I have concluded that the reason why Americans are more patriotic is because of the numerous wars they have fought. It sounds sad, but this violent and dreadful activity is actually what helps give the Americans their identity. They take pride in how their forefathers died in the War of Independence or during the World Wars defending their country. Numerous books, movies and songs deal with this subject matter and help instill patriotism amongst its American citizens. In fact, I would go as far as saying that war is what helps bring out patriotism in any country. It is a part of a country’s cultural heritage and the lack of it leads to a weaker culture.

Canada doesn’t have that. No war had to be fought for Canada’s independence; it was formed as a result of a series of meetings. And even after it was formed, it had strong ties with Britain and was part of the British Empire. Canada didn’t even have its own flag until 1965 i.e. 98 years after confederation. Every time Canada’s been to war it has never fought for its self, but for some one else. During the World Wars it participated because of Britain and it’s in Afghanistan due to American pressure. So I think it is the lack of bloody wars due to which the average Canadian isn’t as patriotic. If you think about it, what are some of the things Canadians take pride in? The War of 1812 and Vimy Ridge! So there you go, I think my theory checks out. Canada is a great nation and I am proud of the fact that it is a peaceful country, but I guess peace comes at a price too. (Modern peace keeping is a Canadian invention!)

 

Double Standards: CoverED Girl

Our society is plagued with numerous double standards; too many to list. The one that sticks out to me the most is the way Muslim women are perceived and treated. Muslim women who choose to wear headscarves and clothes that cover them up are always perceived as being oppressed and imprisoned. Some people pity them and feel bad for them while others suspect them being linked to some fanatical religious group.  

 

Here’s the question. Do the same thoughts come to your mind when you see a nun? Nuns dress up the same way as Muslim women do; only a little more conservatively. How come no one ever looks at them as being oppressed? When you see a nun, you think ‘Oh… look at the pious women, devoted to her religion…’ but if it’s a Muslim girl then its like ‘Oh…poor girl…’ or ‘Oh… I should prolly stay away from her’. Why? What is the difference between the two? They both dress up modestly as outlined by their religions; so why give preference to one over the other. By no means am I trying to imply that nuns should be thought of as being subjugated as well. Ever seen a depiction of the Virgin Mary without her head covered? Probably never. But no one has ever thought about Virgin Mary like that. Hell… even Little Red Riding Hood wore a headscarf!

 

The reality that most people are ignorant about is that the covering of the head and a modest dress code has been a part of western tradition long before it was a part of the Muslim world. The only difference is that the West has secularized and has given up its moral values. The way the average woman dresses up here today would be considered inappropriate in the same society a hundred years ago. Muslim women dress up modestly as outlined by Islamic teachings. They do it because they want to, not because some one forces them to and because they know that there is good in it for them. No one has the right to pass judgment on them and no one needs to pity them. They probably feel more liberated and confident than the average girl. People who need to form an opinion about Muslim women should go talk to them and see how they feel; rather than going with what they see on CNN or FOX. I have attached two short videos where Muslim women explain as to why they dress up the way they do.