Humanism

[Mir]

Hey!

I paste a short excerpt from the following website;

Website: http://www.humanism.org.uk

----
Humanism is the belief that we can live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs. Humanists make sense of the world using reason, experience and shared human values. We seek to make the best of the one life we have by creating meaning and purpose for ourselves. We take responsibility for our actions and work with others for the common good.

What humanists believe

Humanism is an approach to life based on humanity and reason - humanists recognise that moral values are properly founded on human nature and experience alone. Our decisions are based on the available evidence and our assessment of the outcomes of our actions, not on any dogma or sacred text.

Humanismencompasses atheism and agnosticism ‑ but is an active and ethical philosophy far greater than these negative responses to religion.

Humanistsbelieve in individual rights and freedoms ‑ but believe that individual responsibility, social cooperation and mutual respect are just as important.

Humanists believe that people can and will continue to find solutions to the world's problems ‑ so that quality of life can be improved for everyone.

Humanists are positive ‑ gaining inspiration from our lives, art and culture, and a rich natural world.

Humanists believe that we have only one life ‑ it is our responsibility to make it a good life, and to live it to the full.
----

My apologies if a thread discussing Humanism already exists but I couldn't find it using the search function. Personally, I haven't felt so strongly about something in a very long time.

What I liked in particular was the paragraph that reads "Humanism encompasses atheism and agnosticism ‑ but is an active and ethical philosophy far greater than these negative responses to religion.".

I also found that most of the adherents are from third world countries which I found odd. Anyway, I thought the website would make for a good read and provide food for thought, and I would welcome any responses/discussion on the topic.

[ZyklonB]

Transhumanism FTW

http://www.transhumanism.org/index.php/WTA/index/

Sorry for being so cyber gawf =/

[Rorschach Twin]

This thread if full of existential.

[Mir]

I agree that the basic philosophy mirrors that of existentialism but with the added twist of being concerned for the welfare and well being of others. Trying to make it a better place for all to live in. It is this that draws me to it. Unfortunately, most existentialists I've talked to come across as pompous, self obsessed assholes. No offense intended and yes, I know that not everyone is the same.

[Rorschach Twin]

Originally Posted by Mir

I agree that the basic philosophy mirrors that of existentialism but with the added twist of being concerned for the welfare and well being of others. Trying to make it a better place for all to live in. It is this that draws me to it. Unfortunately, most existentialists I've talked to come across as pompous, self obsessed assholes. No offense intended and yes, I know that not everyone is the same.

I suppose that's very possible. It depends what kind of existentialism you're looking at, truly. The most common type these days is inspired by French philosophers, especially Jean-Paul Sartre. It's the idea that you are your own person, you create the meaning of your life, but on the flip-side, you are responsible for everything that you do. It sounds simple enough, but it can get rather complicated when you begin to talk about God, and things that you can not change about yourself (for instance Age, Sex [to some extent], Race, etc.)

Most types of existentialism hold these same ideas, in fact, all of them do. It's just that some people claiming 'existentialist' happen to be rather selfish and hedonistic. I see that many Nietzschean Existentialists seems to be more like this, but it really can piss me off sometimes. Nietzsche advocated free will, power, and pride, but unlike many people like to believe, he was not a Nationalist. To me, he means something other than big-headed pride with mindless infatuation with one's self. It's more about having the pride in yourself to be able to think for yourself.

But all that I've said aside, my main thing that I would like to get across is that everybody is different (obviously), but more that Existentialism as a whole can be a greatly misunderstood philosophy, and at times is completely bastardized.