Introduce Yourself

[msgkings322]

Repped for making me laugh. On the evening of Nov. 1, 2010, I questioned my atheist beliefs for a few moments but then decided that karma was finally paying me back for all my years of suffering.

Not to get all philosophical (or filosophical?), but belief in karma is a kind of theism.

 

[CameronFrye]

And since I am here, I'll go next.

I am a lifelong Giants fan who fell in love with the REALLY bad teams of the early 70s. I used to get free tickets to Giants games for making the honor roll at my school. My old man and I would trek up to the Stick from San Jose with a cooler full of food and drink and our heaviest jackets. We took the free nosebleed seats they gave us and we would casually stroll into the box seats and watch the mid-week games with the 2,500 other dedicated fans who dared to brave the elements. It was just as much fun watching a team that was 25 games out of first by mid July as it was seeing them only 5 or 6 games back in late April.

The early 80s were a mixture of love and pain just like the 70s. I attended the first game back after the players' strike of 1981 and the Giants passed out artist renditions of players on this really nice paper. I still have the picture of Vida Blue to this day. later in the 80s I started going to games on my own and developed a love for the bleacher seats - mostly because they were cheap. The teams were horrific. But those teams enable the Giants to get high draft picks and draft my single favorite ballplayer of all time - Will Clark.

In high school, my best friend was a die-hard Dodgers fan. We used to go up to the Stick - me in my Giants gear and him decked head to toe in Dodger blue. We'd sit in the bleachers, watch the game through the see-though fence and tumble over the barrier to run after home run balls in that patch of grass between the fence and the seats.

I REALLY hated 1989. The day that Will Clark singled off Mitch Williams to put the Giants in the World Series, I knew I was going to go to a World Series game. I paid an exorbitant amount of money for a ticket to Game 5 of that series against the AAAAs. I still have that ticket. Fuck the AAAAs.

The lowest sporting point in my life was 2002. That's all I am going to say about that.

When the Giants finally won it in 2010 it made the pain of the past hurt a whole lot less. That pain has not gone away, but if that topic ever comes up, I just think about 2010 and it brings a smile to my face. When I watch the DVDs of the series, it gives me chills.

As for my posting career, I too joined the Mouse boards in the early 2000s and have fond memories of actually striking up intelligent conversations with great Giants fans like Balzac and Doyle and Stokes. I also loved it for the fact that there were intelligent Dodger fans who would brave the enemy territory in pursuit of a decent conversation. (RIP DFaninWis).

I tried that "other" Giants board, but there was too much hate there. I had come to the conclusion that there was no good place to post when I stumbled onto this place totally by accident. I had Googled a specific Giants fact and found this board as one of the results. I saw a bunch of familiar names like tzill and filosofy and Stokes among others - and I stayed despite that fact.

I spend a lot of time on the Warriors board as well (what can I say, I am a glutton for punishment).

 

[tzill]

And since I am here, I'll go next.

I am a lifelong Giants fan who fell in love with the REALLY bad teams of the early 70s. I used to get free tickets to Giants games for making the honor roll at my school. My old man and I would trek up to the Stick from San Jose with a cooler full of food and drink and our heaviest jackets. We took the free nosebleed seats they gave us and we would casually stroll into the box seats and watch the mid-week games with the 2,500 other dedicated fans who dared to brave the elements. It was just as much fun watching a team that was 25 games out of first by mid July as it was seeing them only 5 or 6 games back in late April.

The early 80s were a mixture of love and pain just like the 70s. I attended the first game back after the players' strike of 1981 and the Giants passed out artist renditions of players on this really nice paper. I still have the picture of Vida Blue to this day. later in the 80s I started going to games on my own and developed a love for the bleacher seats - mostly because they were cheap. The teams were horrific. But those teams enable the Giants to get high draft picks and draft my single favorite ballplayer of all time - Will Clark.

In high school, my best friend was a die-hard Dodgers fan. We used to go up to the Stick - me in my Giants gear and him decked head to toe in Dodger blue. We'd sit in the bleachers, watch the game through the see-though fence and tumble over the barrier to run after home run balls in that patch of grass between the fence and the seats.

I REALLY hated 1989. The day that Will Clark singled off Mitch Williams to put the Giants in the World Series, I knew I was going to go to a World Series game. I paid an exorbitant amount of money for a ticket to Game 5 of that series against the AAAAs. I still have that ticket. Fuck the AAAAs.

The lowest sporting point in my life was 2002. That's all I am going to say about that.

When the Giants finally won it in 2010 it made the pain of the past hurt a whole lot less. That pain has not gone away, but if that topic ever comes up, I just think about 2010 and it brings a smile to my face. When I watch the DVDs of the series, it gives me chills.

As for my posting career, I too joined the Mouse boards in the early 2000s and have fond memories of actually striking up intelligent conversations with great Giants fans like Balzac and Doyle and Stokes. I also loved it for the fact that there were intelligent Dodger fans who would brave the enemy territory in pursuit of a decent conversation. (RIP DFaninWis).

I tried that "other" Giants board, but there was too much hate there. I had come to the conclusion that there was no good place to post when I stumbled onto this place totally by accident. I had Googled a specific Giants fact and found this board as one of the results. I saw a bunch of familiar names like tzill and filosofy and Stokes among others - and I stayed despite that fact.

I spend a lot of time on the Warriors board as well (what can I say, I am a glutton for punishment).

Yeah, when we took that secret vote to let you in, it was the treble dues that got you over the hump.

I still regret voting yes on that one....

 

[jingo]

Been a Giants fan since day 1 (my dad was born and raised in SF) and was lucky enough (or is that old enough?) to see the greatest player ever to play the game. It tore my heart out to see Willie towards the end of his career (should have always been in a Giants' uniform).

And the other Willie. The saying that there are two things that are certain (death and taxes), was wrong when "Stretch" played. Back then there were three things - death, taxes, and a grand slam when the bases were loaded.

Someone mentioned double headers. Correct me if I am wrong (that occasionally happens with age) but in the early days at the 'Stick wasn't there one admission price to see a double header? I seem to recall double headers being an all day event for us "youngsters" when we had the money to go.

I will be the first to admit that I will never be objective when it comes to the Giants, but IMHO what the 2010 team accomplished was as great an accomplishment (the perfect combination of how it was done and who the players were) as any other team during a championship season in my lifetime.

 

[CameronFrye]

Not to get all philosophical (or filosophical?), but belief in karma is a kind of theism.

Technically no because theism indicates belief in at least one supernatural being or deity. Karma is, in its most basic sense, a cosmic force which balances good and evil. The idea of karma started with the Hindus. To them, karma is regarded as a fundamental law of nature that is automatic and mechanical. It is not something that is imposed by God or a god as a system of punishment or reward, nor something that the gods can interfere with. Essentially, it exists outside of the realm of the gods.

I choose to accept the idea of karma (loosely) without accepting the idea that there is a supernatural deity in the universe. My "belief" is probably better stated as cosmic justice instead of karma to prevent any religious overtones. But I use the term karma because it is requires less explanation.

Most people on earth (other than Hindus) believe in just one god. I happen to believe in one fewer god than those people do. Hence my atheism.

Hope I didn't sidetrack y'all too much. Back to the intros....

 

[msgkings322]

Technically no because theism indicates belief in at least one supernatural being or deity. Karma is, in its most basic sense, a cosmic force which balances good and evil. The idea of karma started with the Hindus. To them, karma is regarded as a fundamental law of nature that is automatic and mechanical. It is not something that is imposed by God or a god as a system of punishment or reward, nor something that the gods can interfere with. Essentially, it exists outside of the realm of the gods.

I choose to accept the idea of karma (loosely) without accepting the idea that there is a supernatural deity in the universe. My "belief" is probably better stated as cosmic justice instead of karma to prevent any religious overtones. But I use the term karma because it is requires less explanation.

Most people on earth (other than Hindus) believe in just one god. I happen to believe in one fewer god than those people do. Hence my atheism.

Hope I didn't sidetrack y'all too much. Back to the intros....

Dangerously close to


I thought atheists main (and hard to refute) point was that theists have no real proof of their beliefs. There's no proof of karma/cosmic justice either. If you're open to one...

Me, I'm a Pascal's Wager kind of guy.

 

[gp956]

Been a Giants fan since day 1 (my dad was born and raised in SF) and was lucky enough (or is that old enough?) to see the greatest player ever to play the game. It tore my heart out to see Willie towards the end of his career (should have always been in a Giants' uniform).

And the other Willie. The saying that there are two things that are certain (death and taxes), was wrong when "Stretch" played. Back then there were three things - death, taxes, and a grand slam when the bases were loaded.

Someone mentioned double headers. Correct me if I am wrong (that occasionally happens with age) but in the early days at the 'Stick wasn't there one admission price to see a double header? I seem to recall double headers being an all day event for us "youngsters" when we had the money to go.

I will be the first to admit that I will never be objective when it comes to the Giants, but IMHO what the 2010 team accomplished was as great an accomplishment (the perfect combination of how it was done and who the players were) as any other team during a championship season in my lifetime.

Yes. I remember roasting in game one of a double header, and then freezing in game two. Had to build a fort out of seat cushions to stay warm. And the Giants lost both ends. Anyone remember throwing cushions off the upper deck after the game?

 

[CameronFrye]

Dangerously close to


I thought atheists main (and hard to refute) point was that theists have no real proof of their beliefs. There's no proof of karma/cosmic justice either. If you're open to one...

Me, I'm a Pascal's Wager kind of guy.

Not dangerously close - dead on. I am the poster boy for HFs everywhere.

 

[tzill]

Technically no because theism indicates belief in at least one supernatural being or deity. Karma is, in its most basic sense, a cosmic force which balances good and evil. The idea of karma started with the Hindus. To them, karma is regarded as a fundamental law of nature that is automatic and mechanical. It is not something that is imposed by God or a god as a system of punishment or reward, nor something that the gods can interfere with. Essentially, it exists outside of the realm of the gods.

I choose to accept the idea of karma (loosely) without accepting the idea that there is a supernatural deity in the universe. My "belief" is probably better stated as cosmic justice instead of karma to prevent any religious overtones. But I use the term karma because it is requires less explanation.

Most people on earth (other than Hindus) believe in just one god. I happen to believe in one fewer god than those people do. Hence my atheism.

Hope I didn't sidetrack y'all too much. Back to the intros....

Theism: belief in the existence of a g-d or g-ds
G-d: a supreme being according to some particular conception
Karma: the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation.

I'd have to ask: who/what is doing the rewarding and punishing? The answer would subsume some sort of supernatural power, or g-d.

I think you're trying to parce words, but the basic understanding is the same: atheism and karma are two belief systems that can't be reconciled.

Now, back to stalking Susac.

 

[filosofy29]

JT: Let's not start a Holy War now.

 

[gp956]

Theism: belief in the existence of a g-d or g-ds
G-d: a supreme being according to some particular conception
Karma: the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation.

I'd have to ask: who/what is doing the rewarding and punishing? The answer would subsume some sort of supernatural power, or g-d.

I think you're trying to parce words, but the basic understanding is the same: atheism and karma are two belief systems that can't be reconciled.

Now, back to stalking Susac.

I've always thought of karma as being the result of one's thoughts/motivations as they are translated into deeds. For instance, one's "punishment" for being an asshole is being treated like an asshole. That's the balance. And, of course, if the asshole "owns" his inner assholeness there really is no "punishment" per se.

 

[msgkings322]

I've always thought of karma as being the result of one's thoughts/motivations as they are translated into deeds. For instance, one's "punishment" for being an asshole is being treated like an asshole. That's the balance. And, of course, if the asshole "owns" his inner assholeness there really is no "punishment".

How's that working out for ya?



:popeye:

 

[gp956]

How's that working out for ya?



:popeye:

:boxing:

 

[CameronFrye]

Theism: belief in the existence of a g-d or g-ds
G-d: a supreme being according to some particular conception
Karma: the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation.

I'd have to ask: who/what is doing the rewarding and punishing? The answer would subsume some sort of supernatural power, or g-d.

I think you're trying to parce words, but the basic understanding is the same: atheism and karma are two belief systems that can't be reconciled.

Now, back to stalking Susac.

It is not reward vs. punishment. It is a balance of good and evil. That balance does not require a supernatural deity. If you choose to believe in a god, then nothing can exist without that god. I choose to believe that scientific theory does a phenomenal job of explaining our existence; cosmic justice is merely of a way to soothe my inner fears and assure me that moral behavior will - at the very least - balance out with evil.

I would sooner disavow karma or cosmic justice than believe that there is a deity that dispenses it.

 

[Mays-Fan]

I thought atheists main (and hard to refute) point was that theists have no real proof of their beliefs. There's no proof of karma/cosmic justice either. If you're open to one...

Me, I'm a Pascal's Wager kind of guy.

But if there is "proof", then one's faith would not require...faith.

On the other hand, science has no logical explanation for such basic phenomena as: light, gravity, magnetism, creation, evolution, or female orgasms.

(Hmmm... I may have just written my new signature...)

 

[CameronFrye]

JT: Let's not start a Holy War now.

 

[filosofy29]

But if there is "proof", then one's faith would not require...faith.

On the other hand, science has no logical explanation for such basic phenomena as: light, gravity, magnetism, creation, evolution, or female orgasms.
(Hmmm... I may have just written my new signature...)

Do those actually exist???

I thought female orgasms = bigfoot.

 

[msgkings322]

But if there is "proof", then one's faith would not require...faith.

On the other hand, science has no logical explanation for such basic phenomena as: light, gravity, magnetism, creation, evolution, or female orgasms.

(Hmmm... I may have just written my new signature...)

That's just it, an atheist (quite reasonably) questions the validity of something that requires faith to make it so. In other words, truth requires proof not faith.

As far as science goes they have light and evolution explained logically very well. And the orgasms...well, just throw on a DVD of the 2010 MLB playoffs and my wife is good to go.

 

[msgkings322]

Do those actually exist???

I thought female orgasms = bigfoot.

Oh they exist alright. When Chuck Norris looks at 'em.

How'd we get here? The season needs to start soon...

 

[ColinCoby]

Repped for making me laugh. On the evening of Nov. 1, 2010, I questioned my atheist beliefs for a few moments but then decided that karma was finally paying me back for all my years of suffering.

Haha. Well said.

Hopefully it works for Warrior fans as well.