• thepreciousboar@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    3 days ago

    If a belief stands on authority alone it’s not something I believe, it’s something I accept, either because I want to change or as a compromise.

  • MTK@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    edit-2
    3 days ago

    That humanity overall gets better and more moral over time.

    It’s really interesting if you get into the history of it, but There are plenty of historical records that actually show that the past wasn’t as horrific as we imagine it to be. Partially because people like to look at the past as terrible to make themselves feel better about the present.

    I’m not convinced that there is any real evidence that shows that over time humanity gets morally better, but I like to believe in it, because otherwise it makes me think we should all die 🤷‍♂️

    And just to clarify, I don’t mean just actions but also intent. For example, these days we have democracies that have more complex laws to protect people’s rights and therefore it’s harder to cause the same kind of harm that could have been happening under a kingdom. But at the same time, now we have stuff like factory farmings and wars that lead to millions and tens of millions of deaths and pandemics that are not stopped properly because of conspiracy theories, etc.

    • Dengalicious@lemmygrad.ml
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      2 days ago

      You can’t really measure morality like that. It’s like I look through a library and decide that the library has more sci-fi books than they did earlier because I walked to the sci-fi section. Our modern view of morality is in-line with modern morality. People 200 years ago would have considered themselves just as moral as we consider ourself now.

    • OmgItBurns@discuss.online
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      I would say that we can’t really quantify morality on a time scale that large. I may be confusing terms here but the specifics of what is and isn’t considered moral will vary wildly between different groups of people and different time periods.

      Even if you break morality down to the concept of “don’t cause unnecessary suffering” leaves a lot of room for different interpretation.

    • rainrain@sh.itjust.worksOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      3 days ago

      I can respect that. I can’t say that I have any strong beliefs either.

      But then there’s “keep the bills paid or things will get bad”. But that’s strongly empirically based.

      And there are beliefs like “reality is composed of a multitude of things flapping around in time and space” which is popular but stands on the rock of mere convention (ok, maybe it’s deeper than that). And might bear questioning. How strong is my belief there? I dunno.

      I assume that our culture delivers a fair sack of authority-based beliefs. It would be nice to get a list.

      But then it’s like asking a fish what water tastes like.

  • tetris11@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    3 days ago

    I have one, weak-ass belief that I stand by, and I think everyone unconsciously stands by: All you can do is take a step forward.

    If your situation is hell, standing still or going back is not an option. Just take a step, and see how it goes. Then take another. And so forth.

    Weak stoicy bullshit I know, but it does remove the stress of uncertainty in a situation.

    • Jarix@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      2 days ago

      On what authority does this stand? I didn’t understand, not just being an argumentative prick

        • Jarix@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          2 days ago

          It’s in OPs question.

          What do you believe that stand on authority alone.

          What is the nature of the authority that your belief stands on. What gives that authority authority?

          • tetris11@lemmy.ml
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            2 days ago

            Standing still gives the world control and adds to your own uncertainty. Going back is physically impossible. All you can do is move forward.