For atheists only - do you believe in a soul?

[evil_twin]

I nearly answered "maybe" purely in the interests of intellectual honesty because I have to concede that I cannot possibly know for sure that there is not some component of my existence that is beyond our current comprehension.

Then I remembered I'm not an idiot and answered "no". But my answer is maybe in the most minor "OK OK I have to accept the tiny possibility" kind of way.

[imported_luckyme]

[ QUOTE ]
I nearly answered "maybe" purely in the interests of intellectual honesty because I have to concede that I cannot possibly know for sure

[/ QUOTE ] Ah, that helps. So, 'Maybe' answers are not in reply to "Do you believe X", rather to a potential followup question along the lines of

"What is your opinion about the existance of X?" "X is a possibility, somewhat slim. Maybe it exists. O.19% chance."
"So, do you believe X exists?"
"No."

[Piers]

Strickly speaking I should have answered maybe, as I have no default definition of soul and need to rely on others to supply a defintion.

However I ansered No, as for most plausable definitions of soul that would be my gut reaction.

[Piers]

[ QUOTE ]
What does 'maybe believe' mean?

[/ QUOTE ]
It could mean the question is ambiguous, so you are not sure exactly what is being asked.

So the doubt is as to what question you are bing asked, not in your answer to a specific question.

[ QUOTE ]
Skeptics are highly skeptical of "new age" mumbo jumbo, including uncritical belief in fortune-telling, esp, ghosts, various quack healing regimens, communing with the dead or erotic frolics with aliens.

[/ QUOTE ]

FYP.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Skeptics are highly skeptical of "new age" mumbo jumbo, including uncritical belief in fortune-telling, esp, ghosts, various quack healing regimens, communing with the dead or erotic frolics with aliens.

[/ QUOTE ]

FYP.

[/ QUOTE ]Next time work in a FYP that plays off the erotic frolics with aliens.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Skeptics are highly skeptical of "new age" mumbo jumbo, including uncritical belief in fortune-telling, esp, ghosts, various quack healing regimens, communing with the dead or erotic frolics with aliens.

[/ QUOTE ]

FYP.

[/ QUOTE ]Next time work in a FYP that plays off the erotic frolics with aliens, like an alien works in his tentacles into my bunghole.

[/ QUOTE ]

FYP.

[hmkpoker]

I'd like a definition of "soul" to be provided, but I answered "no" anyway because I'm pretty sure that's what I'd say provided any definition you'd give.

I believe that "I," that is, the conscious experience, is a natural result of a functional brain, much like the "fizzing" is a natural result of combining an acid and a base. It is immaterial, variable, and does not survive death. What the experience of death is like is something I can't answer as I can't relate to it.

[DougShrapnel]

[ QUOTE ]
like an alien works in his tentacles into my bunghole.

[/ QUOTE ] TMI

[imported_luckyme]

[ QUOTE ]
It could mean the question is ambiguous, so you are not sure exactly what is being asked.
So the doubt is as to what question you are bing asked, not in your answer to a specific question.

[/ QUOTE ] thanks, piers. I was drifting toward that conclusion from your previous comment. You can see the issue with 'maybe' is that it can't be clear what the response means - so if a person gets 10 maybe replies do they mean -
- "I'm not 100% certain it is true."
- "I don't think it's knowable."
- "I don't have a clue what you're talking about". etc.
The Yes/No answers don't suffer from that ambiguity.
thanks everyone for the help, at least I'm comforted that I wasn't missing something obvious ( which I'm quite capable of doing). luckyme