What you can't say

I just read something that is one of the most interesting reads that I have read in the longest time. It is an article all about What you can't say which I found from a slashdot post (of course). It gives an interesting way to look at some of the thoughts that we come across every day and how to determine if they are more universal (like murder is bad), or if they are something that might not be true (like the earth does not move).

One of my biggest complaints about religion is how it can tell you how to think, and what to believe. I think that it's a good idea to be able to get a moral compass, but it is just that, it gives you a general idea of where to go, it does not lay out the path for you. You have to find that way yourself. Otherwise it would be called a moral guide. I wouldn't have anything against a guide if they were always right, but they are just telling you what they think that the compass says, and they could be wrong, or worse yet, misleading you for their purposes. I think that it's better to ask questions and find that path yourself.

In science it is encouraged to ask questions. Break throughs always happen when people ask questions and defey the "common sense" of the day. I love quotes that they show of "scientific people" who have said things that today we take for granted as false. I usually refer to Clarke's first law in my head at these times. It just emphases to me that no matter how much I believe something, I could be wrong. And for some reason, I find that more comforting than knowing that I am always right.

Listening to: Matchbox twenty - long day