john may

The largest insect to ever exist was 50cm (about 1.5 feet). It lived during exceptional circumstances. It had a tiny brain. It’s true that big brain doesn’t equal intelligence but it is true that for intelligence to emerge, a brain with a minimal number of neurons and extreme complexity is necessary. Insects could adapt in some exceptional way. So…[Read more]

I’m really not sure insects can grow large enough to have sufficient cranial capacity for intelligent life. I really think mammals would have a much better chance. Outside of mammals on the intelligence scale, a few tropical birds and octopuses show notable intelligence. Some mammal species meanwhile show high intelligence plus complex social…[Read more]

It is ridiculous to have the expectation of all vices disappearing with the end of religion. One thing you can be absolutely sure of, is the undeniable correlation between the secularization of Europe (and the declining influence of the church) with the advancement of knowledge, individual rights, the liberation of women, LGTBQ+ right, the decline…[Read more]

I was born in Germany and visit regularly. There is a strict separation of church and state. That’s not to say they don’t have political influence. But their influence is minimal and declining. As it is in other secular countries. A new Ten commandments monument is inconceivable. Atheists come out to enjoy religious cultural elements (like…[Read more]

I’m simply more relaxed about the market place of world views within a humanist society. As long as they don’t impose their beliefs on me and leave me alone and don’t subject the vulnerable to abuse…I’m fine with them believing ridiculous stuff. That requires strict laws, not the eradication of religion. It’s the same with conservativism. I am…[Read more]

Yeah as I implied Jake, if I were in a place with a more menacing religious influence I very well might be anti-theist.

I do recall, that on no less than four occasions while visiting the U.S. various times (and two occasions while meeting U.S travelers outside the US) that I was randomly “god talked” by strangers. Something I had never…[Read more]

Hey Reg. Yeah that’s why I said “continental Europe”. I’ve never considered the UK or Ireland as high on the “strict separation of church and state” as say Germany or the Netherlands or even Spain. Though it does seem inevitable that they will one day.

I’d just like to chime in that I’m not anti-theist myself. That is, my goal isn’t to irradiate religion from the world. That doesn’t mean I don’t think it wouldn’t be a joyous occasion if the poison of religion left this world, but then, it can ONLY be replaced by something more stable like secular humanism. I am not against God. I am only against…[Read more]

Some things I learnt about ant, bee and termite colonies:

Queen is truly the wrong word. Giant sex slave is probably a better one. The queen usually only makes one decision (and even then there is usually some consensus involved) when deciding whether to make another colony or not. Otherwise the queen is held hostage by the drones and carries out…[Read more]

Somebody commented to me that they thought instead of removing the confederate statues, the US should teach history in schools. (Because that really gets emotions going).

I had to reply that the toppling of these statues IS teaching history in a way that schools never did, inasmuch as we are all becoming aware of the historical reasons these…[Read more]

It’s not that we are akin to ants. Our social structure is fundamentally different to them. Humans evolved in an environment completely different to the world we know. They lived in small social groups with tons of space and infrequent contact with other humans. They were hunter gatherers, lived short lives and lived in a fairly hostile natural…[Read more]

No. It is ridiculous to dismiss ethical systems, as described in moral philosophy as having nothing to do with “the real world” (whatever that actually means). Virtue ethics and utilitarian ethics in particular have had a massive influence on contemporary western ethos. Most especially in terms of human rights. I mean, the very idea of inalienable…[Read more]

I don’t think you can rely on the founding fathers for some grand guide of what is self-evident. Just because they found some things self-evident but over looked other things, doesn’t make them not self-evident. Turning another human being into an object is abhorrent in most moral systems. It is certainly so in: deontological, utilitarian and…[Read more]

Slavery was a pretty complex phenomena among the Greeks and Romans. It ranged from a “member of the family” who had obligations in the house but also limited rights, could be educated, allowed to come and go and could buy their freedom if they worked hard. At the same time this was hardly universal and some slaves were exploited (would you be…[Read more]

Oh yeah. They couldn’t compare with what the Mayans and Aztecs did. I mistated that: what I meant was there were no traces of slavery until they reached a certain level of sophistication and concentration. In other words, during their migration and population of the americas over the centuries there are few if any signs of slavery or servitude. As…[Read more]

It really is just a blink of an eye in evolutionary terms since humans started herding together enough for institutionalized slavery. Of course we are always evolving, but considering slavery/servitude had emerged entirely independently of one another (in South America, Central America, Northern Europe, Middle East, India) pretty much at the point…[Read more]