tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post5555695222365433570..comments2024-03-10T00:44:49.280-05:00Comments on This & That: On the benefits of the bubonic plagueSusannehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03115294023069458287noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-66738310820040505312012-07-14T17:48:23.896-05:002012-07-14T17:48:23.896-05:00Thanks, Karrie! Good thoughts as usual. :)Thanks, Karrie! Good thoughts as usual. :)Susannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03115294023069458287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-71044359305752123712012-07-09T15:07:16.036-05:002012-07-09T15:07:16.036-05:00Okay, fine.. a real comment... In response to a c...Okay, fine.. a real comment... In response to a comment, of course:<br /><br />Sus asked "So what do you say to people who accuse God of being awful for allowing suffering (disease, earthquakes, famine, etc.)? "<br /><br />They'd still have a valid criticism toward a diety who is a "personal god" who takes an active role in his creation's life. i.e. - if he really is involved enough to care about whether or not my mom gets a good parking spot at Walmart, or if everyone in the local basketball game is safe... then why did he set up a system in which reproduction is commanded, but resources are limited, and then the "cure" for reproduction is death, but not just any old death, but horrible, painful, and tragic deaths for a lot of people? That would be the criticism, even if we admit that disease does play a ecological role.<br /><br />This type of "balance thinking" and acceptance that "bad things just have to happen - circle of life and all that jazz" is much more in line with the "watchmaker" views on God. If there is a diety, a creator, and he created the system, "wound it up", and stepped back - then terrible things, accidents, and diseases might be part of his system, but he has no direct hand in how the world plays out. <br /><br />This concept of traditional Deism would shield this type of God from the criticism that is often valid when confronted with the idea of a very involved, caring, personal diety. (why save one kid from breaking his ankle at a basketball game because they prayed, but ignore the kid being beaten at home every night, even though he prays?... why let one person have a heart attack in their sleep, yet another go through months of excrutiatingly painful cancer before dying?... etc...)Karriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05988139189752691753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-45989576526567704532012-07-09T14:53:10.716-05:002012-07-09T14:53:10.716-05:00I honestly couldn't figure out what to comment...I honestly couldn't figure out what to comment on this post because I kept giggling about " (Thank goodness agents Hanna and Callen got her in time!)"<br /><br />LOLKarriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05988139189752691753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-46043681631095538622012-06-24T07:49:18.394-05:002012-06-24T07:49:18.394-05:00I do think disease can play a role, but I don'...I do think disease can play a role, but I don't think they're completely necessary today. In earlier times people had no knowledge about contraception and planning for children (and also having many children were necessary as so many would die). Today however, I think it would make more sense to try and limit the amount of children, rather than having disease limit the population.Rebekka @ Becky's Kaleidoscopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08561986047548051036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-92016290768159553542012-06-22T06:27:41.144-05:002012-06-22T06:27:41.144-05:00Sarah, I hear that a lot and thankfully know sever...Sarah, I hear that a lot and thankfully know several couples who have adopted. It can be a great thing! I've only heard one that was really negative about it (the child was older, from Russia and suffered from Reactive Detachment Disorder due to her childhood) yet loads of others who had wonderful experiences with both domestic and international adoption.<br /><br /><br />LK, good points and I like the example of the deer and predators. You say disease has purpose. So what do you say to people who accuse God of being awful for allowing suffering (disease, earthquakes, famine, etc.)? I'm sure "disease has its purpose to control the delicate ecosystem" doesn't go over well! :) I'm guessing what you might say, but am curious what, in reality, your thoughts are on that. Thanks for chiming in!<br /><br /><br />Amber, for real! I often wish I could find "like" buttons on blog comments!<br /><br /><br />Sanil, great thoughts as always.<br /><br />I enjoyed all the comments. Thank you all!Susannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03115294023069458287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-2873242181014044452012-06-19T16:52:20.889-05:002012-06-19T16:52:20.889-05:00I think all living things fight for survival and o...I think all living things fight for survival and often at the expense of other living things. It's completely natural for humans to seek ways to extend their lives, just like it's completely natural for diseases to infect people. It's not a matter of one being necessarily better than the other, but in either case there's a price to be paid because putting the system out of balance does lead to problems like not being able to support the needs of so many more people being alive at a time.<br /><br />I also think it's interesting that this mostly becomes a concern when it affects us. The plague had a benefit because overpopulation had been a problem before, and now that the population was lower the remaining people had better lives. Balance restored! I doubt most people would ever be concerned about the effect on the environment, except that eventually destroying the environment hurts humanity. And yeah, it does. There's going to be a heavy price at some point, maybe another plague. A lot of people will die and maybe that creates more opportunities for the people who survive. But without the advances we've made, wouldn't there be as much or more death earlier? Who can say one life is more important to save than another and that it's a bad thing to preserve life now? Nothing really changes, and the world has shown itself to be pretty capable of finding a new balance over time as new species are introduced, for example. A species working to extend its life is just part of that long process.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07382787889525110718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-32541659336918952722012-06-19T09:31:20.754-05:002012-06-19T09:31:20.754-05:00Where's the 'like' button on here? i w...Where's the 'like' button on here? i want to *like* LK's comment. <br /><br />Somewhere along the line people went from being able to work with the ecosystem to thinking that they have the right to do whatever the hell they want and damn the consequences.Amberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09002997517784638068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-8428112763285021802012-06-19T06:35:22.560-05:002012-06-19T06:35:22.560-05:00we live in a surprisingly fragile ecosystem. Some...we live in a surprisingly fragile ecosystem. Some of our advances in medical technology could be harmful in how that ecosystem functions. Thats why superbugs develop along with horrible diseases like cancer. The system is designed to control itself. We all can't live forever we'd overwhelm the system. Its like here in Iowa. The deer population is out of control because we got rid of the preditors. Now humans have to go in and control the population because otherwise the deers are disrupting the ecosystem (mostly by causing car accidents and eating crops). Got rid of the control and the population went out of control. Not good for an ecosystem.<br /><br />Now don't think I'm a fan of cancer or something. But disease has a purpose. Everything does.LKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06170091976914539273noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-740924465958245224.post-57772644329274466222012-06-19T04:44:45.948-05:002012-06-19T04:44:45.948-05:00Interesting points. I personally think that everyo...Interesting points. I personally think that everyone should at least consider adoption. There are so many children who need homes.Sarah Familiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066135894689500253noreply@blogger.com