false 203456 34 male San Francisco, CA 07/2007 09/2009 14 86 83 true 6000714 read 1 true 422242 currently-reading 2 true 422241 to-read 0 false 481380 never-finished http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/61545393 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165766703s/8908.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:57:15 -0700 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/70449542 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165766703s/8908.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Wed, 16 Sep 2009 06:11:43 -0700 http://www.goodreads.com/trivia http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Sat, 05 Sep 2009 14:18:24 -0700 Waltz with Bashir: A Lebanon War Story (Paperback) by Ari Folman]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/70175725 http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51fTt1J6GvL._SL75_.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Sat, 05 Sep 2009 14:08:13 -0700 Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years, #1) by Gregory Maguire]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/66504573 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255675230s/37442.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Sat, 05 Sep 2009 14:07:11 -0700 The Third Man and The Fallen Idol (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics) by Graham Greene]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59536650 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165104982s/3705.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Sun, 02 Aug 2009 11:27:57 -0700 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45543335 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166659877s/14743.jpg 203456 Jesse http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1185887888p2/203456.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/203456-jesse Thu, 19 Feb 2009 06:09:45 -0800 All very good points indeed, and I agree for the most part. I guess I would consider myself a secular humanist, or believing in a "planetary ethic" as you put it. The one thing that makes me a little hesitant to say I'm a full fledged atheist instead of "agnostic" is a scientific one: Pretty much everyone (except maybe George W Bush and his ilk) acknowledges the big bang is what created our universe. Some say god put that speck of cosmic dust there that exploded in a violenct nuclear-like chain reaction, others like Brian Greene say it was simply "always there". But one of Newton's (or at least I think it was Newton's, I'm a little fuzzy on that )primary laws of physics is that matter doesn't completely cease to exist, nor does it arise from nothing. In other words, something had to have created it. I'm not saying god, but something. Not to get all quantum mechanic-y on you, but it could have been put there by civilizations from alternate universes, etc. But again, who put *them* wherever it is they come from? So that's where my problem lies. I know that theories are just that - theories. I wouldn't at all be surprised in our lifetime for Einstein's theory of relativity to be debunked by some astrophysicist(s) who discover the "Theory of Everything", but in the meantime, his theory still stands as the pre-eminent one, just as the theory of matter I described earlier still stands. I've mellowed a bit from my earlier days as a hardcore person who thought as Bill Maher does, that religious people have "mental defincies", but still do not appreciate having others views shoved down my throat, or people refusing to have their faith questioned or at least talked about. I remember when I first learned about Greek/Roman mythology asking my 5th grade teacher in Cleveland: "So what's the difference between Greek mythology and Christianity". She just stared at me and had no answer, because there is none. Both religions were/are the favored one of their day, but that's about the extent of it. Like you said, it is a vocal minority that tries to monopolize the "truth." But I've been disrespected at previous jobs for not believing, and it was not fun. If I were a meaner person, I should've reported them to HR for harrassment, because their attacks on me were always out of the blue, once they realized I didn't believe in god. I realize that religion does bring comfort to a lot of peope, but that doesn't make it true. The thought of being able to eat as much peanut butter, chocolate, and drink as much beer as I wanted and still be 100% healthy is a comforting thought to me, but that doesn't make it so either. But I digress. Yes, it would be cool if you and Jennifer lived closer - move out west! ]]>