Mark posted his 7 pillars to live by:
- Empathy & The Golden Rule.
- No belief in gods, mysticism or the supernatural.
- Strive to make the world a better place.
- Seek clarity, truth, and understanding.
- Be awed and inspired by nature, humanity, discovery and science.
- Do no harm.
- Live this life.
I think this is a good list, but if it were mine, I would remove “do no harm” (it’s a variation of #1, and I think it’s impossible and inadvisable to never do harm). I would also add something about ecology, living frugally, and enjoying this life.
I have my own list somewhere — I’ll have to dig it up one of these days and post it.
What would you change about the list?
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Here’s my mod
Seven Pillars of the Good Life
1. Empathy & the Golden Rule.
2. No belief in gods, mysticism or the supernatural.
3. Strive to make the world a better place.
4. Damage the environment as little as possible.
5. Seek clarity, truth, and understanding.
6. Be awed and inspired by nature, humanity, discovery and science.
7. Live and enjoy this life.
Daniel: I look forward to seeing yours. :)
David: I like your version!
Somehow I would have to put priorities in their regarding self, family, community, world… Personally, I want my son to enjoy a better world than I do. Not sure how I would word it, though.
Last year, I came up with my 5 Commandments and 5 Suggestions (not 7 pillars, but still in the spirit of the thread):
Bugsoup’s Five Commandments
1. Do not kill.
2. Do not steal.
3. Do not own other people.
4. Do not marry.
5. Do unto other as you would have them do unto you.
Bugsoup’s Five Suggestions (organized by topic)
1. Volunteer in your community, Give blood, Serve your fellow man as well as you can.
2. Do not expect a god to help you. Do not worshiip anything.
3. Learn from your elders, teach your younglings.
4. Be skeptical, Ask questions
5. Exercise, Eat a well balanced diet, Enjoy life
Roger’s Maxim:
Don’t be a dickbag.
7. Make the most of this life because it’s the only one you’ve got.
Personally, I’ve always liked George Carlin’s Two Commandments (with an addendum):
1. Thou shalt always be honest and faithful, especially to the provider of thy nookie.
2. Thou shalt try real hard not to kill anyone, unless, of course, they pray to a different invisible avenger then the one you pray to.
Addendum: Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself!
I would remove the reference to the Golden Rule and replace it with the humanist creed “Act in a way which will minimize harm”.
“Addendum: Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself!”
That’s a really good one. Believe what you want, but leave me out of it.
Thou shalt go outside and get some sunshine, fresh air, and physical activity! (as I sit, melting into my chair).
I feel that the rule I learned while camping and hiking in the Pacific Northwest is a good starting point:
“Wherever possible, try and leave it in better shape than you found it.” Whatever “it” may be.
“Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.”
Liberalist creed: If it hurts no one, do what you want.
Taking also the position that allowing harm to occur when you could have stopped it is the same as causing the harm to occur, that pretty much covers everything.
Remember that we are connected to other people, the earth, and everything on it. We are all part of the wonderful eco-system of the earth, and we should respect the balance.
Don’t beat your kids.
Keep fundies out of public office.