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Humanist does not mean 'nice person'


GOLI SODA

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It's very satisfying seeing the spread of the term 'Humanism' in Indian social media over the last few years.

But what is a little frustrating is seeing how many misconceptions there are about the term. 

Humanist does not mean 'nice person'. I think there are many nasty Humanists and many nice folks of other ideologies. I'd even be quite open to the possibility that on average religious folks are nicer than Humanists. 

Humanist also does not mean 'Humanitarian' - someone who contributes time and effort and money to social service. I'm sure many religious folks are far more humanitarian than many Humanists.

Humanist also does not mean 'atheist'. Humanists are a sub-category of atheists. All Humanists (with a capital 'H') or Secular humanists are atheists. But not all atheists are Humanists. An atheist is just someone who doesn't believe that there is sufficient evidence to justify belief in God. You could have atheists who are communists or hyper-nationalists or nihilists or who believe in Karma or even atheists who believe in ghosts. 

Humanists are atheists who believe in evidence based rationality (so no ghosts, homeopathy, karma, etc) and in the primacy of human rights and in particular the right to free speech short of incitement to violence (so no hyper nationalists) and in representative democracy (so no Communists).

They may be generous or stingy. 

They may be honest or dishonest.

They may be rude or respectful.

They may be non vegetarian or vegetarian or vegan. 

They may be smart or extremely stupid. 

They may be right wing or left wing or centrists or anarchists.

They all respect the right to freedom of speech for others but some may disapprove of people who are unnecessarily critical of others' beliefs, while others (such as myself) may be vocally and provocatively anti-religion and anti-national in their statements.

I do not advocate for Humanism because I think Humanists are nicer people than theists. 

Religious individuals may perform better on certain parameters than non-religious folks. For example there is research that indicates religious folks live longer than non-religious folks. The guidance and rules that religious provides people may help them navigate psychological issues, and prevent suicides.

But people who live in societies that have higher rates of Humanism live longer than people who live in societies that have higher levels of religion. 

At a society level, countries that have higher levels of Humanism perform better than societies with high levels of religion on almost all the critical parameters of well being - prosperity, life expectancy, honesty, safety, education, happiness, etc.

I think it might be because religious and nationalistic folks are more susceptible to being manipulated by religious and nationalistic leaders who appeal to their religious (including caste) and nationalistic group identities, which frequently leads to divisive zero sum antagonistic politics between the various communities and nations.

That's why I advocate for a society built on the principles of Humanism - evidence based rationality, empathy grounded in fundamental human rights and personal responsibility.

But to restate the most critical misunderstanding that people have:

Humanism is an ideology and like any ideology has sound eggs and nut cases. 

It's not a certificate of niceness.

#Humanism (Kanishka Sinha - FB)

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Soda vancle... Endi ee rachha... Who cares about meaning synonyms tatparyalu...

Overall he can't control emotions ... Unfit for bigboss ani public decide ayyi pampaaru

 

Bayataka kooda he is psudo humanist... Ee intellectuals and bramalo bathikevallatho idhe problem... Menu thopu ...Miki knowledge ledhu. Miru waste annatlu

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2 hours ago, GOLI SODA said:

It is not about Gogineni 

Chatha naaa koduku ayina okay that is his nature

What is written is sensible anipinchi share chesa some one might like it

gogi antha bad ani nakaithe anipinchala ... atleast he has a sensible way of expressing his thoughts ... whether I agree or not is a different matter ... 

manaki nachaka pothe pk fans lagano ycp roja lagano attack chestamante ... nothing anyone can do ... 

civil discourse is a long lost art in Indian society anyway ... 

 

 

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2 minutes ago, minion said:

gogi antha bad ani nakaithe anipinchala ... atleast he has a sensible way of expressing his thoughts ... whether I agree or not is a different matter ... 

 

 

Adhi media mundhu Natana

BB lo original bayatakosthunshi

 

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bg was not bad in bb2, ade nenu u di unte paid army tho manipulator aina kaushal gadni parigethichi thannevadini..edhava mundaki adatam raadu, argue cheyatam raadu..24 hrs edavara antey edusthadu...asala last 2 weeks ga aadu ainantha errippapa evadu avala..inka kaushal paid batch coverings aithey inside info tho ego satisfy chesukovatamey

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I'm not going to pretend ... I didn't watch bb2 ...

my impression of bg was from before ... whatever I saw of him ... he didn't look pretentious to me ... trust me, I can place those who pretend.

BG ki specific ideas unnai ... avi correct aa kaada annadi decide cheyyataniki manaki arhatha ledu ... its a deep philosophical conviction ... 

Now I'm talking like Babu Gogi :)

 

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3 hours ago, Chandasasanudu said:

bg was not bad in bb2, ade nenu u di unte paid army tho manipulator aina kaushal gadni parigethichi thannevadini..edhava mundaki adatam raadu, argue cheyatam raadu..24 hrs edavara antey edusthadu...asala last 2 weeks ga aadu ainantha errippapa evadu avala..inka kaushal paid batch coverings aithey inside info tho ego satisfy chesukovatamey

Maa batsman vachadu....

Hope army land avadhu since it is not chatroom

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