[ExI] Religions are not the ultimate cause of war

[spike]

-----Original Message-----
From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org
[mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of Keith Henson
>...
>
>>... Quite common, I think. I've had mystical experiences; I just don't
attribute them to anything other than my own neurochemistry giving me an
endogenous trip...Tom

>...Transcranial magnetic stimulation of temporal lobe is supposed to do
that.  Temporal lobe epilepsy is known to have that effect...

If we could figure out how consistently induce spiritual or mystical
experiences by some means of electromagnetic brain stimulation, we could
make a cubic buttload of money.  The problem is that the process may be far
more psychologically addictive than any drug ever developed.  Religions are
like that.  Or some of them are.  The process seems to me as though it would
be relatively safe, legal and (we would home) non-violence inducing.  We
could build in memes such as: love your neighbor, pray for your enemies,
pity but don't slay the infidel, that sorta thing.

>...What is more interesting is that a few current day religions seem to
have partly originated in people whose medical history makes it likely they
had temporal lobe epilepsy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellen_G._White#Head_injury     Keith

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Ja.  If you look at the progression over her lifetime, EG White's work might
have been initiated as a result of the head injury, later motivated by a
solid sense of duty and loyalty, and afterwards (at least partially, and
mostly by others besides EG White) by a profit motive.

By way of explanation of the sense of duty phase, this can be found in
White's middle years writings.  She apparently realized that the visions of
her youth were illusions, as they came to an end with menopause.  This is
common in petit mal epilepsy patients.  Dr. John Harvey Kellogg and others
were aware of this as well.  

In the early 1890s, White attempted to come clean, but found she couldn't,
for there were by that time many Seventh Day Adventist pastors who had
invested everything, who would be brutally ruined, along with their entire
dependent families, good people all, should White defect at that point.
Apparently she looked at all the consequences of all possible roads ahead,
decided it was the lesser evil to shut up and continue along the path.  In
her circumstances, I am not sure I would have concluded otherwise.

spike