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In the Name of God بسم الله

Undeniable Idea of God


"And your Lord has commanded that you shall not serve (any) but Him...."
Each and every creation (makhlooq) in this universe has a natural innate attachment with the creator. Every being that is created, itself carries a signature of the creator in every form and shape and also submits to the reality of existence of its creator. This is not something for which a creature needs something from outside his being. His existence itself contains those elements that lead his way towards his creator. If we try to specify those elements within a human being, our first attention goes towards the conscience (fitrah) of a human being. This conscience is captured in our soul and is completely intrinsic to our being. The spirit is the being which is the home of conscience while body is just the outer representation of our being.
Our conscience is the one which tells us the right and wrong and all such moral principles. Hence, it needs to have an orientation or inclination. Orientation will set a direction for a being and finally a direction will have no end without an inspiration. So, basically, every spirit has a conscience which sets the moral principles and in order to do that, we ultimately and naturally need an ultimate inspiration. The entity that might act as an inspiration can have a scope. But there needs to be one entity, neither more nor less, which needs to be above every entity. To explain this mess, I would like to take an example of a student pursuing a career:
Let's suppose that a person has an orientation of caring and healing others. A sudden thought comes to his/her mind that he/she should become a doctor. Also, he/she defines certain objectives to achieve his/her career. This is the direction that was taken according to the orientation. According to the scope of final objective, inspiration or motivation is also recognized. And finally, he/she goes to the school and college and studies to become a doctor which is the path to reach the inspiration.
If we carefully notice this example, everything is clear-as-sky that the career path selected is due to the orientation which acts as a cause and it is pointing towards a direction to become something which is guided by the inspiration. And the inspiration here can be multiple but one, the ultimate is definitely needed. So, that states our point of view that the idea of God is an idea of ultimate inspiration which is undeniable if we have a conscience that is willing to set it's moral principles. Now, because taking care of morality is intrinsic to our conscience, the idea of god is also intrinsic and an innate reality which cannot be denied by our conscience.
This argument stated above begs a question. What about the conscience of a person who denies the existence of God? The simple answer is that it is impossible. Because it is not our words that testify to the idea of God but it is our conscience and our conscience doesn't work exactly according to us. Every being has an ultimate inspiration within his self. If someone denies that ultimate inspiration, his self will start recognizing something else as an inspiration and if he still denies this new inspiration then his self will cling to something else and so on. So, denying the idea of God means ultimately denying the idea of existence or submitting to something at some point by stopping the loop of denial. My physics teacher in school once said that most of the scientists our athiests and they don't believe in god. But he was forced to conclude his statement by saying that there god is nature. So, one can say that 'his idea of god is different than others' but cannot deny the idea itself. So, we conclude that atheism by definition has no value and it is fundamentally impossible to deny the existence of God. And the Holy Quran states in this context:
"The seven heavens declare His glory and the earth (too), and those who are in them; and there is not a single thing but glorifies Him with His praise, but you do not understand their glorification; surely He is Forbearing, Forgiving." Al Isra (17:44)
The above verse shows how the idea of God is within every creation. And another verse which states that how our conscience says opposite to what a proponent of athiesm might say:
"Read your book; your own self is sufficient as a reckoner against you this day." Al Isra (17:14)
Our self definitely contains this fundamental idea of god and that is the reason it will be a proof against us finally. Also, Imam Ali (عليه السلام) states, "The one who recognized his self, recognized his lord" implying that ultimately our self consists all those fundamentals we need to understand the idea of God in its entirety. So, now let us go further to address what is left with us.
We see that ultimately we now have to see what can be the possible reality of God. And we shall only use the most basic rational ways to reach the results inshallah. We can easily think of some possiblilities. Either God is one or more than one. Within these two broad categories of reality of God lies a long list of classifications. We are not going to mention them as it is not at all necessary to ponder on each and every speculation regarding these categories. Definition of more than one gods is followed in the polytheistic systems. This is a possibility but let us match this idea with what our self testifies. It doesn't matter for us over here whether Gods are two, three or more than that but the fact of the matter is that does our pure and perfect self which is the essence of our being accept it? Our self contains the innate idea of God which must be an ultimate inspiration. Can we have more than one ultimate inspiration? If we have many inspirations within our idea of God, those inspirations should either be absolutely equal or they should differ from each other. If they are equal then why are they having multiple forms? There multiple forms is a proof of the fact that they are different. Even if there forms are identical in a way that they are exactly a replica of each other then they cannot be absolute or independent. Because a replica needs to have an original version which means it depends on it's original form and that implies that it is not absolute but rather relative to the existence of the original version. Another proof is there similarlity which itself testifies that they are not unique.
So, absoluteness with exact equality is impossible and hence we are left with another option that they are different. Now, being different is itself a proof that one inspiration is better than another and one is best of all of them. So, again the multiplicity of the inspiration will finally melt down into a single inspiration which is best of all of them. We see this in the polythiestic faiths where one god is better than other and one of them is best of all. Because establishing such an idea is possible but it will not sustain. It will finally break into a hierarchy. This defeats the argument of multiple gods. As the gods which are different, comparative and have a hierarchy can be an inspiration but not ultimate inspiration. Our soul is traversing on a path which should end up on the absolute, the ultimate inspiration and objective rather than a passer-by-checkpoint or a short term goal. A doctor will never settle alone with a medical science degree. He/she will explore more unless and until he reaches a point where he doesn't need to strive further.
The Holy Quran challenges the idea of multiple gods or even a lower form of god by stating:
Do not associate with Allah any other god, lest you sit down despised, neglected. Al Isra (17:22)
This verse is not neglecting the possibility of a human being to accept multiple gods but rather it is clarifying that one would not achieve and would be finally neglected and despised if they do so. Because, naturally it means lowering the bar of the objective and inspiration which will be problematic for none but the self of the person as his soul will loose the ability to explore, think and ascend further. Finally, submitting to something less than the ultimate inspiration actually means submitting to someone who carries it's own inspiration. As Quran says:
"Those whom they call upon, themselves seek the means of access to their Lord-- whoever of them is nearest-- and they hope for His mercy and fear His chastisement; surely the chastisement of your Lord is a thing to be cautious of." Al Isra (17:57)
So, we notice how beautifully these verses state which is extremely fundamental to our souls. How these verses convert the fundamentals of every being into words and negate the reality of polythiestic ideologies. The verses of Quran are definitely speaking the voice of our self here which we don't listen. Concluding the above argument, we stand clear that atheism is impossible and an athiest has a god which he submits but is unaware of his own submission. And polytheism which might be a possible inclination will vanish if we deeply ponder upon the fundamentals of our self. We will understand if we ponder carefully that all the entities that we accidently thought of as gods were short of being an ultimate inspiration.
Now, if we enter into the realm of monotheism, we again need to deal with several questions. Now, the focus of discussion has shifted from 'what is the suitable idea of god?' to 'how should we define a single inspiration/God?' There can be a few possibilities. But those possibilties are not what we are looking to identify but rather what our soul will find to be the best. We need to understand that we are not forcing our conscience to accept something which is not asked for and is inferior. The concept of a single inspiration is proven but that inspiration should fit into the exact criteria of what our conscience fundamentally wants. It was stated in the above discussion that there must be atleast one ultimate inspiration above all that should suffice the requirement of our final destiny or objective on this journey of our soul. Further, we also stated while having an argument on polytheism that inspiration can be comparative and different but such inspiration cannot be considered ultimate inspiration. It might be the best among all but if it is comparable then it is not unique. Our ultimate inspiration should be one, unique, independent and above everything while being the origin of everything. Can an entity within the realm of creation fulfill such a criteria? Can we call a creation, an origin of other creation? Even if this creation is not known to us or it is something really amazing and out of the box? The problem over here is that, whatever it might be, it is still a creation and hence it doesn't fulfills the criteria of being above all. Because, it lies withing the realm of creation and is remotely comparable to something even if the comparison is not that close. A star we see in the sky might be a million light years apart but the distance is still finite and it can be compared to other stars because it is has all the features of a star. So, this short example shows that our conscience will never settle with an ultimate inspiration which is not unique in all aspects and has nothing remotely similar. One might say, what about this universe as a single entity? Well, this universe is a system which is dependent upon several physical forces and natural phenomenas and if we contemplate the origin of these forces we are left with a question mark. It doesn't suffice the criteria of the self that the inspiration should be independent. So, whatsoever we might imagine and regardless of how much we move ahead, our self searches for more.
We our left with nothing but to take an option of this ultimate inspiration which is away from all bounds. This process of reasoning to reach the final conclusion is quite clear in the Holy Book (Qur'an) where Prophet Ibrahim (عليه السلام) says:
So when the night over-shadowed him, he saw a star; said he: Is this my Lord? So when it set, he said: I do not love the setting ones.
Then when he saw the moon rising, he said: Is this my Lord? So when it set, he said: If my Lord had not guided me I should certainly be of the erring people.
Then when he saw the sun rising, he said: Is this my Lord? Is this the greatest? So when it set, he said: O my people! surely I am clear of what you set up (with Allah).

Al Anaam (6:76-78)

As Imam Ali (عليه السلام) states the definition of that one god, the ultimate inspiration below:
Praise is due to Allah whose worth cannot be described by speakers, whose bounties cannot be counted by calculators and whose claim (to obedience) cannot be satisfied by those who attempt to do so, whom the height of intellectual courage cannot appreciate, and the divings of understanding cannot reach; He for whose description no limit has been laid down, no eulogy exists, no time is ordained and no duration is fixed. He brought forth creation through His Omnipotence, dispersed winds through His Compassion, and made firm the shaking earth with rocks......
He is a Being, but not through phenomenon of coming into being. He exists but not from non-existence. He is with everything but not in physical nearness. He is different from everything but not in physical separation. He acts but without connotation of movements and instruments. He sees even when there is none to be looked at from among His creation. He is only One, such that there is none with whom He may keep company or whom He may miss in his absence.
(excerpts of Nahj ul Balagha sermon 1)
As Amir al Mumineen (عليه السلام) defines, this is the ultimate destiny and inspiration our self is looking for and this is the only inspiration which can set pure moral standards for our conscience. Hence, this is the best and most beautiful definition of monotheism as it is testified by the soul and it is fundamental and intrinsic within ourselves.
Concluding this entire discussion now, we reach a conclusion which is solely given to us by our pure soul and our conscience. Similar to this, as described in the above verses, every particle in this entire universe is in complete servitude to Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) (the ultimate inspiration). Hence, while setting up moral principles, they should be derived from this inspiration and nothing else. Such should be the fundamental of the religion of our conscience. Therefore, monotheism in theory and in action is our fundamental principle whether we accept it or deny it. As the verse below says:
"Whoever goes aright, for his own soul does he go aright; and whoever goes astray, to its detriment only does he go astray...." Al Isra (17:15)
At last, the acting upon this principle just means pure servitude. We end on where we started. Serving the commandment of Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) is the only way to act upon the principle of monotheism and for this Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) has given commandments in his book of principles i.e Quran. Along with this he has brought the guiding inspirations which are not the ultimate inspirations but just the checkpoints on the path. Not the destiny but the bridge that connects to destiny. These are the prophets and Ahlulbayt (عليه السلام). This is just a brief Islamic point of view to elaborate the principle of monotheism and not necessarily the scope of our discussion for now. In this way we conclude our discussion by claiming from the purity of our soul that:
"Verily, we belong to Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) and verily to him do we return."
[Al Baqarah (2:156)]

Edited by Zainuu

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  • Latest Blog Entries

         0 comments
      [updated in May 2023 to include the Nvidia example and refine the argument overall, updated August 2024 to include an assessment by the FRBNY and the quotation from Sashi Tharoor. Updated 14 Jan 2025 to include the example of RedNote. Updated 12 Feb 2025 to include the material on free trade at the end of the article].
       
      Summary
      When you are in a weak position, all the choices you have are bad ones. Your opponent who dominates you due to more and/or better resources will ultimately prevail. It may take some time for them to do so, but the fact that it will happen is a certainty. 
      To take one example, it has historically been easy to 'blame' the Palestinians and other indigenous groups for their loss of territory. Arguments typically run that if the Palestinians had done 'x' instead of 'y' they would now still be in control over larger portions of land than they currently have.
      Looking at another case, you really wonder whether there was ever any universe, for example, where the American Indians were not going to be wiped out by far superior numbers and technologies that their adversaries owned.
      But we are fortunate enough to live through a period where erstwhile powerful nations (who have been very ready to blame Palestinians and others for their loss) are being made to suffer the same indignities that others have been through, albeit their loss is not in the domain of geographic territory (yet), rather it's technological and commercial leadership.
      This experience should teach everyone that losers don't necessarily lose because they are feckless or stupid; rather, the cards may just be stacked against them.
      Alternatively, their adversary may just be in a historical sweet spot.
      Introduction
      I've always thought that since British Mandate the Palestinians have been in a no-win position. This has been due to their lack of military power and economic and political resources. If they accepted the offers the international community and the Israelis gave them, there would have been an incentive for the Israelis to take more land (if the Pals don't mind yielding some land, they might not mind yielding more), and if the Pals had resisted, that would also have given the Israelis a pretext to take more land (for defensive purposes), the latter has proven to be the case.
      In short, whatever the Pals decided did not matter; the Israelis' dominant position ensured that they could respond in a manner that was advantageous to them. The same applies to Native American Indians in the 18th and 19th centuries; whether their response to European settlers was to fight or make treaties, the outcome would always be the same, their lands would be taken. In both cases, there was such an asymmetry between the Europeans and indigenous peoples that there was nothing the colonised could do that would change the outcome.
      In the examples that follow, I look at some contemporary examples that illustrate a different dynamic. In these instances, non-Western powers have presented the West with situations where regardless of the actions the West takes, the outcome for the West will not be one that it considers satisfactory.
      Huawei - China
      The following piece in the Financial Times (FT) neatly summarises how I feel about the situation between the U.S. government and Huawei. In the 21st century, it is beginning to look as if the Chinese have the best cards. For example, Huawei makes good and cost-effective telecoms infrastructure.
      Western countries may have security concerns, but if they ban Huawei, they could end up with a poorer solution. Other countries that have no such qualms could benefit from the cost advantages that Huawei equipment offers. But if Western countries accept Huawei, they risk entrenching the advantages that the Chinese have, as well as the claimed security risks.
      Sanctions have been a preferred Western method of taking action against countries that have fallen out of favour. But this tool only works where you have something the other person wants and can't get anywhere else; when the situation is reversed - you can end up damaging yourself.
      https://www.ft.com/content/8fc63610-88fe-11e9-b861-54ee436f9768
       
      Nvidia
      Jensen Huang of the American chipmaker Nvidia makes a similar claim in May 2023:
      https://www.ft.com/content/ffbb39a8-2eb5-4239-a70e-2e73b9d15f3e
       
      SWIFT - Russia
      This example arose during the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022. The West wanted to sanction Russia by imposing economic sanctions, including barring Russian entities from access to Western financial systems. But this was not straightforward:
      https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/feb/24/what-is-swift-international-payments-network-russia-sanction
       
      Sic transit gloria mundi (so passes worldly glory)
      Some of what we see today has the hallmarks of British attempts to stop Indian technological development by banning the Indians from making their own steam engines, at the start of the 20th century. The British may have delayed Indian development by some decades, but that's all they were able to do. Whether the British took no action to stop Indian technological development or whether they proactively tried to hinder it, ultimately, they would lose. 
      Take this from the Indian politician, Shashi Tharoor:
      https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/08/india-britain-empire-railways-myths-gifts
       
      There are now far too many Indians with increasing levels of capability to stop the juggernaut and Tharoor's article in the Guardian goes on to talk about how Britain in recent years has had to appeal to Indians for railway technology.
       
      The status quo
      In mid-2022, following a visit to Taiwan by Senator Pelosi, the FT noted this about the Chinese response to the visit:
      https://www.ft.com/content/5462a57a-bd13-4313-b26b-9645b48a70ee 
      In my opinion, it was Pelosi who altered the status quo; this was the most high-ranking visit in 25 years. Based on the theme of this blog post, given the dominant position of the Chinese, the American position should be to maintain the status quo. As soon as they seek to alter it, the Chinese have an excuse to try and establish a new status quo that is more favourable to them.
       
      Federal Reserve Bank of New York
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      https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/sr1096
       
      RedNote
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      https://x.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1879027474924990584
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      Free trade and tariffs
      The following piece from the FT argues that at a national level, cutting down to the size of the American economy became an inevitability once India and China ditched their badly functional economic models and adopted more capitalistic ones.
      https://www.ft.com/content/14ee75d4-3eab-4457-8001-7988ef66c1cb
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      In the context of China, I think the U.S. government feels a threat to its economic/technological dominance. Although this may be dressed up as wanting to preserve fair competition. And U.S. sanctions are its attempt to fight back. But whether the U.S. decides to fight or not, I think in the longer term, that dominance will have to be compromised. Huawei and the Chinese are now too far along the technological path of development, and they are far further ahead than the India of the early 20th century. 
      The U.S. is now in a similar technological position versus the Chinese that the Palestinians have been versus the Israelis. In the U.S./China context is issues centre around technology and in the Palestinian/Israeli context it's to do with economics and political power.
      Whatever option the US chooses, it will ultimately 'lose'. Loss in this context is not necessarily wholly ceding technological leadership to the Chinese, but it may well involve acknowledging their superiority in certain areas. Other countries like Russia also may be able to work their way around sanctions, for example, so Western attempts to control their behaviour will have limited success.
       
       
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      Final part of my book, narrated by my dear friend, Mrs. Solmaz Rezayi
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      Gains and losses
      It's tempting to think of human experiences, in terms of gains or losses, especially those which involve dealing with other people and groups. Some exchanges lend themselves to this calculus e.g. trade or war. However, a focus on the material element of the equation can often ignore the intangible aspects of the encounter or the trade. The latter can often have longer-term and more profound consequences.
      For believers faced with what can seem to be a loss in the material world, it's worth reflecting on what has been gained in the spiritual world. At the moment, in the Middle East there is a dynamic movement of politics and people being played out. Certain groups are gaining power, others are losing. Some people are dying and others are killing them. It's easy to construct the balance sheet in terms of human casualties, square kilometres of land and who holds power.
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      Spiritual vs. material
      What is also happening is the surfacing of opinions, standpoints and, most importantly, behaviours. In a world at equilibrium, peoples' discourse can often hide their true beliefs and they can avoid engaging in behaviours which make explicit where they stand. 
      However, standing as we are in a world where there is disequilibrium, where the stakes are high for a reconfiguration of the Middle East as the tectonic plates shift, so people become more willing to disclose who they really are. 
      This is a win for the believers. Tempted by the greed for gain, this is where Satan's mask drops, and reality becomes evident. People motivated primarily by gains in this world no longer hide where they really stand - they believe they can achieve far more by grabbing as much as they can possibly have.
      The speed with which events take place makes it impossible for aggressors to hide their tracks. More importantly they believe that they no longer need to do so because the victory is so overwhelming that they will never be brought to account.
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      Knowing the objective reality of this world can often be quite difficult; it's usually shrouded by our limitations and weaknesses. Often, believers are tempted to ask God for 'signs' to substantiate their belief. We think how easy it must have been for the ancients who lived in a world of miracles to have belief.
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      As Satan's mask drops, we can see the people who would typically protest about human rights as part of their overall 'belief system' but are utterly silent about genocide. We can see that people who were horrified by the death of a single Iranian woman are now completely silent about the deaths of thousands.
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      It's now been left to ordinary people often those with no interest in that part of the world taking note of journalists who have been summarily removed simply for asking Israeli representatives the wrong questions. And just as technology has enabled aggressors to have superior weapons so we are able to better measure and compare the published narrative and have no doubt about what is happening.
      And that's just the media.
      As for political leaders, we can see the people who claim leadership of Muslims but who show none when world events demand it. We can see the leaders who not only fail to protect the oppressed but who take an active part in the oppression. Their followers are left having to make excuses or alternatively make up new ideologies to replace those found to be wanting.
      Crumbling in front of us is the whole edifice of human rights, feminism, democracy, freedom of the press, international system of crime and justice and all those other things that have been used to beat up Muslims for decades. Of course, there is nothing wrong with them per se - but it's now obvious that there was never any principle underpinning their use. They were only a weaponised tool whose promoters were kept on a tight leash and allowed to attack some countries while we now see them willingly held back from applying the same rules to others.
      Claims of a 'superior civilisation' (whose superiority above Islam we were told we should accept) are now an embarrassment except to those with no reason or shame. Its promoters have traded them for gains in this world and have given up whatever echoes they wished to leave for eternity. And even those gains will prove to be short lived. The moral high ground needs legitimacy which has now disappeared.
      Implications for us
      It's at times like this that we might be saddened by the loss of people and places. But at the same time, our faith should be reinvigorated by the knowledge that what others believe is false, whose hypocrisy is made manifest and most importantly, whose ethical and moral position is so weak that it requires extreme violence to uphold.
      Shias more than anyone know that gains and losses on the battlefield are not the end of the story.
         1 comment
      In the quiet suburban town of Ashton Vale, a vibrant community of immigrants and indigenous families coexisted, yet often walked parallel paths. Among them was Rajiv, a software engineer from Bangalore, who had relocated with his wife, Priya, and their two children for a coveted job in the local tech hub. Excited by the promise of a better future, Rajiv had imagined Ashton Vale’s schools to be bastions of innovation and rigor. But after six months, his vision was dimming.
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         0 comments
      My prompt: Could it be proposed that for a theist an alien encounter can't possibly lead to a wipeout of the human race (unless the aliens themselves were theists). Whereas for an atheist this is a possibility?

       
      GPT Answer: This proposition could be framed as a hypothesis grounded in the fundamental differences between theistic and atheistic worldviews. Let's unpack this:
       
      ---
       
       Theistic Perspective:
      1. Belief in Divine Providence:
         - For many theists, the idea of humanity being wiped out by an alien encounter conflicts with their belief in divine oversight or purpose. In monotheistic traditions, God is often seen as a protector of humanity or as having a plan for human existence. For example:
           - In Christianity, the notion of humanity as the "crown of creation" implies that humans hold a special place in the universe.
           - In Islam, humans are referred to as khalifa (stewards) of the Earth, suggesting divine purpose and responsibility.
       
      2. Aliens as Part of Creation:
         - A theist might argue that if aliens exist, they are part of God's creation and, thus, subject to the same divine laws and moral framework. If the aliens are intelligent, theists might believe they are bound by a moral order that prohibits the unjust destruction of humanity.
       
      3. Theistic Alien Possibility:
         - If the aliens themselves are theists or operate within a framework of moral understanding (e.g., recognizing a creator or higher order), this might align with the theist's worldview. In this scenario, the likelihood of the aliens obliterating humanity diminishes, as such action might conflict with divine principles of justice or mercy.
       
      4. Eschatology and Divine Endings:
         - In many theistic traditions, the end of humanity is often seen as part of a divine eschatological plan (e.g., the Apocalypse in Christianity, the Day of Judgment in Islam). Therefore, the idea of humanity being wiped out arbitrarily by aliens would contradict the divine script, unless it aligns with God's will.
       
      ---
       
       Atheistic Perspective:
      1. Absence of Divine Oversight:
         - Without belief in divine intervention or purpose, atheists are more likely to accept the possibility of humanity's extinction as a random or natural event. This could include scenarios such as:
           - An alien civilization vastly superior in technology choosing to eradicate humanity for resources, territorial expansion, or indifference to human existence.
           - Humanity's inherent vulnerability in a universe without a guiding or protective force.
       
      2. Naturalistic Assumptions:
         - Atheists tend to approach existence from a naturalistic or evolutionary perspective, where survival depends on human ingenuity, adaptability, and luck rather than divine protection. In this framework, the arrival of a technologically advanced alien race could pose an existential threat, akin to how colonial encounters on Earth have led to the decimation of less technologically advanced societies.
       
      3. Moral Relativity:
         - Unlike theists, who might assume a universal moral order governing alien behavior, atheists may see morality as a construct unique to human societies. This opens the possibility that aliens might not share human ethical frameworks, making the potential for destructive encounters more plausible.
       
      ---
       
       Key Implications:
      1. Worldview-Driven Responses:
         - A theist might view an alien encounter as part of God's plan, possibly even a test of faith, and would be more inclined to seek meaning or morality in the aliens' actions. 
         - An atheist, by contrast, might approach the encounter pragmatically, preparing for the possibility that the aliens have no moral obligation to humanity.
       
      2. Survival Scenarios:
         - For a theist, humanity’s destruction by aliens is only conceivable if it aligns with divine will. Otherwise, divine protection would prevail. The existence of the aliens themselves might even be interpreted as a sign of God’s creativity or the vastness of divine creation.
         - For an atheist, the survival of humanity would depend entirely on human effort, strategy, and the contingencies of the encounter.
       
      ---
       
       Counterarguments and Nuances:
      1. Theistic Flexibility:
         - Some theists might argue that even if humanity were wiped out, it wouldn't contradict their beliefs because God's plans are ultimately unknowable or transcend human understanding.
         - Similarly, not all atheists would assume aliens would necessarily be hostile, depending on assumptions about the aliens' evolutionary and cultural development.
       
      2. Common Ground:
         - Both worldviews might agree that the outcome of an alien encounter would largely depend on the nature of the aliens themselves—their level of aggression, resource needs, or capacity for empathy.
       
      ---
       
       Conclusion:
      The proposition holds as a conceptual framework: theists may find it difficult to reconcile the extinction of humanity by aliens with their theological beliefs unless the aliens themselves act within a divine framework. For atheists, the lack of divine oversight allows for a broader range of possibilities, including humanity’s potential destruction by aliens. This distinction highlights the contrasting existential assumptions underlying theistic and atheistic perspectives.
         5 comments
      I came across the following about the British poet Basil Bunting:
       
      https://academic.oup.com/res/article/74/315/389/7103434?login=false
       
      I pasted that into Chatgpt and asked, "Are there other people who simultaneously interacted with middle eastern culture while at the same time aiding Britain's colonial enterprise?"
       
      It came back with the following:

      Yes, several notable individuals interacted with Middle Eastern cultures while contributing to Britain's colonial enterprise. These figures often straddled roles as diplomats, intelligence officers, and scholars, blending cultural engagement with imperial objectives. Here are some key examples:
       
       1. T.E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia")
         - Role: British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer.
         - Activities: Lawrence became famous for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) during World War I, where he supported Arab nationalist aspirations against Ottoman rule while advancing British strategic interests.
         - Cultural Interaction: He immersed himself in Arab culture, spoke Arabic fluently, and documented his experiences in Seven Pillars of Wisdom. However, his activities also reflected Britain's geopolitical ambitions in the Middle East.
       
       2. Gertrude Bell
         - Role: British writer, archaeologist, and political officer.
         - Activities: Bell played a critical role in the establishment of modern Iraq, advising British colonial authorities and helping to draw its borders after World War I.
         - Cultural Interaction: She was deeply involved in Arab culture, learned Arabic and Persian, and became an expert on Middle Eastern history and politics. Despite her cultural respect, her work was integral to British colonial administration.
       
       3. Harry St. John Philby
         - Role: British intelligence officer, Arabist, and explorer.
         - Activities: Philby worked in British intelligence and later became a political advisor to Ibn Saud, the founder of Saudi Arabia. He was instrumental in British relations with the Arabian Peninsula.
         - Cultural Interaction: Philby converted to Islam and adopted many aspects of Arab culture. However, his role also involved facilitating British interests in the region, particularly concerning oil.
       
       4. Charles Montagu Doughty
         - Role: British explorer and writer.
         - Activities: Although not an intelligence officer, Doughty traveled extensively in Arabia and wrote Travels in Arabia Deserta, a detailed ethnographic account that informed British perspectives on the region.
         - Cultural Interaction: He engaged deeply with Arab culture but his works also contributed to the British understanding and strategic engagement with the region.
       
       5. Wilfred Thesiger
         - Role: British explorer, writer, and military officer.
         - Activities: Thesiger served in the Sudan Political Service and during World War II in the Middle East. He later traveled extensively through the Arabian Peninsula.
         - Cultural Interaction: He celebrated Bedouin culture in his writings, notably Arabian Sands, but his presence often aligned with British imperial objectives.
       
       Analysis of Dual Roles
      These figures often operated in liminal spaces where cultural appreciation coexisted with imperial agendas. They frequently acted as intermediaries, using their cultural knowledge to advance Britain's geopolitical strategies while documenting and sometimes romanticizing the cultures they encountered.
       
      Would you like further detail on any of these individuals or their contributions to Britain's colonial enterprise?
       
         6 comments
      Background
      In the following blog post, I argued that minorities can economically outperform majorities in a society and that this may require actions to protect the interests of the majority. Overall this discussion picks up issues around Islamic regulations around the rights and obligations of minority communities in an Islamic society, where minorities are referred to as 'dhimmis'.
      In contemporary Western society where there is an overarching interest in 'equality' these regulations may be perceived as discriminatory and wrong. What I did in the post below was to argue that they help protect the interests of the majority which may otherwise be compromised and ultimately lead to conflict.
       
       
      In this post what I want to do is look at the same issues from another perspective. I wanted to see whether an AI LLM when given specific starting economic and social conditions within a society would come to the same endpoint as I had done in my post above.
      I gave gpt4 the following prompt:
      Imagine you are a social network theory expert. Assume that there is a society composed of individuals with a range of different types of ties. All individuals in that society are equal in terms of economic welfare. Within that society there is a cluster of people with a shared culture who have denser ties with each other than with others in the society. Please map out over time what the implications of those social network characteristics will be in terms of e.g. economic welfare.
      The instruction should be readily understandable to the layperson, except for one term, gpt4 gives the following explanation of social network density:
      In the context of this conversation, when we refer to a cluster of people with denser ties, we mean that within this group, a larger proportion of all possible connections between individuals actually exist. This implies that individuals in this cluster are more interconnected and have more relationships with each other than with people outside the cluster.
      Having explained that term we can move onto what GPT4 sees as the trajectory for that society. Note that for my part the effort has been to give GPT4 a prompt that was as neutral as possible to avoid it coming up with a scenario that arose because of a bias in the prompt.
      GPT4's longitudinal analysis - the following text is from GPT4
      In the context of social network theory, the structure and nature of social ties can significantly impact various outcomes, including economic welfare. Here are some potential implications over time:
      Information and Knowledge Dissemination: In a closely-knit cluster where social ties are denser, information and knowledge are likely to disseminate faster among members. This can lead to quicker adoption of beneficial practices, faster problem-solving, and greater innovation. Over time, this may result in economic advantages for the cluster. Resource Mobilization: Dense social networks can facilitate more effective resource mobilization. This could take the form of group savings, joint investments, and collective bargaining power in the marketplace. Over time, this could enhance the economic welfare of the group. Social Capital: The dense ties within the cluster can form a significant amount of social capital, which can be leveraged for economic gain. For example, trust and reciprocity within the group can reduce transaction costs and facilitate economic activities that might be more difficult or costly in a less cohesive network. Inequality: While these dense ties can lead to economic advantages for the cluster, they may also exacerbate inequality between the cluster and the rest of society. The benefits from information dissemination, resource mobilization, and social capital may not flow as easily to individuals outside the cluster. Over time, this could lead to growing economic disparities within the society, even if all individuals started at the same level of economic welfare. Fragmentation and Polarization: Over time, the strong in-group ties and weak out-group ties might lead to fragmentation and polarization within the society. This could result in a society where the closely-knit cluster becomes economically dominant, while the rest of the society is left behind. This could lead to social tensions and conflict. Resilience and Vulnerability: While the dense network within the cluster might provide resilience in the face of external shocks (due to the ability to mobilize resources and support each other), it might also lead to increased vulnerability. If the cluster is hit by a negative event (such as a financial crisis or a disease outbreak), the dense ties could facilitate the rapid spread of the negative effects. It's important to note that these are potential implications and the actual outcomes can be influenced by a variety of factors, including the nature of the ties (whether they are positive or negative, strong or weak), the specific cultural characteristics of the cluster, the wider socio-economic and political context, and the ways in which individuals within the network and the society as a whole adapt and respond to changes over time.
      Conclusion
      I think this elaborates and to a large extent validates the points I was making in the earlier blog post.
      To reiterate the overall issue. When we discuss majorities and minorities in the context of particular groups of people in specific societies the underlying social, anthropological and economic arguments are subsumed within accusations of being prejudiced against one group or another. So my initial post does not mention any groups, countries or societies, we are simply discussing the relationships between various social variables and how they evolve over time.
      Based on the above thought experiment with gpt4, I am still inclined to think that Islam is 'onto something' when it addresses the dhimmi issue.
       
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