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I was brought up not to believe in Santa (and apparently got into trouble at school for upsetting other children by telling them he didn't exist) and find it am
by grkvlt 10y ago
I was brought up not to believe in Santa (and apparently got into trouble at school for upsetting other children by telling them he didn't exist) and find it amazing that other parents are happy to lie to their children like this - setting a precedent that adults are not to be trusted, thus undermining lots of potentially valuable true advice. On the other hand, my family also took me to church every week, so there's that...
- carsongross 10y agoSurely, the phenomenological existence of Santa can be understood by HackerNews readers, no? Santa is a spirit and exists spiritually in as much as he has an effect on this world. And so we find he has, and, therefore, does. I don't expect most HackerNews readers to agree with that argument (I am of two minds on it) but I would hope it recommends to them a bit of intellectual humility.
- grkvlt 10y agoMaybe, maybe, maybe ... in the loosest, most hand-wavingly vague, almost, kind of sense, yes, IF - you s/spirit/concept/ then yes, that could be said to be true. But one could use the same argument about God, surely? In that the concept has a measurable effect on the world through the actions of believers, therefore He exists.
- carsongross 10y ago> But one could use the same argument about God, surely Don't think too hard about that one. You might end up a nietzschean catholic, like me on Tuesdays.