Right And Wrong(An Extract From A Short Story)I’m tired of arguing about the philosophies of life and politics. I have thought every aspect of life through and through many times, and always reach the same conclusions. I look at every possibility and cannot argue anymore. I’ve reached an understanding of the world, of which the philosophical ramifications are so great I am locked in an eternal struggle with myself to accept. To put it simply, there is no such thing as Right or Wrong. These are merely words used to describe the views held by the reigning ideology, which now means the beliefs of the majority. Right and Wrong are necessary for a stable and functional society. If nobody believed that murder or stealing was wrong, what would happen? Chaos. If we did not know the ‘Right’ way to act, how would we ever function together as a society? Here’s an extreme example: We believe Nazism to be evil and wrong, and Nazis should be punished. Why? Because Nazism is contrary to our ideology. We believe all people are equal, but that is not what Nazis believe. If Nazis had won World War II, we would surely all be forced to accept the notion of genetic superiority. If we all believed in this, it would be termed ‘Right’, and equality ‘Wrong’. But what about the religion question? Are Right and Wrong not God’s judgements? Well consider this. There is no God, no Heaven or Hell, the Bible was written purely as a method of population control. It became necessary to teach people that Right meant obeying authority, and Wrong meant not obeying authority. To enforce this notion, Divine punishments were invented, so Heaven became the paradise destination for all those who live the Right way, and Hell for the rest. Isn’t it funny though, how we are taught Christianity today that differs so much from that which was taught back when the Bible was written? How bizarre that now we can live by different rules and still get into Heaven, even though surely those people who wrote the Bible must have known the truth. Unless the Bible is wrong! What about Protestantism? Was this entire branch of Christianity not created by people who simply decided that they wanted to believe differently to what they had done for centuries? Let us also consider why the Bible was changed every time it was translated. Changed to suit the ruling ideology, to support it, to strengthen it. Ok, so let’s assume that the overwhelming evidence against Christianity somehow is wrong. Perhaps that hilarious God of yours was playing a practical joke when he made us all think that the world was round and evolution was real, and so on… What if Christianity is the true religion? Then surely all other religions must be wrong. Their vastly contradictory beliefs could not also be Right. Surely all branches of Christianity except one must also not be strictly correct. Then surely which ever branch of believers proves to be right must be the superior faith. This means that all other faiths must be inferior, to certain extent. Let us take for example the small isolated tribes that inhabit the Earth’s hidden places, shielded from the ‘truth’. If their customs and beliefs are radically different from those of the correct faith, are they not inferior? Why were these beings created with no knowledge of their creator and his wonderful ways? These humans must be inferior, therefore we are technically racist for viewing them this way, by today’s standards. If not, are today’s standards wrong? Surely we cannot be wrong, for we are the true believers, are we not? You see, there is too much evidence and logic against religion. The world cannot possibly be explained by conventional religion anymore. I can no longer contemplate these debates. They run in circles in my head, always reach the same conclusion: there is no Right and Wrong. So I choose to live my short life to the fullest. When I die, I will not go to Heaven or Hell, I will simply stop existing. This thought is scary, and perhaps why people choose to believe in an afterlife, but it is a fact. I know that it makes no difference when I die what I did in life, because the universe – which consists only of my perceptions – will cease to exist. What does frighten me, and does inspire me to achieve in my life is the thought that death may not come suddenly and painlessly. I may discover one day that I only have a calculated time left to live, and I will spend my remaining months regretting what I have no time to do, and trying to do what I have not done, which no amount of time could ever allow. I come to the sad conclusion, therefore, that life is meaningless, pointless, short and obscure. Most of you will choose to forget every word that I have said, because it will ultimately ruin your life, but before you choose to forget, consider this: The freak accidents that have transpired to create the conscious beings we all are, have left us with emotions, feelings, senses, and the illusion of happiness. My advice is to spend your life achieving happiness, through whatever measures you can. Take advantage of pleasures the world has afforded us, be they drink, drugs, friends, sex or thrill-seeking craziness. Do not spend your life preparing for death, prepare for the moments before death, the time when you can reflect on life. This is Judgement Day - even though it may last for years, or milliseconds - ultimately you decided whether you are happy with the life you have lived. If you have regrets and sadness at the end of your life, the punishment on Judgement day will be the final sadness you experience, the last feeling you will ever feel. This scares me, and I wish I could simply believe in something easier to digest. If only the idea of God was remotely plausible, I could pretend that my life would ultimately result in eternal paradise. Even Hell is less scary than nothingness, sometimes.
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