Chaos makes more sense than order
Some mountaineers and thrill-seekers use three words to explain why they climb mountains and seek thrills: “Because it’s there.”
Some impolite people likewise use three words to explain why they go around bullying others and being generally dislikable: “Because I can.”
Combine these quips and you get the driving force behind the universe: “Because it’s there, and I can.”
As I may have mentioned, I’m an atheist, which means I don’t believe in any divinities (God, Allah, Thor, or even Bob) or higher powers of any kind.
And the reason I believe what I do, aside from the fact that I’ve never encountered any rational, compelling evidence that God, Allah, Thor, or Bob exist in any sense of the word, is this: A universe built on the idea of chaos, disorder and random chance makes far more sense to me than one that was consciously created and defined by some ineffable higher power.
It’s incredibly hard for me to swallow the theory that the Earth was created in 4004 B.C.E. over a period of seven days by a supreme being whose very molecular structure remains a mystery.
I find it far easier to believe that life began when lightning struck the primordial soup and (for lack of a better adverb) miraculously fused amino acids and other necessary organic materials together into the forerunners of single-celled organisms, which then got to procreating and evolving and in the end, produced every single life form on this planet.
One of the questions I get asked when I let slip that I’m an atheist is, “So what’s the point of human existence? Why does life exist? What’s its purpose?”
I hate to burst bubbles, but the only reason life exists on this planet, simply put, because it can.
The fish swimming around in the ancient seas moved onto land because (a) it was a handy place to go to avoid predators and (b) it was there. It was a new niche that could be expanded into.
So the fish took a big gulp of water, scrambled out onto land and then dived back in as soon as the predator left.
Gradually the fish evolved foot-like fins and began to be able to “hold their breath” for longer on land.
The process kept up until the fish ceased to be fish and became amphibians and so on and so forth.
I never could understand why human beings are so desperate to have a purpose behind their lives and the lives of the human race as a whole.
Why do we need a reason to exist? Why do we need a higher purpose behind our existence?
Can’t we just be satisfied that we do exist and that we’re continuing to exist?
Humans are subject to these same rules.
As apes, we expanded to new niches and environments, and we’ve found a rather advantageous one, thanks to our large brains and opposable thumbs: the top of the food chain.
We took over the world because it was there, and we could.
That’s the truth as I see it. If you find what I’ve said depressing, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to give you another cliché: that’s life.
Andrew is a senior studying mass communication.
Columnists' opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of The Spectrum