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This changes everything!

dfnj

Well-Known Member
Religion is worthless if it doesn't improve the lives of the people living in the community. This video article I watched is the greatest thing I've seen in 10 years.

"Last year, the first permitted 3D printed house in the US went up in Austin, Texas. The house was a buzz-generating proof of concept, a wacky example of the cool things tech can do. At the time, its creators—construction technologies startup ICON and housing nonprofit New Story—were raising money to fund construction of homes for low-income families in Latin America.

Now their proof of concept has turned into something much more concrete (pun intended): today, New Story announced construction of their first community of 3D printed homes, going up in Mexico’s southern state of Tabasco. There will be 50 3D printed houses once construction is complete, the first two of which were unveiled today."

"At 500 square feet apiece, the houses aren’t terribly large, but they each have two bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Houses are printed in around 24 hours’ time using a printer called the Vulcan II."​


These homes are Godsend mansions compared to the squalor I've seen in Mexico! Can you imagine what huge advance this would be for mankind if we could have cheap affordable housing for everyone literally overnight!! My God this is great. Why can't we just work for each other just a little bit. Too many tears not enough joy!! This is so positive and doable it will be absolute sin if humanity pulls the butthole routine again and again. Just help people for a change!!!
 
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dfnj

Well-Known Member
Absolutely wonderful but what has religion to do with it?

I don't mean to be disrespectful to your atheism. My comment was for people who are mostly religious. So in this context, what is the value of religion if it doesn't define our values in such a way that helping people is a priority. I was not implying religion is necessary for what was posted in the OP to have value. Of course atheists are just as moral as theists. I'm not an idiot. In retrospect, atheists may be more moral than theists because people obsessed with sin seem to be the ones who keep committing the most sins!

I would hope, for you as an atheist, you would see the value in providing housing for people living in squalor. I have no idea what would be the source of your kindness but I hope it exists.
 

dybmh

דניאל יוסף בן מאיר הירש
Religion is worthless if it doesn't improve the lives of the people living in the community.
Respectfully Intended question:

I noticed your religious affiliation here on RF is "Your Own". Does "Your Own" religion improve the lives of the people living in your community?

BTW, I think that "Not Yet" is a perfectly valid answer.
 

ChristineM

"Be strong", I whispered to my coffee.
Premium Member
I don't mean to be disrespectful to your atheism. My comment was for people who are mostly religious. So in this context, what is the value of religion if it doesn't define our values in such a way that helping people is a priority. I was not implying religion is necessary for what was posted in the OP to have value. Of course atheists are just as moral as theists. I'm not an idiot. In retrospect, atheists may be more moral than theists because people obsessed with sin seem to be the ones who keep committing the most sins!

I would hope, for you as an atheist, you would see the value in providing housing for people living in squalor. I have no idea what would be the source of your kindness but I hope it exists.


Of course not and i didn't ask to disrespect religion . I was asking why you associated a start-up company who is providing housing where needed with religion.where no obvious link exists that i can see. And it seems you can't provide a valid reason either


Oh it exists, far more than you are willing to comprehend. Hu
 

PureX

Veteran Member
Religion is worthless if it doesn't improve the lives of the people living in the community. This video article I watched is the greatest thing I've seen in 10 years.

"Last year, the first permitted 3D printed house in the US went up in Austin, Texas. The house was a buzz-generating proof of concept, a wacky example of the cool things tech can do. At the time, its creators—construction technologies startup ICON and housing nonprofit New Story—were raising money to fund construction of homes for low-income families in Latin America.

Now their proof of concept has turned into something much more concrete (pun intended): today, New Story announced construction of their first community of 3D printed homes, going up in Mexico’s southern state of Tabasco. There will be 50 3D printed houses once construction is complete, the first two of which were unveiled today."

"At 500 square feet apiece, the houses aren’t terribly large, but they each have two bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Houses are printed in around 24 hours’ time using a printer called the Vulcan II."​


These homes are Godsend mansions compared to the squalor I've seen in Mexico! Can you imagine what huge advance this would be for mankind if we could have cheap affordable housing for everyone literally overnight!! My God this is great. Why can't we just work for each other just a little bit. Too many tears not enough joy!! This is so positive and doable it will be absolute sin if humanity pulls the butthole routine again and again. Just help people for a change!!!
The problem is that we don't build houses for people to live in, we only build them for a profit to ourselves. And we want as much money as we can get from them, every time, all the time. So even though building good quality houses for people to live in has been possible for many, many years, we still won't build them, because we don't care about other people having places to live. We only care about the money: and getting as much of it for ourselves as we can. So all we will ever do with our technology is use it to serve the rich, as we try to get as much money out of them as we can.

We could long ago have mass produced very cheap, reliable, efficient electric cars that everyone could afford. But we didn't, and we aren't going to. Because we don't care about providing cheap, reliable, efficient cars for everyone. All we care about is gaining the maximum profit from the cars we build and sell. And that means building way overly-complex, overly powerful, overly consumptive and wildly luxurious cars to sell for many thousands of dollars to rich people. So that's what ALL the car manufacturers make, and sell.

On and on it goes. We could be living in a much, much different, and much, much better society right now than we are, if that's what we'd decided that we wanted to build. But it's not what we want. All we want is more money for ourselves, and to hell with the quality of our society. Or with the quality of the lives of anyone else in it.
 

It Aint Necessarily So

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Absolutely wonderful but what has religion to do with it?

I don't mean to be disrespectful to your atheism. My comment was for people who are mostly religious. So in this context, what is the value of religion if it doesn't define our values in such a way that helping people is a priority.

Good question. What does religion provide the world that isn't provided just as well without it?

I would hope, for you as an atheist, you would see the value in providing housing for people living in squalor.

Yes, and I'm glad that as a theist, you can as well. We're going to need your help with this world.

I have no idea what would be the source of your kindness but I hope it exists.

Unbelievers get this a lot from theists who can't imagine what the life of a secular humanist is like. How could he possibly be kind without religion? What purpose or hope could an atheist have? Why would an atheist behave morally if there is nobody to punish him for being immoral?

Anyway, I live in Mexico, and these tiny houses are a thing now, but not just for Mexicans. The retired expats are moving into developments of these small houses, where they can afford to live adequately on their retirement checks even if meager, or in the case of the video linked below, in a community of seekers: This is area I live in, but we aren't a part of this Namaste group.They begin discussing their small houses about a minute into this short video, which I believe are not made from 3D printers, but standard construction. I understand that rents can be under $200/mo USD

 

wandering peacefully

Which way to the woods?
Good question. What does religion provide the world that isn't provided just as well without it?



Yes, and I'm glad that as a theist, you can as well. We're going to need your help with this world.



Unbelievers get this a lot from theists who can't imagine what the life of a secular humanist is like. How could he possibly be kind without religion? What purpose or hope could an atheist have? Why would an atheist behave morally if there is nobody to punish him for being immoral?

Anyway, I live in Mexico, and these tiny houses are a thing now, but not just for Mexicans. The retired expats are moving into developments of these small houses, where they can afford to live adequately on their retirement checks even if meager, or in the case of the video linked below, in a community of seekers: This is area I live in, but we aren't a part of this Namaste group.They begin discussing their small houses about a minute into this short video, which I believe are not made from 3D printers, but standard construction. I understand that rents can be under $200/mo USD

Sounds a bit cult like. I wonder what type of spiritual practices is expected if one wants to live there? Hope it works out for the best for them.
 

It Aint Necessarily So

Veteran Member
Premium Member
The problem is that we don't build houses for people to live in, we only build them for a profit to ourselves.

As you know, the profit incentive is the engine that drives capitalism, and it is a very powerful and successful motivator that enriches everybody (not just financially) if the capitalism is regulated and the incentive to make a profit by harming and defrauding people is reduced, as with industrial environmental polluters, who need to be made to pay much more than they stood to profit to deisincentivize that behavior.

This leaves the three healthy profit-motivated practices: increased efficiency, novelty, and industry (working harder), all of which can generate increased profits while benefiting the comunity..

I chose to work because I needed to eat. I chose work that benefited others, which was a big plus, but I was there primarily to support my family. When I didn't need additional income, I retired.

Same with building houses. The builder need not be altruistic. His self-interest in being successful and avoiding legal problems motivates him to build houses that people will like and be satisfied with at prices they are willing to pay.

Win-win, even thought the builder is more interested in making a living than getting people into homes.

Sounds a bit cult like. I wonder what type of spiritual practices is expected if one wants to live there?

These things are creepy to me as well. I know the entrepreneur and "spiritualist," Jimmy Twyman, but none of the other people in the video. I suspect that they live on the compound pretty much full time and don't interact much with the surrounding community, which is also a bit cult-like and off-putting.

But they seem to like their isolated community and their small houses, so good for them.
 

Valjean

Veteran Member
Premium Member
This looks promising. Perhaps it could address the problem of unaffordable housing in our urban centers:
 

PureX

Veteran Member
As you know, the profit incentive is the engine that drives capitalism, and it is a very powerful and successful motivator that enriches everybody (not just financially) if the capitalism is regulated and the incentive to make a profit by harming and defrauding people is reduced, as with industrial environmental polluters, who need to be made to pay much more than they stood to profit to deisincentivize that behavior.

This leaves the three healthy profit-motivated practices: increased efficiency, novelty, and industry (working harder), all of which can generate increased profits while benefiting the comunity..

I chose to work because I needed to eat. I chose work that benefited others, which was a big plus, but I was there primarily to support my family. When I didn't need additional income, I retired.

Same with building houses. The builder need not be altruistic. His self-interest in being successful and avoiding legal problems motivates him to build houses that people will like and be satisfied with at prices they are willing to pay.

Win-win, even thought the builder is more interested in making a living than getting people into homes.
When the motive is profit to self, the motive is not social well-being. Nor is it environmental well-being. Nor is it fair trade or equal opportunity. Nor is it truth, logic, or even reason, beyond that which incurs the greatest profit to self. Which is why the world that we're living in does not resemble, at all, the world that you imagine we are living in, as you've expressed above. And why it never will.
 

wandering peacefully

Which way to the woods?
As you know, the profit incentive is the engine that drives capitalism, and it is a very powerful and successful motivator that enriches everybody (not just financially) if the capitalism is regulated and the incentive to make a profit by harming and defrauding people is reduced, as with industrial environmental polluters, who need to be made to pay much more than they stood to profit to deisincentivize that behavior.

This leaves the three healthy profit-motivated practices: increased efficiency, novelty, and industry (working harder), all of which can generate increased profits while benefiting the comunity..

I chose to work because I needed to eat. I chose work that benefited others, which was a big plus, but I was there primarily to support my family. When I didn't need additional income, I retired.

Same with building houses. The builder need not be altruistic. His self-interest in being successful and avoiding legal problems motivates him to build houses that people will like and be satisfied with at prices they are willing to pay.

Win-win, even thought the builder is more interested in making a living than getting people into homes.



These things are creepy to me as well. I know the entrepreneur and "spiritualist," Jimmy Twyman, but none of the other people in the video. I suspect that they live on the compound pretty much full time and don't interact much with the surrounding community, which is also a bit cult-like and off-putting.

But they seem to like their isolated community and their small houses, so good for them.
I do absolutely love the idea of tiny houses in communities powered by local solar and small wind where appropriate . Locally grown food with community wide participation if desired. Not completely going off grid or cutting off from necessary commerce , but we have got to get ourselves under control with the over consumption of resources and lack of thought we have been participating in.

Tiny houses especially for the homeless would be great. They will no longer be homeless with self help coupled with needed outside help and full care if they are really unable to be active in their own process.

Tiner houses would go a long way to help with this. At least houses of reasonable sizes.

Yeah, the scene in the video where they are all gathered in chairs at some meeting says quite a lot about their interactions and inclusions of the locals there. Creepy is right. But yes, good on them if they are safe and happy and not causing harm to the locals.
 
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