Infropreneur
JF-Expert Member
- Aug 15, 2022
- 14,578
- 31,662
- Thread starter
- #41
If you claim there's Satan or dark forces then you have to prove.Mkuu, your argument has some strong points. Personal responsibility is real. Bad choices often lead to bad outcomes. Ignorance, poor planning, and lack of discipline can keep someone in poverty. Also, it is true that fear, conspiracy thinking, and constant blame-shifting can paralyze people from taking action. In that sense, mindset and behavior do matter a lot.
However, your conclusion that there are no external negative influences at all, including the complete dismissal of Satan or any form of dark influence, is a philosophical position, not a proven fact.
First, let us stay within observable reality. Not everything that affects human behavior is visible or directly measurable. For example: Psychological manipulation exists. Advertising, propaganda, and social conditioning shape how people think without them realizing it. Addictions are real. A person may know what is right but still feel pulled toward what destroys them. Harmful ideologies can spread and influence millions of people’s decisions over time.
Those are not “imaginary enemies,” yet they operate in ways that are not always obvious. So the idea that unseen influences can affect human choices is not irrational.
Second, history shows organized systems of power that quietly influence societies: Governments have conducted covert operations. Corporations sometimes manipulate markets and information. Influential groups shape narratives through media and culture. This does not prove every conspiracy theory, but it shows that “hidden influence” is not a fantasy category.
Now, when it comes to the concept of Satan or a dark force, the discussion moves into metaphysics, not just economics or psychology. You cannot disprove such a reality simply by pointing to human responsibility. Both can exist at the same time.
A simple analogy:
If someone drives recklessly and crashes, we can say it is his/her fault. But if the road was intentionally made slippery or misleading, then there is also an external factor involved. Responsibility and influence are not mutually exclusive.
Also, consider this:
Across different cultures and time periods, humans have independently described a pattern of internal conflict. People often feel a pull between what they know is right and what they end up doing. This struggle is universal. Some interpret it purely as psychology. Others see it as something deeper. Dismissing one side entirely does not make the question disappear.
On your point about religion making people passive, that can be true in some cases. But it is not universally true. Many disciplined, strategic, and highly successful individuals also hold strong belief systems. At the same time, many non-believers remain stuck despite having no belief in Satan or curses. So belief alone does not explain success or failure.
Finally, the statement that “the world is as harmless as it can be” is difficult to defend. There is clear evidence of cruelty, manipulation, injustice, and destructive behavior in human systems. Whether one calls it human nature, systemic corruption, or something more, the world is not harmless.
A more balanced position would be this: Humans are responsible for their choices. Mindset, discipline, and action are critical for success. At the same time, external influences, both visible and invisible, can affect human behavior.
Denying one side completely oversimplifies a complex reality.
So yes, people should stop blaming everything on external forces and take responsibility. But it is equally an oversimplification to claim that nothing beyond the individual exists or has influence.
Reality is more layered than that. So yes, take responsibility. Build, plan, act. But do not pretend the world is only what you can see. There is more at play than just “you.”
Think deeper.
I’ve said enough.
The burden of proof rests on the person making a positive claim.
In philosophy, the burden of proof rests on the person making a positive claim. Shifting this burden occurs when a claimant evades the responsibility of providing evidence for their assertion and instead demands that their opponent disprove it.
And anything asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.
No one has ever proven Satan exists. There are just claims without proofs.
Satan was asserted without evidence and can be dismissed without evidence.