Bob Down: Well I hope it's the end because any alternatives suck.

I hear the devout talk about going to Heaven and being there for eternity.

I'd like to ask them if they have TRULY pondered an eternal existence. You would have time to read every book, watch every movie, hear every song. More than that, you would have time to MEMORIZE all of that.

You'd have time to become fluent in all 4000+ languages on Earth.

And that's all in just the first MOMENT, when you compare it to the rest of the time you'll have at your disposal.

Think about what you did today. Now, try to imagine doing the same thing every day, forever.

Doesn't sound like a heaven to me.

Some folks believe that if you perform a "mortal sin", you're damned for eternity. Imagine going through K-12 school, but you're told you have to continue on to grad school. So, you spend 3-7 years doing that, jumping through all the hoops. You defend your 675-page dissertation, only to be told that while the research and writing were all top-notch, you don't get ANY sort of degree because you weren't paying attention on a Thursday afternoon in late February of 4th grade, when the teacher asked you a question and you missed it. Now, the devout will say missing a question isn't the same as multiple murders, but the outcome is no different. There's no chance for redemption. What is the line between a forgivable sin and a mortal sin? Is it really clear-cut? If not, have some of us already passed the point of no return? If there's no return, why continue to follow society's rules?

IMHO, an eternity in Heaven is no different than an eternity in Hell. Unless the diety or dieties allow some way out, eternity would become an endless nightmare, no matter how nice it might be.