Welcome to you roadrunner. We'll hear you out, but don't be surprised if we are not as easily persuaded as you.

Hope you enjoy your time here.

Always glad to see an engineer. I come from a long line of engineers; my dad has Chemical and Nuclear Engineering BSc degrees, and a Master's in Process Engineering, with parts of a doctorate.

Just wanted to reiterate the comment about "the New Atheists". I don't know what the hell that is or is supposed to be (I've had it defined for me, and near as I can tell it either refers to a couple of assholes whom Christians seem to think speak for all of us, or else it refers to any atheist who is no longer forced by threats of violence to stay quiet and/or deferential to the dominant faith-group), but as others pointed out to you, it can be seen as an irritating thing to say. I doubt you meant it as an insult, but unfortunately for you we've had a recent string of (now banned) people who have come here and started by calling attention, politely, to the "problems of New Atheism", and before long devolved into posting pictures of hell with giant font telling us that's where we're going, etc.

You will find, quite simply, that if you treat us like people, we'll return the favor. You're welcome to use strong arguments, but the moment you start committing fallacies and/or relying on bad data as part of your premise, you can expect sharp correction (we do this to one another, as well, often quite stridently), and if you persist on using demonstrably false data or questionable sources of information, it will quickly turn to simply saying not-nice things about you.

So, welcome to AF, and I hope you turn into one of the cool theists we have here. I like the ones we have but we can always use a few more.

Hello.

Welcome to the forum

I see you've been given plenty of good advice already, good job guys!

I look forward to some interesting discussions

Please tell me your username doesn't refer to the "roadrunner tactic" of debate If you don't know what I'm talking about, then all is well

(September 29, 2015 at 1:02 pm)RoadRunner79 Wrote: Hello,

I am a reformed (protestant) Christian, and I'm interested in discussion about theology, science, and history (history being a more recent and a weaker area of study for me).  I reviewed a few other forums, where I didn't feel, that this would happen, and decided that there might be a place for me here.  Bad arguments drive me crazy; even if I agree with the conclusion, and my goal is to hopefully refine arguments on both sides in the search for truth.  I want to clear up misconceptions and strawmen from others and in my own assertions. 

If I'm honest, I'm not very impressed; with the leaders of the new atheist movement.  Many argument may have appeal on the surface, but there is little substance when investigating deeper.  Further my experience with a number of militant atheist hasn't been very positive either, or encouraging towards thoughtful discussion.  I'm hoping to change that here. 

A little background on myself.  When I was a child, I went to church with my grandparents (my parents where never very religious).  As I became older I was given the choice to attend, and decided not to.  Then in my later teens, I was convinced by my cousin to attend the youth group at the same church.  It was fun, it a good group of people, and I liked the girls who attended .  At this point, I had belief in God, and the history, but would not consider myself a Christian.  Through college, I had moments of conviction, but was for the most part not active in any way with Christianity.  This also continued, as I moved away, and back again over a course of about 6-7 years.  During a time, when I was about 23-24 years old, I can't explain why, but I started watching some late night televangelist.  One (who is largely heretical and primarily teaches the prosperity gospel) had a message one night that spoke to me.  From there I committed myself to God as Lord, and immediately started gaining interest in scripture and Christian speakers.  It's difficult to explain to others, but I can clearly pinpoint the change within myself.  Especially early on, and through much of my journey, this has been apart from the Church, and without any peer pressure.

I am an Electrical Engineer, who programs, builds, and troubleshoots machine controls.  I am very analytical (and realize this sometimes annoys people), and I'm familiar with logic.  I apologize for the long intro, but wanted people to know where I'm coming from and any expectations.

Welcome RoadRunner, 

There a lots of great people around to discuss a variety of topics and I've found that for the more seasoned folks there isn't an argument/fallacy they haven't heard.  Be original and speak for yourself and treat everyone as an equal and you will do just fine.  

Thanks for the welcomes.

I do have a question after wandering around for a bit. In some of the other forums I have been to, there was a header, which showed the post number and linked to the post being responded to. Especially if interjecting into the middle of a conversation with a comment, I like to check the context, and look at previous posts. I found the thread mode at the top, but is there anything easier or more direct to view past replies? Also is there a way to make thread mode default?

(September 29, 2015 at 3:18 pm)RoadRunner79 Wrote: Thanks for the welcomes.

I do have a question after wandering around for a bit.  In some of the other forums I have been to, there was a header, which showed the post number and linked to the post being responded to.  Especially if interjecting into the middle of a conversation with a  comment, I like to check the context, and look at previous posts.  I found the thread mode at the top, but is there anything easier or more direct to view past replies? Also is there a way to make thread mode default?

Two useful features, here. The "Alerts" button lets you know when someone has replied to you specifically, as above, linking you directly to that reply.

Secondly, I make heavy use of "Today's Posts" button, rather than bothering to surf each individual thread, since it lists the most recent conversations, in order, and lets you know which discussions are active. 

As for the settings, I'm sure one of the Original Gangstas here will explain soon. I'm pretty new here, myself, and I can't parse what you were even asking, for most of the above! (Sorry!)

(September 29, 2015 at 3:15 pm)robvalue Wrote: Please tell me your username doesn't refer to the "roadrunner tactic" of debate If you don't know what I'm talking about, then all is well

The username comes from when I first started on Delphi forums, and was creating a username for a motorcycle forum.  Delphi is huge, so each name I chose was already taken.  At that time, I had "roadrunner" internet from time warner, and tried that (as it was on the mouse pad I had in front of me). It seemed to go with the purpose I was joining, and I do like Looney Tunes.   I've used that on other forums, and decided to keep it here. 

While it sounded familiar, I did have to look up the "roadrunner tactic".  I would say I'm more familiar with the form called a "suicidal argument".  What is your issue with it? If someone rejects the conclusion using there own reasoning, when applied to something else, then why should I accept their reasoning?   It's often a quick way, to show absurdity, and if someone doesn't live by their reasoning, then why should I?

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(September 29, 2015 at 3:52 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: Two useful features, here. The "Alerts" button lets you know when someone has replied to you specifically, as above, linking you directly to that reply.

Secondly, I make heavy use of "Today's Posts" button, rather than bothering to surf each individual thread, since it lists the most recent conversations, in order, and lets you know which discussions are active. 

As for the settings, I'm sure one of the Original Gangstas here will explain soon. I'm pretty new here, myself, and I can't parse what you were even asking, for most of the above! (Sorry!)

Thanks,  I love that quote from "The Princess Bride" in your sig by the way.  I've used it with those who don't really understand a fallacy, but seem to latch on to it, and use it for everything (or whenever I can really).

What kinda bike RoadRunner? I'm a custom motorcycle builder. (Used to be a biologist, but I like this better.)

There's also the arrow next to the person's username at the top of the quote box. That's a link to jump to the post itself.

Welcome to the forum.