(May 21, 2014 at 8:31 am)alpha male Wrote: If they really cared about the suffering, they'd take the time and money devoted to getting high and give it to those who are suffering.

So your best defence of your religion is to say it would elevate you so far as to make you about as good as those who think your god is nothing but evil bullshit?

So we are no worse then you, but we have more fun, and more intellectual freedom, and that made you pathologically jeolous and resentful?

(May 21, 2014 at 11:10 am)Chuck Wrote: So your best defence of your religion is to say it would elevate you so far as to make you about as good as those who think your god is nothing but evil bullshit?

So we are no worse then you, but we have more fun, and more intellectual freedom, and that made you pathologically jeolous and resentful?

You don't have more fun. Surveys on happiness show that in relatively wealthy countries, theists and atheists report about the same levels of happiness. In majority religious countries theists have an edge. In majority atheist countries atheists have an edge. In either case the difference is small.

In poorer countries, theists report greater happiness.

Regarding intellectual freedom - say what? Theists can be YECs, or accept the mainstream scientific thought, or be somewhere in between. Atheists are pretty much stuck with the mainstream scientific thought. Some venture out a bit, but they're usually attacked as promoting woo by other atheists.

(May 21, 2014 at 12:19 pm)alpha male Wrote: Atheists are pretty much stuck with the mainstream scientific thought. Some venture out a bit, but they're usually attacked as promoting woo by other atheists.

"Stuck"? John, that's just factually incorrect: plenty of atheists believe all kinds of crap, and they're rightly called on it, as us rational ones would call anyone out, theist or no. My own mother is an atheist who believes in ghosts and watches all those psychic shows; the only thing atheists are stuck with, by definition, is disbelief in god.

I love how acceptance of mainstream scientific thought (i.e., reality) is described as "stuck" by AM.

---

(May 21, 2014 at 12:19 pm)alpha male Wrote:

(May 21, 2014 at 11:10 am)Chuck Wrote: So your best defence of your religion is to say it would elevate you so far as to make you about as good as those who think your god is nothing but evil bullshit?

So we are no worse then you, but we have more fun, and more intellectual freedom, and that made you pathologically jeolous and resentful?

You don't have more fun. Surveys on happiness show that in relatively wealthy countries, theists and atheists report about the same levels of happiness. In majority religious countries theists have an edge. In majority atheist countries atheists have an edge. In either case the difference is small.

In poorer countries, theists report greater happiness.

Regarding intellectual freedom - say what? Theists can be YECs, or accept the mainstream scientific thought, or be somewhere in between. Atheists are pretty much stuck with the mainstream scientific thought. Some venture out a bit, but they're usually attacked as promoting woo by other atheists.

WRONG

http://youtu.be/WrjwaqZfjIY

Quote:The study, published in the October issue of Psychological Medicine but online now, followed more than 8,000 people in rural and urban areas in seven countries for one year. During the research, they were each examined at six- and 12-month intervals.

In those time frames, 10.3 per cent of religious participants became depressed, compared with 7.0 per cent for atheists and 10.5 per cent for those with a "spiritual understanding of life," the study found.

The results also varied between country and religion. For example, spiritual participants from the U.K. were found to be more than three times more likely to be depressed than their secular counterparts.

Those who practised varying religions showed the highest rate of depression - 11.5 per cent - followed by Protestants at 10.9 per cent, those without a specific religion at 10.8 per cent, and Catholics at 9.8 per cent.

http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/yourcommunit...study.html

http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/4291

Quote:If religion contributes to happiness, then the most religious countries should be happiest. Yet, the opposite is true.

According to Gallup data for 2010, the happiest nations were Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and the Netherlands. These are among the least religious countries in the world. Also according to Gallup data, Sweden, Denmark and Norway were the second, third, and fourth least religious states, being exceeded only by Estonia in their atheism.

http://m.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-hu...le-happier

It appears all the psychological benefits of "religion" actually come from community, not the beliefs experienced.

Depression comes from being surrounded by shithead bags of douche like AM all the time.

(May 21, 2014 at 12:52 pm)Esquilax Wrote: "Stuck"? John, that's just factually incorrect: plenty of atheists believe all kinds of crap, and they're rightly called on it, as us rational ones would call anyone out, theist or no. My own mother is an atheist who believes in ghosts and watches all those psychic shows; the only thing atheists are stuck with, by definition, is disbelief in god.

OK, but that's still just equal intellectual freedom at best.

(May 21, 2014 at 1:15 pm)alpha male Wrote: OK, but that's still just equal intellectual freedom at best.

I wasn't making some broader point beyond "atheists aren't inherently rational." But I'll take intellectual freedom over dogma any day.

(May 21, 2014 at 1:31 pm)Esquilax Wrote: I wasn't making some broader point beyond "atheists aren't inherently rational." But I'll take intellectual freedom over dogma any day.

No one has demonstrated that theists don't have intellectual freedom. As I've noted, on origins, theists run the gamut.

(May 21, 2014 at 1:36 pm)alpha male Wrote: I've noted, on origins, theists run the gamut.

Without any verifiable evidence to support their gaps of knowledge claim.

(May 21, 2014 at 1:36 pm)alpha male Wrote:

(May 21, 2014 at 1:31 pm)Esquilax Wrote: I wasn't making some broader point beyond "atheists aren't inherently rational." :P But I'll take intellectual freedom over dogma any day.

No one has demonstrated that theists don't have intellectual freedom. As I've noted, on origins, theists run the gamut.

(May 21, 2014 at 1:49 pm)Kitanetos Wrote: Without any verifiable evidence to support their gaps of knowledge claim.

They have the intellectual freedom - that's the issue ya know - to accept evidence that you reject.