What do we participants in Atheistforums.org actually believe regarding religion. Please check all that apply. (This will be a public pole.) I've included choices regarding belief, knowledge, interest in gods (apatheism), coherence (ignosticism), interest in understanding the phenomenon of god belief (phenomenological status, stance toward the supernatural, and belief in life after death.


B-1 I believe that gods do exist.

B-2 I believe that gods do not exist.

B-3 I do not believe in gods.



K-1 I know that gods exist.

K-2 I do not know if gods exist.

K-3 I know that gods do not exist.



A-1 It matters to me to know whether or not gods exist.

A-2 It does not matter to me to know whether or not gods exist.



I-1 I believe the concept of "god" is sufficiently well understood to be sure we are all on the same page when formulating beliefs about them.

I-2 I do not believe the concept of "god" is sufficiently well understood to be sure we are all on the same page when formulating beliefs about them.



P-1 It is of interest to me to understand the phenomenon of god belief and the role it plays in human affairs.

P-2 It is of no interest to me to understand the phenomenon of god belief and the role it plays in human affairs.



S-1 I believe in some things that are supernatural.

S-2 I do not believe in anything that is supernatural.

S-3 Everything that exists at all is natural for its kind.



L-1 I suspect there is a continuance of 'self' beyond the grave.

L-2 I suspect there is no continuance of 'self' beyond the grave.

Short summary of my positions:
Belief - No god
Knowledge - Never met one
Apatheism - Fuck god
Ignosticism - I know enough to say 'Fuck god'
PSoG - Know thy enemy
Supernatural - Ghost hunters are morons
Life after death - Dust in the wind

My choice for the first half of that is not there. There is no evidence for any gods.

Otherwise.

I would like to understand the reason why grown adults cling to childish fantasies.

"Supernatural" is shit.

Dead is dead. Get over yourselves. The universe will continue along just fine without you.

Trying to fill in this poll was actually an eye-opener for me.

Here's the thing, both of the following apply to me:
I-2 I do not believe the concept of "god" is sufficiently well understood to be sure we are all on the same page when formulating beliefs about them.
and
P-1 It is of interest to me to understand the phenomenon of god belief and the role it plays in human affairs.

So I'm fucked.

Another thing: Maybe it's interesting to split I-2 in two parts:
My ignostiscism (if I'm using the term correctly - and please correct me if I don't) stems from two things:
1 Definitions like 'god exists outside reality'. This statement basically means that there is a set of - everything real - that is real called reality, and that god is somehow not in that set but still he exists. Some statements are just incomprehensible, and 'god exists outside reality' is one of them.
2 The lack of consensus on the definition of gods, which makes words like 'atheist' meaningless in a way. There have been tribes out there that believed their totem was god. They would even call it god. Am I an atheist in this context?

I also agree on S-3, as the 'supernatural' is an empty set by definition.
The rest depends on the specific definition of the 'god' I'm asked to take a position on.

Other than Mark Pellegrino and Sam Elliot, there are no Gods.

(maybe Chuck Norris if he would quit shaving his body)

Quit trying to give me a damn label!

(July 10, 2014 at 1:30 pm)Minimalist Wrote: My choice for the first half of that is not there. There is no evidence for any gods.

Hah! And to think I could of maxed this poll out with three more options:

E-1 I think evidence is paramount and reject claims for which it is not forthcoming, and so reject belief in god.

E-2 I think evidence is paramount and have it in plenty for gods existence.

E-3 I don't think evidence is always necessary for belief.

(July 10, 2014 at 1:42 pm)whateverist Wrote: E-3 I don't think evidence is always necessary for belief.

"I'm sexy and I know it"

Belief - I withhold belief in things that aren't demonstrable.
Knowledge - Where I'm at with this depends on what epistemological standards we're applying. Generally, I don't consider it knowable.
Apatheism - Do I look like I give a fuck?
Ignosticism - The concept of "god" is incoherent.
PSoG - I waffle between caring and not. Mostly not.
Supernatural - "Supernatural" is merely a placeholder some use for "Natural things we don't understand yet", and others for "The nonexistent".
Life after death - Dead is dead. You don't get to come back from that.

ETA: Evidence. It depends. You want to make a convincing case to others? Better bring some. I prefer my beliefs to be coherent with what we know of reality. Beyond that, DILLIGAF?

(July 10, 2014 at 1:39 pm)Napoléon Wrote: Quit trying to give me a damn label!

You already have one. You are the embodiment of the Napoleon complex.