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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 26, 2011 at 1:22 pm
(This post was last modified: February 26, 2011 at 1:33 pm by reverendjeremiah.)
all of the choices are good choices, and I have used everyone of them. I voted "Religious confusion".
As an absurdist I use the fact of religious confusion the most. "Personal revelation" screams "personal intent". If any form of divinity actuall really did exist, then there would be no argument about it. People do not argue wether apples exist or not. People do not argue wether the moon exists or not. But each and every single believer not only argue their own personal deity as opposed to other deities, but their arguments ALWAYS reflect their personal loves and hatreds as coming out of the mouth of their own personal deity. Their personal god supports everything the believer hates and loves. Therefore guilty through INTENT. It all breaks down to arguments of authority, the authority reflects the arguers intent to manipulate those around them without the need to justify his or her commands.
Whenever the word "god" appears in the arguments of a believer, you can rest assured that what follows will be a list of do's and dont's that reflect the personal views and intents of the one invoking the word "god".
To me, when someone says "god", it usually really means "do what I tell you to do."
I care not if a deity exists or not. My position is if said deity is worth worshipping and following. I have yet to hear or read about a deity that did not scream the intents of the author. Therefore those deities are fictional. If evidence that a real, actual deity existed appeared before me, it would not change my view that said deity does not deserve worship and respect. Malevolent deities do not deserve praise or respect and further add proof to the absurdity of a divinity in general.
(February 25, 2011 at 6:14 pm)apophenia Wrote: This poll seems tragically flawed. Atheism needs no reason because it is not a belief -- it is beliefs other than atheism which need reasons.
Also what apophenia said.
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 26, 2011 at 3:05 pm
(This post was last modified: February 26, 2011 at 3:11 pm by Edwardo Piet.)
(February 25, 2011 at 6:14 pm)apophenia Wrote: Atheism needs no reason because it is not a belief
That is not necessarily true. Atheism can be a belief that God is impossible (gnostic atheism) or a belief that God is merely more improbable than probable.
Atheism without a belief is like someone who has never heard of the notion of God. Like a newborn baby.
It is true that atheism doesn't need a reason to disbelieve, but it does need a reason to consider God improbable. I consider God to be highly improbable based on his complexity and also the fact that a thing such as God is just so far from our experience that it is rational of us to infer him as improbable.
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 27, 2011 at 9:34 am
ALL OF THE ABOVE so i voted other
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 27, 2011 at 3:58 pm
(February 25, 2011 at 6:14 pm)apophenia Wrote: This poll seems tragically flawed. Atheism needs no reason because it is not a belief -- it is beliefs other than atheism which need reasons.
I agree that the poll is flawed, but not for the reason stated. Atheism is a belief because the non-existence of God can not be proven. Theories need reasons, belief without reason is faith.
The problem with this poll is that the arguments listed are reasons to disbelieve in religion, not reasons to believe in the non-existence of a supreme being, or entity or whatever. I vote 'other'.
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 27, 2011 at 11:16 pm
Hiddenness and reasonable non-belief. I have seen nothing and heard no argument that would convince me that there is a god and as such see no reason to believe in one.
"If an injury must be done to a man, it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared" - Niccolo Macchiavelli
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 27, 2011 at 11:37 pm
The lack of evidence for gods seems to me a very good argument for atheism, as if any is needed.
In the absence of any compelling reason to believe, the rational course is to not believe.
We don't have aSanta-Clausists, aFairyists, aUnicornists. People simply don't believe.
"People need heroes. They don't need to know how he died clawing his eyes out, screaming for mercy. The real story would just hurt sales, and dampen the spirits of our customers." - Mythology for Profit
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 28, 2011 at 2:43 am
(February 27, 2011 at 11:37 pm)FadingW Wrote: The lack of evidence for gods seems to me a very good argument for atheism, as if any is needed.
In the absence of any compelling reason to believe, the rational course is to not believe.
We don't have aSanta-Clausists, aFairyists, aUnicornists. People simply don't believe. I think that this depends as to whether you take a strong or weak atheist perspective. I tend towards the strong view and thus attract a burden of proof.
"I still say a church steeple with a lightning rod on top shows a lack of confidence"...Doug McLeod.
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 28, 2011 at 2:51 am
When people ask me why I'm an atheist, I state that it's because no religion has met the burden of proof.
If today you can take a thing like evolution and make it a crime to teach in the public schools, tomorrow you can make it a crime to teach it in the private schools and next year you can make it a crime to teach it to the hustings or in the church. At the next session you may ban books and the newspapers...
Ignorance and fanaticism are ever busy and need feeding. Always feeding and gloating for more. Today it is the public school teachers; tomorrow the private. The next day the preachers and the lecturers, the magazines, the books, the newspapers. After a while, Your Honor, it is the setting of man against man and creed against creed until with flying banners and beating drums we are marching backward to the glorious ages of the sixteenth centry when bigots lighted fagots to burn the men who dared to bring any intelligence and enlightenment and culture to the human mind. ~Clarence Darrow, at the Scopes Monkey Trial, 1925
Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. ~Ronald Reagan
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 28, 2011 at 4:16 am
(This post was last modified: February 28, 2011 at 4:30 am by Violet.)
My favorite argument 'for' atheism is that I don't promise my argument be rational. This means I can say anything I want, and still feel like I am right! ^_^ And when everyone disagrees with me, I can condescendingly smile, because I know I am right, and if they disagree, then they are wrong ^_^
Basically, if I argue in favor of atheism: atheism wins! ^_^ Doesn't matter what the argument is, just matters who says it  Your hero seriously asks you to jump off a cliff because his shoes were tied by the wrong maid this morning: good argument. Sickly street bum present you with 5000 bazilion sound arguments in favor of evolution when you are a skeptic: bad argument.
Presentation is 90% of argument, debate, cooking, and sex ^_^
(Non-silly: I actually don't like many of those arguments noted in the poll, and if you seek to debate this with me, know first that I am always right, even when your argument is sound and mine ridiculous)
(February 26, 2011 at 3:05 pm)DoubtVsFaith Wrote: (February 25, 2011 at 6:14 pm)apophenia Wrote: Atheism needs no reason because it is not a belief
That is not necessarily true. Atheism can be a belief that God is impossible (gnostic atheism) or a belief that God is merely more improbable than probable.
Ima gnostic  It's a position of faith ^_^ I'm faithful, filled up with faith, full of faith, not half empty of faith, and other faith related thingies ^_^
Quote:Atheism without a belief is like someone who has never heard of the notion of God. Like a newborn baby.
In other words, you faithless heathens may be equated to little babies. I wonder if your taste is not dissimilar >_>
Quote:It is true that atheism doesn't need a reason to disbelieve, but it does need a reason to consider God improbable. I consider God to be highly improbable based on his complexity and also the fact that a thing such as God is just so far from our experience that it is rational of us to infer him as improbable.
Nobody needs a reason to believe anything! ^_^ Actually, that's false... but it is true that nobody must *consciously* involke a reason when they believe anything ^_^
God isn't improbable ^_^ He's just very very shy. And jealous. And likes a good hamburger (that is actually filled with cow...). Honestly, he's just a very insecure and depressed person. Poor fellow, i know how he feels to an extent, except I can get sex without forcing people. Poor God... do not you feel for him? Not only does he exist, but you're coming onto this forum and saying that he doesn't. He reads this forum, you know... while he cuts himself. But no matter how many times he tries to commit suicide: he can't, because he's God. Being able to do anything can become awfully depressing really fast...
I really have to wonder about all these people who give him a hard time (not to say you just were, Evie... i just had to get that out of my system, and your post somehow triggered this response).
Please give me a home where cloud buffalo roam
Where the dear and the strangers can play
Where sometimes is heard a discouraging word
But the skies are not stormy all day
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RE: What is your favoured argument FOR atheism
February 28, 2011 at 9:57 am
I've never seen any reason to believe in a god. No religion has met the burden of proof. God is an extremely high improbability. No evidence, no credibility. I have every reason to lack belief in such childish beliefs.
And no, faith will never do. 
My standards don't go that low.
Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence - Carl Sagan
Mankind's intelligence walks hand in hand with it's stupidity.
Being an atheist says nothing about your overall intelligence, it just means you don't believe in god. Atheists can be as bright as any scientist and as stupid as any creationist.
You never really know just how stupid someone is, until you've argued with them.
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