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Atheism is a religion
RE: Atheism is a religion
Which is as good an example as any of why no one is interested in your "definitions."
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RE: Atheism is a religion
(January 7, 2012 at 9:24 pm)Minimalist Wrote:
Quote:"Calling Atheism a religion is like calling bald a hair color."
--Don Hirschberg

Saying that you "lack belef" in God, or anything you are aware of for that matter, is like saying homosexuals can't get "married" in a secular sence.
- me
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RE: Atheism is a religion
It's language that creates dictionaries, not the other way around. Lexicographers actually follow the usage of words and record them instead of just writing down any old definition that comes into their heads. They go with the evidence.
At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist.  This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways - with relief or with despair.  Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, 'Wait a second.  That means there's a situation vacant.'
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RE: Atheism is a religion
Huh? There is evidence for words meanings besides their definitions? Prove the word "astronaught" without using a definition of a word... Good Luck.
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RE: Atheism is a religion
(January 7, 2012 at 10:01 pm)amkerman Wrote: Huh? There is evidence for words meanings besides their definitions? Prove the word "astronaught" without using a definition of a word... Good Luck.

Bloody Astronaught
When a man sticks a condom over his head, and into a woman's vagina when on her period and then pulls it out and blows, inflating the condom, now covered with blood.
"Damn, that girl's pussy was so loose and I could easily do a bloody astronaught with her."
"The Universe is run by the complex interweaving of three elements: energy, matter, and enlightened self-interest." G'Kar-B5
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RE: Atheism is a religion
Apart from the fact that the word astronaught doesn't exist, I never said anything about meanings and certainly not their being independant of definitions. Please try and keep up. Lexicographers follow the usage of words, they do not invent it. The word 'quiz' is a fine example, though possibly apocryphal it nevertheless illustrates the point beautifully. Richard Daly, a theatre owner in Dublin is said to have made a bet that he could get a word into the language within forty-eight hours. To that end, he instructed his staff to go about the town and chalk the word 'quiz' on walls and doors. This became the subject of gossip quite quickly and led to the word becoming part of the language. From there it was only a short hop to the dictionary.

Pick up a modern dictionary and you'll most likely find entries for such neologisms as 'lolspeak', 'brb' and 'lmfao'. They are recorded there because the usage of the words created the definition and not vice versa.
Edit: okay, the word astronaught now exists apparently, and I bet I won't sleep for thinking about it.
At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist.  This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways - with relief or with despair.  Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, 'Wait a second.  That means there's a situation vacant.'
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RE: Atheism is a religion
Then we seem to be in agreement Stimbo.

Are words made up by people?
Do they have definitions?
Can a word have more than one definition?
Depending on what dictionary you use, will you find the same word defined in different ways?
If so, is one definition in a dictionary objectively better than another?
If so, what authority decides which definition is the most correct?
If any particular definition is not objectively better than another, is the strength of a definition subjective?
If so, what is wrong with the definition I provided for religion?
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RE: Atheism is a religion
Stop pansying around and get on with it, son Tongue
Cunt
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RE: Atheism is a religion
I'm not going to be dragged into your power games. I've described to you how language works in a dictionary setting. If you want to define the word religion to mean something akin to a club, feel free. Such an organistion is frequently referred to in such a way. A person may follow a sports team religiously, meaning s/he never misses a game, collects all the memorabilia, wears the team's colours etc. It would be a tiny, scary percentage of such people who actually worship the team and observe the kinds of practises associated with a true recognised religion; praying to the team members, arcane rituals meant to symbolise things such as divine majesty and symbolic sacrifice (or even actual sacrifices). You seem to want to conflate the two usages of the word.

Interesting sidenote: I understand the word 'atheist' was originally applied to xtians, as they didn't believe in or worship the Roman gods. Over time the usage has shifted though the context remains essentially the same.
At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist.  This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways - with relief or with despair.  Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, 'Wait a second.  That means there's a situation vacant.'
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RE: Atheism is a religion
(January 7, 2012 at 9:35 pm)amkerman Wrote: Are you asking me organic? I have stated my definition before, many people don't like it.

Religions are man made labels for groups of people who share similar beliefs. Usually when the word "religion" is used the beliefs we are referring to are beliefs about God, but I don't think the beliefs about God are central to "religion". Conservatism and Liberalism, for example, could be called religions under my definition.

Acke, there is a reason why there are specific definitions to words that everybody sane abides by. This is so communications between individuals are not something like this,

"I had to go to tomato today."

"That makes no sense. You can't go to a tomato."

"Yes, you can."

"Um, a tomato is a fruit."

"No, it isn't."

"Well, in cooking terms it is used as a vegetable, but it is still a fruit. Nevertheless you don't really go to tomato, unless there is some fascinating tomato somewhere or you were visiting a tomato, which makes no sense."

"It was not fascinating. I merely filed papers at tomato today."

"Dude, are you talking about work?"

"Yeah, that's what tomato means."

"I want my five minutes back."

No one gives a fuck what "your" definition is, acke. If everyone went around using "their" definitions, there would be no coherent conversations.
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