RE: Why atheism is a belief.
December 14, 2011 at 6:23 pm
(This post was last modified: December 14, 2011 at 6:25 pm by Norfolk And Chance.)
(December 14, 2011 at 5:02 pm)goodcake Wrote: It's interesting that the atheist argument often appeals to prove the negation of a god, by equating the existence of something which fulfils no function or purpose (such as fairies, santa Roger Rabbit, FSM) whatsoever, and this somehow equates to the equivalent of a negating a god, first cause, unmoved mover etc.
Not all atheists try to prove that there isn't a god...however we equate god to "something which fulfils no purpose or function" because god serves no more purpose. You might say "yeah god does serve a purpose because he lays down moral guidelines, or whatever", but equally I could say "yeah so santa serves a purpose, he makes christmas magical and gives kids presents".
You are failing to understand that atheists don't believe in god like they don't believe in santa or the tooth fairy, there really isn't any difference. The only difference is that everybody stops believing in santa and the tooth fairy, but some people continue to believe in god into adulthood.
Quote:If you think that the inability to disprove a leprechaun effectively discounts the possibility of a god, then what do the existence of the fairies etc account for? And in the absence of evidence for possibilities for 'existence', what valid reason do you have to eqaute fairies with a god?
The whole point of you can't disprove a leprechaun/unicorn/fairy argument is to show the theist (when he inevitably says "well you can't DISPROVE god") that you can't disprove any number of made up things.
Quote:I remain open to the concept of a god. Many seem to be confused by defining something pointless/riduclous and then equating this to the concept of a god.
Many atheists equate fairies with god because they consider them equally likely to be fiction.
Quote:If you think a god is pointless/ridculous, outline your reasons for thinking so, and provide a validated alternative, otherwise you are unable to justify your position of negating a god by default.
Please give a valid reason why there needs to be an alternative to god?
I have no problem with there being nothing out there in place of god, and nothing does not need validation because nothing has no properties and is not anything.
Quote:It seems that being an atheist gives you some control and confidence in having a 'valid' position, yet you oddly lack the ability to validate your position.
Our position is absolutely validated at every turn. Simple fact is, we don't believe because we have not been given sufficient evidence. That is reasonable and valid.
You are currently experiencing a lucky and very brief window of awareness, sandwiched in between two periods of timeless and utter nothingness. So why not make the most of it, and stop wasting your life away trying to convince other people that there is something else? The reality is obvious.
