(May 4, 2025 at 2:20 pm)Sheldon Wrote: I have yet to see a rational argument for a deity, even Plantinga's modal argument, which is shaky enough, has to skip that vital step entirely, and presuppose a deity is possible. I am fine with apologists doing this, they can believe the moon is made of cheese if it makes them happy, but it's always amusing when they get all bent out of shape, when atheists won't simply do the same.
In a strict academic sense, plantingas argument is not presuppositional. It doesn't begin with the notion that magic book or god belief is true and proceed towards a demonstration of it's truth from there. More accurately, it's a comment on how the modal operator works on any other truth statement, and so..principle of charity, how it ought to work on the statement "god exists". Basically, it's telling us that if god necessarily exists in any possible world then the statement god exists is necessarily true in every possible world, even if some, most, or all but one of those possible worlds doesn't contain a god. A bit like saying "it's raining on earth today". If it's true anywhere the statement is true everywhere on earth you might utter it, and it's always true somewhere.
That is both it's success..as in being a rational argument, and it's failure....as in being uncompelling.... even by plantingas own account.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
