Burden of proof...argument from ignorance...can we take the forum off easy mode for a while, guys?
Who am I kidding? It's always in easy mode.
Rik, get back in your cage.
Tui, a lack of belief in something does not require evidence. In the absence of evidence, it is the most reasonable stance. If you had some evidence, then a lack of belief in the face of that evidence might be unreasonable, but you DON'T have any evidence. All you have is claims.
I'm a little different than most atheists, though. I positively believe that no gods exist, and my proof is in the word "god" itself. "God" always refers to a character from religion that is demonstrably non-existent (due to having contradictory qualities, not being in the expected location, etc.), or (in the case of Deism) it refers to a linguistic device deliberately contrived to have no definition and follow no rules; this is too abstract to be meaningful, which means that it doesn't represent anything, let alone something that actually exists.
If we ever decide to use it for something that does exist, it will redefine the term. Until then, the word "god" necessarily refers to either a fictional character or a nebulous thing that can't be described, defined, proved, or disproved. Without stating its qualities or anything about it, how would somebody propose to tell me that a thing exists, or even that it could? If you yourself can't define it and don't know what qualities it has, how would you determine whether it could possibly exist?
Who am I kidding? It's always in easy mode.
Rik, get back in your cage.
Tui, a lack of belief in something does not require evidence. In the absence of evidence, it is the most reasonable stance. If you had some evidence, then a lack of belief in the face of that evidence might be unreasonable, but you DON'T have any evidence. All you have is claims.
I'm a little different than most atheists, though. I positively believe that no gods exist, and my proof is in the word "god" itself. "God" always refers to a character from religion that is demonstrably non-existent (due to having contradictory qualities, not being in the expected location, etc.), or (in the case of Deism) it refers to a linguistic device deliberately contrived to have no definition and follow no rules; this is too abstract to be meaningful, which means that it doesn't represent anything, let alone something that actually exists.
If we ever decide to use it for something that does exist, it will redefine the term. Until then, the word "god" necessarily refers to either a fictional character or a nebulous thing that can't be described, defined, proved, or disproved. Without stating its qualities or anything about it, how would somebody propose to tell me that a thing exists, or even that it could? If you yourself can't define it and don't know what qualities it has, how would you determine whether it could possibly exist?
Verbatim from the mouth of Jesus (retranslated from a retranslation of a copy of a copy):
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com
