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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 11:08 am
(May 13, 2012 at 8:09 am)StatCrux Wrote: It seems to me that atheists don't support democracy. If a country was 80% Christian and voted that Christian laws should be passed, would atheists accept the laws as democratic? If the majority of a society is Christian and wants Christian laws shouldn't those laws be respected?
No, we don't. Not always, that is. There are many questions on which the majority does not make right. Questions of fact, for example. You can throw out statistics about more that 50% Americans believing in creationism, they'd still be wrong. Individual rights is another such thing. It doesn't matter if there is 99% of the population shouting that atheists should not have the same rights as citizens, that's still be the wrong decision to make. That is precisely why some very smart people write a country's constitution, to make it more difficult a dumb generation to fuck things up.
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 11:10 am
(May 13, 2012 at 8:09 am)StatCrux Wrote: It seems to me that atheists don't support democracy. If a country was 80% Christian and voted that Christian laws should be passed, would atheists accept the laws as democratic? If the majority of a society is Christian and wants Christian laws shouldn't those laws be respected?
It seems to me that Christians don't support democracy. If your local school district was 80% Muslim and voted that Muslim laws should be passed, including girls being forced to wear burqas and Muslim prayers being broadcast over the loudspeakers five times a day, would Christians accept the laws as democratic? If the majority of the school district is Muslim and wants Muslim laws, shouldn't those laws be respected?
See how that works?
Science flies us to the moon and stars. Religion flies us into buildings.
God allowed 200,000 people to die in an earthquake. So what makes you think he cares about YOUR problems?
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 11:11 am
(This post was last modified: May 13, 2012 at 11:11 am by KichigaiNeko.)
He won't ya know guys...xtian bigots. 
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 1:43 pm
(May 13, 2012 at 8:09 am)StatCrux Wrote: It seems to me that atheists don't support democracy. If a country was 80% Christian and voted that Christian laws should be passed, would atheists accept the laws as democratic? If the majority of a society is Christian and wants Christian laws shouldn't those laws be respected?
I don't support democracy, democracies are tyrannies of the majority. I support a constitutional republic form of government. That is one where the rule of law is the governing body, and protection for the rights of everyone is enforced.
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 2:06 pm
(May 13, 2012 at 9:49 am)Ultraviolet Cat Wrote: (May 13, 2012 at 8:58 am)StatCrux Wrote: I'm not talking about any specific country, just in principle. What if 80% of the society wanted a theocracy?
Ahhhhhh . . . the tyranny of the majority question.
You can't remove this question from a specific political structure. If you have a country in which the citizens have decided that all rights are open to a vote, then this would be acceptable. However, most modern democracies are founded on the idea that the individual has rights that cannot be taken away by a general vote. So, the idea that someone could be forced by a vote to support a particular religious view would violate the individual's right to religious freedom in some countries (such as the United States).
I do feel the need to point out an obvious issue with your original post - atheism is simply a statement about a particular knowledge claim. There is no atheist political view. I am an atheist and I believe that the secular constitutional republic the most brilliant form of government ever created, and that it has provided far more individual religious freedom than any theocracy could ever hope for. I'm sure that there are atheists who would disagree with me -- such is the nature of atheism!
Great first post!
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Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 2:06 pm
(This post was last modified: May 13, 2012 at 2:10 pm by el_presidente.)
What if 80% of the country wanted slavery? Or wanted to keep women from voting?
Been there, done that. Why atheists would want to support a giant step backward is beyond me just because a majority wanted it. That isn't disliking democracy - that's taking a principled stand.
And democracy isn't a problem - giving people power over you either by vote or otherwise is. The "tyranny of the majority" doesn't exist when the majority has no authority I legislate who you marry etc. etc.
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 13, 2012 at 10:03 pm
(May 13, 2012 at 9:49 am)Ultraviolet Cat Wrote: atheism is simply a statement about a particular knowledge belief claim.
Other than that, I agreed 
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 14, 2012 at 4:33 am
(This post was last modified: May 14, 2012 at 4:34 am by kılıç_mehmet.)
(May 13, 2012 at 8:09 am)StatCrux Wrote: It seems to me that atheists don't support democracy. If a country was 80% Christian and voted that Christian laws should be passed, would atheists accept the laws as democratic? If the majority of a society is Christian and wants Christian laws shouldn't those laws be respected? Not just atheists. Many people do not support democracy, me included.
If I did, I'd not call for the toppling of our current president.
I rather have a single party system that is led by a firm and fixed ideology on the advancement of their people, rather than the implementation of a religious ideology.
(May 13, 2012 at 2:06 pm)el_presidente Wrote: What if 80% of the country wanted slavery? Or wanted to keep women from voting?
Been there, done that. Why atheists would want to support a giant step backward is beyond me just because a majority wanted it. That isn't disliking democracy - that's taking a principled stand.
And democracy isn't a problem - giving people power over you either by vote or otherwise is. The "tyranny of the majority" doesn't exist when the majority has no authority I legislate who you marry etc. etc.
Friend, this is why there are constitutions. You cannot enact laws that go against the constitution unless you change it.
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 14, 2012 at 9:08 am
(This post was last modified: May 14, 2012 at 9:09 am by The Grand Nudger.)
Stop calling for the toppling of a president. You live under the system and have no right to question it's rules and decisions.....lol.
(IOW, adhere to your own damned principles, please)
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RE: Atheism and democracy
May 14, 2012 at 9:15 am
(May 14, 2012 at 4:33 am)kılıç_mehmet Wrote: I rather have a single party system that is led by a firm and fixed ideology on the advancement of their people, rather than the implementation of a religious ideology.
Ahh, so you're a fascist.
Suspected as much.
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