Something about killing in the name of atheism

[Rhondazvous]

No, there's no good or bad person to begin with. It's the environment shaping us into one or the other. Most simply stay average persons for their whole lives. But the Milgram expirement has shown that average persons can be turned into monsters, given the right environmental influence, which ideologies provide.

Actually there has been many studies of serial killers that strongly suggest there is a genetic component to their behavior. Of course no one wants to really get into that nest of snakes because the question then arises who is qualified to make decisions relating to the sutibility of a particular person to be incarcerated/eliminated based on genetic properties. Not you or me.

Robert

I think it's environmental. Leave me alone with a box of Honeynut Cheerios or Fruit Loops, you'll see. I'm a cereal killer.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Nope 

theists kill count  2,229,074,100 + counting 


Let's not count stalin 45,000,000 


Statistics never fuck with me with statistics. 

The communists killed 110 million.....theists couldn't possibly have killed anywhere close to 20 million over the course of 10,000 years and that 20 million number is me very much stretching the number of people they killed by 10 million people (extrapolating based on the number of people killed by theists during more-recorded history).

What does it really mean to be a true atheist?

They killed ten million in the Thirty Years' War alone.

[Polaris]

The communists killed 110 million.....theists couldn't possibly have killed anywhere close to 20 million over the course of 10,000 years and that 20 million number is me very much stretching the number of people they killed by 10 million people (extrapolating based on the number of people killed by theists during more-recorded history).

What does it really mean to be a true atheist?

They killed ten million in the Thirty Years' War alone.

That ended up being a political war.

[Thumpalumpacus]

They killed ten million in the Thirty Years' War alone.

That ended up being a political war.

Of course religious wars have political dimensions. But the war was about schism, and the sides aligned on religious views, with one exception, to my knowledge.

[Dystopia]

You seem to be missing the point.

We can point directly to various passages in the Bible or Koran, when taken literally, would lead a devout believer to kill in the name of their religion.

If you can name one thing in the in the position, "I don't believe your claim that a god exists. Please demonstrate your claim", that wold lead to kill, you'd be the first. Ever

I don't disagree, but then again, what makes you think that most Christians or Muslims even read the bible/quran? The only thing I can assume about a Christian is that they believe in Jesus Christ and going to Heaven. I can't assume anything else. I know lots of Christians who rarely read the bible.

From my point of view, I don't think it's impossible for a lack of belief in something to motivate killing - Specially considering that most religious wars happen because one side is atheist towards the other side's religion.

I don't follow the view that atheists are a magical group free from delusions with different brain patterns, we are a minority, but it's not unlikely that when we become the majority bad things can happen to theists. The guy who murdered 3 Muslims was against Islam and an anti-theist who had rants against religions. I see that as a sign.

I don't think lacking a belief leads to killing, but I think that if you believe everyone else should follow your lead then you can feel entitled to kill. What says in holy books is not as relevant as the nurturing you have. Someone who is preached by ISIS will most likely become a terrorist. Someone who grows up in a progressive Muslim household will most likely become progressive.

I also wonder if it's wise to discuss so often religious wars when the cultural mentality is entirely different in comparison - The crusades happened for a lot of reasons, but it was rational to spread the faith, and so it was to burn people for witchcraft.

There isn't anything with a single contributing variable. Is ISIS Islamic? Yes, of course. But it is not a coincidence that some environments (mostly war-zones where poverty, hunger and violence reign) create more Jihadists. It is also not a coincidence that experts are concluding the US helped the creation of the Islamic State by invading Afghanistan and Iraq.

Religion causes evil and wars, but so does money, economics, social views,oil, etc. I'm not in a position to say one is definitely a more contributing variable, only by analysing each case can we draw conclusions.