Why you can't find God

[Ahriman]

Miles, you and I can have a conversation. You start.

[Jehanne]

Leaving after 7 years, the final post??

[Angrboda]

I'm reminded of some ding dong who was complaining that his web site was not getting enough traffic and wondered how he could design his site's visual presentation to overcome that problem. The primary advice is that it's not style that draws people, but substance. All the same, a poor style can certainly turn away thoughtful people. You, Miles, have excelled in both, shitty substance and crap style. You get what you give.

[The Valkyrie]

Actually, there was.

Sometimes BS needs repeating.

You came onto an atheist forum and the beginning of the nonsense was used to insult atheists.

It's clear who your target audience is, even if you are in total denial about it.

If you want to address theists, I would suggest joining a Christian forum where you'll envounter all the chrisian love™ you'll ever want.

To be clear, I want to say I believe this will be my final post on this forum; I don't anticipate ever coming back, as this experience has clarified a few things for me, though really, they were things I already knew.

First off, I don't go on Christian forums for a couple of reasons. They're less tolerant and it's easier to get banned, in my experience, not that I have a ton. I also have an account here, so I don't have to make a new one somewhere else whenever I feel the need to try and speak (which is on exceptionally rare occasion, irl or online). The community is smaller and fairly active, as well, so it's easier to get responses to posts.

Maybe I'm here because my father was an atheist, or because the people on here irritate me particularly. I don't really know, and it doesn't really matter.

I do think it's possible that what you say about my target audience is true, though for me I think it's more like I found something I could respond to, and there is a part of me that wants to test myself against people I know are going to attack me no matter what I say. (Frankly, I'm itching for a war that is taking far too long to materialize.) BUT, literally the first post in response to my own was a "TL;DR fairies and goblins blah blah blah." So stupidly unoriginal and par for the course for this place that I pretty much instantly knew I'd made a mistake in posting here. I very much hoped there would be someone with whom I could at least have a decent conversation, atheist or not, but you've all not failed to deliver to my true expectations.

Goblins! Fire-breathing dragons! Pixies! You're all so damned ridiculous, do you ever stop and consider that you have absolutely no idea how existence began, the origins of the universe, and therefore are making such thorough fools of yourselves when you discount the mere possibility of God's existence as to make yourselves sound virtually insane?

No, my guess is you really don't do that or pay heed to any words such as these. So go on; continue to insult any passersby without even bothering to read or carefully considering anything they have to say. You don't want to hear it, anyway - funny why some of you are even on here in the first place, isn't it?

As for insults, I've actually exercised a tremendous amount of restraint in my words. You guys deserve a much more severe rebuke than I've given you, and may the Lord do so in due time.

And may the Force be with you.

Also, bye until next time!

[polymath257]

Actually, there was.

Sometimes BS needs repeating.

You came onto an atheist forum and the beginning of the nonsense was used to insult atheists.

It's clear who your target audience is, even if you are in total denial about it.

If you want to address theists, I would suggest joining a Christian forum where you'll envounter all the chrisian love™ you'll ever want.

To be clear, I want to say I believe this will be my final post on this forum; I don't anticipate ever coming back, as this experience has clarified a few things for me, though really, they were things I already knew.

First off, I don't go on Christian forums for a couple of reasons. They're less tolerant and it's easier to get banned, in my experience, not that I have a ton. I also have an account here, so I don't have to make a new one somewhere else whenever I feel the need to try and speak (which is on exceptionally rare occasion, irl or online). The community is smaller and fairly active, as well, so it's easier to get responses to posts.

Maybe I'm here because my father was an atheist, or because the people on here irritate me particularly. I don't really know, and it doesn't really matter.

I do think it's possible that what you say about my target audience is true, though for me I think it's more like I found something I could respond to, and there is a part of me that wants to test myself against people I know are going to attack me no matter what I say. (Frankly, I'm itching for a war that is taking far too long to materialize.) BUT, literally the first post in response to my own was a "TL;DR fairies and goblins blah blah blah." So stupidly unoriginal and par for the course for this place that I pretty much instantly knew I'd made a mistake in posting here. I very much hoped there would be someone with whom I could at least have a decent conversation, atheist or not, but you've all not failed to deliver to my true expectations.

Goblins! Fire-breathing dragons! Pixies! You're all so damned ridiculous, do you ever stop and consider that you have absolutely no idea how existence began, the origins of the universe, and therefore are making such thorough fools of yourselves when you discount the mere possibility of God's existence as to make yourselves sound virtually insane?

No, my guess is you really don't do that or pay heed to any words such as these. So go on; continue to insult any passersby without even bothering to read or carefully considering anything they have to say. You don't want to hear it, anyway - funny why some of you are even on here in the first place, isn't it?

As for insults, I've actually exercised a tremendous amount of restraint in my words. You guys deserve a much more severe rebuke than I've given you, and may the Lord do so in due time.

If you need to believe *before* you see evidence, then you are simply committing yourself to confirmation bias.

You propose 'God' as an answer to why 'existence began' and 'the origins of the universe' as if it was obvious that it actually gives any explanation at all.

The problem is that your 'God hypothesis' provides absolutely no explanation of anything. it just gives a 'just so' story to stop any real questioning and pushes all of the real questions under the rug.

Yes, your God looks very similar to pixies, goblins, and fire-breathing dragons to us. It is a character in a story that is designed to amuse and teach moral lessons, but has no real content above Aesop's fables.

You can believe whatever superstitious crap you want, but don't expect anyone who actually tries to think through things and looks at the evidence to follow you in your delusions.

[Ahriman]

God is infinitely more powerful and more important than any human being......He could erase your existence with a snap of a finger......but it's not like atheists are all stupid people. I mean, maybe some of them are stupid, but of course not all of them are, or even most of them. What I'm saying is, an atheist is not automatically stupid, or crazy, or any other perjorative term, just for not believing in God. Personally I think not believing in God is foolish, but different people are different people, and I could never (rightfully) judge anyone for not believing in God. Miles' attitude is overly persecutory, even if I think he makes a lot of good points.

[Nay_Sayer]

Actually, there was.

Sometimes BS needs repeating.

You came onto an atheist forum and the beginning of the nonsense was used to insult atheists.

It's clear who your target audience is, even if you are in total denial about it.

If you want to address theists, I would suggest joining a Christian forum where you'll envounter all the chrisian love™ you'll ever want.

To be clear, I want to say I believe this will be my final post on this forum; I don't anticipate ever coming back, as this experience has clarified a few things for me, though really, they were things I already knew.

First off, I don't go on Christian forums for a couple of reasons. They're less tolerant and it's easier to get banned, in my experience, not that I have a ton. I also have an account here, so I don't have to make a new one somewhere else whenever I feel the need to try and speak (which is on exceptionally rare occasion, irl or online). The community is smaller and fairly active, as well, so it's easier to get responses to posts.

Maybe I'm here because my father was an atheist, or because the people on here irritate me particularly. I don't really know, and it doesn't really matter.

I do think it's possible that what you say about my target audience is true, though for me I think it's more like I found something I could respond to, and there is a part of me that wants to test myself against people I know are going to attack me no matter what I say. (Frankly, I'm itching for a war that is taking far too long to materialize.) BUT, literally the first post in response to my own was a "TL;DR fairies and goblins blah blah blah." So stupidly unoriginal and par for the course for this place that I pretty much instantly knew I'd made a mistake in posting here. I very much hoped there would be someone with whom I could at least have a decent conversation, atheist or not, but you've all not failed to deliver to my true expectations.

Goblins! Fire-breathing dragons! Pixies! You're all so damned ridiculous, do you ever stop and consider that you have absolutely no idea how existence began, the origins of the universe, and therefore are making such thorough fools of yourselves when you discount the mere possibility of God's existence as to make yourselves sound virtually insane?

No, my guess is you really don't do that or pay heed to any words such as these. So go on; continue to insult any passersby without even bothering to read or carefully considering anything they have to say. You don't want to hear it, anyway - funny why some of you are even on here in the first place, isn't it?

As for insults, I've actually exercised a tremendous amount of restraint in my words. You guys deserve a much more severe rebuke than I've given you, and may the Lord do so in due time.

This isn't an airport, We don't need an announcement of departure.

Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Make sure to return any and all AF hall passes

[arewethereyet]

Toodles!

[The Grand Nudger]

God is infinitely more powerful and more important than any human being......He could erase your existence with a snap of a finger......but it's not like atheists are all stupid people. I mean, maybe some of them are stupid, but of course not all of them are, or even most of them. What I'm saying is, an atheist is not automatically stupid, or crazy, or any other perjorative term, just for not believing in God. Personally I think not believing in God is foolish, but different people are different people, and I could never (rightfully) judge anyone for not believing in God. Miles' attitude is overly persecutory, even if I think he makes a lot of good points.

Riiight, you think it's foolish..but that's probably something to do with you thinking it could snap it's fingers and erase your existence.  Yet another magic trick in it's big magic bag.  Nevermind the details.  

Meanwhile, in mere reality.... there are tons of actual people who could actually hurt you, and neither you nor I seem to be tripping over ourselves to join their clubs on account of that, let alone on account of their mere existence.

[Ahriman]

God is infinitely more powerful and more important than any human being......He could erase your existence with a snap of a finger......but it's not like atheists are all stupid people. I mean, maybe some of them are stupid, but of course not all of them are, or even most of them. What I'm saying is, an atheist is not automatically stupid, or crazy, or any other perjorative term, just for not believing in God. Personally I think not believing in God is foolish, but different people are different people, and I could never (rightfully) judge anyone for not believing in God. Miles' attitude is overly persecutory, even if I think he makes a lot of good points.

Meanwhile, in mere reality.... there are tons of actual people who could actually hurt you, and neither you nor I seem to be tripping over ourselves to join their clubs on account of that, let alone on account of their mere existence.

On the contrary, I've met some psychopaths in my life, and have been spending the last decade modeling myself after them.

And the only reason God doesn't just erase you (or me) is because He knows He can use our lives for the greater good.