Kimihiro_Watanuki
So, I've been browsing the web and found videos, article, etc. on Charles Dawkins' book "The God Delusion" Frankly, my point here is that it doesn't just offend me, it really pisses me off. Richard
Charles Dawkins deliberately puts down any deity based faith, and then uses what is seemingly out going, controversial literature, lectures, and speech to back it up with. And the sad thing is, I've seen his books become a sort a sort of "Atheist's Bible".
There are different types of athiests.
Personally, I'm one of the kinds of athiests who would believe in something
if there was tangible, inalienable proof of it's existance. Unicorns, Aliens, Magical Brownies that Live in my a**, all of those could very well exist. But I don't believe in them simply because there is no tangible proof of their existence.
You see, in a world where we are pretty much governed by logic and reason, we allow a LOT of leeway for so-called "faith based beliefs" to be accepted into popular belief and to shape laws and social practices without the rigorous amount of scrutiny that we attribute to other, non faith based beliefs.
For example, no one would say that cars run on magic and simply have that be put into the Chemistry textbook as fact. Cars run on a specific mechanical and chemical process that we can evidently see through rigorous testing and observation.
On the other hand, people want to have Intelligent Design taught in school as an "alternative" to Evolution or science-based ideas.
In a completely rational world, this case would be laughed out on it's a**. Intelligent Design, the Creation Myth, and other such stories are "theories" that are derived from pseudo-science, that tries to act like science without the actual rigorous testing and retesting of theory and hypothesis.
The fact that we have laws like the sodomy laws, laws against abortion (bodily integrity should be seen as more important to keeping it legal than the bible passage that says something along the lines of "I've known you before you were born" in the reference to a prophet.), laws against drugs and alcohol, etc, shows that religious kowtowing has always been a cultural norm that should be definitely stopped.
Additionally, a study came out a year ago saying that atheists were the third hated and mistrusted group in all of the US. That means that people seem to think that atheists are more likely to kill, have no morals, etc etc than people who have religion, when the statistics point to the opposite (80% of violent offenders in jail are Christian and I think you'd be hard-pressed to see an atheist go around killing him/herself or others in the name of a non-existent god.)
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Allow me to draw one very important point form his book. Very early on, he calls faith and religion delusions. He says anyone who has delusions, is classified mentally ill. He later on makes the connection. All religious people are mentally ill. God, Allah, Vishnu, and Zeus are no more provable than a orbiting tea cup, or a unicorn.
Technically, it is true. You *Cannot* by definition, "prove" that these entities are real because one of the main tenants of monotheism is that God needs UNABASHED FAITH IN HIS EXISTENCE. This means that God asks all people to believe without EVER asking or needing proof of his existence.
While I wouldn't go as far as to say that religious people are crazy, I would have to say that the religious faith parts of their behavior can be crazy.
Just think of the things that people do out of religious faith:
-People dance with poisonous snakes to show that "god is protecting them".
-People kill themselves in suicide bombings in an attempt to kill infidels
-People deny the existence of evolution on the grounds that a book that was written thousands of years ago is completely and utterly verbatim true.
-People believe that the 10 Commandments should be instated in all schools and courthouses, and yet do not usually know what the hell the 10 Commandments actually say.
-People kill other people and enslave other people in the name of God (black slavery was once Biblically "proven" with certain passages as a justification for slavery)
And because people believe in religion, and because it's considered "personal" with them, most rational people are supposed to sit back and act like nothing at all is wrong when these people chop off their children's foreskins and teach them that birth control kills babies, and that murder is wrong, except when we kill those darkies over there because they're inferior.
Most illogical "beliefs" could be very well destroyed with the destruction of faith.
You couldn't simply say "kill those people we don't like" (which is the overarching Biblical way of dealing with things). You'd have to look at things rationally, and through the lens of the social contract, where we must decide like adults how to deal with things for the mutual benefit of all.
The main things that laws, and legality should concern themselves with are these:
1) Does it hurt anyone other than the person using it?
2) Does it cause inherent breakdowns in the way that society works?
3) Does it make divisions in equality based on arbitrary things like gender, sex, and race?
4) Does it infringe on anyone's personal way of life in a direct fashion?
And, after rigorous testing and observation, we should come to conclusions upon which more balanced and truly equitable laws are forged.
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Now, about the Atheist's Bible part.
I am offended that you would think that an Athiest would be anything but non-religious.
I do not have some book that I worship. Nor do I have traditions and beliefs outside of rationally developed understandings of the world.
While I am fine with you practicing your religion in the privacy of your own home, I find myself at an impasse, because the basic tenants of MOST religions is to convert and bulldoze as many other religions and understandings of the world as possible so that it can survive.
While I am quite amazed that true belief in Christianity has survived so long, I do think that it is very outdated and actually harmful to the progression of people.
We need to stop looking at ourselves as people of belief in some metaphysical war for souls and as a Human Race that is united by species and a common goal of success in life. My biggest problems with religion is the way that it is used to take away the money of the poorest people and then spreads blatant lies and mistruths about things like birth control, medicine, and the nature of people of other beliefs.
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When I voice my opinion, it is immediately shot down.
Your "opinion" doesn't make you invulnerable to criticism. And you can't expect to win an argument by saying "but it's my personal belief."
If it is my personal belief that all White people be murdered, then why should this belief be "attacked" according to you?
The truth is, we're giving extra weight to personal beliefs than there should be given.
Atheists are made fun of for their non belief, and treated badly by believers all the time, and for most Atheists, there are tangible reasons for non-belief. Christians and the like should not feel bad or surprised when they get the same treatment from non-believers.
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And the worst part is they have a seething hatred for all Christians. Not just the fire and brimstone kind. They hate EVERY SINGLE ONE, and then try to use nothing but the Old Testament and history to back up their claims.
The old testament is the basis upon which many people have been murdered, raped, enslaved, and tortured. It's a pretty important thing, you see.
Additionally, history is ALSO important. You would probably see no problem in looking at the history of atheists if it were filled with atheist genocides of faith-based people, or if atheists raped and murdered children on higher levels than others. However, when it comes to religious people, who are the most likely to commit atrocities for unfounded faith based reasons, it is imperative not to ignore what has happened before, and what continues to happen in the name of God. Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean it didn't happen. Christianity in particular, has done some of the most atrocious things in the name of God, and there are many Christians who want to go back to the "old way" of doing things.
In summation, history is a valid point to bring up, and all you're doing is whining about how your unfounded beliefs, when brought into a debate where people use tangible proof and reasoning, fall apart immediately.
If you're interested in having a mutual masturbation session about your opinions, go onto a Christian website where everyone shares your beliefs. Otherwise, get the ******** out of debates if you can't stand the heat.
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1. Does being an atheist make you smarter than anyone else?
Not necessarily, but you're more likely to require proof before you fervently believe in anything or anyone.
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2. Are deities and religion nothing but delusions and forms of crowd control?
In many ways, yes. In ancient societies, the king was GOD. It served as the ultimate control for power. Today, because we have so much knowledge about how things work, if someone declares himself God, we put him in a mental institution. But there are many ways to take advantage of poor and uneducated people in this world, and religion just happens to be one of them.
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4. Is faith just a crutch?
Yes, in many instances it is. It's a place for people who don't feel that they can shoulder the responsibility of being totally in control of their own actions to find a "rule book" to mindlessly follow. But just because you act moral out of fear of retribution does not mean that you are a moral person.
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5. Are you ever skeptical that they might ever be evidence (scientific proof) of a deity?
I would be more than happy to believe in something with tangible evidence.
The problem is that giving me a picture of the Shroud of Turin or telling me that magical prophets heard the word of God and knew exactly what to write in perfect English is NOT proof.
