Ah-ha. Good point.

“elfin-as-puppet-master”. Hmmmm…

a·the·ist
[ey-thee-ist]
– noun 1. person who denies or disbelieves the existence of a supreme being or beings

ag·nos·tic
[ag-nos-tik]
– noun 1. person who believes that the existence of God is unknown and unknowable

Atheist is absolute. Dawkins invented a scale to dodge his logic fail.

you criticise religion because you feel followers want to assume superiority over others,

Actually no, I criticise religion because I feel that organised religion wants to assume superiority over its followers (and in some cases, over non-followers too). Apart from anything else, it’s a pretty effective means of control.

Atheist is absolute. Dawkins invented a scale to dodge his logic fail.

Where do you stand on my skirting-board unicorns? Are you aunicornist or unignostic?

Unignostic. Very unlikely to the point of being improbable, but not impossible. I don’t deal in absolutes. STW and infact the World would be a more pleasant place if more people thought the same, but so is life.

Atheist is absolute. Dawkins invented a scale to dodge his logic fail.

Sounds like you might want only to think in absolutes. I can assure you the good Professor doesn’t.

Christopher Hitchens on the other hand…….

Actually no, I criticise religion because I feel that organised religion wants to assume superiority over its followers

Just out of interest, do youse any special sort of blade or owt for your hair-splitting hobby? 😉

But the thing is, you (and other atheists) come across as attempting to appear superior on here, so isn’t that just a little teeny bit hypocritical?

Seriously. Can’t you just get on with your own life, rather than worry what others are doing? I mean, do you have any sort of proof that you are in any way happier/healthier/more successful because you don’t believe in God or follow a religion? Are you superior/better off in these respects than those who do?

I’m not a Christian, yet I love this painting:

In fact it’s one of me favouritist paintings ever. 😀

Live and let live. Judge not others lest ye be judged thissen…

Ooh, and one of me favourite choonz dat:

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up0t2ZDfX7E&feature=related[/video]

(Probbly best listened to on a ‘proper’ hi-fi with directional cables an ting so’s you can really listen to the music propperly to get the full experience)

You’re repetitions are showing, Fred. You need some new strings.

Ooh sorry Wopster; I mustuv missed the memo telling me I need to conform to your standards of expectation… 😳

Chill. Just enjoy stuffs, innit?

And let Joy into your heart:

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MCnnfXPSHw[/video]

I love a lot of stuff that’s associated with religion – the architecture of churches and temples, whether they’re praising the Abrahamic god in England or Athena in Greece. I like stained glass windows and Islamic textiles. I like a lot of choiral music. I’m also rather fond of a lot of music done by bands that regularly proclaim their worship of Satan. I don’t think you have to be a believer to enjoy art that’s been created by someone who is, or who is inspired by religion.

This is stupid. Bedtime. In the morning this will all have dropped offthe back of the forum and someone will have posted inspiring pictures of UK summer riding, preferably in the mountains. If I believed in god, which I don’t (99.99999999999999999999999999999999999999999%), then I’d pray for it.
Play nice kids.

Where do you stand on my skirting-board unicorns?

I think you use them to ridicule people. You should stop, it’s beneath you. 😐

Unignostic. Very unlikely to the point of being improbable, but not impossible.

So you accept the possibility that there might be unicorns in my skirting boards. Ok, cool. What was your view before I’d mentioned them?

Just out of interest, do youse any special sort of blade or owt for your hair-splitting hobby?

I’m not splitting hairs. It’s a very, very important distinction.

But the thing is, you (and other atheists) come across as attempting to appear superior on here, so isn’t that just a little teeny bit hypocritical?

I’m attempting no such thing, and I’m genuinely sorry if that’s how I come across. Rest assured that any feelings of inferiority you may be experiencing are of your own devising.

Seriously. Can’t you just get on with your own life, rather than worry what others are doing?

I thought I was. When it comes to what people I’ve never met on the Internet think or do, well, it registers fairly highly on my Notgivingatossometer. Doesn’t mean I don’t find it interesting to discuss, though. Clearly you find it interesting too, or we wouldn’t be having this discussion.

do you have any sort of proof that you are in any way happier/healthier/more successful

Can’t we just assume that I am until proved otherwise? I thought that was how religion generally worked. Let’s say that I have faith that I’m better off.

I think you use them to ridicule people. You should stop, it’s beneath you.

The intention isn’t ridicule. If people feel ridiculous, perhaps they should ask why? The intention is just to try to flesh out people’s views a little.

a·the·ist
[ey-thee-ist]
– noun 1 person who denies or disbelieves the existence of a supreme being or beings

Emphasis mine. I do not believe in any sort of supreme being however I know that I cannot prove that one does not exist what with the existence of such being being non falsifiable. I personally class my position as atheist. There are doubtless those who disagree with that position.

Being an atheist isn’t about hating all things related to religion, it just means you don’t buy into the God movement. An interesting point to raise though. From the same stance, are we only allowed to appreciate the things within our brackets of interest? What a plain world it would be.

Sorry, I couldn’t be bothered to read the argument. Atheists FTW. And religious people too….but I’ll type it in lower case; ftw.

I’m attempting no such thing, and I’m genuinely sorry if that’s how I come across. Rest assured that any feelings of inferiority you may be experiencing are of your own devising.

You’re one of the most insincere people on here. Don’t insult us by trying to pretend otherwise, please. It’s cowardly.

So cougar, when you compare a central component of someones philosophy to a tiny horse with an overly bony forehead, do you frequently get much fleshing out?

So don’t all these Atheists have any belief (clue,idea whatever) seriously you can’t deal with all lives shit without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why..

WtF do they do when facing potential imminent demise I wonder..

They don’t reckon there were many Atheists in the trenches, or on planes that are about to crash..

I think it’s another easy to do thing behind that little computer screen and keyboard and an anon ID..

…and atheists are the ones with issues?

Deary me…

Wunundred! 😀

It was divine intervention….

derekrides – Member
So don’t all these Atheists have any belief (clue,idea whatever)

I have faith, just not in a god. Faith is not specific to religion.

seriously you can’t deal with all lives shit without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why..

Of course I can. Because I don’t believe in god, doesn’t mean that I don’t have an aim or philosiphy in life.

WtF do they do when facing potential imminent demise I wonder..

Pretty much the same as a theist. Prepare to die. Just do it in a different way.

They don’t reckon there were many Atheists in the trenches, or on planes that are about to crash..

Having been in this situation, I didn’t convert my thinking on the existance of god. Mind you, that’s me. I can’t speak for anyone else.

I think it’s another easy to do thing behind that little computer screen and keyboard and an anon ID..

Which is different from what you’ve just done…. how?

I’m not another leftist PC secularist, just asking questions of the pseudo disbelievers me, wondering how they cope..

derekrides – Member

I think it’s another easy to do thing behind that little computer screen and keyboard and an anon ID..

What the… Hang on, you think we only dare to be atheists because we can’t be easily traced? 😆

derekrides – Member

So don’t all these Atheists have any belief (clue,idea whatever) seriously you can’t deal with all lives shit without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why..

Why not?

Northwind – Member
derekrides – Member
I think it’s another easy to do thing behind that little computer screen and keyboard and an anon ID..

What the… Hang on, you think we only dare to be atheists because we can’t be easily traced?

Yep – bang on.

Lot of herd mentality on here and all.. ooh lets all be atheists and half of them no idea what they’re on about.

Put em in a shitstorm watch em fill their pants and pray for all they’re worth..

When I was lying in hospital, with no feeling in my leg, did I pray? Nope. When it came back, did I thank god? Nope.

So **** off with your patronising nonsense

Well said northwind. I do not need to believe in fairys at the bottom of my garden to have purpose and morals.

I have seen death many many times and nothing there leads me to believe in any gods.

seriously you can’t deal with all lives shit without having without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why..

Logic? – logic tells me there is no god. The belief in a god is irrational superstition. I do not need a belief in god to understand or make sense of the world – I know that sometimes it makes no sense – it just is

Cougar – Member

Unignostic. Very unlikely to the point of being improbable, but not impossible.

So you accept the possibility that there might be unicorns in my skirting boards. Ok, cool. What was your view before I’d mentioned them?

I had no viewpoint on them, just as we had no concept of many things before a hypothersis was forwarded. I can’t investigate your skirting board, maybe you can help me out, but I’ll assume very little proof can be found. I’ll add them to the list of things that are extremely unlikely. Welcome to science.

So don’t all these Atheists have any belief (clue,idea whatever) seriously you can’t deal with all lives shit without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why.

Yes you can. I don’t know why people think there needs to be a why at all. We are just here – make of that what you will.

You’re one of the most insincere people on here

1) You don’t know the first thing about me.
2) Are you really having to resort to ad hominem? Wow.

So cougar, when you compare a central component of someones philosophy to a tiny horse with an overly bony forehead, do you frequently get much fleshing out?

Were we not getting somewhere with Fourbanger; it’s actually a reasonable, consistent stance he’s(?) got there.

just asking questions of the pseudo disbelievers

Why ‘pseudo’ exactly?

Lot of herd mentality on here and all..

As opposed to all the theists who become religious of their own accord.

you can’t deal with all lives shit without having some logic as to what it’s all about and why.

Speak for yourself. You seem to be under the impression that if something is beyond our understanding, there must be an easier explanation. I hate to break it to you but, sometimes there isn’t an easier answer.

We’ve got thousands of very clever people trying to piece together all sorts of clues as to our existence, the Earth, the universe, and you’re sitting there going “it’s easy, god did it.” I can see why it’d appeal.

I had no viewpoint on them, just as we had no concept of many things before a hypothersis was forwarded. I can’t investigate your skirting board, maybe you can help me out, but I’ll assume very little proof can be found. I’ll add them to the list of things that are extremely unlikely. Welcome to science.

(-:

Well, science would look for them, perhaps, but would assume that they don’t exist unless some sort of evidence could be found. There’s no reason to think they’d be there, and up until me mentioning it you’d no reason to think they were there either.

Which, I think, highlights the difference quite nicely; it’s certainly given me a better understanding of agnosticism. In the face of no evidence you’d go “well, it’s unlikely but who knows,” whereas I’d think “of course there aren’t, I just made it up.” Your stance is arguably more sensible, and one thing this little thought experiment has shown is why Dawkins claims his ‘6’ rather than ‘7’.

From my point of view, the fact that I just made it up is sufficient for me to rule it out for all practical purposes. That’s not to say I’m closed-minded about it though; if I suddenly started finding unicorn droppings round the edges of my carpet I might have cause to rethink.

Seriously. Can’t you just get on with your own life, rather than worry what others are doing?

Because some people use instructions of their faith to dictate how others should live their lives. I have no problem with religion, people are free to believe what they want, but it should be a private affair.

Ah, shut yer bickering

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4WKKx3Nvl0&feature=related[/video]

Put em in a shitstorm watch em fill their pants and pray for all they’re worth..

That may well be so (although not of “all”, I suspect), the condition of being a human what it is, with all the weight of cultural indoctrination and the tendency of automatic responses kicking in as a reaction to danger (fight or flight) and so on.

Unfortunately, this scenario is not actual evidence of the existence of a Big Magic Person Who Controls Everything, just a hypothesis about human behaviour. Sorry. No offense.

The Mahalia Jackson song is an interesting example of the flight from rationality enforced by religious myth.

The “Noah’s Flood” story, if it were true, could not possibly have resulted in the world of flora and fauna that we can now observe around us.

So no, it didn’t “rain”.

The Mahalia Jackson song is an interesting example of the flight from rationality enforced by religious myth

Is it? Gosh, it’s just a voice that gives me goosebumps as far as I’m concerned. What the story’s about I don’t give a shit.

Because some people use instructions of their faith to dictate how others should live their lives. I have no problem with religion, people are free to believe what they want, but it should be a private affair.

Oh teh ironing… 😆

Atheism’s boring anyway. This thread proves it. 😀

Strange how you keep joining in on it, then.

Oh bum, I thought it was about music.

Elfinsafety – Member

“Because some people use instructions of their faith to dictate how others should live their lives. I have no problem with religion, people are free to believe what they want, but it should be a private affair.”

Oh teh ironing…

Atheism’s boring anyway. This thread proves it.

Why is that ironic?

It, is, Dezinald! 😀

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76RrdwElnTU[/video]

Why is that ironic?

Bless. If you jolly well have not worked it out in a bit, I might come back and tell you.

Have fun!