The Atheist Delusion

[Cain]

It is, in theory, possible.

See: South Africa.

And of course, Christians have been persecuted in the former Soviet Union, China and the Islamic world.  But last time I checked, a government that enshrines freedom of religion as one of its highest laws, and actually bends over backwards to accomodate some faiths is probably not all that dangerous.  Its like Christians in the UK who whine because the laws dont allow them to discriminate against gays, Jews or Muslims.  Apparently, that is persecution or soemthing.

[BootyBay]

Lol  Good point (although, Christians in US are not just majority in #'s but also in terms of power).

[Cain]

Really?

Last I heard, 78% or so of the US population called itself Christian.  No denomination had an absolute majority though...

[Cain]

Actually, I have decided to let the lovely Violent Acres to make all my decisions for me from now on, since she has made me nod my head in agreement far too many times already, and I just read this gem

http://www.violentacres.com/archives/352/atheists-are-snobs

The problem with Atheists is most of them are snobs.

Atheists think they're being clever with their spaghetti monster analogies and fairy tale rhetoric, but at the end of the day, they come off sound like condescending pricks.

Furthermore, any group of people claiming superior intelligence that willingly engages in the fight of a losing battle automatically loses credibility. However, Atheists are too dumb to realize they're fighting a losing battle, so they persist with the lecturing and the withering stares. Atheists have singled handedly ruined coffee shops with this crap.

I, myself, have not been able to claim belief in a higher power for many, many years. However, I can still see the value in Religion. Perhaps growing up without a strong parental figure in my life made me recognize the possible value of a loving Father figure up in the sky watching out for me. And hey, I try my best not forget that sometimes we all need something to believe in.

Most Atheists have the tendency to thumb their noses at Jesus, and then log onto World of Warcraft so they can pretend to be an orc for a couple of hours. They sneer at the Bible, but have no problem playing endless hours of vampire role playing games. The message is clear. Fantasies are OK as long as they include gratuitous violence and some sort of porn.

It's no wonder Religious folks don't take them too seriously. Even the Quiet Intellectual Atheist comes across as if he's only denying belief to be aversive. It's hard not to pity the guy addicted to nonconformity like an addict to a needle.

Personally, I don't mind Religion. Religious leaders, on the other hand, really get my goat. But in my experience, when you approach someone by saying, "Hey. I don't mind Catholicism. It's just the creepy priests fucking altar boys that gross me out," members of the congregation are more apt to listen.

My only real issue with Religion (and ultimately, it's a fairly small issue) is that it teaches people to be good for all the wrong reasons. Whether it's the fear of a vengeful God and eternal life spent in the flames of Hell or the possibility of winning a ticket into Heaven accompanied by a boat load of virgins, people are still behaving well to escape punishment or to win everlasting life.

Ideally, people would be good because it's the right thing to do. Not because they want good Karma to come back on them and not because they're hoping for a personal cloud to lounge on in the sky, but because doing the right thing is its own reward. I'd like to live in a world where people aren't secretly hoping for a payoff for every single good dead they've ever done.

But then again, most of society today seems almost completely lacking in any moral compass whatsoever. So if 'God' does his part to scare some little bastard out of stealing my fucking car, I guess I can't complain too much.

Any Atheist who does seriously needs to reevaluate his priorities.

[atrasicarius]

Actually, I have decided to let the lovely Violent Acres to make all my decisions for me from now on, since she has made me nod my head in agreement far too many times already, and I just read this gem

http://www.violentacres.com/archives/352/atheists-are-snobs

The problem with Atheists is most of them are snobs.

Atheists think they're being clever with their spaghetti monster analogies and fairy tale rhetoric, but at the end of the day, they come off sound like condescending pricks.

Furthermore, any group of people claiming superior intelligence that willingly engages in the fight of a losing battle automatically loses credibility. However, Atheists are too dumb to realize they're fighting a losing battle, so they persist with the lecturing and the withering stares. Atheists have singled handedly ruined coffee shops with this crap.

I, myself, have not been able to claim belief in a higher power for many, many years. However, I can still see the value in Religion. Perhaps growing up without a strong parental figure in my life made me recognize the possible value of a loving Father figure up in the sky watching out for me. And hey, I try my best not forget that sometimes we all need something to believe in.

Most Atheists have the tendency to thumb their noses at Jesus, and then log onto World of Warcraft so they can pretend to be an orc for a couple of hours. They sneer at the Bible, but have no problem playing endless hours of vampire role playing games. The message is clear. Fantasies are OK as long as they include gratuitous violence and some sort of porn.

It's no wonder Religious folks don't take them too seriously. Even the Quiet Intellectual Atheist comes across as if he's only denying belief to be aversive. It's hard not to pity the guy addicted to nonconformity like an addict to a needle.

Personally, I don't mind Religion. Religious leaders, on the other hand, really get my goat. But in my experience, when you approach someone by saying, "Hey. I don't mind Catholicism. It's just the creepy priests fucking altar boys that gross me out," members of the congregation are more apt to listen.

My only real issue with Religion (and ultimately, it's a fairly small issue) is that it teaches people to be good for all the wrong reasons. Whether it's the fear of a vengeful God and eternal life spent in the flames of Hell or the possibility of winning a ticket into Heaven accompanied by a boat load of virgins, people are still behaving well to escape punishment or to win everlasting life.

Ideally, people would be good because it's the right thing to do. Not because they want good Karma to come back on them and not because they're hoping for a personal cloud to lounge on in the sky, but because doing the right thing is its own reward. I'd like to live in a world where people aren't secretly hoping for a payoff for every single good dead they've ever done.

But then again, most of society today seems almost completely lacking in any moral compass whatsoever. So if 'God' does his part to scare some little bastard out of stealing my fucking car, I guess I can't complain too much.

Any Atheist who does seriously needs to reevaluate his priorities.

[BootyBay]

the possibility of winning a ticket into Heaven accompanied by a boat load of virgins

I want me that boat load of virgins.

But then again, most of society today seems almost completely lacking in any moral compass whatsoever. So if 'God' does his part to scare some little bastard out of stealing my fucking car, I guess I can't complain too much.

Any Atheist who does seriously needs to reevaluate his priorities.

Good point, man.  I couldn't agree more with this post.  I've been finding all the atheist humor I stumble onto to be regurgitated crud based off the same tired jokes.  Maybe people should be judged for who they are instead of what they believe in?  I dunno.

When people say "religion has caused more wars than anything else," I tend to disagree.  I doubt anyone would seriously start a war to "convert the heathens."  I'm guessing religion was the card played by the ruling elite to manipualte the people into fighting (with the possible exception of the Crusades, but I'm no historian). 

[Cain]

Actually, I have decided to let the lovely Violent Acres to make all my decisions for me from now on, since she has made me nod my head in agreement far too many times already, and I just read this gem

http://www.violentacres.com/archives/352/atheists-are-snobs

The problem with Atheists is most of them are snobs.

Atheists think they're being clever with their spaghetti monster analogies and fairy tale rhetoric, but at the end of the day, they come off sound like condescending pricks.

Furthermore, any group of people claiming superior intelligence that willingly engages in the fight of a losing battle automatically loses credibility. However, Atheists are too dumb to realize they're fighting a losing battle, so they persist with the lecturing and the withering stares. Atheists have singled handedly ruined coffee shops with this crap.

I, myself, have not been able to claim belief in a higher power for many, many years. However, I can still see the value in Religion. Perhaps growing up without a strong parental figure in my life made me recognize the possible value of a loving Father figure up in the sky watching out for me. And hey, I try my best not forget that sometimes we all need something to believe in.

Most Atheists have the tendency to thumb their noses at Jesus, and then log onto World of Warcraft so they can pretend to be an orc for a couple of hours. They sneer at the Bible, but have no problem playing endless hours of vampire role playing games. The message is clear. Fantasies are OK as long as they include gratuitous violence and some sort of porn.

It's no wonder Religious folks don't take them too seriously. Even the Quiet Intellectual Atheist comes across as if he's only denying belief to be aversive. It's hard not to pity the guy addicted to nonconformity like an addict to a needle.

Personally, I don't mind Religion. Religious leaders, on the other hand, really get my goat. But in my experience, when you approach someone by saying, "Hey. I don't mind Catholicism. It's just the creepy priests fucking altar boys that gross me out," members of the congregation are more apt to listen.

My only real issue with Religion (and ultimately, it's a fairly small issue) is that it teaches people to be good for all the wrong reasons. Whether it's the fear of a vengeful God and eternal life spent in the flames of Hell or the possibility of winning a ticket into Heaven accompanied by a boat load of virgins, people are still behaving well to escape punishment or to win everlasting life.

Ideally, people would be good because it's the right thing to do. Not because they want good Karma to come back on them and not because they're hoping for a personal cloud to lounge on in the sky, but because doing the right thing is its own reward. I'd like to live in a world where people aren't secretly hoping for a payoff for every single good dead they've ever done.

But then again, most of society today seems almost completely lacking in any moral compass whatsoever. So if 'God' does his part to scare some little bastard out of stealing my fucking car, I guess I can't complain too much.

Any Atheist who does seriously needs to reevaluate his priorities.

Well yes.

I just felt annoyed I made serious arguments and hers was shorter, and funnier.

[e]

Most Atheists have the tendency to thumb their noses at Jesus, and then log onto World of Warcraft so they can pretend to be an orc for a couple of hours. They sneer at the Bible, but have no problem playing endless hours of vampire role playing games. The message is clear. Fantasies are OK as long as they include gratuitous violence and some sort of porn.

I can't decide if this is a valid argument or not.  I want to say "Yes, but they don't believe that when they die some big orc/vampire in the sky is going to take them away to magical happy-land where everyone will be REAL vampires and orcs!"  But uh... I bet a lot of people who play WoW and WoD really DO think that.

Anyway, I'm sure that article is trying to be "humorous" but it seems pretty spurious to me.  Random horribly-made analogies that don't actually work when you look at them in depth coupled with just the sort of haughty sneering she's complaining about make for bad argument.  Actually, it's more like a rant than an argument, so I guess that's okay: ranting's never made sense, logical or otherwise.

The only other thing is the statement that atheists are "fighting a losing battle".  I can't follow the logic here unless it's a "Because religious fundies have been arguing for stupid things for centuries longer and they're better at it than the militant atheists are".  Some sort of example as to why it's a losing battle would be nice.

I'm also pretty sure that going to a Catholic congregation and saying "I don't mind Catholicism, but I don't like how your priests fuck altar boys lolol" will not, in fact, get you congregation members who are "more apt to listen".

Pretty much the only point I agree with (and in fact one of the only points I can actually see as having been made in this) is

Ideally, people would be good because it's the right thing to do. Not because they want good Karma to come back on them and not because they're hoping for a personal cloud to lounge on in the sky, but because doing the right thing is its own reward. I'd like to live in a world where people aren't secretly hoping for a payoff for every single good dead they've ever done.

The rest just reads like somebody masturbating to her own internet popularity (but then, it is from a blog!)

[Golden Applesauce]

Most Atheists have the tendency to thumb their noses at Jesus, and then log onto World of Warcraft so they can pretend to be an orc for a couple of hours. They sneer at the Bible, but have no problem playing endless hours of vampire role playing games. The message is clear. Fantasies are OK as long as they include gratuitous violence and some sort of porn.

I've met some really fundamental types who do essentially the same thing.

C.S. Lewis - Good, healthy reading material for a child
J.K. Rowling - TRAP SET BY SATAN!!1!
(I asked them about Tolkien; they were still on the fence about LoTR.)

Role-playing characters in a production of A Christmas Carol - A good use of God's acting gifts
Role-playing characters in Dungeons and Dragons - OMG TEH SATAN!!!1

Moral: every group is capable of hypocrisy.

[AFK]

Tolkien and Lewis were buddies to a certain degree so I think he gets a pass. 

[e]

Tolkien was also a devout Catholic.  He got a voice recording machine and said 100 "hail mary"s into it before he would use it to make sure the devils was out.

[Golden Applesauce]

That's kind of why I was confused when they said they were were undecided about him.  Maybe they didn't believe someone could be a Christian and still have a protagonist be a wizard?  My guess is that they knew that the high fantasy genre and the roleplaying games he inspired were satanic but were confused by the lack of un-Christian thought in his actual works, (or more probably the lack of sermons specifically against him, since I suspect they got most of their opinions from the pulpit rather than doing their own reading.)

[Vene]

This atheist is just fine with religion as long as people keep it the fuck away from me.  As long as I can live my life without laws being made from [insert holy book here] I really don't give a shit what they do.  Go pray to your zombie savior or L. Ron Hubbard or whoever, I don't care.  Just don't expect me to abide by your rules.  I don't care if it's prohibiting gay marriage because Leviticus says it's wrong or trying to teach creationism instead of evolution, stay the fuck out of the government.

[atrasicarius]

When people say "religion has caused more wars than anything else," I tend to disagree.  I doubt anyone would seriously start a war to "convert the heathens."  I'm guessing religion was the card played by the ruling elite to manipualte the people into fighting (with the possible exception of the Crusades, but I'm no historian). 

Well, thats the point. They needed some excuse to fight the war, and religion was handy. The war in Iraq isnt actually about terrorism, that's just the excuse. The main problem with religion is that it suppresses individual thought, making people much easier to manipulate. It's not by any means the only method of brainwashing people, but it is the oldest, and arguably the most successful.

[e]

[religion is] not by any means the only method of brainwashing people, but it is the oldest, and arguably the most successful.

I would have to say that the most successful is probably offering people free food.  Religion comes a close second, though.