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Dude
SFN Die Hard
USA
6891 Posts |
 Posted - 08/27/2009 : 17:13:59
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A friend of mine directed me to this book. It isn't published yet (October 19th release date), but it looks as if it coould be an interesting read.
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Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.
-- Thomas Jefferson
"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin
Hope, n.
The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth |
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Cuneiformist
The Imperfectionist
USA
4955 Posts |
Posted - 08/27/2009 : 19:45:34 [Permalink]
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| Thanks for this, Dude. Atheism isn't a religion and so people who end up accepting that there are no supernatural forces in the universe not only come from all walks of life but also end up all over the political/moral spectrum. So while it's hard (at least for me) to identify with a current atheist figure (e.g. I couldn't care less what Richard Dawkins or whomever thinks about how I should live my life), it is always interesting to hear how others came to arrive at the same place I have... |
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BigPapaSmurf
SFN Die Hard
3192 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 07:03:00 [Permalink]
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| Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen. |
"...things I have neither seen nor experienced nor heard tell of from anybody else; things, what is more, that do not in fact exist and could not ever exist at all. So my readers must not believe a word I say." -Lucian on his book True History
"...They accept such things on faith alone, without any evidence. So if a fraudulent and cunning person who knows how to take advantage of a situation comes among them, he can make himself rich in a short time." -Lucian critical of early Christians c.166 AD From his book, De Morte Peregrini |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
 Posted - 09/10/2009 : 08:02:46 [Permalink]
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Why are we atheists? For a lack of anything better to believe -- simple as that.
Could indeed be a pretty good read.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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dglas
Skeptic Friend
Canada
397 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 09:13:49 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by BigPapaSmurf
Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen.
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Didn't Barry Sanders play for that team in powderpuff blue that never wins? Seems that referring to anything related to that team as being anything even approaching mediocre has to be an act of some kind of irrational faith...  |
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- dglas (In the hell of 1000 unresolved subplots...)
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The Presupposition of Intrinsic Evil
+ A Self-Justificatory Framework
= The "Heart of Darkness"
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BigPapaSmurf
SFN Die Hard
3192 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 11:35:14 [Permalink]
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| You've made an enemy for life! |
"...things I have neither seen nor experienced nor heard tell of from anybody else; things, what is more, that do not in fact exist and could not ever exist at all. So my readers must not believe a word I say." -Lucian on his book True History
"...They accept such things on faith alone, without any evidence. So if a fraudulent and cunning person who knows how to take advantage of a situation comes among them, he can make himself rich in a short time." -Lucian critical of early Christians c.166 AD From his book, De Morte Peregrini |
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astropin
SFN Regular
USA
970 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 11:45:23 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by dglas
Originally posted by BigPapaSmurf
Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen.
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Didn't Barry Sanders play for that team in powderpuff blue that never wins? Seems that referring to anything related to that team as being anything even approaching mediocre has to be an act of some kind of irrational faith...
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Hey watch it now.....them's fightin words! (Lions Fan for life.....how sad for me).
And yes Barry was the greatest EVER....even if his team did stink. In fact it only highlights how good he really was.
Why are we Atheists? Because it's the default position and I have yet to come across a logical reason to change.
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I would rather face a cold reality than delude myself with comforting fantasies.
You are free to believe what you want to believe and I am free to ridicule you for it.
Atheism:
The result of an unbiased and rational search for the truth.
Infinitus est numerus stultorum |
| Edited by - astropin on 09/10/2009 11:45:56 |
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bngbuck
SFN Addict
USA
2437 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 14:07:39 [Permalink]
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| Why are we Atheists? Because it's the default position and I have yet to come across a logical reason to change. |
Ah yes, Filthy, but you will as soon as you "pass" and "go" to your "reward"!
"Pass"? Pass what? Gas?, a truck?, a poker bid? Shit, dying has got to be complicated!
"Go"? There's travel involved? Where? What locomotion?
"Reward"? Is this just a big game of some sort? Con game?
What the fuck? |
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dglas
Skeptic Friend
Canada
397 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 16:04:46 [Permalink]
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There are really as many different reasons for being atheists as there are atheists to have reasons. This is evidenced by the degrees of outspokenness of different atheists. Some will try to restrict the reasons to a very few in order to try to paint them as isolated examples of deviance, but I am personally delighted to see so many different people from so many different backgrounds "coming out" as atheists. So many life experiences leading to the rejection of the single horrific God delusion.
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- dglas (In the hell of 1000 unresolved subplots...)
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The Presupposition of Intrinsic Evil
+ A Self-Justificatory Framework
= The "Heart of Darkness"
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dglas
Skeptic Friend
Canada
397 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 16:08:56 [Permalink]
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For a moment I forgot what it was like to be a Pats fan when they wore the horrific butt-pirate logo, and lost to your average schoolyard of kindergarten children.
Sanders was very, very good.
My humblest and profoundest apologies.
If it makes you feel any better I am a life-long Habs fan and they've been stinking pretty high for 20 years now. |
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- dglas (In the hell of 1000 unresolved subplots...)
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The Presupposition of Intrinsic Evil
+ A Self-Justificatory Framework
= The "Heart of Darkness"
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R.Wreck
SFN Regular
USA
1191 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 17:13:55 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by BigPapaSmurf
Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen.
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We WalterPaytonists beg to differ. Hail Sweetness! |
The foundation of morality is to . . . give up pretending to believe that for which there is no evidence, and repeating unintelligible propositions about things beyond the possibliities of knowledge.
T. H. Huxley
The Cattle Prod of Enlightened Compassion
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astropin
SFN Regular
USA
970 Posts |
Posted - 09/10/2009 : 20:12:03 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by R.Wreck
Originally posted by BigPapaSmurf
Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen.
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We WalterPaytonists beg to differ. Hail Sweetness!
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Sweetness was sweet....and my all time 2nd favorite back.
Are we officially O.T. now? Must be football season  |
I would rather face a cold reality than delude myself with comforting fantasies.
You are free to believe what you want to believe and I am free to ridicule you for it.
Atheism:
The result of an unbiased and rational search for the truth.
Infinitus est numerus stultorum |
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R.Wreck
SFN Regular
USA
1191 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2009 : 19:27:19 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by astropin
Originally posted by R.Wreck
Originally posted by BigPapaSmurf
Well we have plenty of room over here in the anuminist section and it only requires one belief: That Barry Sanders is the greatest running back ever, amen.
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We WalterPaytonists beg to differ. Hail Sweetness!
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Sweetness was sweet....and my all time 2nd favorite back.
Are we officially O.T. now? Must be football season
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Definitely way O.T., but what the hell.
If you ever find yourself in the Chicago area, specifically southwest of the city, check out Walter Payton's Roundhouse in Aurora. Pretty good food, good beer, and a nice little museum. Just be careful if you order a shot and a beer.  |
The foundation of morality is to . . . give up pretending to believe that for which there is no evidence, and repeating unintelligible propositions about things beyond the possibliities of knowledge.
T. H. Huxley
The Cattle Prod of Enlightened Compassion
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Bob Lloyd
Skeptic Friend
Spain
59 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2009 : 08:50:20 [Permalink]
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Why are we atheists? Lack of evidence!
A friend of my father once told me when I was very young "If I said to you the world was created and controlled by an invisible, all powerful superbeing who knows everything and listens in to everyone's thoughts, so give me money, you'd laugh at me, but the church does that every Sunday." It had quite an effect on me. |
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Cuneiformist
The Imperfectionist
USA
4955 Posts |
Posted - 11/20/2009 : 16:00:47 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Bob Lloyd
Why are we atheists? Lack of evidence!
A friend of my father once told me when I was very young "If I said to you the world was created and controlled by an invisible, all powerful superbeing who knows everything and listens in to everyone's thoughts, so give me money, you'd laugh at me, but the church does that every Sunday." It had quite an effect on me. |
I always wonder how (if at all) it would have effected my life if I'd been raised atheist, versus growing up in a Church and only gradually coming to my atheist stance in my early 20's. Perhaps it would have changed nothing. But I'm certainly curious. |
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Zebra
Skeptic Friend
USA
354 Posts |
Posted - 11/21/2009 : 00:15:54 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Bob Lloyd
Why are we atheists? Lack of evidence!
A friend of my father once told me when I was very young "If I said to you the world was created and controlled by an invisible, all powerful superbeing who knows everything and listens in to everyone's thoughts, so give me money, you'd laugh at me, but the church does that every Sunday." It had quite an effect on me.
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Great one-liner summary-cum-eyeopener about organized religion, Bob Lloyd - did you ever get a chance to thank that guy?
I've ordered the book mentioned in the OP - it looks good. (Plus I had a gift certificate burning a hole in my pocket.) |
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Why We Are Atheists
