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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
 Posted - 10/09/2007 : 16:09:39
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Every so often, they do this; put forth a long snivel about how the unbelievers are abusing them. There they sit with a 27 million dollar debt-free lie pulling in the faithful's bread, and they not only whine, but they have the unmitigated gall to ask for donations even during the whining. Go figger. When you walk into AiG's research library, you'll see two shelves along the wall holding recent books promoting the encompassing worldview of atheism. (The photo shows just a few of the best-known texts.) And not surprisingly, these books by atheists devote large sections to presenting the supposed evidence to debunk creation and to uphold atheistic evolution.
Some of the books have become bestsellers. Nowadays during today's culture wars, it appears that all you have to do in order to become a famous (and well-compensated) author is to write a book promoting atheism and slamming religion (Christianity most of all), and if you can catch on with a well-known publisher with some marketing clout, you can ride to the top of bestseller lists.1
The “new atheists,” as they are now being called, are much more aggressive than their predecessors. They include vehement anti-creationist Dr. Richard Dawkins of Oxford University; the raging contrarian Christopher Hitchens, author of the 2007 bestseller God Is Not Great;2 writer Sam Harris; and philosopher Daniel Dennett. It doesn't appear that these prominent atheists are mere publicity seekers. They come across as very serious in their mission to convert readers to atheism. (Of course, the potential for financial rewards and recognition probably provide at least some motivation as well.)
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Kettle, you is one black sumbitch!
But this time, I sorta wonder: Could it be that the *ahem* 'museum,' while it got off to a roaring start, isn't quite meeting expectations now? I dunno.
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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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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 10/09/2007 : 17:35:20 [Permalink]
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Poor, poor bastards. I'm sure some of your herps will shed a tear or two for them, Fil.
Kinda wonder why they're whining. Despite a few critics' attempts to minimize AiG and its Museum, both are clearly remarkably huge successes. Millions and millions of dollars donated, thousands and thousands of mesmerized vistors.
Horrifyingly huge successes. We should not ignore this central fact: Though Ken Hamm is a con-man, he's a clever sumbitch. No Kent Hovind is Hamm. Unlike that wacky ignoramus Hovind, Hamm doesn't believe his own lies.
| You can give a gift of stock, securities, or real estate. Or you can set up a charitable remainder trust (CRT), gift annuity, or estate plan to benefit the Creation Museum and save you tax dollars! Call John Pence, Director of Planned Giving, at 800-350-3232, ext. 483 to discuss these and other strategic giving options! |
Protect us from the vehement, raging New Atheists! Just send in your money, your retirement nest egg, or the deed to your home, brothers and sisters.
(Also, note: New Atheist Sam Harris would prefer non-association to a belief which "dare not speak its name," but as PZ warned would be the case, the AiG's Looey is still calling Harris an "atheist." Who'd have thunk it?)
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 10/09/2007 17:37:57 |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 10/09/2007 : 17:46:00 [Permalink]
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| Well, at least they're not burning the books. Gotta give 'em credit for taking at least one tiny step in the right direction. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 10/09/2007 : 18:06:14 [Permalink]
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That's true. Another indication of Hamm's genius. Hard to call him a fascist when he sells his "enemy's" books. Another mark of his genius is that he doesn't push for the inclusion of Creationism in public schools. He's clever enough to want to keep that as a church monopoly, while avoiding being labeled a theocrat. Ultimately, he's smarter than all the PhD's at DI. He keeps his main argument simple and unfalsifiable: If science contradicts the Bible, science is wrong.
He'll outlast DI, I suspect.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 10/09/2007 18:10:17 |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2007 : 12:57:16 [Permalink]
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AiG strikes back! Atheists are “coming out of the closet” and becoming more vocal about their message that “there is no God.” Professor Richard Dawkins (Britain's leading atheist) is encouraging those who share his views to express their opinion. Author of The God Delusion, Dawkins says he wants to “free children from being indoctrinated with the religion of their parents or their community.”1 Will Christians be prepared to “give an answer” to the atheists' claims?2
Materialistic atheism is one of the easiest worldviews to refute. A materialistic atheist believes that nature is all that there is. He believes that there is no transcendent God who oversees and maintains creation. Many atheists believe that their worldview is rational—and scientific. However, by embracing materialism, the atheist has destroyed the possibility of knowledge, as well as science and technology. In other words, if atheism were true, it would be impossible to prove anything!
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Indeed. Consider: Here's why:
Reasoning involves using the laws of logic. These include the law of non-contradiction which says that you can't have A and not-A at the same time and in the same relationship. For example, the statement “My car is in the parking lot, and it is not the case that my car is in the parking lot” is necessarily false by the law of non-contradiction. Any rational person would accept this law. But why is this law true? Why should there be a law of non-contradiction, or for that matter, any laws of reasoning? The Christian can answer this question. For the Christian there is an absolute standard for reasoning; we are to pattern our thoughts after God's. The laws of logic are a reflection of the way God thinks. The law of non-contradiction is not simply one person's opinion of how we ought to think, rather it stems from God's self-consistent nature. God cannot deny Himself ( 2 Timothy 2:13), and so, the way God upholds the universe will necessarily be non-contradictory.
Laws of logic are God's standard for thinking. Since God is an unchanging, sovereign, immaterial Being, the laws of logic are abstract, universal, invariant entities. In other words, they are not made of matter—they apply everywhere and at all times. Laws of logic are contingent upon God's unchanging nature. And they are necessary for logical reasoning. Thus, rational reasoning would be impossible without the biblical God.
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 Shee-it, these guys are more fun than a rubber crutch in the orthopedics ward. When it comes to convoluted apologetics, they have no peer. Open the link and read on; you, be you beliver or otherwise, will get the chuckle for the day!
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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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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2007 : 14:38:48 [Permalink]
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So damn silly. Best of all, that false logic's so convoluted that their target audience won't even remember it. Hell, half their target audience can't read it!
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2007 : 14:51:32 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by HalfMooner
So damn silly. Best of all, that false logic's so convoluted that their target audience won't even remember it. Hell, half their target audience can't read it!
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That's no slur on them; I had to struggle with it in spots. The guy gets nearly incoherent, which is the best of signs that he's really reaching for his point. What ever that might be.
I'd leave out milk and cookies if I thought it'd 'tice some of them in here.
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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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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
 Posted - 10/10/2007 : 16:05:48 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by filthy
Originally posted by HalfMooner
So damn silly. Best of all, that false logic's so convoluted that their target audience won't even remember it. Hell, half their target audience can't read it!
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That's no slur on them; I had to struggle with it in spots. The guy gets nearly incoherent, which is the best of signs that he's really reaching for his point. What ever that might be.
I'd leave out milk and cookies if I thought it'd 'tice some of them in here.
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Sometimes, getting incoherent is the only way to tell a lie. Telling it in simple words leaves it open to refutation in simple words. But the way this guy did it, any Cretinist dummy can just claim the guy proved his point, and link to the article. May as well be reading St. Augustine or St. John Aquinas as that murky crap. But Catholics keep quoting those saints.
Kind of a clever ruse, claiming that you opponent, because of his rational beliefs, is incapable of rationality. Piss-poor execution, though.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 10/10/2007 16:07:33 |
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Cuneiformist
The Imperfectionist
USA
4955 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2007 : 18:21:11 [Permalink]
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I read the argument. It was certainly one of the weakest attempts to assail atheism that I've ever read.
His case seems to be that, for instance, the law of non-contradiction is only true because Yahweh makes it so. The best he can do to support this idea is quote some Bible verses, and then say that since a law isn't made of matter, and atheists think that the only thing that exists in the universe is matter (?!) then atheists can't rationally explain universal laws. Or something.  This sort of playing around with semantics-- and the straw men the author sets up in his argument-- are one of the (many) reasons I decided against minoring in philosophy even though I had the credits to do so (I was a glutton for punishment, I think). |
| Edited by - Cuneiformist on 10/10/2007 19:47:07 |
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Ricky
SFN Die Hard
USA
4907 Posts |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2007 : 20:30:05 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by filthy
That's no slur on them; I had to struggle with it in spots. |
Oh, me, too! Still not sure what it meant. But the fun part will be, when someone quotes it, make 'em explain it to us.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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The big, bad atheists are picking on AiG.
