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RALFFERS

I'm becoming an atheist

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>I've never heard of nations going to war over skydiving.

True. On the other hand, very few people are crippled or killed by making a bad decision while praying.



Muslims have a few more... ;)
Stupidity if left untreated is self-correcting
If ya can't be good, look good, if that fails, make 'em laugh.

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I was refering to was athiests who claim that just because religion is irrational and make-believe, that it has no value. My sister's religious, has one biological child, one Ethiopian adopted child, and is leaving for Etheopia next summer to do missionary work.

While the teachings of her missionary work may be fairy tales, it makes her happy and she helps rather than hurts others. Who am I to say her beliefs are irrational?



Religion does give a lot of people comfort in their lives. I think that's awesome, but . . . it's also a force of evil in the world and I think that's pretty fucked up.

What is especially fucked up are the people that prey upon those that pray and the people that use religion as a weapon to further their own selfish power struggles.

While I'm all for freedom of religion for those innocent people that find comfort in it. It really pisses me off when some world leader tells me he's going to start a war because "god" told him to or that a hurricane is "god's" retribution on a certain segment of the population they don't happen to like for political reasons.

It also pisses me off when people tell me I have to believe in "god" in order for me to be a good person and have morals or that there is something "missing" from my life because I don't see the world they same way they do. Fuck that. I know right from wrong without some selective interpretation of a particular mythology.

If a person chooses to believe in "god", more power to them, just don't fuck up the world for the rest of us. If you believe gay marriage is wrong because the bible says so; great, don't get one. But quit fucking up the world for the people that don't happen to believe the same thing. If you believe your religion is the one "true" religion; great, just don't fuck up the world by trying to cram it down the throats of anybody else. If you believe the earth was created in 7 days; great, just don't fuck up the opportunity for the rest of the world to progress beyond the stone age by learning how science works. Don't fuck up the opportunity to treat spinal cord injuries with stem cells because you believe a single strand of DNA is the same thing as a fully developed human. Don't fuck up the entire planet today because you think the second coming is just around the corner. Don't steal an old woman's last dollar just because you can tell a really good story about a 900 foot Jesus.

These are the types of things that piss me off.
quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

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Bolas, I'm agnostic and of your thinking as well, but religion doesn't kill people. Bad people kill people. What I was refering to was athiests who claim that just because religion is irrational and make-believe, that it has no value. My sister's religious, has one biological child, one Ethiopian adopted child, and is leaving for Etheopia next summer to do missionary work.




Religion doesn't make people adopt children and do good things. Good people just do good things.

And regarding your statement about religion not killing people, there are several religions that promote killing people for several different reasons. In any case that a person was killed because it was promoted by religion, had that religion not existed or the individual who did the killing not practiced the killing, it would not have happened. Umm, so yes, religion does kill people.

I don't think a group of people would have flown a couple of planes into buildings killing themselves and thousands of others just because they were bad people.

Bad people do bad things. It takes religion to make good people do bad things.

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I've never heard of nations going to war over skydiving.

Never heard of skydivers torturing and killing whuffos becuase they did not "believe."

Never heard of people who practice different disciplines in skydiving killing each other over their discipline.

:|

Edit: Additionally: Skydiving encourage people to go out and seek additional knowledge from a variety of sources.



Bolas, I'm agnostic and of your thinking as well, but religion doesn't kill people. Bad people kill people. What I was refering to was athiests who claim that just because religion is irrational and make-believe, that it has no value. My sister's religious, has one biological child, one Ethiopian adopted child, and is leaving for Etheopia next summer to do missionary work.

While the teachings of her missionary work may be fairy tales, it makes her happy and she helps rather than hurts others. Who am I to say her beliefs are irrational?


Bad people kill people in the name of religion. Or convince others to that wouldn't normally to do it.

Your sister could still do those things without religion. The question is would she?

The same "power" that turned her/used her to do good is the same one used by all religions to control their people. To me it's the control that is really the scariest part, not the results, although in some cases they can be horrifying.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely... [:/]
Stupidity if left untreated is self-correcting
If ya can't be good, look good, if that fails, make 'em laugh.

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>Bad people kill people in the name of religion.

And in the name of their race, or patriotism, or duty, or honor. There are no end to the list of rationalizations one can use to ease the pang of killing.



Some of the reasons even make sense.:|
I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

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I've never heard of nations going to war over skydiving.

Never heard of skydivers torturing and killing whuffos becuase they did not "believe."

Never heard of people who practice different disciplines in skydiving killing each other over their discipline.

:|

Edit: Additionally: Skydiving encourage people to go out and seek additional knowledge from a variety of sources.



Bolas, I'm agnostic and of your thinking as well, but religion doesn't kill people. Bad people kill people. What I was refering to was athiests who claim that just because religion is irrational and make-believe, that it has no value. My sister's religious, has one biological child, one Ethiopian adopted child, and is leaving for Etheopia next summer to do missionary work.

While the teachings of her missionary work may be fairy tales, it makes her happy and she helps rather than hurts others. Who am I to say her beliefs are irrational?


Bad people kill people in the name of religion. Or convince others to that wouldn't normally to do it.

Your sister could still do those things without religion. The question is would she?

The same "power" that turned her/used her to do good is the same one used by all religions to control their people. To me it's the control that is really the scariest part, not the results, although in some cases they can be horrifying.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely... [:/]

Very well said.
Blue skies,
Keith Medlock

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These are the types of things that piss me off.



So I guess living in a free country is not such a good idea after all huh? We need people in charge who can put the thumb on anybody who disagrees with them. Is it possible you may be way to worked up. What is True will remain what is false will eventually fade away. Life is good.

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While you could say that the illness is what killed them, what about the extremists that believe in prayer as the only medicine? Allowing children with diabetes to die a cruel death while they prayed. I don't hate religion or religious people, I hate how religious people interpret their religious texts and use whatever words to justify whatever harm they wish to bring upon another person, indirect or not.

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>While you could say that the illness is what killed them, what about
>the extremists that believe in prayer as the only medicine?

?? I wasn't saying that illness killed anyone. It was a reference to skydivers who take lots of risks, risks that are a lot more likely to be deadly than for the 99.9% of religious people in the world who do nothing more violent than pray.

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o I guess living in a free country is not such a good idea after all huh? We need people in charge who can put the thumb on anybody who disagrees with them.



Damn near certain you didn't actually read what was written.
quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

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o I guess living in a free country is not such a good idea after all huh? We need people in charge who can put the thumb on anybody who disagrees with them.



Damn near certain you didn't actually read what was written.



Actually the really scary part is I bet he did.
Time flies like an arrow....fruit flies like a banana

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While you could say that the illness is what killed them, what about the extremists that believe in prayer as the only medicine? Allowing children with diabetes to die a cruel death while they prayed. I don't hate religion or religious people, I hate how religious people interpret their religious texts and use whatever words to justify whatever harm they wish to bring upon another person, indirect or not.



You sound like a good person in touch with reality, I don't know. But I am just curious. I understand and agree with your disapproval of someone who harms their children because of arrogant presumptions of Gods will. But are you equally enraged by people who allow their babies to be dismembered and killed without anesthesia prior to their birth?

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I guess living in a free country is not such a good idea after all huh? We need people in charge who can put the thumb on anybody who disagrees with them

Damn near certain you didn't actually read what was written.



I can't help but wonder about you. Do you actually know what you wrote?


...

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I guess living in a free country is not such a good idea after all huh? We need people in charge who can put the thumb on anybody who disagrees with them


Damn near certain you didn't actually read what was written.


I can't help but wonder about you. Do you actually know what you wrote?



Maybe you should read it again. If you don't recognize the abuses some "authorities" and politicians around the world have used religion to cause evil, then I sort of feel sad for you.
quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

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Can't say I agree with late-term abortion, but I'll lay it out there that I am pro-choice and my idea of when a human being becomes a human being is when it no longer requires oxygen/waste removal from its' 'host.' However, I'm enraged when people use abortion as their only method of birth control and if they waited till the last minute. I believe in personal responsibility and that it truly is a woman's choice (and a damn hard one if you've ever been in that position.)

Please don't start a battle with me, I have my opinions and you sound like you have your own. Leave it at the atheist boat.

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Maybe you should read it again. If you don't recognize the abuses some "authorities" and politicians around the world have used religion to cause evil, then I sort of feel sad for you.



It sounds like all they were doing was subscribing to your view points on thought control. If we don't like what you have to say, disappear. I guess they don't like the idea of a free country either. Its not nice to piss off those in control.

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By the way the pain receptors in a fetus work just fine.



Between 24 and 28 weeks yes.

http://discovermagazine.com/2005/dec/fetus-feel-pain

http://www.godandscience.org/doctrine/fetal_pain.html


There's a few that suggest lower ( around 20 - 22 weeks ) but those are claims by pro-life bigots who always lack the proper scientific studies to back it up. Vast majority of scientists suggest 25-28 weeks)

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Are you suggetsing the belief in after life of eternal sexual pleasure has no impact on a perosns d to become a suicide bomber?



I'm suggesting that the person is bad, not the religion.

Religion doesn't attack people. The people do that. The same person that becomes a suicide bomber, would likely be a danger some other way in the absence of that religion because he's fucked up to begin with.

Maybe instead of being a suicide bomber, he would become the pawn of some woman who uses the weak minded individual to knock off her husband for the insurance money...

Even without religion, you would still have the same number of bad people, and you would have to find something else to blame their behavior on.
Blue skies,
Keith Medlock

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Highly disagree.

The person isn't the problem, it's the religion. If you get told by your God or his so-called teachings you will receive bountiful gifts when you die if you kill someone... And you truly believe your religion, you will do it. Remember that the word of God is supposed to over-rule the word of man. So all you need is to get a person to truly believe and then you can feed him whatever 'God' wants him to do.

Your argument is flawed to no ends. Suicide bombers aren't suicide bombers because they enjoy killing people, don't be ridiculous.

I hate all religions equally, but let's look at this quick.

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The same person that becomes a suicide bomber, would likely be a danger some other way in the absence of that religion because he's fucked up to begin with.



So you're saying that it's just complete luck that the suicide bombers all happen to live in one basic area. You realize people can make bombs anywhere right? You don't need to be a militant muslim to be able to make a bomb.

If what you're saying was true, there would be a new serial killer every 2 days killing people in the U.S. But what do you know, it's few and far between.


You're right in saying that a person whom has a certain type of personality trait is more likely to be violent. But to say that he would be without religion is non-sense. Those who perform suicide attacks for example are generally fairly militant about their beliefs... But when you don't have beliefs to be militant about then you just put that passion into something else. I'm a militant person my self, I stick to my guns. But I don't go around killing people, nor will I. But I know that if I was brought up being told that if I did I'd be rewarded, I'd probably do it. Because that's what humans do, if they believe something strongly enough all logic falls away, just look at Christians.

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Even without religion, you would still have the same number of bad people



Utter bollocks, you'd maybe have the same amount of gullible people, but not bad people.

One just needs to think about the things Christians believe, they believe the teachings of the bible and the church in most cases. Luckily we've evolved with time, but at one stage majority of Christians were enjoying public shows of burning so-called witches, and the execution of non-believers. And these weren't inherently bad people, they were people who genuinely believed what they were doing was right. And when you can make someone think that, you can make them do whatever, no matter how evil.

And Christians will claim they'd never do anything like that. But that's just because they weren't raised being told that's what's right. One's ideas of wrong and right are easily manipulated with the right amount of effort and years.

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Blaming an entire religion on the actions of one person is like blaming the black race for the black guy that shot and killed my friend (didn't actualy happen, just making a point)

Statisticly, blacks in America are more violent right? Lets get rid of the black people to eliminate the majority of the crime in the US!

People are murdered everyday in Dallas where I live, but strangely, I don't see many suicide bombers among the murderers...

FYI, all of my arguments are flawed, as are yours...
Blue skies,
Keith Medlock

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Umm...No, actually not at all. How the fuck is that even similar?!

Are you saying that there are more 'bad' black people than whites then? Because you said that it's based on the kind of person and not because of the circumstances that drive them to do it.

The reason why blacks commit more crimes is a poverty/social issue, not because they're black! In this case the poverty is the direct metaphorical comparison to religion. An outside force that drives someone to commit 'bad acts'.

You really shot yourself in the foot with that post.

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People are murdered everyday in Dallas where I live, but strangely, I don't see many suicide bombers among the murderers...



That's because they are killed because of other issues, poverty, drugs etc. Not because these people were born evil.

No one said that without religion the world would be perfect. But it's impossible for any sane person to deny that the presence of religion has historically had a large impact on the increase in violence.

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