Comments on: Atheism is not a belief system, ok? Got that? Why must we repeat ourselves?

By: Breaking Spells » The psychology of atheism?

Breaking Spells » The psychology of atheism? — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:31:43 +0000

[...] Atheism is not a belief system, ok? Got that? Why must we repeat ourselves? (endhereditaryreligion.com) var addthis_pub = ''; var addthis_language = 'en';var addthis_options = 'email, favorites, digg, delicious, myspace, google, facebook, reddit, live, more'; [...]

By: anti_supernaturalist

anti_supernaturalist — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:20:05 +0000

BillE, You've been spending too much time listening to the wrong people and reading inferior literature. Do not project your xian death wish onto us. You already live out a terrible fate — being someone who wishes others die and wishes them to suffer forever postmortem in a hell born of a monstrous revenge impulse.

By rejecting reason . . . and accepting fideism as your refuge, you assume that others are as unclean in their mental habits as you are.

Your thinking almost frolics in typical fallacies (failures in reasoning) common to minds steeped in the illogic of xian discourse. (Blame it on Paul.)

1) You simply cannot assume the very point at issue — that's "begging the question", or "circular reasoning." You cannot claim that "P must believe that some god X exists" because you assume that "X exists."

2) Your viciously circular logic turns on the commonly held notion that if N is a name (or a noun or pronoun) that N does actually refer (point to) something which does exist. Names always "name" things, right? Wrong.

Just as 'Hamlet' refers to no being in the past. 'God' refers to no being now or ever. They are fictional constructs. See my explanation below in a separate post.

Here are your fallacious arguments:

'God' refers to some being X (hidden false assumption)
——————————————
Therefore, X exists
Person (P) is speaking about X (false assumption)
——————————————-
Therefore, P is speaking about God (invalid inference)
——————————————-
Therefore, P believes that God exists (invalid inference)

Of course, there is an additional failure to make a basic discrimination: between "believing that" and "believing in" — just because "P believes (as a fact) that BillE spouts nonsense" it does not follow that "P believes in (trusts) the nonsense that BillE spouts (because he does the spouting)". Just the opposite in fact.

the anti_supernaturalist

By: anti_supernaturalist

anti_supernaturalist — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:59:42 +0000

You must be blood-sister to Raven wisest companion of the Great Goddess.

the anti_supernaturalist

By: anti_supernaturalist

anti_supernaturalist — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:53:38 +0000

Speaking clearly about non-existent, but well-known fictional characters

Atheists cannot talk about your so-called "God" or about gods in general. There are no gods. By presupposing that a name (or a noun) must actually refer to something, you commit an elementary mistake.

Having an opinion that gods do not exist cannot mean that one has an opinion "about" gods. There is no so-called ‘god’ in reality, according to the atheist, about which to have an opinion.

However, I can have opinions about a fictitious character named 'Hamlet' as presented by Shakespeare in his play, 'The Tragedy of Hamlet.'

I can also have opinions about a fictitious character named 'God' as presented in the synoptic gospels of 'The New Testament.'

All I can know about these characters is what I read in allegedly “sacred” primary sources directly devoted to them. I can no more find "God" by doing cosmological research than I can disinter "Hamlet's” bones in a chapel at Elsinore.

No interpretation of Shakespeare's play "Hamlet" makes some character called 'Hamlet' more likely to have existed. No interpretation of the synoptics of the "New Testament" makes some being called 'God' more likely to exist. Theology is fifth-rate fan fiction.

the anti_supernaturalist

By: Heidi

Heidi — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 03:44:45 +0000

I'm so sorry that you have rejected Odin the Allfather, and that you will not be admitted to Valhalla. They don't let you in unless you die in battle, so I'm guessing you're pretty much screwed. It's so silly and sad of you not to glorify Odin's name. Why, Odin even has his very own day of the week (Wednesday), unlike some lesser gods I could name.

By: BillE

BillE — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 02:33:45 +0000

Of course Atheism is a belief system. In fact, Atheists spend more time talking about God than do many Christians! Atheists do believe in God. It's just that they reject God and then try to convince themselves (as well as others) that they are right for rejecting God. Silly people…. your belief is a faith. You have faith that your belief is correct. Of course, the majority of people know from what is seen and unseen that you are destined for a terrible fate.

By: Cat wrangling and Atheist bus ads in Iowa

Cat wrangling and Atheist bus ads in Iowa — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 04:09:37 +0000

[...] Atheism is not a belief system, ok? Got that? Why must we repeat ourselves? (endhereditaryreligion.com) [...]

By: Atheist Bus Ads | Tangled Up in Blue Guy

Atheist Bus Ads | Tangled Up in Blue Guy — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:35:11 +0000

[...] Atheism is not a belief system, ok? Got that? Why must we repeat ourselves? (endhereditaryreligion.com) [...]

By: Richard_Collins

Richard_Collins — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 19:42:12 +0000

Daniel writes:
The Scripture writers of all traditions have no more access to knowledge about supernatural schemes of justice requiring propitiation of sins than you or I have.
+++++++

Exactly, and as Stefan Molyneux writes in "On Truth: The Tryanny of Illusion". Parents speak to their children about morals as though they knew what they were talking about. Read my posts on Molyneux, "Fact and Fiction" and the Intersection of Molyneux and Law.

By: Richard_Collins

Richard_Collins — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 19:35:16 +0000

Atheists and humanists are notoriously independent minded so I don't see a danger to flying the red letter "A". For the first time in history the web has given us a means to find each other and constructively counter the oppressive religious hegemony that shackles the mind and crushes the human spirit. The issue is human rights for men, women and children. Atheism may be the banner, but ultimately secular humanism is the philosophy. I think our frightened religious friends and neighbors attack atheism because it does not have a spelled out philosophy, beyond do not create dogma!. That's hard to fight, but any mentally challenged believer gets atheism. Those people hate my jesus! Our opponents find it harder to attack humanism because then you have to fashion arguments against the doctrines of humanism.