Comments on: Blair, religion and superstition http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition no soup, no clouds Sat, 24 Sep 2011 16:19:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: somefoolwitha.com http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-1012 somefoolwitha.com Tue, 30 Nov 2010 10:36:43 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-1012 [...] I'm an atheist (though Pastafarionism sounds tempting) so don't bother trying to convert me to whatever mind-altering religious mass-cult or whatever the other sheep are following this season. "If atheism is a religion then not collecting stamps is a hobby..." # [...] [...] I'm an atheist (though Pastafarionism sounds tempting) so don't bother trying to convert me to whatever mind-altering religious mass-cult or whatever the other sheep are following this season. "If atheism is a religion then not collecting stamps is a hobby…" # [...]

]]> By: David http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-64 David Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-64 Him? As in, your god has X Him? As in, your god has X and Y chromosomes and sports a penis? No? <em>Metaphorically</em> 'him' then. What part of your claims aren't metaphor or fantasy? Him?

As in, your god has X Him?

As in, your god has X and Y chromosomes and sports a penis? No?

Metaphorically ‘him’ then. What part of your claims aren’t metaphor or fantasy?

]]> By: Victor http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-65 Victor Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-65 Hi David, You write: "They Hi David, You write: "They don’t exist and nor does your miserable, repellent Christian god." Try asking him. Hi David,
You write: “They Hi David,
You write: “They don’t exist and nor does your miserable, repellent Christian god.”
Try asking him.

]]> By: David http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-66 David Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-66 Look, Even Dawkins at his Look, Even Dawkins at his most vehement will say that technically he's an agnostic because he can't prove the absence of a God. I differ from his use of language, that's all. I'm not an agnostic about a teapot orbting Sirius, I'm not agnostic about the propositions that ants spend their time underground knitting, or that toothbrushes can speak Mandarin. I'm not agnostic about the existence of Thor, or Zeus, or Osiris, or Ganesha. I'm not agnostic about Anubis, Hathor, Imhotep, Set, Thoth, Bagadjimbiri, Bunbulama, Julunggul, Ulanji, Awonawilona, Buku, Daramulun, Ereshkigal, Freyja, Hecate, Huitzilopochtli, Kibuka, Loki, Lug, Mulungu, O-Kuni-Nushi, Ptah, Shakura, Tekkeitserktock, Ti-Tsang Wang, Tsui' Goab or Xiuhtecuhtli. <strong>And neither are you</strong>. It's an abuse of language and thought to insist that <strong>technically</strong> we have to remain agnostic about these fictions. They don't exist and nor does your miserable, repellent Christian god. Look,

Even Dawkins at his Look,

Even Dawkins at his most vehement will say that technically he’s an agnostic because he can’t prove the absence of a God. I differ from his use of language, that’s all.

I’m not an agnostic about a teapot orbting Sirius, I’m not agnostic about the propositions that ants spend their time underground knitting, or that toothbrushes can speak Mandarin.

I’m not agnostic about the existence of Thor, or Zeus, or Osiris, or Ganesha. I’m not agnostic about Anubis, Hathor, Imhotep, Set, Thoth, Bagadjimbiri, Bunbulama, Julunggul, Ulanji, Awonawilona, Buku, Daramulun, Ereshkigal, Freyja, Hecate, Huitzilopochtli, Kibuka, Loki, Lug, Mulungu, O-Kuni-Nushi, Ptah, Shakura, Tekkeitserktock, Ti-Tsang Wang, Tsui’ Goab or Xiuhtecuhtli. And neither are you.

It’s an abuse of language and thought to insist that technically we have to remain agnostic about these fictions. They don’t exist and nor does your miserable, repellent Christian god.

]]> By: Victor http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-67 Victor Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-67 Hi David, OK, so you have a Hi David, OK, so you have a negative belief (i.e. you believe that I am wrong). But I find it hard to believe that you go through life just saying "No" to other people's opinions. You seem to believe (!) that you have some criteria for believing that I am wrong. Some way of deciding what is possible and what can be true. Some system of belief. Some standard by which you judge things. What is that standard? Reason? Logic? Gut feeling? Tangible sensory experience? Or a mixture of all of these? Hi David,
OK, so you have a Hi David,
OK, so you have a negative belief (i.e. you believe that I am wrong). But I find it hard to believe that you go through life just saying “No” to other people’s opinions.
You seem to believe (!) that you have some criteria for believing that I am wrong. Some way of deciding what is possible and what can be true. Some system of belief. Some standard by which you judge things.
What is that standard? Reason? Logic? Gut feeling? Tangible sensory experience? Or a mixture of all of these?

]]> By: Victor http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-68 Victor Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-68 Hi David, As a non-collector Hi David, As a non-collector of stamps, I have no feelings either way on whether others collect stamps or not. Are you saying that you don't BELIEVE anything? Hi David,
As a non-collector Hi David,
As a non-collector of stamps, I have no feelings either way on whether others collect stamps or not.
Are you saying that you don’t BELIEVE anything?

]]> By: David http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-69 David Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-69 You're missing the point. You're missing the point. You could assert here that you believe in an unlimited number of things: that your cat is made of uranium, your brother is Napolean, that there's a chocolate teapot orbiting Sirius, that cows are secretly intelligent monkeys dressing up in cow suits and so on and so on. It would then be invalid of you to say that my scepticisms about your claims amount to beliefs, of the same order as your beliefs.Geddit? As Dawkins points out, you're an atheist about innumerable gods too. And although you seem to be trying to put words into my mouth, no, I'm <em>not</em> saying I don't believe anything. For example, I believe you're deluded and cling to your culturally dependent religious beliefs through an unwholesome combination of arrogance, timidity and self-deception. You’re missing the point. You’re missing the point. You could assert here that you believe in an unlimited number of things: that your cat is made of uranium, your brother is Napolean, that there’s a chocolate teapot orbiting Sirius, that cows are secretly intelligent monkeys dressing up in cow suits and so on and so on.

It would then be invalid of you to say that my scepticisms about your claims amount to beliefs, of the same order as your beliefs.Geddit?

As Dawkins points out, you’re an atheist about innumerable gods too. And although you seem to be trying to put words into my mouth, no, I’m not saying I don’t believe anything. For example, I believe you’re deluded and cling to your culturally dependent religious beliefs through an unwholesome combination of arrogance, timidity and self-deception.

]]> By: David http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-70 David Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-70 If atheism is a belief then If atheism is a belief then not collecting stamps is a hobby. If atheism is a belief then If atheism is a belief then not collecting stamps is a hobby.

]]> By: Victor http://www.cloudsoup.com/weblog/2006/12/28/blair-religion-and-superstition/comment-page-1#comment-71 Victor Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://1438829043#comment-71 Just for the record, atheism Just for the record, atheism is itself a belief system. Atheists believe in human rationality as the highest authority. It is the standard by which they judge everything else. When they justify this procedure, guess what they use as their proof method? Bingo! Stands to reason (ahem), doesn't it? Round and round we go. For the record, I'm a believer (in Jesus). But at least I'm honest about it. Just for the record, atheism Just for the record, atheism is itself a belief system.
Atheists believe in human rationality as the highest authority. It is the standard by which they judge everything else.
When they justify this procedure, guess what they use as their proof method? Bingo! Stands to reason (ahem), doesn’t it? Round and round we go.

For the record, I’m a believer (in Jesus).
But at least I’m honest about it.

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