Hello Again Everyone,
So glad I found the boards here. So many questions and a small pool of opinions in my circle of friends so great to see so many subjects debated by so many.
Okay on to the “it’s been bothering me” question of the evening. Why is it, especially in internet discussions, it seems that Atheiest (non-believers whatever name they give themselves) go absolutely ape-shiat when they encounter someone who believes or expresses an opinion that God exist. I am not referring to those who try to convert everyone they meet, just a simple belief in God?
The name calling, insults to intelligence etc that goes on is baffling? Why does it bother Atheist so much that another person has a belief system? Does it really matter if that is what helps them sleep at night and helps them handle life?
I am sure that the opposite occurs as well, but it seems that once someone mentions God in a message board discussion they are immediatly attacked by someone calling them undeducated or fools. Doesn’t make sense to me, you believe in what you think is right, I will do the same. It just seems that if they see someone who believes they get themselves so worked up their head might explode.
FWIW, the discussions about religion and God on the SD seem to be pretty respectful for the most part. Compared to what I have seen out there, the topic doesn’t have to be about religion, just the mention of it in a post will bring out the hate. Perhaps the moderators here keep the personal insults to a minimum.
I think you’re seeing the loud screamers. Religious people have them too, but religion is in such a majority that you’re much less likely to see it since most people agree with them. On the other hand, since most people DISAGREE with atheists, you’re much more likely to encounter a person that will set off a raging atheist’s hot button.
The religious screamers also tend to be more fundamentalist, and thus often avoid more mainstream things like video game and movie forums, whereas atheists have no such reservations and tend to be spread about the internet. So even if there are MORE religious screamers, they tend to be concentrated in forums dedicated to their own brand of fundamentalism, as opposed to the more dispersed atheists who hang around more types of forums.
Because it’s really stupid, really dangerous and they have it rammed down their throat everywhere they turn. And because anything but bending over backwards to appear submissive and respectful towards religion is regarded as “absolutely ape-shiat” We aren’t supposed to acknowledge that religion is in any way unrealistic or admit that it has ever in all of h story been responsible for anything wrong. And were certainly aren’t supposed to even imply that being an unbeliever is better; we are supposed to moan about how miserable we are because we don’t believe in gods.
Yes, because of all the suffering and evil it inflicts on the world, including us. That’s like asking why people object to racist or sexist beliefs.
obbn, I was going to come in and say that you’re hearing only the loudest, most intolerant atheists, but Der Trihs came in and proved my point for me.
There are plenty of moderate, tolerant atheists, both on these boards and elsewhere, and I would say we outnumber the rabid atheists. It’s the simple rule that the loudest of any particular group tend to set the stereotype for said group (thanks, DT!).
Just as some atheists may feel that Christians are all gay-hating, Bible thumping missionaries out to convert all non-believers, because the only Christians they’ve ever bothered listening to happened to be the loudest ones.
Not really asking why you object to the possibility of a God. I believe, but there are times when I question that belief. I want to know why it seems Atheist go absolutely rabid. I swear, by the tone of the post I see sometimes I picture them foaming at the mouth while typing. I just don’t get the need to so loudly and with such hate to try to convice someone that their belief system is absurd. So what if they believe? I get the feeling that the people that do this have trouble sleeping at night because they know someone out there just said prayers before turning in.
Disclaimer: I have no problem with you or anyone else not believing in God. Personal choice and all that.
If the gay hating Bible thumpers were a minority then they wouldn’t be able to do things like pass Proposition 8 forbidding same sex marriage here in California. They, not the more tolerant sorts are the Christian norm.
You are trying to portray religion as something harmless and private, instead of the relentless worldwide force for tyranny, irrationality, ignorance and cruelty that it is.
[QUOTE=Crown Prince of Irony;14163798Just as some atheists may feel that Christians are all gay-hating, Bible thumping missionaries out to convert all non-believers, because the only Christians they’ve ever bothered listening to happened to be the loudest ones.[/QUOTE]
Interesting comment. The “Squeaky Wheel” Therory. Makes perfect sense, on both sides of the debate. Thanks
Confirmation bias doesn’t pass laws. I think it’s the more moderate believers who are guilty of confirmation bias; convincing themselves that they are more important and numerous than they really are while the fanatics pass laws, elect Republicans, buy millions of copies of Left Behind, and represent the true core values of their religion. The believers on this board don’t represent the average believer at all; there aren’t many creationists for example, and few here are willing to outright condemn atheists as evil. Those two alone put them in a minority among believers.
Why? They are brainwashed into it as children like nearly everyone else. Women are another example of a group taught to believe from childhood in a religion that typically regards them as subhuman.
Because internet message boards are the medium where ‘atheists’* are able to state bluntly how stupid and destructive religion is. Haven’t you noticed that we don’t have ‘atheist’ churches where we can express our lack of belief? And what is this ‘ape-shiat’ thing anyway? I’ve carefully re-read DT’s posts in this thread, since they have been held up as an exemplar of this phenomenon, and I really don’t see it. Where, exactly, is DT being unreasonable, compared to any Christian expressing their belief publicly?
Your question is equivalent to wondering why, when I go into a church during a service, all these Christians are being so dogmatic about how certain they are about their gods.** Why don’t priests celebrating the mass spend a little time to explain and appreciate the hindu point of view? ***
Regards
Sandwich
I’ve decided to always put ‘atheist’ in quotes, since it doesn’t mean what many Christians appear to think it means. I only self-identify as an ‘atheist’ in order to help Christians understand that I don’t believe in their gods. Nothing else. You can’t use that label as a basis for proving that your gods exist (see several dozen recent SDMB threads).
** And I’m really not interested in hearing yet another explanation about how the three Christian gods are really just one god, if you believe hard enough.
*** Because that would be stupid.
The internet is a medium where it’s possible to rant and rave at complete strangers with almost no repercussions, so you see quite a bit of anti-social behaviour. For balance, here is a site that documents some of the extremes of opinion of the religious right. It’s a mixture of comedy and tragedy.
I’d describe myself as a strong atheist and a sceptic. It’s far, far more important to me how people behave towards each other than whether they believe in a God or not. Religious moderates are often going to be my allies on issues of actual importance. However, I do have a problem with religious extremism, which I consider incompatible with a moral outlook. Consider this George H. W. Bush quote:
Here is the context. It is deeply disturbing that a president can get away with such a deeply bigoted comment. Imagine if he said the same thing about Buddhists, or blacks. Discrimination against atheists is a real phenomenon in the USA, from the wiki article:
Does that shock you?
Sometimes atheists have genuine reasons for anger, although there are positive and negative ways of expressing it.
I also think scepticism, rationality and tolerance are important principles. Religion has a poor record on the first two, and a very mixed one on the latter. I think it’s very simplistic to blame all the evils of the world on religion, but I can show you plenty of examples of heinous acts carried out in it’s name.
To relate a personal anecdote on the importance of scepticism, I have a cousin who is a disciple of this man. She believes a convicted fraudster is a faith healer. She wants to believe in magic, and cannot be reasoned with. As a result, her life is a complete train-wreck. She has tried various approaches to exhorting money out of various family members. She accused her own father of sexually abusing her as a child. This claim does not have a shred of credence, as she was quite happy to let her parents baby-sit her children for many years, both before and after she came out with this. In her mind, any action is justified, as us non-believers will be wiped out in a flood any day soon. We got a glimpse of what she really thinks about us when her then nine year old daughter was screaming “you are worms” down the phone at my parents, somehow I doubt the she formed that opinion independently. She has also seriously damaged her children’s prospects, by taking them in and out of school for many years. The son has been in trouble with the police, and her parents have recently taken legal custody of the daughter, at her request.
No, it does not. I can log on to the Straight Dope Message Board and see many atheists telling me that I am insane or stupid or brain washed and demanding that I be killed or castrated or imprisoned for the crime of not being an atheist. By contrast, the Muslims on the Straight Dope Message Board don’t want to kill me for not being a Muslim, the African-Americans do not want to imprison me for not being African-American, and homosexuals do not want to castrate me for not being homosexual. Jews don’t start threads declaring that all non-Jews are brainwashed, Christians don’t invade almost every thread in GD to declare that all non-Christians are insane, and agnostics don’t insist that non-agnostics are stupid. Obviously it’s not all atheists who devote their lives to hating me but only a portion. Nonetheless, when facing decisions such as who to elect for president it makes obvious sense to not vote for someone from a group containing a sizable subgroup that hates me and wants to kill me or otherwise take away my rights.