I’m from New York, where people on the subway mostly act like no one else exists.
However, if these guys were regular riders, I’d recommend bringint the Dawkins or Sam Harris book, and see if you could entice them to comment. As it was, since they were friends, I’d suspect they’d join ranks against you if you said anything.
While in general I agree with you that MYOB is the best option and one I would have exercised in this situation as well.
However what if the conversations are along the lines of women shouldn’t be in the work place, or racial or any number of subjects which you or I might find objectionable? Is there a line that is drawn? Or any intrusion into ANY conversation crossing a line? I would imagine most people have a line that they will get pissed off enough over that they would interject themselves into the other conversation. Is there really no subject that you wouldn’t object to? I can think of several that I could see myself stepping in over!
I tend to block people out when they talk on a bus or ferry, etc as I find that people talk about subjects too personal or too loudly for my tastes–better to just tune them out 
Well, IMO any intrusion into someone else’s conversation is crossing the line but, yes, at some point you may decide to cross that line anyway. People throwing around racial epithets or what have you – maybe you do stand up and say, “You’re being extremely offensive and the rest of us don’t care to be an audience to your offensiveness, so pipe down or I’ll call the transit police” or whatever. Is it a bright line? Obviously not, and every person will probably draw it in a different place. But again, IMO there is a difference between objecting to a clearly offensive conversation and deciding you’re going to join in on someone else’s random conversation, just because you personally think you have something of value to add. Who asked you? (General “you”.)
But I certainly sympathize with **Dinsdale’s]/b] experience of hearing something you just reaaally would like to comment on or weigh in on. I think that’s why we have spouses, SO’s, roommates, and friends – so that when we get home we can say “You won’t believe what I heard on the train today!”
The thing is, if you’re going to interject yourself, uninvited, into a private conversation, you better be ready to deal with any possible outcome of your action. It is possible that your observation would be welcome. It is also possible that your intrusion would be offensive and generate a hostile response, which has the potential to escalate.
I’m pretty much a live and let live kinda guy. I don’t really have to be–I’m also somewhat of a BSLD*, and if I make my displeasure known, most will choose not to confront me. Still, why risk picking a fight just because somebody disagrees with you about something?
*BSLD=Big Scary Looking Dude
To me, it sounds like the “doubter” might benefit from other perspectives. I feel for him - if things are as you suppose - doubting as a student at an evangelical college, with someone close to him coming out, and a friend dying. I wouldn’t have engaged him then and there, but I might have slipped him my card and said “if you email me I’ll give you contact information for my minister, not all religious people believe homosexuality is a sin and some believe the sorts of questions you are asking are worth asking.”
Its presumptionous and rude to use this as an invitation to mock their God. But to me, it seems like this one guy dropped his packages in public - and you can offer to help to pick them up without being rude. He may say “thanks, but no thanks” but you would have offered.
Agree with you 100% here. You sound like me and the line that I draw
That is exactly how I view it–it really has to piss me off for me to cross a line. Someone discussing religion (and I am not religious, but I have read enough of your posts to know you have a strong faith) is NOT a reason to cross that line.
I think Dinsdale needs to ask himself if he and a friend were having a conversation about there being no God—and these guys butted into his conversation, how would he feel? You just don’t interfer into that kind of a conversation unless you are invited in–nothing but trouble can come of it. Thanks for the clarification!
I think one of the most important aspects of butting in here would be your motivation for doing so. If you’re doing it to spank the Christians whom you don’t agree with, don’t under any circumstances. If you were doing it to help the guy who is really struggling, that’s a whole lot greyer. I have occasionally volunteered information to strangers when I knew something that they obviously didn’t, and it was a lot easier for me to say something than for them to find out on their own.
I don’t know if this doubting kid fits that description, though. You are no part of his monkeysphere at all, and this is a pretty personal topic that you’re talking about. Of course, if you want to have private conversations in public, that does change things somewhat. No, I’m going to have to go with MYOB also, until they start acting in a way that is actually offensive to most people.