I’ve paid attention to ITR champion’s posts since he became outspoken about his conversion to Christianity, as it coincided with my own second look at the respectability of theism. I’ll admit — although it puts me somewhat against the fashion around here — that I’ve come to hold the opinion that religious belief can be respectable, although I myself land somewhere closer to a broadly theistic deism (or even agnosticism in its vulgar sense).
But what initially felt like following someone else’s experiences, as he went through what I was going through, quickly turned into the wide-eyed fascination usually reserved for nasty roadside car wrecks. Thread after thread trying to expose the evils of atheism, bizarre posts which (say) he trotted out Međugorje or the efficacy of meditation as proof of Christianity … yeesh. What good points he made were washed away in the torrent of abject silliness. In his bizarre obsession to defend religiousness he did much more harm than good; see this pit thread circa 2009.
And now I’m finally convinced that his conversion is complete: a thread the sole point of which is to demonstrate liberal hypocrisy. Maybe it happened earlier, but I had averted my eyes from the wreckage. If Der Trihs and Diogenes the Cynic got together, Weird Science style, to create the perfect religious dumbass, ITR champion’s who the computer would spit out (not Kelly LeBrock, sorry).
My suggestion for ITR champion: if you want to defend something keep your trap shut, because you demonstrate absolutely no competence with respect to debate or persuasion. You only make yourself look like a stupid True Believer.
What kind of evidence did you have in mind? Is there any such evidence that would convince?
A man is aware of his spirit, and his brain tries to explain it, tries to organize it into a series of facts. Thus we have theology, the crystal purity of pointless rationalization. Nothing wrong with that, so long as you don’t take it too seriously. Which would be if you take it seriously at all.
Maybe its important to realize that life has no meaning. Its more important to realize it doesn’t need one.
I agree. The trouble is he says outright, “I have evidence for my beliefs.” and when someone says, “And what is that?” He goes, “read these books and get back to me.”
If he said, “Hey, I know there isn’t evidence, I just feel it in my heart.” I’d say, well, you have the right to have fiat beliefs, just don’t go asserting you have evidence for them.
I really do not understand anyone becoming more right-wing as they get more religious. Hey, douchebrains, did you read anything Jesus said? More than half is about economic equality and taking care of the poor.
Well, I guess I understand “trying to fit in with the dumbasses in your close-minded little church”. But for me, when I decided to become more serious about Christianity, I had to become more liberal. I didn’t want to; The Virtue Of Selfishness is a pretty cushy philosophy (yeah, I’d fallen in with Randian Objectivists at a tender age).
But intellectual honesty meant that if Jesus cares about the disenfranchised, I’d better damn well, too.
Quite obvious to me when it’s someone like ITR who claims to have reasoned himself into these beliefs. That shows either increasingly faulty reasoning skills or just increasing “independence of thought” meaning him putting those “skills” to work more. That would likely make him more right wing.