# Most annoying atheist arguments **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 16, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497 "2014-02-16T22:34:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/61 "2014-02-17T01:36:31Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > nothing could be more relevant. your whole premise is based upon false assumptions. it makes no sense to talk about how to be nicer to theists if being nicer to them doesn’t persuade them of anything. My whole premise is asking theist opinions (and like it or not, theists exist, have opinions and even atheists want to hear them); there’s even a prior thread for atheist ones about theist arguments if you need to get that off your chest. We get it, you think atheists should be nasty to theists. Point made, move on. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/62 "2014-02-17T01:37:33Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > You’re not reading the messages you reply to. If the ceremonial law only applies to Jews (as **Weeping Wyvern** said), then Jesus (assuming he existed; again, I am atheist) didn’t forbid gentiles from doing anything by saying that the law was not changed. no, its a contradiction, some passages say OT don’t apply, other passages say that not one letter of the law shall be changed. that is not my biased anti religious hatred. it was a debate that Peter and Paul had after Christs death. well, at least according to the bible that is. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/63 "2014-02-17T01:38:35Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > nothing could be more relevant. your whole premise is based upon false assumptions. it makes no sense to talk about how to be nicer to theists if being nicer to them doesn’t persuade them of anything. Where does he talk about being nicer?? The OP had a very simple question, which you basically ignored. Which of the many atheist arguments cited do believers find most annoying? He didn’t ask how to be nicer. He didn’t ask which arguments were better arguments in some sense. He didn’t ask which had an element of truth (I am **NOT** saying any arguments do or don’t). He asks which were the most annoying to believers. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/64 "2014-02-17T01:38:39Z")
> [@Mr.Kobayashi](#): > > My whole premise is asking theist opinions (and like it or not, theists exist, have opinions and even atheists want to hear them); there’s even a prior thread for atheist ones about theist arguments if you need to get that off your chest. We get it, you think atheists should be nasty to theists. Point made, move on. your mistake is assuming their opinion matters ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/65 "2014-02-17T01:40:47Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > your mistake is assuming their opinion matters Well as they run most of the friggin’ planet I wouldn’t say it was exactly wise to be so cavalier in dismissing them. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/66 "2014-02-17T01:40:47Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > Where does he talk about being nicer?? The OP had a very simply question, which you basically ignored. Which of the many atheist arguments cited do believers find most annoying? He didn’t ask how to be nicer. He didn’t ask which arguments were better arguments in some sense. He didn’t ask which had an element of truth (I am **NOT** saying any arguments do or don’t). He asks which were the most annoying to believers. ah! so since my goal is to annoy them as much as possible, you are saying, wait Robert, sit back, see which are the most annoying and then catalouge them for future use. well, mr koybiashi, thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/67 "2014-02-17T01:41:01Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > i obviously do not think the bible is the word of truth. the problem is selecting the parts you want and declaring those and only those as the word of truth. but since this requires logic and consistency of thought i’m pretty sure you won’t agree. Why is that a problem? It’s plain to see that the sky is not a dome covering a flat Earth, and almost no Christians believe such a thing, but that doesn’t invalidate the entire rest of the book. The Bible isn’t a single monolithic text that stands or falls as a whole - it’s an anthology of works by dozens of writers over more than a thousand years, that employs metaphor, parable, allegory, fable, folklore, history, and several other literary tools to deliver a message. Why must someone who believes in a resurrected savior also necessarily believe that the Earth is flat, and who are you to tell them they must? (And to go back to the OP, I’m an atheist who finds a lot of the arguments used in the poll to be annoying, because they’re mostly heavy-handed and lacking in nuance.) ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/68 "2014-02-17T01:43:24Z")
> [@Mr.Kobayashi](#): > > Well as they run most of the friggin’ planet I wouldn’t say it was exactly wise to be so cavalier in dismissing them. i dont even know how to respond to that. the majority is wrong so the best thing to do is to defer to them and be polite? ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/69 "2014-02-17T01:44:25Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Why is that a problem? It’s plain to see that the sky is not a dome covering a flat Earth, and almost no Christians believe such a thing, but that doesn’t invalidate the entire rest of the book. The Bible isn’t a single monolithic text that stands or falls as a whole - it’s an anthology of works by dozens of writers over more than a thousand years, that employs metaphor, parable, allegory, fable, folklore, history, and several other literary tools to deliver a message. Why must someone who believes in a resurrected savior also necessarily believe that the Earth is flat, and who are you to tell them they must? > > (And to go back to the OP, I’m an atheist who finds a lot of the arguments used in the poll to be annoying, because they’re mostly heavy-handed and lacking in nuance.) so how do you get to pick the parts that are true, Resurrection, and the parts that are not? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/70 "2014-02-17T01:45:40Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > i dont even know how to respond to that. the majority is wrong so the best thing to do is to defer to them and be polite? Where did you get defer from? Since when is knowing the opinions of someone deference to them? ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/71 "2014-02-17T01:47:11Z")
> [@Mr.Kobayashi](#): > > Where did you get defer from? Since when is knowing the opinions of someone deference to them? once you know their opinion what is the next step? ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/72 "2014-02-17T01:49:05Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > ah! so since my goal is to annoy them as much as possible, you are saying, wait Robert, sit back, see which are the most annoying and then catalouge them for future use. well, mr koybiashi, thanks! I said nothing of the sort (I assume you were referring to me). A simple question which does not apply to you (since it is asking what believers find most annoying, and you are quite clearly not a believer) was asked, which you chose to go off on very long winded tangents about. It was paired with the opposite question in another thread; that would be a good place for you to answer (assuming you could manage to stay on topic). ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/73 "2014-02-17T01:50:34Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > once you know their opinion what is the next step? Does there need to be one? Can’t knowledge be acquired for its own sake? It may surprise you that I wasn’t planning the worldwide atheist uprising against theocratic tyranny when starting this thread but rather just wondering what people thought. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/74 "2014-02-17T01:51:50Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > so how do you get to pick the parts that are true, Resurrection, and the parts that are not? That’s obviously a question the answer to which varies from believer to believer and depends on their understanding of Christianity and what they consider to be most important. There’s a lot more to faith than “EVERY WORD OF THE BIBLE IS TRUE FOREVER” and you’re only doing yourself a disservice and making yourself look ignorant by painting all believers with the same brush. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/75 "2014-02-17T01:52:04Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > I said nothing of the sort (I assume you were referring to me). A simple question which does not apply to you (since it is asking what believers find most annoying, and you are quite clearly not a believer) was asked, which you chose to go off on very long winded tangents about. It was paired with the opposite question in another thread; that would be a good place for you to answer (assuming you could manage to stay on topic). so now you’re telling me my business, how i should react to a BS list of nonsensical ideas. i’m not preventing any theist from giving their opinion on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/76 "2014-02-17T01:53:53Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > That’s obviously a question the answer to which varies from believer to believer and depends on their understanding of Christianity and what they consider to be most important. There’s a lot more to faith than “EVERY WORD OF THE BIBLE IS TRUE FOREVER” and you’re only doing yourself a disservice and making yourself look ignorant by painting all believers with the same brush. oh but its the word of god!!! i’m not putting those words in their mouth. the parts they like, WORD OF GOD, parts they don’t, out of date no longer applies. that is the DEFINITION of hypocrisy. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/77 "2014-02-17T01:56:00Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > oh but its the word of god!!! i’m not putting those words in their mouth. the parts they like, WORD OF GOD, parts they don’t, out of date no longer applies. that is the DEFINITION of hypocrisy. No, it’s only hypocrisy if you start from the assumption that either the entire Bible is true or the entire Bible is false - which, as we’ve established, is a false dichotomy that even most people who describe themselves as literalists don’t hold to. It is entirely possible and logically consistent to believe that the Bible is the word of God as revealed to His prophets, and to believe that certain parts of it are metaphorical, allegorical, or do not apply strictly under current circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/78 "2014-02-17T01:58:16Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > No, it’s only hypocrisy if you start from the assumption that either the entire Bible is true or the entire Bible is false - which, as we’ve established, is a false dichotomy that even most people who describe themselves as literalists don’t hold to. repeating yourself doesnt make you right, not when you were wrong to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/79 "2014-02-17T01:59:59Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > so now you’re telling me my business, how i should react to a BS list of nonsensical ideas. i’m not preventing any theist from giving their opinion on the list. Even were I to grant the validity of calling it a “BS list of nonsensical ideas”, that still doesn’t change the validity of the question - what do believers find most annoying (of the items in that “BS list of nonsensical ideas” as you put it)? And before you say “who cares?”, many atheists have believers as good friends (as in my case), just as many Christians have Moslems, Hindus, Sikhs, etc. as friends. So the fact that you don’t care what believers think really doesn’t matter. Others do care. If I were to discuss my atheism with one of my believing friends I would certainly attempt to be civil about it. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2014, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497/80 "2014-02-17T02:00:09Z")
> [@Robert163](#): > > repeating yourself doesnt make you right, not when you were wrong to begin with. Well, I certainly can’t argue with _that_ kind of impeccable logic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-annoying-atheist-arguments/681497.md?page=5)