# SD population poll: believe in a deity, Yes or No (optional: dunno)? Please read description first. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 19, 2010, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280 "2010-07-19T21:47:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/21 "2010-07-20T13:40:42Z")
If you want to compare this result to a big survey of the US here you go: [http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS\_Report\_2008.pdf](http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf) In this survey 0.7% of people said they are atheist ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/22 "2010-07-20T23:56:45Z")
> [@nicole1912](#): > > I voted “no” in this poll, but I’m more with\*\* Skald\*\*. I don’t believe in the gods people worship/have worshipped as part of the religions I know of, but I don’t believe it possible to say for sure that no god exists. It’s not that I don’t know what I believe. > > (Though I’d be interested to know more about what a “practising atheist” does to make them practising!) It is wrong of me to chafe over the fact that some people are unhappy that “agnostic” doesn’t have a distinct category alongside “theist”, “atheist”, and “dunno”? Agnosticism/Aagnosticism is about _knowability_. Theism/Atheism is about _belief_. The two are _completely_ orthogonal and, if you actually use the words correctly, completely unrelated. So now we have this poll - it’s about the belief/non-belief angle, and _not_ the knowability angle. Is it so wrong to ask this question? ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/23 "2010-07-21T02:34:14Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I am a technical agnostic but practical atheist. I like that; closely describes my feelings too. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/24 "2010-07-21T09:43:15Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > If you want to compare this result to a big survey of the US here you go: > > [http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS\_Report\_2008.pdf](http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf) > > In this survey 0.7% of people said they are atheist Yeah, but according to that study, 2.3% claims there is no god, so take that figure with a bit of salt. Also: a whopping _12% claims there is no **personal** god_. I had NO idea Deism was so popular in the States. Anyway, the figures for “no god” in my poll are currently at 65% which is higher than I expected even here. ---
**Author:** ![SecondJudith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@SecondJudith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecondJudith)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/25 "2010-07-21T11:10:05Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > It is wrong of me to chafe over the fact that some people are unhappy that “agnostic” doesn’t have a distinct category alongside “theist”, “atheist”, and “dunno”? Agnosticism/Aagnosticism is about _knowability_. Theism/Atheism is about _belief_. The two are _completely_ orthogonal and, if you actually use the words correctly, completely unrelated. So now we have this poll - it’s about the belief/non-belief angle, and _not_ the knowability angle. Is it so wrong to ask this question? Yes, I agree. I self-identify as ignostic, which makes answering these sorts of polls fairly impossible (and the answers useless). ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/26 "2010-07-21T12:24:00Z")
> [@SecondJudith](#): > > Yes, I agree. I self-identify as ignostic, which makes answering these sorts of polls fairly impossible (and the answers useless). Not sure what this means, but I’m fairly sure that **begbert** ’s point was: This poll is about what you believe, not what you know. Agnosticism is about “knowing” and therefore not relevant to the thread. You believe X You don’t believe X You’re not sure what you believe Yeah, there are degrees of belief, and if the conflict between your belief/disbelief makes picking one of the first two options painful, then pick Not Sure. And if deciding whether or not you’re Unsure is painful, then yes, you’re Unsure. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/27 "2010-07-21T13:19:34Z")
> [@Baal\_Houtham](#): > > Not sure what this means, but I’m fairly sure that **begbert** ’s point was: > This poll is about what you believe, not what you know. Agnosticism is about “knowing” and therefore not relevant to the thread. That was in any case what I had in mind when I started this poll. In fact the whole “knowing vs believing” is explicitly reiterated in the OP. My main goal with that was to reduce artificial inflation of the “don’t know” option by people who usually identify as agnostic but in fact are believers (or not). ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/28 "2010-07-21T13:24:10Z")
> [@nicole1912](#): > > (Though I’d be interested to know more about what a “practising atheist” does to make them practising!) Practicing atheists go to no church every day and then don’t pray there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/29 "2010-07-21T14:27:22Z")
> [@cosmosdan](#): > > I’m not sure but I lean toward belief in a god. > and > I’m not sure but I lean toward not believeing in any god. The latter of these works for me. In its absence, I went with nonbelief. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/30 "2010-07-21T14:37:29Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I also dislike the choices. I know exactly what I believe, but neither 1 nor 2 fits me. I hate to choose that I “believe in God” without some definition of terms. Might as well say that I kdiptal in corsonza. They’re just words. Well, OK, I choose to use them. ---
**Author:** ![SecondJudith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@SecondJudith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecondJudith)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/31 "2010-07-21T14:40:45Z")
> [@Baal\_Houtham](#): > > Not sure what this means, but I’m fairly sure that **begbert** ’s point was: > This poll is about what you believe, not what you know. Agnosticism is about “knowing” and therefore not relevant to the thread. > > You believe X > You don’t believe X > You’re not sure what you believe > > Yeah, there are degrees of belief, and if the conflict between your belief/disbelief makes picking one of the first two options painful, then pick Not Sure. > > And if deciding whether or not you’re Unsure is painful, then yes, you’re Unsure. I’m pretty sure I was agreeing with **begbert** that for many people (myself included) “belief” is a fairly useless term because it implies knowing what there is to believe or not believe in. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/32 "2010-07-21T14:44:30Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > Sorry about the joke, if I offended you. Oh, you didn’t offend me. I just thought you might be referring to tendency to start far sillier polls than this in which I pretend to be a demonic bureaucrat or villainous madman. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/33 "2010-07-21T14:46:44Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I don’t believe I am a god. I disbelieve in the existence of Yahweh specifically and mythological deities, but I also believe that it is impossible ot state definitively that no creator deity exists. I am a technical agnostic but practical atheist. I objected to your poll options because the third, which I assume you mean tot capture the “agnostic” vote, implies that those who pick it do not know their own minds. If you read the OP, you’ll see that he’s not interested in the epistemological question. You either have an active belief in gods, you don’t have an active belief in gods or you can’t decide. There are no other choices. There isn’t any nuanced “other” option. The correct answer for you is option one. You do not have any current, active beliefs in any gods. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/34 "2010-07-21T14:47:04Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > Practicing atheists go to no church every day and then don’t pray there. 🙂 I wrote _practical_ atheist. But I do, in fact, go to a church _building_ about four days out of an average week, because I volunteer there. I even attend services sometimes, though I don’t feel obliged to stay for the sermon. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/35 "2010-07-21T14:51:38Z")
_No, I don’t believe there are any gods._ That pretty much sums it up for me with absolutely no level of ambiguity. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/36 "2010-07-21T15:04:49Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If you read the OP, you’ll see that he’s not interested in the epistemological question. You either have an active belief in gods, you don’t have an active belief in gods or you can’t decide. There are no other choices. There isn’t any nuanced “other” option. The correct answer for you is option one. You do not have any current, active beliefs in any gods. Kindly do not tell me what the correct answer for me is, sir. I am not willing to state categorically that those who do believe in deities are lying, deluded, or erroneous. Also, part of me loves Thor and always will. See also Athena. And, to be frank, Aslan. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/37 "2010-07-21T15:13:34Z")
I don’t believe in any supreme creator-type being that has been described thus far in human history, and I’m highly dubious that any other more believable type will come along, unless you count an alien technology vastly more advanced than ours as having some part in our evolution. ---
**Author:** ![GHO57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df788c/32.png) [@GHO57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GHO57)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/38 "2010-07-21T15:36:27Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > If you want to compare this result to a big survey of the US here you go: > > [http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS\_Report\_2008.pdf](http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf) > > In this survey 0.7% of people said they are atheist …which is a bit worrying I must say. There actually are over a million people who are Atheists, as opposed to merely being atheists. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/39 "2010-07-21T15:43:09Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Kindly do not tell me what the correct answer for me is, sir. I didn’t tell you, you told me. You said you don’t believe in any gods. That was the question to be answered. > [@](#): > > I am not willing to state categorically that those who do believe in deities are lying, deluded, or erroneous. Who asked you to? How does personally lacking belief imply any of that about others? Incidentally, if they actually do believe, then, by definition, they aren’t lying, so that’s not an implication no matter how you slice it. Mistaken? Deluded? How would those even be insults? Do you think they might be right? Do you think there’s any possibility that the historical claims of Christianity are literally, factually accurate? If not, then you have to believe that people who do believe it are mistaken. Just because you don’t want to say it, doesn’t mean you don’t think it. ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280/40 "2010-07-22T00:33:51Z")
> [@SecondJudith](#): > > I’m pretty sure I was agreeing with **begbert** that for many people (myself included) “belief” is a fairly useless term because it implies knowing what there is to believe or not believe in. Hi **SecondJudith**. I believe you’re misinterpreting **begbert** ’s post, but perhaps he’ll correct me. I know I don’t understand your point. I don’t understand quasars but believe they exist. I don’t know a tenth of Asian/African/AmerInd historical deities but do believe they don’t really exist. I could be wrong about those deities not existing, but right now I don’t believe in them. It’s nigh impossible to have complete understanding of anything in this universe, but we humans almost universally have countless beliefs none-the-less. And on the reverse side of the coin, humans have no real understanding or knowledge of any immortal/immensely powerful creatures with inhuman intelligence. But that doesn’t keep most folk from believing in one or more, and further believing that the creature is “good.” They may be crazy, but the belief definitely exists. The thread is about belief. Not knowledge. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sd-population-poll-believe-in-a-deity-yes-or-no-optional-dunno-please-read-description-first/547280.md?page=3)