# Why is this site overwhelmingly atheist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 30, 2014, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938 "2014-08-30T04:04:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Latro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a87d85/32.png) [@Latro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Latro)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/21 "2014-08-30T11:26:28Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > The fish sure are biting today. But the shark is clever; he’ll just swim away and will try again, in a couple of months. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/22 "2014-08-30T11:30:32Z")
> [@reef\_shark](#): > > [Spontaneous generation - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biogenesis) > > ‘The law of biogenesis, attributed to Louis Pasteur, is the observation that living things come only from other living things, by reproduction (e.g. a spider lays eggs, which develop into spiders). That is, life does not arise from non-living material, which was the position held by spontaneous generation.[1][2]’ > > The Big bang theory also violates the laws of thermodynamics. Where do we start guys? Because most so-called scientific “laws” apply only in certain conditions and in certain circumstances. Both original biogenesis and the Big Bang took place in circumstances to which the laws that you see them as violating were never meant to apply. Science is not a collection of laws that are always and everywhere true, it is a way of understanding the world. Its “laws” are, for the most part, just helpful aids to remembering what works in most of the circumstances you are likely to encounter, but they are not the essence of science itself. As for why this board trends atheist (although it is not hostile to religious believers as such, and many believers are respected members of the community here), it was originally founded for and by people who were fans of Cecil Adams’ columns. Adams writes about many topics in a skeptical, undogmatic, and scientifically informed way, so his columns appealed to people who were themselves skeptical, undogmatic, and scientifically informed. Such mental attitudes have a strong, though not inexorable, tendency to lead people toward atheism (and, conversely, atheism tends to foster such attitudes in people), so although Adams’ columns were not atheistic as such, they often appealed to atheists and attracted them to these message boards. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/23 "2014-08-30T11:32:13Z")
Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/24 "2014-08-30T11:34:15Z")
What is your evidence that this board is overwhelmingly atheist? ---
**Author:** ![Latro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a87d85/32.png) [@Latro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Latro)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/25 "2014-08-30T11:52:50Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > If this place is actually about fighting ignorance… The shark is not ignorant. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/26 "2014-08-30T12:18:29Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. I know for a fact that **reef shark** has brought up if not these exact points then ones very similar to it in the past, and has gotten good answers. I can’t shake the feeling I’ve seen more or less this exact thread before. If it was a new poster, I would have been a lot nicer. But it isn’t, and we’ve all been here before, and we’re all a little bit frustrated. Not to mention that the OP’s tone was… You get the picture. ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/27 "2014-08-30T12:50:17Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Prediction: God said it, that settles it. Who said God said it? Wasn’t that another human? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/28 "2014-08-30T12:51:50Z")
> [@monavis](#): > > Who said God said it? Wasn’t that another human? Yeah, but why would he lie? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/29 "2014-08-30T13:24:03Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. My response was reasonable - if the OP thinks Big Bang Theory is untenable, what (if anything) does he propose instead and why? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/30 "2014-08-30T14:51:58Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. What would you have anybody respond to, the question posed in the thread title, the wikipedia quote, or the non-sequitur about the BBT and thermodynamics? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/31 "2014-08-30T15:12:17Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. Add your own post (and now mine) to this list of failings. You also didn’t do whatever the hell it is you think we should be doing in response to the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/32 "2014-08-30T16:06:12Z")
Forthcoming chick tract: _The Conceited Forum_ Page 1 would be a description of a drive-by witnessing “What about the laws of thermodynamics amirite?” Pages 2 through 19 would be people patiently explaining the flaws in the OP. But at the bottom of every page would be the line “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools – Romans 11:25” Finally on page 20 there’s a cartoon of someone weeping, but it’s just out of pure frustration that threads like this exist, then John 3:16, the end. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/33 "2014-08-30T16:11:40Z")
Because we’ve all become totally deranged by [del]learning some science[/del]letting Satan get his hooks in us. [We salute you, our half-inflated dark lord](http://i.imgur.com/Fb6kVDI.jpg)! There can be no other explanation. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/34 "2014-08-30T16:34:26Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. I haven’t been on these boards much in the last few months, but I recognize reefshark and I remember that he posts a lot of creationist PRATT. He never (or hardly ever) accepts corrections and he spews a ton of ignorance. He’s not posting a serious thread, so why treat it as such? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/35 "2014-08-30T16:54:38Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. You’re not providing much of an answer yourself, either. ---
**Author:** ![BrightNShiny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@BrightNShiny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrightNShiny)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/36 "2014-08-30T17:29:37Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. Uh, no. Creationists are deeply immoral people who have no problem lying through their teeth. They are not interested in actually learning about the topic. There is no ignorance to be fought, because creationists don’t want their ignorance fought. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Why\_Bother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19adc/32.png) [@Doctor\_Why\_Bother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Why_Bother)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/37 "2014-08-30T18:02:12Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. If this place is actually about fighting ignorance, then this thread is a SDMB failure. If this place is about patting ourselves on the fanny over how smart we believe ourselves to be, then 10/10. Edited to add: njtt added a worthwhile post while I was typing. Yours is, by far, the haughtiest post in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/38 "2014-08-30T18:16:39Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > Forthcoming chick tract: _The Conceited Forum_ > > Page 1 would be a description of a drive-by witnessing “What about the laws of thermodynamics amirite?” > Pages 2 through 19 would be people patiently explaining the flaws in the OP. But at the bottom of every page would be the line “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools – Romans 11:25” > Finally on page 20 there’s a cartoon of someone weeping, but it’s just out of pure frustration that threads like this exist, then John 3:16, the end. That’s only worth a HAW-HAW. A reference to Fang might’ve got you the third HAW. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/39 "2014-08-30T18:46:07Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > Uh, no. Creationists are deeply immoral people who have no problem lying through their teeth. They are not interested in actually learning about the topic. There is no ignorance to be fought, because creationists don’t want their ignorance fought. I assume you mean Young Earth Creationists. ---
**Author:** ![BrightNShiny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@BrightNShiny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrightNShiny)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/40 "2014-08-30T19:00:49Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > I assume you mean Young Earth Creationists. What I really mean is the semi-organized cult-like movement that spreads disinformation about science in order to defend creationism. This is mostly a YEC movement, but it can include other forms of creationists. If someone is religious, that’s of no concern to me (I’m religious too). If someone wants to personally believe that the Earth started 6000 years ago or 6000 days ago, then what do I care? What rankles, though, are the people who aren’t content to simply believe what they want to believe, but instead run around making definitive statements about complex topics they haven’t studied. This is a form of lying. And for these people to claim to be religious is eye-rolling. Most religions condemn outright lying like this. But as the saying goes, even the devil can recite scripture. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938.md?page=3)