# 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:** 3
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/41 "2014-08-30T19:24:54Z")
> [@reef\_shark](#): > > The Big bang theory also violates the laws of thermodynamics. You got me. Now I believe in Jesus.:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/42 "2014-08-30T19:45:15Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Too bad nobody did much in the responses except act smug, mock the OP, link to acomic strip, and name check thermodynamics. What was wrong with my response? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/43 "2014-08-30T19:57:40Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > 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. Intelligent Design (as you probably know – just for completeness’ sake) is one of these dishonest and cult-like movements that’s a form of Creationism. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/44 "2014-08-30T19:58:58Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > You got me. Now I believe in Jesus.:rolleyes: Was not Mary banged in a big way? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/45 "2014-08-30T20:16:28Z")
I suspect that most people on this board are atheists for the same reason that most Americans are atheists. The folks here on this board just aren’t afraid of social opprobrium from admitting it. But there are an awful lot of atheists in church pews. ---
**Author:** ![akennett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee59a6/32.png) [@akennett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akennett)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/46 "2014-08-30T20:54:55Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > I assume you mean Young Earth Creationists. Why? One form of creationism is just as ridiculous as any other. ---
**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, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/47 "2014-08-30T21:26:30Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > You’re not providing much of an answer yourself, either. I opened the thread hoping for an answer not to provide one. I thought the question might bring out interesting angles on the “why” of Atheism. I was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/48 "2014-08-30T21:33:03Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > I opened the thread hoping for an answer not to provide one. I thought the question might bring out interesting angles on the “why” of Atheism. I was wrong. It was was addressed adequately in #2, the rest has just been for fun. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/49 "2014-08-30T21:42:37Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > I thought the question might bring out interesting angles on the “why” of Atheism. I was wrong. Blame the OP, I should think. The title had nothing to do with the post. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/50 "2014-08-30T22:02:47Z")
Having read the OP and the responses, my take on the OP is that (a) the Big Bang did not happen, (b) but Divine Creationism did, and (c) in light of these obvious facts, how come so many on this board are dirty rotten non-believing infidels? We are asked to discuss this, although apparently the OP himself has lost interest will not be participating. 😛 There should be an award for this type of thread. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2014, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/51 "2014-08-30T22:43:50Z")
There is also the fact that the board, myself included at times, tends to be hostile to people who fall outside of certain groups (atheists, liberals, pseudoskeptics, etc). So I’m sure a lot of religious people just keep it to themselves to avoid being treated rudely. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/52 "2014-08-31T00:14:43Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > Having read the OP and the responses, my take on the OP is that (a) the Big Bang did not happen, (b) but Divine Creationism did . . . From the mating of Gaia and Uranus, to be specific. And there’s a sacred book that says so. How ya gonna argue with a sacred book? ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/53 "2014-08-31T00:22:22Z")
> [@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? This is my favorite. If you believe that humans were made by something greater and it has to be that way because how else could it be then the next link on the logic chain would be to say that who made the creator of man then It would have to be something greater than the creator of mankind/ Wouldn’t it if you are following your own logic? I have made several atheist over the decades starting in high school at age 17 51 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/54 "2014-08-31T00:28:38Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > And…Pasteur was right, given an atmosphere rich with Oxygen…but the primordial atmosphere wasn’t, and so life had a chance to arise. The situation today isn’t the same as it was some four billion years ago. > > I always love it when people try to disprove current scientific models with junior high school levels of understanding. It’s like the kid who thought he could disprove Einstein’s theory of Relativity…and couldn’t even work with square roots. > > Isn’t “Pride” a sin in these guys’ book? You can always throw in “If monkeys turned into people why are there still monkeys?” Actually taught in the church affiliated school where my nephew went 20 years ago, and he still says it with a smirk on his face as if it made sense. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/55 "2014-08-31T00:56:43Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > There is also the fact that the board, myself included at times, tends to be hostile to people who fall outside of certain groups (atheists, liberals, pseudoskeptics, etc). So I’m sure a lot of religious people just keep it to themselves to avoid being treated rudely. If that were the case then why did he start this thread? Dude’s been a member since 2009 after all. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/56 "2014-08-31T01:07:08Z")
> [@reef\_shark](#): > > {…} The Big bang theory also violates the laws of thermodynamics. {…} It’s really important to remember, and understand, that _law_ here is descriptive and not proscriptive. There’s no _law_ that say photons can’t exceed the speed of light, the _law_ is that we don’t observe photons exceeding a certain speed, _C_. The law doesn’t prevent photons from doing things it describes what they actually do. If the Big Bang violates the Laws of Thermodynamics then either; What is being observed is not, in fact, a violation of the Laws of Thermodynamics. or What is being observed requires that the Laws of Thermodynamics be amended to accurately describe reality. CMC fnord! ---
**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 31, 2014, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/57 "2014-08-31T01:42:04Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > It’s really important to remember, and understand, that _law_ here is descriptive and not proscriptive. > > There’s no _law_ that say photons can’t exceed the speed of light, the _law_ is that we don’t observe photons exceeding a certain speed, _C_. The law doesn’t prevent photons from doing things it describes what they actually do. Interesting observation. I’d also like to suggest that we don’t actually know that _nothing_ existed prior to the Big Bang - it’s just as far back as we can observe, at least with current (and I admit, any probable future) instruments. There’s no particular reason to assume that nothing existed prior to the BB, hence all “something can’t come from nothing” arguments prove, well, nothing. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/58 "2014-08-31T02:06:47Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I’d also like to suggest that we don’t actually know that _nothing_ existed prior to the Big Bang - it’s just as far back as we can observe, at least with current (and I admit, any probable future) instruments. There’s no particular reason to assume that nothing existed prior to the BB, hence all “something can’t come from nothing” arguments prove, well, nothing. Yes, and the “something can’t come from nothing” arguments are just as totally irrelevant as Lawrence Krauss’ “something _ **can** _ come from nothing” arguments based on quantum fluctuations in vacuum, because empty space isn’t “nothing”. It is, for one thing, space – something that didn’t exist before the BB, and which has a whole host of interesting properties. The whole argument becomes a silly semantic one rather than a testable scientific hypothesis, beginning with the fact that “prior to the BB” doesn’t mean anything since the BB **created** space-time. It also created matter, energy, and the laws of physics by which we understand the universe, so it makes no sense to try to use those laws to describe preconditions for the BB that created them. All our ruminations about such preconditions are entirely speculative and more philosophy than science. I myself am just amazed and grateful that we know as much about the origin of the universe as we do. It’s the result of science at its very finest. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/59 "2014-08-31T04:18:54Z")
> [@](#): > > Why is this site overwhelmingly atheist? Because the majority of posters on this board have a critical and more scientific leaning outlook. I don’t think the board is actually ‘overwhelmingly atheist’ btw…I’d guess that it’s a higher percentage than the population at large (in whatever country you care to compare it too), but it’s still less than 50%. Just a WAG on my part though. > [@](#): > > ‘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 dude was freaking French! 😛 (Plus, and this might be something that very few people know, he was born in 1822 and died before the 1900s…and that was a bit of time ago. I know, I know…it’s hard to keep up. But seriously, we’ve had a few things change in the last hundred odd years or so, you know? You might want to catch back up…) > [@](#): > > The Big bang theory also violates the laws of thermodynamics. Where do we start guys? Well, you might want to start with your proof of this. What IS the ‘laws of thermodynamics’ according to you? Because the one I learned in college…well, it doesn’t. But maybe YOUR theory is different, so we should start with your definitions of both ‘Big bang theory’ (and why you only capitalized Big but not band and theory) and ‘laws of thermodynamics’. It might make the ‘debate’ more entertaining. Also, what DO you want to debate here? The question of why the board is ‘overwhelmingly atheist’? Pasteur’s (hundred plus year old) theories? The ‘Big bang theory’ (the show on TV? Some strawman of the theory?)? Or the ‘laws of thermodynamics’?? ---
**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 31, 2014, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938/60 "2014-08-31T06:02:22Z")
> [@DingoelGringo](#): > > You can always throw in “If monkeys turned into people why are there still monkeys?” Actually taught in the church affiliated school where my nephew went 20 years ago, and he still says it with a smirk on his face as if it made sense. Imagine scientists one day realizing that. “Oh shit! There _are_ still monkeys! Look! That means…that means we were wrong all along…” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-site-overwhelmingly-atheist/696938.md?page=4)