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Sunny Jackson

Why do atheists talk so much about this God they disbelieve in? - Quora - 0 views

  • when the god squad stops trying to enforce their god through legislation, we'll stop talking about it
  • oddly enough, despite my not believing in him, other people keep trying to cram him down my throat, often via efforts to enact laws based on his non-existent rules.This disturbs me.
  • Yeah, I know a detective who talks about crime a lot.  Mad isn't it?
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  • I try to give equal time to all the gods that I don't believe in.
  • Religion is a huge force in the world. Good, bad or mixed, it's inescapable.
  • When something is a major component of the Human Condition, it's notable.
  • None.
  • wanted to make you and your children believe this too and were willing to change laws, education and polices to force this
  • how long would it take before you started speaking out?
  • Like all conscientious people who care about what goes on in the world, we are all struggling to define the best way for us to live.
  • There are good things in the world and there are bad things in the world. What is good and bad, and in what degree, depends on your perspective.
  • When it happens publicly, it is generally regarded by atheists as either gauche or extreme.It seems most extreme when it enters into political or other ostensibly secular arenas, like school.
  • the strengths of these secular institutions depends widely on the separation of religious and secular activities and ideologies
  • this resembles a backslide into barbarism and ignorance
  • For the atheist, it is a frightening prospect that people want to hinder education or freedoms based on Biblical writings.
  • if I did not care about the world, I would have nothing to say about God.
  • Both I, and the most extreme fundamentalist, want only to live in the best way we know how.
  • As an atheist, I personally have no qualm with any belief in a deistic God.
  • When I see people pushing other people around, trying to take away their rights of people, or hurting people in some way, I get angry.
  • For this atheist, it isn't about God, it's about how we treat people.
  • There is an unfortunate crossover with religion and social justice.
  • I am only concerned with the ways in which religion, as I see the world, hurts the vision I have of how we should best live. There are grave incompatibilities with that vision.
  • I don't believe in spirits, or souls, or gods or reincarnation. I do believe in finding meaning, in finding the "path to the self", and finding the best way to live in this world.
  • hope for the future elevation of humanity to freedom, to the best possible health and cooperation
  • There is beauty and wisdom in every belief system, but also there is ugliness and ignorance to be found, and I see it as a detriment to humanity if we simply avoid the hard work of re-examining those parts, and simply allow people to say "It is God's will, we've got a book that says so."
  • What am I talking about? Subjugation of women, ostracism of homosexuals, teaching creation myths as science to children, circumcision of boys by Jews, of girls by certain sects. From the eyes of an atheist, doing these things in 2012 is an archaic nightmare. Allowing these things to happen out of a fear of offending people is a most ludicrous failure of humanity.
  • a human person wrote any words in any book ever written. There are no gods, no sons of gods, and no prophets. To hold another person hostage for words written by a man, who possessed all the frailties we have today, but had far less knowledge, seems a dangerous and singularly terrible act to condone in this time. We know there is no basis for it, and it is frightening to see those who are willing to commit violence and abuse in the name of God and call it "good".
  • it seems simply like folly or madness
  • They had a belief that their view of the world was the right one, just as I have a view of the world that I believe is the right one.
  • To the atheist, it resembles a wave of madness taking over people.
  • Approach with caution and come with gifts
  • I know a lot about "this God" theists believe in
  • It is always good to engage your mind in an intellectual exercise
  • I was once a believer
  • I'm more certain on my position now that I ever was when I believed in god
  • it helps me refine my thoughts
  • often I find myself discussing something with a theist who has a strong intellect - and this is entertaining in the same way a sports person, or chess player, enjoys meeting their match or better; it gives me a chance to stretch and test myself - see where I might need to improve my "game".
  • All we do is try and unpack the reasons behind things
  • After unpacking these reasons the conclusion is baffling; These things are done, people are tortured, children are abused all in the name of a story.
  • I find belief in god and other supernatural entities an interesting human and social phenomenon.
  • Religion teaches to be satisfied with not understanding.
  • Religion teaches to not question authority.
  • Religion teaches a twisted concept of evidence and logic.
  • Religion advocates intolerance.
  • Religion promotes immorality.
  • Religion promotes inaction.
  • Religion inhibits progress.
  • I talk about the silly, stupid and vicious things that some people who claim to believe try to impose on the rest of us.
  • And sometimes I applaud the wonderful things that people of good character and religious belief do
  • What people do in this world matters.
  • Think of it as self defense.Atheists don't talk about their views until religious people refuse to shut up about theirs.
  • surrounded by theists trying to ram their beliefs down everyone else's throats, incorporating their religion into the government and legal system, corrupting the educational system by blurring the difference between fact and belief, and murdering and hurting people in the name of their "god"
  • Why should anyone assume that if one disbelieves in something, especially something that a lot of other people keep saying they believe in, one should not talk about it?
  • Why do anti-war people talk so much about war if they don't believe in war? Pretty much the same reason for atheists and talk about god.
  • I only really talk about it when someone else brings it up. Since I live in the United States, this happens about every ten minutes.
  • large percentages of each country believes in some God
  • They have TV shows to broadcast their beliefs
  • billboards
  • huge gatherings
  • radio shows
  • You have people standing in the street, shouting at you, telling you how you are going to hell
  • You have religious people questioning evolution, preaching creationism, questioning the Big Bang and promoting God-magic.
  • some people still insist in teaching their children that an invisible being thought the universe into existence, and that believing this is more rational than to trust science's explanation of the same event
  • Religion is stepping on my toes - a response is pretty much expected don't you think?
  • if 'talking about God' means 'talking about theology,' then Atheists totally have a right and a commission to do so, because theology can be done by both adherents and non-adherents
  • Atheists have been portrayed as belligerent, annoying twerps who need to be quiet; when, in reality, their calling out religion needs to be applauded. This is the 21st century—a supposedly new era—and Atheists are doing a good job of calling out politicians and leaders who cannot and will not rationalize their decisions outside of a faith context.
  • So many people do boneheaded things in the name of God, both those doers and their God need to be called out...and that calling out is often done by Atheists.
  • I, for one, find religion/mythology fascinating.
  • bad things religion pushes and endorses
  • we do not have to believe anything on insufficient evidence
  • the harms it can bring
  • that is a serious problem
  • Atheists do not keep talking about god. They keep getting asked about it
  • it's a part of our history and culture that is hard to ignore
  • we don't like being lied to
  • there's no reason to believe it
  • try to reason
Sunny Jackson

Atheism and Theism; Proof and Disproof - 0 views

  • That the theists have some burden of proof simply cannot be denied. They are obviously making at least one claim - that at least one god exists. Theists must, then, be prepared to offer justification for their claims - they must face up to their burden of demonstrating that their assertions are reasonable.
  • one of the first steps any theist will have to take is to explain the nature of this god they are claiming.
  • Unless we have a good idea of what we are looking for, we'll never know if we've found it or not!
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  • atheists aren't necessarily making any particular claims about the world.
  • When a person says to you "I am an atheist," all you can really assume is that they are saying "I do not believe in any gods."
  • no one need deny any particular theistic beliefs in order to be an atheist, they only need to not believe in any gods, whatever their reasons or attitudes.
  • Just because an atheist believes something doesn't mean that that belief is so connected to atheism that, in order to justify atheism, the belief in question needs to be justified.
  • evolution describes how life has developed over time, not how it originated.
  • Unless an atheist does not believe in any gods because of evolution, the an atheist has absolutely no need to defend evolution in order to defend atheism.
  • There are theists who accept the explanation of evolution, and theists who do not. There are atheists who accept the explanation of evolution, and atheists who do not.
  • So atheism is not inherently dependent upon evolution
  • Theists will commonly ask "Well, where did the universe come from?" Like the atheist reaction to evolution, we can approach this question with: "I don't know. So what?" Unless a person's atheism is dependent upon a particular description of the origin of the universe, they neither need to know the answer to the theist's question nor do they need to support any particular answer.
  • The only possible origin for the universe which is incompatible with my atheism is that of a creation by a god. This, of course, would be for the theist to demonstrate - and if they cannot, my atheism remains, whatever the real origin is. I do not need to account for this "real origin" in order to account for my atheism.
  • Theists need to explain and account for their god, because that's what theism is: belief in a god.
  • I hold a wide variety of beliefs
  • my atheism is not about the universe
  • are atheists required to disprove theistic claims? In general, no.
  • the burden of proof is on whoever is making the claims.
  • This is sometimes on the atheist, if they choose to deny something specific.
  • Only after the theist has presented coherent and rational arguments might the atheist need to explain why she does not accept them.
  • justification of atheism is based upon inadequate justification for theism
  • Just because the atheist happens to disagree with the theist on other issues does not mean that the atheist needs to justify these other beliefs in order to justify atheism.
  • If the discussion is about the existence of gods, then that is where it must be kept.
Sunny Jackson

Rebutting more outlandish statements about atheists | Psychology Today - 0 views

  • correlation does not equal cause
  • These broad-based assertions about atheists are so groundless and outlandish that it's difficult to know where to start in rebutting them.
  • atheists have indeed inhabited foxholes
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  • In truth, of course, atheists, like all people, regularly experience far more severe "stress" without abandoning their worldview.
  • the most important factor in creating atheists is education, not material comfort. In fact, if material comfort correlates to atheism, that is only because it also correlates to education.
  • a non-theistic worldview is attained via a lifetime of education and thoughtful consideration of knowledge and reason
  • this is insulting to the millions of atheists and humanists who take their lifestance seriously, who have given much thought and energy to understanding the world
  • Atheists suffer like everyone else, atheists watch loved ones suffer, atheists encounter unbearable hardships, and atheists die in pain - all the while remaining atheists.
Sunny Jackson

God: Do atheists disbelieve only in god(s) or do they disbelieve in any force that give... - 0 views

  • Many things give humans hope
  • normal human beings
  • an atheist is "someone who doesn't believe in gods." Full stop.
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  • I'm just one atheist, and I believe hope exists, because I often feel it.
  • I hope it's a sunny day tomorrow, and the fact that the weatherman said that's what I should expect gives me hope it will be.
  • make sure you're using the word "belief" in a clear way. It can have several meanings.
  • Assuming something exists
  • Being in favor of something
  • There are people who believe God exists but dislike Him, but they're not atheists. Why? Because they believe He exists.
  • it sounds like you're using the second definition of "belief," which means being in favor of something. That's a value.
  • Though individual atheists have values (which often differ drastically from the values of other atheists), atheism has nothing to do with values.
  • it's not an allegiance
  • I like the idea of gods. But I don't believe they exist, so I'm an atheist.
  • I am in favor of hope. I value it.
  • I know there are things that give lots of people hope.
  • I do believe in hope.
  • I have hope that mankind will stop making war
  • I have hope that we will advance our medicine to provide health care to all of humanity
  • I have hope that human rights will be expanded and no one will be victimized or marginalized
  • I have hope that love will win over bigotry and bias.
  • I have hope that religions will not divide us.
  • I have hope that poverty and hunger can be eliminated.
  • I have hope for mankind reaching out to the stars.
  • I have hope for laws that are not based on religious ideology and yet are fair, moral and ethical.
  • My hopes are based upon everything mankind has yet achieved compared to where we once were.
  • My hope is powered by the potential for us to yet be better.
  • My hope is not based on any form of religion and yet is still hope.
  • I have hope for humanity.
  • You and I are free today because of endless unnamed heroes
  • Many of them downplay how far they've come, but I see their strength and compassion. 
  • Atheists do not hold to a single creed. The only thing they share is a disbelief in some particular kind of god.
  • they might believe in the power of groups of people, working in unison with a common spirit
  • Humanism tends to give people hope
Sunny Jackson

10 Questions Every Intelligent Atheist Must Answer « An Exercise in Futility - 0 views

  • Are you a moral relativist, or do you believe in absolute morality? 
  • do you believe that cultures, or even individuals, can define their own rules on what is moral and what is not, or do you believe that every action has one unique, absolute, and true moral assessment?
  • the morality as defined by the Old Testament is different than the morality defined by the New Testament
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  • who or what determines which actions are moral and which are not? 
  • I do not trust any human being, no matter how smart they are, including myself, to prescribe to me what is moral and what is not
  • Always minimize both actual and potential suffering; always maximize both actual and potential happiness.
  • how and why morality can be universal
  • where it comes from
  • Is your trust in science based on faith or based on science?
  • observed and interpreted the evidence yourself and drew your own conclusions
  • Science has the ability to self correct.
  • Is absence of proof the proof of absence?
  • What does the atheist position offer people?  How has it improved your life?  Why will it improve others’ lives?
  • When you attempt to use logic to conclude facts about religion, are you starting at the conclusion (God is not real), or are you starting at true premises? 
  • If you are starting at true premises, then what are they?  And how are they true? 
  • If all Christians believed that the Bible was entirely allegorical, what would you argue in support of your position?
  • Why is it important to you that everyone is an atheist?
  • Do you believe in extra-terrestrials?
  • I don’t want to hear about how religious people are more “moral” when their god slaughters all the first born male children of egypt.
  • Where does language, art, music, and religion come from?
  • if a new piece of evidence arises
  • always check your sources
  • The human brain. All our mental capacity for reason and creativity come from it.
  • damage to the brain’s structure affects the mind
  • I don’t know, but I do know that it was not the invisible man in the sky, because the invisible man in the sky is not an explanation.
  • Your mind does NOT survive your death.
  • damaged brain, damaged mind
  • Destroyed brain, destroyed mind.
  • The b**** says VERY SPECIFIC things about your god, things that are impossible.
  • I can now see reality from a clear perspective
  • there is no original sin
  • as a society I do think we need less god and less religion
  • you argue that god is real because of X. I take a look at X and it does not conclusively prove that god is real, so I go on being an atheist.
  • all the “proofs” provided by theists have already been refuted
  • I was a religious person when I was younger and I believed it
  • After I read all the arguments against it, I could not believe it anymore.
  • I would still be an atheist.
  • Other people’s beliefs do not affect my beliefs.
  • I can’t speak for every atheist.
  • Keep it to yourself and away from the government and small children.
  • the distances between planets are ENORMOUS
  • YOUR god is supposed to be EVERYWHERE
Sunny Jackson

Top Conversation Killers for Atheists: How Religious Theists Can Hurt Their Cause - 0 views

  • take some time to learn how atheists and dictionaries define atheism and agnosticism
  • learn something
  • a real conversation is a two-way street where both contribute and both are interested in taking something away
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  • identify and eliminate basic errors
  • For atheists, quoting passages from the Bible proves nothing about any gods whatsoever. At most, it may prove that the person doing the quoting doesn't have anything better to offer.
  • you can't prove anything to atheists by simply quoting the Bible
  • People making a positive claim have a burden of proof; this means that they voluntarily assume an obligation to support their claim
  • make your own arguments
  • many theists do something in particular: they offer arguments for the existence of their god and then ignore the various objections and rebuttals offered by atheists.
  • It's one thing not to agree with those rebuttals, but quite another to go on repeating the argument as if no objections had been raised at all.
  • do some research to learn what the most common objections and rebuttals are
  • atheists will challenge a theist to provide evidence to support their claims. The proper response is to actually provide evidence.
  • It's up to the claimant to show that their position has enough merit to be taken seriously and be looked at more closely.
  • One way or another, the theist appears to be expressing superiority over atheists in a passive-aggressive manner. That suggests they weren't interested in serious conversation to begin with.
Sunny Jackson

Pro Women's Basketball Player Comes Out as an Atheist - 0 views

  • People often make assumptions that I am Christian because I am a moral young woman that may serve as a role model as others.
  • I have grown up in a society where good = Christian, and I am uncomfortable with that.
  • The assumption is that Atheism = bad. But why is there this assumption about atheists?
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  • They truly allowed us to think freely for ourselves
  • When I was younger, I believed in God like I believed in Santa Claus. I had blind faith that he was real because that is what I’ve been told and led to believe.
  • I didn’t believe it before and no matter how hard I tried to pray or have a relationship with God, I never felt like anyone was listening.
  • I didn’t want to be seen as a bad person.
  • I didn’t want anything ruining my reputation.
  • if you look at the scientific evidence, there is no doubt that evolution is real. I am not an extremely scientific person, but that has always been very apparent to me.
  • My lack of faith was constantly being strengthened by my world around me, although all my friends were Christians.
  • Atheists have always been looked down on in the world around me
  • “in the closet” about my lack of religion
  • How could I tell anyone? I didn’t want people to judge me for not subscribing to a religion.
  • I never made the connection. I just enjoyed the stories of the triumphs of good people.
  • It was very hard for me to tell anyone that I was an atheist
  • I never wanted anyone to see our relationship as being lesser because it had no faith involved in it.
  • I respected their desire and faith.
Sunny Jackson

i want the chance to chat with an atheist : atheism - 0 views

  • For me it was liberating because finally the Universe made complete sense. There was only matter and energy that followed constant laws...anything 'supernatural' was simply dreamed up by humans. When bad things happened, it was not punishment, just chance. It meant that we could make this world into what we pleased, for good or ill. My choices were on me alone.
  • I'm from the Bible Belt as well. My suspicion is that you actually do know some atheists, but you just don't know it. It's very difficult for atheists to be "out" in the Bible Belt. As to your question, I would first just point out that it's less that I "decided" there was no God, and more that I just "realized" there was no God. And for me at least, it wasn't "liberating" so much as terrifying. I wasn't frightened of God's judgment or anything like that. Having grown up in a fundamentalist Christian household, I was always taught that doubt, in itself, was sinful, so by the time I got to the point of not believing, I had already crossed the line of doubting God (and thus being subject to judgment) long before that. In that sense, when I finally realized there was no God, it actually erased any fear of judgment - there's no God to judge me, thus no fear. Instead, I was terrified of the reaction that I would get from people around me when they found out that I no longer believed in God. My number one concern was my grandparents, whom I am very close with. I knew that it would devastate them, and that was really tough for me. (To this day, I have never really "come out" to them, although my parents told them - something that I honestly think I will always be resentful towards my parents for.) Beyond that, literally everyone around me, friends, family, my whole community really, were Christians, and so there was a deep, deep sense of loneliness when I realized that I had basically become "evil" in all of their minds.
  • It is liberating not to follow any religion because I feel that most of them (the major ones i.e. Judaism, Islam, and Christianity) are oppressive, intolerant and encourage ignorance in one way or another.
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  • Being open-minded means being able and willing to question one's own beliefs and consider those of others
  • You don't even have to change your mind, the very fact that you're asking questions and considering the ideas of those with whom you don't necessarily agree means you are open-minded (and is great, if you ask me).
  • It is kind of disheartening to know I have only one life to live and it is relatively short in the scheme of everything, but it makes this life I have more important. Alternately, I think the belief in an afterlife would make life feel cheap. I'm perfectly okay with knowing after I'm dead that will be the complete end of me. All I can hope for is that I "live on" in the memories of those that survive me.
  • The uncertainty of what happens after death is why humans are afraid of it.
  • reality is reality whether I find it unnerving or not. Wanting something to be true has no effect on whether or not it actually is.
  • I would just like you to know that there are places in this world where coming out as gay to one's parents is not viewed as the end of the world.
  • Many people have different "coming-out" experiences with their atheism. If their family is mostly composed of fundamentalist christians or muslims, they're going to have a much harder time than somebody who comes from a less irrational family.
  • There are atheists that are bigots
  • There are bigots in any group you can think of.
  • I think the scale of bigotry is tipped heavily in favor of those that are extremely religious.
  • Christianity has oppressed them, discriminated against them and has caused them all kinds of grief.
  • here is a quote from Steven Weinberg. Christopher Hitchens has also used the same idea in many of his debates: “Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it, you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing bad things, but for good people to do bad things, it takes religion.”
  • I can tell you with almost 100% certainty that people you know personally are atheists.
  • But it comes down to what makes you happy. As an atheist, I believe we only get one shot at this life. I think it is most important that you live a happy and moral life and as long as you do that, believe or disbelieve whatever you want.
Sunny Jackson

How to Talk to, Debate Atheists: Ways Religious Theists can Avoid Common Errors - 0 views

  • Many churches and apologetics books have misinformed people about how dictionaries and atheists themselves define atheism: it's just the absence of belief in gods, not the positive denial of your god's existence.
  • Some atheists go on to deny some or all gods; others don't.
  • A significant problem which atheists have with theists is how so many make all sorts of assumptions about atheism, atheists, and anyone who isn't religious.
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  • What is your real goal and what do you expect to get out of this?
  • A discussion is a two-way street where both contribute and what each person says actually reflects something they have taken from what the other says. In a discussion, you have to listen to what the other is saying and respond directly to it.
  • Is it Possible That You Could Be Wrong? If Not, What Are You Doing?
  • Please take stock of your motives and goals before proceeding
  • Familiarize Yourself with Common Arguments & Common Refutations
  • Atheists often hear the exact same arguments over and over from one theist after another
  • Providing the same, obvious rebuttals to the same, superficial arguments gets annoying, especially when more interesting options exist
Sunny Jackson

As Religion Fades, Will Atheism Be Enough? | Psychology Today - 0 views

  • the atheist identity refers only to the singular issue of god-belief
  • approaches the world from a natural standpoint
  • rejects all supernatural beliefs, not just the singular issue of divinities
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  • seeking truth and knowledge
  • accepts empiricism, science, and reason
  • holds certain values, including a support for human rights, peace, democracy, and personal liberty with a sense of social responsibility
  • humanism rejects outright the notion of dogma
  • humanism is a progressive, forward-looking lifestance that encourages creativity, critical thinking, and personal fullfillment within the context of social well-being
  • Many humanists, but not all, also identify as atheists; many atheists, but not all, also identify as humanists.
  • the "atheist" label is wrongly stigmatized in American society
  • My humanism is more important to me than my atheism
  •  we're doing a service if we can help the public to realize that atheists should not be feared
  • the important element will be the broad, affirmative values of humanism, not a singular notion of nonbelief
Sunny Jackson

Great Minds: Atheist Quotes - 0 views

  • "I am an atheist, out and out. It took me a long time to say it. I've been an atheist for years and years, but somehow I felt it was intellectually unrespectable to say that one is an atheist, because it assumed knowledge that one didn't have. Somehow it was better to say one was a humanist or agnostic. I don't have the evidence to prove that God doesn't exist, but I so strongly suspect that he doesn't that I don't want to waste my time."
Sunny Jackson

Leah Daughtry: Atheists Aren't Welcome in the Democratic Party? - 0 views

  • What you should be asking is why a non-religious organization is holding a special, high-profile religious event that caters to religious theists and religious theists alone.
  • the Democratic Party could have held a "values" summit which is inclusive to all.
  • There is no more need to have a "religious believers only" event than there is to have a "Christians Only," "Protestants Only" or "Whites Only" event.
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  • atheists themselves are excluded from public office
  • For years the Republican Party has sold itself by linking itself to religion
  • American values. One of those values, as expressed in the National Motto, is, "If you do not trust in God, then we do not want to think of you as being one of us."
  • here we have an unambiguous case of atheists not even being let in the door of a major Democratic Party event for discussing morals and values
  • By saying that "Democrats are...people of faith," the implication is that all Democrats are religious theists.
  • Belief is a private matter
  • People have the right to express their opinions in public, religious or otherwise. But they do not have a right to demand that others take them seriously. If they cannot support a belief, then they should expect ridicule for it.
  • Leah Daughtry is funding anti Gay, Creationist, and Anti Choice agendas within the Democratic party.
  • I don’t choose to be an atheist. I no more “choose” to disbelieve in gods than I “choose” to disbelieve in elves in my basement or elephants under my bed.
  • After the election, I will address the faults of Leah Daughtry and the Democratic Party.
  • Arthur Kaplan
  • Austin Cline
  • Victor Stenger
Sunny Jackson

God: Do atheists disbelieve only in god(s) or do they disbelieve in any force that give... - 0 views

  • There is no reason to think that atheists disbelieve in things that give human beings hope. Many things give humans hope but have nothing whatsoever to do with any alleged supernatural beings.
  • you know, normal human beings
  • Atheists do not hold to a single creed.
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  • they might believe in the power of groups of people, working in unison with a common spirit
  • These notions may give them hope.
  • I prefer to embrace the truth
  • I believe neither in God nor in any supernatural forces. My life depends largely on myself and partly on other people and random factors.
  • Most of the time I don't feel I need any hope, life is pretty good as it is. I enjoy it.
Sunny Jackson

Atheism & Choice: Atheists Choose Atheism & to be Atheists; Atheists Should Choose God ... - 0 views

  • belief itself simply does not appear to be a matter of will or choice.
  • These beliefs and the absence thereof are not acts of will which I had to consciously take — they are, rather, conclusions which were necessary based upon the evidence at hand.
  • focus instead on how a person has arrived at their beliefs
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  • try and encourage skepticism and critical thinking in people
  • an atheist, not by choice but instead simply because belief is no longer possible
Sunny Jackson

Myth: Atheists Attack Theism & Religion Because They Deny God - Do Atheists' Criticisms... - 0 views

  • Not everything which an atheist does can be attributed to their atheism
  • beliefs and preferences may or may not be common for atheists, but they do not derive from atheism itself.
Sunny Jackson

What Is Atheism? Narrow vs. Broad Definitions of Atheism: Why Do Atheists Define Atheis... - 0 views

  • broadly defined, atheism is the absence of belief in the existence of any gods
  • agnosticism is about knowledge rather than belief (a related, but separate issue)
  • Agnostic Theism: belief in a god without claiming to know for sure that the god exists.
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • Agnostic Atheism: disbelief in gods without claiming to know for sure that none exist.
  • the simple absence of belief in gods — aside from being the default position — is automatically justified and made credible so long as theists are not successful in making a credible case for their god.
  • Atheists agree that gods exist as ideas in people’s minds; the disagreement lies over whether any gods actually exist independently of human beliefs.
  • Atheism implies no further belief system
  • Atheists vary as much in their beliefs and attitudes as theists do. If you know that a person is an atheist, then you know that he or she lacks belief in gods — nothing more, nothing less.
Sunny Jackson

Hopeful☀Heathens - 0 views

  • I try to approach all people with equal amounts of respect.  But if I am approached with unjust rudeness, condescension, or disrespect, I will sometimes (if the situation calls for it) answer in the fashion I was addressed.
  • because people don’t get to be respectfully reasoned with if they’re going to insult me from the get-go
  •  One theist being rude to you does not say anything about theists
  • ...11 more annotations...
  • In terms of atheism, I will always show respect to people who are curious, even if their curiosity seems intrusive or easily solved by looking at Google.  I will always answer genuine questions in a genuine fashion.
  •  If someone addresses me or atheists in general in a derogatory way, however, they usually don’t deserve any graciousness on my part.
  • Because we already fight such a daunting stereotype
  • everyone is an individual person who is responsible for their actions and no one else’s
  • there’s a time to be nice and then there’s a time to be real
  • Conversely, a theist griping about how rotten atheists are is really saying something about himself: that he’s biased, unjust, and silly for generalizing.
  • remember that people will usually treat you the way you treated them
  • they were the ones setting the tone
  • people like this are not indicative of all
  • If you’re using their individual behavior as an excuse to dislike their entire group, you’re the one who is really adding to the stereotypes
  •  Blanket assumptions work both ways.
Sunny Jackson

Religion vs politics- goes both ways by *Verixas92 on deviantART - 0 views

  • Marriage comes with civil benefits
  • Religiously, marriage can be a multitude of things
  • If you really want to have more credibility with your arguments, maybe you should try to not sound like you are generalizing a whole group of people.
  • ...19 more annotations...
  • Civil partnerships are not equality. It's like asking black folks to drink from the "civil drinking fountain."
  • religion and politics should be kept separate
  • I'm also curious to know what glass house you think I'm in.
  • You can fact check all my statements and you'll find them to be quite true.
  • If he is allowed to post his beliefs in a stamp, journal, or art, then I am allowed to post my opinion in a comment.
  • I am not forcing Atheism on anybody
  • I am not in any group concerning christians
  • I'm only stating my opinion
  • I wasn't searching for religious stamps, but political stamps.
  • I don't care if christians think I'm a troll
  • the picture is in the group. Too bad. I am not
  • This isn't a "Christian community" this is deviantart. As a fellow atheist, I found this stamp by searching for "gay art", not "Christian community", just like many of the other commentators did
  • Just because it's featured in a Christian group doesn't mean it can't be found outside the group
  • unless you're actively searching IN the group there's no way to know that the stamp is part of any religious club
  • Marriage is not religious. I'm atheist, and I can get married any time I want.
  • I'm an atheist, and I celebrate Christmas as a holiday to love my family.
  • Get over yourself.
  • it's what gives people morals
  • If you NEED religion to have morals, you're actually a pretty shitty person.
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