Online I follow the prime directive of the natural world: Keep A Low Profile (KALP)…and ‘stay off the skyline’.
Amen to that.
I also take advantage of a peculiar social phenomenon; as we get older, we become socially invisible.
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The sad part being that a Word-compatible alternative has been in existence for years - RTF. Which doesn’t contain any executable content, and as a corollary, cannot be used as a “dropship” for malware.
I spent years trying to persuade people to use this instead of the native Word .doc format, but without success.
Microsoft discontinued the development of RTF in 2008, but it’s still widely supported by apps on almost every operating system.
No issues with it being obsolete yet?
Yeah, certainly a whole lot safer then .doc
It can be exploited. I have not seen much exploitation of it, (it is tiny compared to weaponized .doc)
Everything is moving to cloud based, (including all of MS office.) In my mind, solutions like google docs is how it is going to work going forward for anyone that is regularly connected to the net.
Yeah, I’ve always imagined a future where your hardware is basically just a fancy terminal for connecting to the internet.
There’s a shortage of theists nowadays?
That’s a shame, I have been inviting theists I have come across on my travels, seemingly none of them deigned to breach their cult like boundaries, maybe it’s fear of being mislead?
I wonder if there is anyway to intice some opposing opinions to the forums?
LMAO
Be careful what you wish for.
Egregiously ignorant and hubristic theist apologists regularly find their way here. A lot of 'em are creationists and try to argue against evolution.
I can’t help but feel it’s our duty, to help englighten such theists, after all, knowledge is power, and if we can collectively become more powerful as a species, won’t that help our chances at a better world?
I feel the need to pity such people, because they have chains wrapped around their minds, imprisoned by the belief that everything they do is watched and scrutinised.
I know I felt the weight of such a burden in my life, and when I realised finally, that it was all hogwash, I felt so much happier in myself.
The world could do with a little more happiness.
Wily_catAtheist
You’re wrong! How could you do such a thing to innocent theists? Lead them away from Christ and into the sinful world of atheist ideologies. All you are doing is trying to rip them from their families and the comforts of mother church. Will you enjoy watching the innocent burn in the pits of hell along side you. Misery loves company? Is that it? I will pray for your evil soul in the hopes that JESUS will one day find the kindness in his unconditional love to bring you into the light and show you the evil of your ways. I will pray that you find forgiveness and repentance before it is too late and the rapture is upon you. You are a lost soul and it is sad to see you traveling along the path to hellfire and brimstone to eternal damnation. I will pray for you.
You feel better now?
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No,I don’t think so . Atheism is only a disbelief in god(s). It is not a philosophy or ideology. There are no ‘shoulds’ ,'ought’s, or obligations to others in atheism. Of course many atheists feel all kinds of obligations and duties, but they have nothing to do with atheism.
How very patronising of you… You may be filtering your perception through your own unhappy experiences and from there making sweeping unfounded generalisations.
Who is ‘our’? Again with the generalisation.
About 13% of the world population is atheist. That means around 87% are believers of some kind. So far I’ve yet to see evidence that most if not all of those people are miserable, stupid or crazy. ***
I feel no need or desire to save others from themselves. I think such an attitude is arrogant and egocentric.
Thought for the day; "If ignorance is bliss, t’is folly to be wise’ (anon)
***Of course millions, even billions of people are indeed miserable. IMO, that misery is likely to come from not having enough to eat, living a subsistent existence ,without education or the most basic of amenities we take for granted . I suspect living in a country such as North Korea wouldn’t be a picnic either.
Basically… Boomer beat me to it…
Cat – Think about it ---- Your attitude is so very “Christian.”
Remember - it is not a burden for them… “A fish does not notice the water in which it swims.” In fact, the real burden is often ‘letting go.’ It leads of loss of friendships, loss of social status, loss of jobs, depression, loneliness, and more. There are even organizations to assist those separating from religion these days. “The Clergy Project” “The Secular Therapy Project”
Belief is not a choice. Do you think you could choose to believe in a God knowing what you know of religion and gods now? There is something in the Christian thought process convincing them that this God idea is logical, true, and worth holding on to. Ripping it from them can be traumatic. “Religious Trauma Syndrome” has been coined as the expression for those dealing with the separation and it is akin to Traumatic Trauma Syndrome. These people have dreams of hell, worry about eternal damnation, feel like the filthy sinners their parents say they are, and more…
It may be all hogwash but getting there is not always a matter of “enlightening” someone.
The theists that walk in here, do so of their own free will.
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Indeed.
My path from devout Irish Catholic to atheist took 20 years, some of them very painful.
One of my life observations is that few people ever seriously question their religious beliefs. These were absorbed uncritically before the age of seven. If this observation is untrue, perhaps some one could explain to me why there are so relatively few atheists ?
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I meant in this instance, all of humanity, all faiths.
I can see why you’d say that, but on the other side of the coin, how does our species have any hope of survival if we abandon each other to folly?
I am very fatalistic about the future of mankind, I am of the mindset that we are doomed, plainly because everywhere I look, I see backwards motion, ineffective social constructs. I’m aware this is probably a side effect of severe depression, but I struggle to see the good in my species, it’s probably even the root cause of my depression. Misanthropy that is.
What it boils down to, is the question, do I care about what happens to humanity?
If the answer is no, then I can let people just squander their finite lives on delusion and lies.
But if the answer is yes, then surely the only way I can personally alleviate my urge to care, is to try and ply some sort of reason out of theists, and help them to begin to use logic, over faith.
I hope I’m making sense, I struggle to put such concepts into words at times.
Generally, I agree. Theist pound that shit into your brain while your skull is still soft (hyperbolic guys)/ Still, the ones that tend to break free are the logical ones. Those people who interact with the world using their brains instead of their emotional states. I know I have read several articles regarding the appeal of religion to those among us who are more emotional. Religion usurps normal emotions, gives them a mystical meaning, and then returns them as gifts from god. People then believe their religious experiences are unique and make them and their relationship to the invisible all powerful creator of the universe unique as well/
Well I think it behoves any rational person to challenge irrational superstition, or ideas, beliefs and arguments that are poorly conceived. I’m not sure I consider it my duty, but I see what you mean I think.
Knowledge certainly is power, sadly power can also rest with those who reject knowledge and a rational world view over superstitious guff, c’est la vie.
No argument there.
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That is put much more eloquently. And there is a time and a place for everything. Pick your battles wisely… It’s not a holy war.
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Many of us desire to leave a better world behind. But I am constrained by my personal position that I should not attempt to convince or sway anyone away from their own personal desires. If I do so, I am no better than the missionaries who destroyed entire cultures.
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I think that’s a false dicotomy . You seem to be claiming that the human simply will not survive if religion permeates society and people don’t see the light and become atheists. This a common, and rather arrogant claim is made by some atheists. I have yet to see credible evidence for such a claim
No true scotsman fallacy AND false dichotomy; That one does not care about humanity if one does not want everyone to be an atheist. AND that there are only two choices; become atheist or become doomed.
Another false dichotomy. That the only possible way you can meet your need to care is to get people to think as you do.
In a word bull-fucking-shit.
Have you ever heard of ‘secular charities’? Or of the term “secular saint”?.
One can express one’s love by serving others ;
EG: my atheist sister cared for our mother for 17 years at home… This meant that mum had a happy and peaceful old age and death.
My closest [atheist] male friend looked after his mother after she developed altzheimer’s. She was in care for a total of three weeks before she died.
IMO many atheists who show their love for others, with no expectation of reward, are far more saint-like than any religionist doing good for the reward of heaven, or nirvana.
I have several favourites
John Rabe ‘The Good Nazi of Nanjing’ He helped save the lives of over 250 THOUSAND Chinese during the Japanese occupation of Nanjing
Doctor Fred Hollows, who founded the Fred Hollows Foundation. The foundation literally restores sight to thousands of people in poor countries world wide.
Doctor Norman Bethune. A Canadian trauma surgeon who served as surgeon in China, to the communist troops during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
I too helped look after my Gran many times, when she had multiple types dementia, my mum had her house extended so as to allow my Gran to live in.
The stress on my mum was great, and I often stepped in to allow her week long breaks so she could get away from it and clear her mind.
It was a very conflicting time for me, because my mum is COE Christian, and she and me often debated where my Gran was going to end up when she died.
I often just remained silent, when my mum was using her faith as a shield against her grief, no matter what I say to my mum, she tells me I’m wrong and mislead.
I never wanted anything from either of them, I just looked after my Gran because she was family and I cared for her.
I don’t resent my mum for her belief, but I do resent her beliefs, and that they have managed to hold such sway over her.
I especially despised the Vicars that would come to the house, they’d sit there across the room with a smug look and constantly tell me I’m the one who is mislead, ignoring any logical answers I’d give them. They were either pious or completely ignorant of any other view point.
“What right does this fool have, to sit here and claim I’m uninformed, when he has only one book to reference” is what I would think, but I often had to still my tounge, just to keep the atmosphere in the house calm, I didn’t want to stress my gran out, she would scare very easily.
I despise the influence religion holds over people, when it has no right to.
I know there’s naught I can do about it, for we are a minority, but it just aggravates me so bloody much.
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