I thought I would revisit an old stomping ground, but boy what a mistake that was.
The people there seem more delusional than I remember. They have this pitiful propensity for being incapable of separating myth and absurdities from reality. It is one thing to entertain an idea, without accepting it, but to treat an imaginative concept as a realm of possibility is beyond comprehension. I can understand their tangled desire for fantasy, yet at the same time it is a path that should easily be comprehended as unrealistic.
After reading only a couple of threads, I found myself aghast at the depth of their delusions. I shouldn’t be so surprised, really, but it does astound me that people in this day and age want to partake in such mental gymnastics that defy our reality. To be completely reasonable concerning some aspects of our world while simultaneously shutting the door on logic regarding superstition is maddening for the more sensible mind.
Sure, one can easily argue that their beliefs aren’t harming anyone, and in most cases it probably isn’t. But that is an irrelevant point when the folly of entertaining such concepts as realistic is introduced. There is no good reason, after all, to prefer the superstitious delusion over a reality that is much more fulfilling.
I know, I know, don’t go giving myself an aneurysm over what I cannot control. Personal religious-related belief, as foolish as it is, is something that I cannot eradicate from our reality. The best I can do is seek community and solace in others who know as I do the freedom of no longer being mentally shackled to such mythological delusions.
Yep. Control the things you can control. One of the wisest things you can ever learn in this life. And it will certainly free you from a whole lot of stress.
The longer I am an atheist and the more I learn, the more difficult it becomes me to comprehend that nonsense they embrace. And why.
Now that I have learned about fallacies, logical arguments, and more of the bible (as a practicing theist I never read it), I now see obvious gaps and just flat out contradictions. In fact, they jump out at me.
I wish they could see that. They claim a god, a simple concept. And the proof should be just as simple, possibly easier. But instead of being capable of providing a simple proof, they must resort to weird complex and convoluted philosophical arguments or “proofs” that only exist in their imagination.
Sure, you can’t control whether these people are attempting to engage in a limitless enjoyment of their personal delusions.
This doesn’t prevent one from enjoying a limitless prosecution of impatience and skepticism and a maximum hatred of the irrational in disputing their delusions, IMHO.
I mean, they probably won’t realize their stupidity but you can use them to get solid practice at arguing.
I admit this may be me describing my own deliberately manipulative habit, though.
I arguments in here, I am open and honest and state to theists that one of my goals is to undermine their thought process, to cut out a leg of their flimsy stool of beliefs. I fully understand that being able to make them switch away from their beliefs is highly improbable, almost impossible. But I can (hopefully) make them a little less confident in their position.
I consider the posts a sounding board for lurkers, less confident atheists, and theists visiting the site. I really don’t care about the person making the post as much as the post itself. Stupid shit is stupid shit regardless of whose head it comes out of; mine included.
Most theists have their self esteem and pride wrapped up tightly in the argument one is having with them, and are absolutely certain that their mental enslavement is voluntary and noble.
(FWIW this, at base, is why the use of reason and the demand for evidence, as is done so often here, is most often unsuccessful and interminable.)
To the best of my memory, those flaws, inconsistencies, and contradictions always stood out to me. That is why none of it ever made much sense to me, even in my younger years. And the only thing that kept me shackled to the delusion for so many years was the fear about Satan/hell that was so thoroughly instilled into my psyche. That being said, I can easily relate to why so many people cling so desperately to their faith. And I understand why they do not want to recognize/acknowledge the contradictions and inconsistencies we all see.
Like you said, those flaws now jump out at you like blazing neon signs. You think to yourself, “How could ANYBODY with more than two functioning brain cells miss this stuff?” Well, it’s not so much that they miss them, it is more like their mind does not allow them to process it. No matter how simply you point them out… no matter how much they may even agree with your reasoning and explanations… it will all get sequestered into a part of the mind they are not allowed to access. They simply cannot allow that doubt to enter their thinking. With the threat/fear of eternal torture looming over them, the stakes are too great. Knowing these things the way I do, it is what allows me to be patient and understanding with (most of) those who cling to faith.
That method does have its uses in some cases, but (like you said) it really isn’t too effective on most who pass through here. Personally, I prefer using their own belief system against them. (I’m a big fan of Judo and Aikido. ) Get them to state and explain precisely what they believe, then start highlighting the inconsistencies and contradictions in various manners, depending on the beliefs and the individual. Plus, I get to have fun while doing it.
Cleared my browser cache and removed the site from my bookmarks so as to not be enticed to return there.
Like most places with a theistic slant/agenda, pushing non-belief too hard tends to result in punishment from those in charge. History with the place guarantees that I won’t fare any better than in the past. Just better to avoid the headache altogether.
Another tact; You say it is possible; how would you know? “Well, it’s not impossible.” “Again, How would you know?” The time to assume anything is possible or impossible is when there is sufficient evidence to do so. I submit to you that there is sufficient evidence to asserts a god is impossible. There have been 330,000,000 different gods in the history of the world. There are over 5,000 different gods being worshiped in the world today. Everyone worshiping every one of those gods thinks their God is the real god. What evidence do you have that can demonstrate your version of god is more possible than any other version of a god?
On the other hand, I have 329,999,999 failed versions of gods in the past and another 4,999 failed versions of god currently; and YOU completely agree with these numbers. You don’t believe in any of the other gods. The odds against your god being the one true god are 330,004,999 to 1. If I had odds like that in Las Vegas, I would own the world at this point in my life. How did you rule out 330,004.999 Gods to get to the one true god beyond just making an assertion? Demonstrate your god is more possible than any of the other gods.
All atheists should be required by law to smoke a big marijuana cigarette and report as to whether or not they are able to hold a coherent conversation with them - selves - and what conclusions they came to.
The interpretation of reality is “perception”. The story in our mind to “explain” what we are experiencing through our senses. The quality of the stored brain information that seeks to categorize/explain plays a big part in determining “reality”.
For myself, setting the standard “for evidence” (relative to claims) was a large contributing factor of breaking religious delusions.
I try to keep the inner story as “rational” as possible (aside from my big pile of “I don’t know” and “mind-candy” categories).
Religions offer a great story line with a “happily ever after” where you’re the hero and found some rare, valuable “truth”.
That’s because you don’t understand reality. The shit we don’t know is amazing. Pretending you know the shit we don’t know when there are those of us who know you don’t know it and that you could not possibly know it, is just stupidity.
) Get them to state and explain precisely what they believe, then start highlighting the inconsistencies and contradictions in various manners, depending on the beliefs and the individual. Plus, I get to have fun while doing it.