Re: Why atheism is wrong - the shocking and unbiased truth - 10-05-2009, 02:43 AM 10-05-2009, 02:43 AM



"-All atheists believe in evolution, which means they don't believe in morality and think we should all act like animals."



I'm an atheist. Yes, I believe in evolution, but I do have morals, and I do not believe that we should act like animals.



"-Some famous atheists have shown they occasionally have doubts about their disbelief, which proves that all atheists really do believe in God."



Which famous atheists? (I'm not doubting you; there are always some people who question their beliefs, but the key to a successful argument is providing examples). Also, just because "some" atheists have questioned their beliefs, doesn't mean that "all" atheists actually do believe in god. You're using the fact that a minority questioned their beliefs to try and prove that the majority holds the same sentiment, which is simply false logic.



"-Communism, which is inherently evil, is founded by atheism, and all atheists are probably secret communists."



Although I do believe that the fundamental idea of communism is ideal, I also believe that it would never work as a system, therefore I don't consider myself a communist.



"-Because we can think of the existence of God, God must obviously exists, and therefore atheists are illogical."



I can use that exact same logic but instead say "Because we can think of the existence of Evolution, Evolution must obviously exist, and therefore Christians are illogical".



"There have no exactly zero cases on Christian mass murderers throughout all of history."



David Berkowitz: Killed 6 people, wounded 7 others. Renounced Judaism at a young age, converted to Baptism. Became a Born-Again Christian while in prison.



Sampson Kanderayi: AKA the "Ax Killer". Murdered 30 people. A Christian.



Coral Eugene Watts: May have murdered as many as 80 women and girls. He was a Christian who supposedly murdered to get rid of evil spirits.



Jeffrey Dahmer: Born-Again Christian who murdered 17 men and boys and cannibalized their remains.



Donald Miller: Raped and murdered four women. Conservative Christian who always carried a bible.



"-no atheists contribute to charitable causes, and all Christians do. This is because of atheist's beliefs in Darwinism."



I beg to differ. My family gives to causes like Big Brother Big Sister, Homeless Veterans of America, Doctors Without Borders, and other charities, and I always give money to homeless people I see.



"The Barna Group found regarding atheism and morality that those who hold to the worldviews of atheism or agnosticism in America were more likely, than theists in America, to look upon the following behaviors as morally acceptable: illegal drug use; excessive drinking; sexual relationships outside of marriage; abortion; cohabitating with someone of opposite sex outside of marriage; obscene language; gambling; pornography and obscene sexual behavior; and engaging in homosexuality/bisexuality"



Every person is different. Atheism doesn't make a person more likely to engage in risky behaviors any more than theism makes a person more likely to be chaste until marriage. Let's look at three examples, shall we? We'll be using myself and my two cousins.



Me:

Age: 19

Gender: female

Location: Massachusetts

Beliefs: atheist

Drug use: never

Alcohol consumption: never

Comprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Comprehensive sex ed

Sex: never

Abortion: none

Cohabitation: live with my parents, never had a boyfriend

Obscene language: yes

Gambling: never

Pornography: I'll admit, I watch it...

Obscene sexual behavior: still a virgin, so no

Homosexuality/bisexuality: no



Katie (cousin):

Age: 22-23ish?

Gender: female

Location: Texas

Beliefs: fundamentalist Christian

Drug use: big time

Alcohol consumption: yes

Comprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Abstinence Only

Sex: yes, baby at 16

Abortion: no

Cohabitation: lived with boyfriend for a time

Obscene language: yes

Gambling: not sure

Pornography: not sure

Obscene sexual behavior: does getting pregnant at 16 count as obscene?

Homosexuality/bisexuality: no



Tara (cousin):

Age: 27-28ish?

Gender: female

Location: Texas

Beliefs: fundamentalist Christian

Drug use: some

Alcohol consumption: yes

Comprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Abstinence Only

Sex: yes, out-of-wedlock baby at 21

Abortion: no

Cohabitation: before and (obviously) after marriage

Obscene language: yes

Gambling: not sure

Pornography: not sure

Obscene sexual behavior: out of wedlock baby

Homosexuality/bisexuality: no



"-atheism cannot explain the origins of the universe, therefore God exists."



Once again, poor logic.



"-Atheists have more mental and physical health problems than Christians."



Source, please?



"This is attributed to theists having something more to life for."



I have plenty to live for, thank you very much. And besides, I thought that the only thing Christians cared about was the afterlife. All those crazy fundamentalists praising and looking forward to armageddon because they can't wait to go to the afterlife.



"-Countries with large numbers of atheists have higher suicide rates, therefore atheism makes you want to kill yourself."



I have absolutely no desire to kill myself.



"-Sigmund Freud said religious belief was unhealthy, but many doctors think Freud is wrong, therefore atheism is evil."



Sooooo...one man claimed that religion was unhealthy, which many doctors disagreed with...so that makes atheism evil? So that means that if one doctor claimed that eating chicken was bad for you, but other doctors disagreed with him, it would then be deemed evil to abstain from eating chicken?



"-many famous atheists tell lies, therefore atheists are deceptive."



Source, please? And once again, you're trying to group all atheists together into a group of deceivers simply because some notable ones tell lies.



"-Fewer people believe now as opposed to x number of years ago (usually around twenty) in evolution, therefore evolutionary theory is wrong and by proxy atheism is wrong, since it's the same thing."



Source?

P.S. atheism is not the same thing as evolutionary theory. Just because someone doesn't believe that there is a god doesn't mean that they believe that evolution is the answer to the question of how humans got here.



"-Friedrich Nietzsche went crazy and was an atheist, therefore atheism drove him insane (although there is an ongoing debate on the matter...)"



There is absolutely no logic in that statement.



"-Non-Christians are more likely to believe in silly superstitions, like palm reading and astronomy (note: Non-Christian = atheist). Christians believe only in the cold, hard logical of the world around them."



Christians believe in cold, hard facts? Last time I checked, Christians believe in a god who has yet to show himself to us.



"-There are a number of anti-atheist blogs (isn't that good to know? )"



If the mere fact that there are many anti-atheist blogs is proof that atheism is wrong, then by your logic, the fact that there are many anti-christian blogs is proof that christianity is wrong.



"-early scientists were Christian, therefore Christianity owns a monopoly on science and atheists are not allowed to say there is discrepancy between the beliefs in the two."



Early scientists were also ancient Greeks and Egyptians, long before the bible was even written.



"-Sir Francis Bacon said he'd rather belief in any silly old legend then believe that God doesn't exist"



Well good for Sir Francis Bacon. What does he want, a freaking medal?



"-Creation scientists tend to win creation-evolution debates"



Source?



"-Notable atheists have converted to Christianity. The reverse never happens."



http://exchristian.net/



"-atheists try to convert young people to atheism over the internet. Christians, of course, never stoop to such behavior."



http://www.landoverbaptist.net

http://christwire.org



"-Nearly a quarter or a third of philosophy professors are theists"



Yeah, and that means that the other 3/4 or 2/3 are atheists. So what are you so proud of?



"-atheists do not really exist, they just pretend that they don't believe in God."



So then why did you just devote an entire post to why atheism is wrong?

P.S. atheism does really exist. I do not believe in god.



"-atheists make up a small percentage of the world population, therefore it is wrong."



The Bowhead Whale also makes up a small percentage of the world's whale population. Does that mean that it is wrong to be a Bowhead Whale?



"-a lot of famous people said bad stuff about atheists"



Wow All right, let's break this down:"-All atheists believe in evolution, which means they don't believe in morality and think we should all act like animals."I'm an atheist. Yes, I believe in evolution, but I do have morals, and I do not believe that we should act like animals."-Some famous atheists have shown they occasionally have doubts about their disbelief, which proves that all atheists really do believe in God."Which famous atheists? (I'm not doubting you; there are always some people who question their beliefs, but the key to a successful argument is providing examples). Also, just because "some" atheists have questioned their beliefs, doesn't mean that "all" atheists actually do believe in god. You're using the fact that a minority questioned their beliefs to try and prove that the majority holds the same sentiment, which is simply false logic."-Communism, which is inherently evil, is founded by atheism, and all atheists are probably secret communists."Although I do believe that the fundamental idea of communism is ideal, I also believe that it would never work as a system, therefore I don't consider myself a communist."-Because we can think of the existence of God, God must obviously exists, and therefore atheists are illogical."I can use that exact same logic but instead say "Because we can think of the existence of Evolution, Evolution must obviously exist, and therefore Christians are illogical"."There have no exactly zero cases on Christian mass murderers throughout all of history."David Berkowitz: Killed 6 people, wounded 7 others. Renounced Judaism at a young age, converted to Baptism. Became a Born-Again Christian while in prison.Sampson Kanderayi: AKA the "Ax Killer". Murdered 30 people. A Christian.Coral Eugene Watts: May have murdered as many as 80 women and girls. He was a Christian who supposedly murdered to get rid of evil spirits.Jeffrey Dahmer: Born-Again Christian who murdered 17 men and boys and cannibalized their remains.Donald Miller: Raped and murdered four women. Conservative Christian who always carried a bible."-no atheists contribute to charitable causes, and all Christians do. This is because of atheist's beliefs in Darwinism."I beg to differ. My family gives to causes like Big Brother Big Sister, Homeless Veterans of America, Doctors Without Borders, and other charities, and I always give money to homeless people I see."The Barna Group found regarding atheism and morality that those who hold to the worldviews of atheism or agnosticism in America were more likely, than theists in America, to look upon the following behaviors as morally acceptable: illegal drug use; excessive drinking; sexual relationships outside of marriage; abortion; cohabitating with someone of opposite sex outside of marriage; obscene language; gambling; pornography and obscene sexual behavior; and engaging in homosexuality/bisexuality"Every person is different. Atheism doesn't make a person more likely to engage in risky behaviors any more than theism makes a person more likely to be chaste until marriage. Let's look at three examples, shall we? We'll be using myself and my two cousins.Me:Age: 19Gender: femaleLocation: MassachusettsBeliefs: atheistDrug use: neverAlcohol consumption: neverComprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Comprehensive sex edSex: neverAbortion: noneCohabitation: live with my parents, never had a boyfriendObscene language: yesGambling: neverPornography: I'll admit, I watch it...Obscene sexual behavior: still a virgin, so noHomosexuality/bisexuality: noKatie (cousin):Age: 22-23ish?Gender: femaleLocation: TexasBeliefs: fundamentalist ChristianDrug use: big timeAlcohol consumption: yesComprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Abstinence OnlySex: yes, baby at 16Abortion: noCohabitation: lived with boyfriend for a timeObscene language: yesGambling: not surePornography: not sureObscene sexual behavior: does getting pregnant at 16 count as obscene?Homosexuality/bisexuality: noTara (cousin):Age: 27-28ish?Gender: femaleLocation: TexasBeliefs: fundamentalist ChristianDrug use: someAlcohol consumption: yesComprehensive sex-ed in school, or Abstinence Only? Abstinence OnlySex: yes, out-of-wedlock baby at 21Abortion: noCohabitation: before and (obviously) after marriageObscene language: yesGambling: not surePornography: not sureObscene sexual behavior: out of wedlock babyHomosexuality/bisexuality: no"-atheism cannot explain the origins of the universe, therefore God exists."Once again, poor logic."-Atheists have more mental and physical health problems than Christians."Source, please?"This is attributed to theists having something more to life for."I have plenty to live for, thank you very much. And besides, I thought that the only thing Christians cared about was the afterlife. All those crazy fundamentalists praising and looking forward to armageddon because they can't wait to go to the afterlife."-Countries with large numbers of atheists have higher suicide rates, therefore atheism makes you want to kill yourself."I have absolutely no desire to kill myself."-Sigmund Freud said religious belief was unhealthy, but many doctors think Freud is wrong, therefore atheism is evil."Sooooo...one man claimed that religion was unhealthy, which many doctors disagreed with...so that makes atheism evil? So that means that if one doctor claimed that eating chicken was bad for you, but other doctors disagreed with him, it would then be deemed evil to abstain from eating chicken?"-many famous atheists tell lies, therefore atheists are deceptive."Source, please? And once again, you're trying to group all atheists together into a group of deceivers simply because some notable ones tell lies."-Fewer people believe now as opposed to x number of years ago (usually around twenty) in evolution, therefore evolutionary theory is wrong and by proxy atheism is wrong, since it's the same thing."Source?P.S. atheism is not the same thing as evolutionary theory. Just because someone doesn't believe that there is a god doesn't mean that they believe that evolution is the answer to the question of how humans got here."-Friedrich Nietzsche went crazy and was an atheist, therefore atheism drove him insane (although there is an ongoing debate on the matter...)"There is absolutely no logic in that statement."-Non-Christians are more likely to believe in silly superstitions, like palm reading and astronomy (note: Non-Christian = atheist). Christians believe only in the cold, hard logical of the world around them."Christians believe in cold, hard facts? Last time I checked, Christians believe in a god who has yet to show himself to us."-There are a number of anti-atheist blogs (isn't that good to know? )"If the mere fact that there are many anti-atheist blogs is proof that atheism is wrong, then by your logic, the fact that there are many anti-christian blogs is proof that christianity is wrong."-early scientists were Christian, therefore Christianity owns a monopoly on science and atheists are not allowed to say there is discrepancy between the beliefs in the two."Early scientists were also ancient Greeks and Egyptians, long before the bible was even written."-Sir Francis Bacon said he'd rather belief in any silly old legend then believe that God doesn't exist"Well good for Sir Francis Bacon. What does he want, a freaking medal?"-Creation scientists tend to win creation-evolution debates"Source?"-Notable atheists have converted to Christianity. The reverse never happens.""-atheists try to convert young people to atheism over the internet. Christians, of course, never stoop to such behavior.""-Nearly a quarter or a third of philosophy professors are theists"Yeah, and that means that the other 3/4 or 2/3 are atheists. So what are you so proud of?"-atheists do not really exist, they just pretend that they don't believe in God."So then why did you just devote an entire post to why atheism is wrong?P.S. atheism does really exist. I do not believe in god."-atheists make up a small percentage of the world population, therefore it is wrong."The Bowhead Whale also makes up a small percentage of the world's whale population. Does that mean that it is wrong to be a Bowhead Whale?"-a lot of famous people said bad stuff about atheists"Wow