Re: God or religion, which are atheists more unhappy with?

[McQ]

First, before anything else, please don't use that word lying as an accusation, and attribute it to me as if I am really in fact accusing anyone of lying, and please also don't say that I am lying.

Just say you disagree with me and I disagree with you.

Or you are terribly mistaken or I am terribly mistaken about you.

Because accusing someone of lying is to claim that you know what is in his heart and mind, and that he is into deception, fraud, whatever, but not in any honest intention to say what is his true mind and heart, even though to your understanding he is in error or not acquainted with the facts.

Just say if you want to accuse me of lying -- and I for myself never use that word lying on anyone here -- that I am terribly mistaken.

So if you think that I do not accept your statement that you are not unhappy, etc., just say that I am not observing your emotional mood correctly.

This is of course, this forum, is a private property and thanks for allowing me to post here.

But I am sure Whitney the private owner and operator here wants also to see that everyone is enjoying free thought and expressing his free thoughts here on condition that he writes in civil language.

Back to unhappy with God and religion on your part as atheists, you don't want people to get that impression from the totality of their observation of all your actuations in regard to God and religion, understanding religion as people with religious ideas and practices, and you explain to them why you are not unhappy; well, then don't give them any importance, okay?

On my part I will just say -- and you will continue to be unhappy with me -- that you want to project the illogic of any conclusion from peoples not atheists about you atheists being unhappy with God -- because God does not exist for you, but to my impression you are still emotionally unhappy with God.

There must be some poll on how peoples who are not atheists, at least not like your kind of atheists, look at you in regard to your being unhappy with God.

Anyone know of any such poll?

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By the way, if Whitney is around, thanks for not banning me so far.

About that temporary banning some time back, I guess you have now mellowed down a bit, and  you no longer believe in death sentence even temporary 'death' sentence on posters here who are just into disagreeing with your fellow atheists here, notwithstanding that some here might cry out for my blood.

Now, it will very disappointing if any atheists here should abandon this forum of happy atheists because they can't get the powers that be here to throw me out in perpetuity.

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Addressing Whitney, please don't ban me, I still have other ideas I want to explore with happy atheists here.

How about the idea of chance as the 'God' in place of God for atheists?

Is that a trollish topic here with happy atheists?

Ryrge

Yrreg, your actions in your writing imply exactly what Whitney said, and you are now trying to twist words to suit whatever your purpose is. This post also contains language that is obviously intended to bait people and to antagonize. I will direct you right now to cease this behavior and stick to constructive and respectful dialog in this forum.

Do not continue to imply emotions to others here. Do not post messages baiting members into debate about topics like banning, or forum rules, or anything off the threads in which you participate. And do not simply abandon threads that you have derailed and start new threads until you can demonstrate that you can abide by social contract here on the forum.

My message to you is in no way emotional. It is a dispassionate directive to you and you either will follow it and move on to constructive topics, or you won't. But either way, do not continue this road you are on, of accusing members and admins of this forum of any emotional behavior or intent to ban you.

All I want from you at this point is for you to indicate you understand and for you to cooperate.

[Will]

If anyone has any questions or suggestions regarding forum rules, please feel free to PM me (or another member of the staff) and I'll bet glad to discuss them with you. I promise to keep an open mind.


Regarding the OP, I'm unhappy with certain aspects of organized religion. While I have no interest in telling people what to or not to believe, under some circumstances churches can enable harmful words and actions. The most recent and glaring example is how a religious organization can shield pedophiles from prosecution, hiding their illegal activity and moving them so as to cover up their horrible behavior. While I suppose something other than religion could do something like this, there are very few organizations with the power to do so. Also, there are even fewer instances where an organization claims to be a source of moral and ethical rules for so many people. If a priest can touch a little boy sexually and receive protection from the Catholic church, what does that tell Catholic people looking for moral guidance? This makes me very unhappy, especially for the children being victimized by these practices.

I can't be mad at god or gods. Atheists are unconvinced of the existence of god, so having an emotional response to something we don't believe is there doesn't make sense.

[karadan]

I can see that since atheists don't believe in God's existence, logically they should claim to be neither happy nor unhappy with God.

On the other hand, since religious people do exist and atheists know they do exist, atheists can be and should be either happy or unhappy with religious people, hence with religion.

And they certainly are unhappy with religion or concretely with religious people, unless they are being dishonest and say that they are not unhappy with religion or religious people.


In regard to God, if atheists were administered a lie detector test, and asked the question whether they are unhappy with God or not, if they say dishonestly that they have no emotional happy sentiment or unhappy sentiment with God, the lie detector could show them to be lying -- what do you think?

Yrreg

I usually have no problem with religious people or the stuff they believe in. They have just as much right to believe in a deity as I have the right to not believe in a deity. On the micro scale, only the super religious pose any potential annoyance to me simply because that's all they think or talk about. As I have no interest in becoming religious, we have nothing in common. Usually they would feel the same way about me, which is totally fine. I will not be proselytized to, though. I just will not be spoken to like I'm a child which is essentially the way people speak to you when they feel you aren't living a wholesome life without the love of god.

On the macro scale I feel very strongly that religion has absolutely no use for humanity whatsoever. It does nothing other than destroy or maim everything it comes into contact with. It is the antithesis of education and progression. It is an archaic, barbaric, backward and nefarious disease of the mind which may be instrumental in the eventual whole-scale deconstruction of humanity and everything good which it has going for it.

[kelltrill]

I don't know is someone has brought it up already, but I think it's important to differentiate between atheists and anti-theists. In my opinion and personal experience, most atheists are anti-theistic as well, but you also get theists who are anti-theistic, or rather anti-organised/institutionalised religion.
With regards to the lie-detector test question: I would say I was unhappy with God, even though he does not exist. I agree on a logical, rhetorical scale that technically we should not have an opinion on the matter, so I would rather say that were he to exist I would not be happy with him. The way he is depicted in the Bible is as vicious, unmerciful, egotistical, genocidal, and sadistic, and I am naturally even less impressed with his followers.
Not only that, but with regards to modern day religious wars, hate crimes, hate speech, horrific websites crying out for the blood of anyone different, the war being waged against science, reason and evolution, and renowned pastors who say that the victims of tragic natural disasters deserved what they got, religion is a disgusting, immoral, ugly, ignorant system. For this reason, I speak out against religion since I find the entire religious system irrational and harmful. It infringes on people's rights and leads to an intellectual cul-de-sac since it does not inspire critical thinking.
So I suppose it could be said that I an unhappy with both God and religion.

I have noticed that you do not approve of people disagreeing with your opinion. I am not asking you to agree with me, only notice my opinion and consider that it has some truths and possibly valid arguments in it.

[dogsmycopilot]

God or religion, which are atheists more unhappy with?



Yrreg

Neither. I am unhappy about someone else's views affecting the way I want to run my life. That is all I want. Do not bring your beliefs into my world or my home.

[Tom62]

God or religion, which are atheists more unhappy with?
Yrreg

I don't have problems with God, because I don't think that he exists. I also don't have problems with moderate religious people. Religions doesn't bother me very much either, unless they have a bad track record in terms of suppressing other people, forcing their silly dogma's on other people or do despicable acts against humanity in the name of their Gods.