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Why are atheists thought ill of?

Fluffywolf

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And to add to my post.

A rope you could hang yourself by, just out of hands reach, above the podium.

It never occurred to me that a person had to subscribe to an organized religion to be a theist. Many people might hold that position, but it doesn't make sense. What is the difference between belonging to a religion of 150 people or 15,000? What is the difference between a religion of 1 or ten million? Having other people validate one's position on what God is shouldn't define whether or not a person believes in God. And if it does, what it the magic number? Two people in a religion? Three? Forty? Fifty Thousand? It seems arbitrary to equate theism with organized religion.

It was not my intention in doing so. Just a little word play on my part. Pardon me. :)
 

Vildechaya

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For thousands of years people have used religion to control the masses. It's easy and profitable!
Athieism goes against the group mentality.
 

hommefatal

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I've had some interesting conversations with friends lately about athiests and been surprised to find that many think some weird things about atheists and atheism like:

-Atheists are without morals
-Atheists cannot be normal nice people
-Atheism promotes lawlessness
-Atheists are arrogant because they don't believe there is something higher than them
-Atheists don't have a sense of purpose in life
-Atheists don't deserve the same respect as everyone else
-Atheists don't respect other people
-A rise in Atheism is making the planet corrupt
-If you say you are an Atheist you are trying to convert everyone to your beliefs which is wrong but it's OK to try to convert an Atheist
-It's OK to question Atheists about why they don't believe in God but not OK for them to question why people do.

None of those things are particularly true so where do these attitudes come from? It seems the majority of people I know subscribe to at least one of these beliefs. :huh:
This sounds a bit like the stereotype of INTJ libertarians.
 
O

Oberon

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For thousands of years people have used religion to control the masses. It's easy and profitable!
Athieism goes against the group mentality.

No it doesn't. It just identifies its own group, and within that group it frees up the human imperative-to-worship to be engaged by other constructs.
 

Blackmail!

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No it doesn't. It just identifies its own group, and within that group it frees up the human imperative-to-worship to be engaged by other constructs.

Atheism is not a "group". In France, it's rather a passive/default attitude. Live and let live!
Only when they get frequently harassed by a majority of believers (1) will they look like a "group".

---

(1) For instance, in the US. Or when an Oberon, a Peguy or a CopyPaste just happen to cross their path.

 

Totenkindly

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(1) For instance, in the US. Or when an Oberon, a Peguy or a CopyPaste just happen to cross their path.

You know, if we could refrain from the "personal lumping" of people into groups, that would be cool. The grouping is arbitrary and not meant to do more than slander a particularly broad category of people.

I'm not sure why some people need to take impersonal discussion into the personal realm, but if we have to do more to dissuade this sort of thing, we will.
 

professor goodstain

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Atheism is not a "group". In France, it's rather a passive/default attitude. Live and let live!
Only when they get frequently harassed by a majority of believers (1) will they look like a "group".

---

(1) For instance, in the US. Or when an Oberon, a Peguy or a CopyPaste just happen to cross their path.


In France, do atheists ever organize as a collective due to having something in common?
 
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Oberon

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Atheism is not a "group". In France, it's rather a passive/default attitude. Live and let live!
Only when they get frequently harassed by a majority of believers (1) will they look like a "group".

---

(1) For instance, in the US. Or when an Oberon, a Peguy or a CopyPaste just happen to cross their path.


Oh but Blackie, didn't you know? Atheist are believers. They just don't believe in God.

In place of God they believe in Business, or Sexuality, or Socialism, or Labour, or Environmentalism, or Self, or even Manchester United (God help us). Regardless, the urge to worship will not be thwarted.
 

Costrin

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Oh but Blackie, didn't you know? Atheist are believers. They just don't believe in God.

In place of God they believe in Business, or Sexuality, or Socialism, or Labour, or Environmentalism, or Self, or even Manchester United (God help us). Regardless, the urge to worship will not be thwarted.

If you say so.
 
S

Sniffles

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Atheism is not a "group". In France, it's rather a passive/default attitude. Live and let live!

Sorry Blackmail!, but I simply know too much about the conflict between secularism and religion in French history to take this argument seriously.

You may complain about being harassed by Christians in America. However, I sincerely doubt it even compares to the harassment French priests and nuns had to endure on their way to the guillotine; how their deepest beliefs would be mocked, not least of which by being presented with communion chalices filled with pig's blood.

People in glass bastilles shouldn't throw stones.


For instance, in the US. Or when an Oberon, a Peguy or a CopyPaste just happen to cross their path.

I only spring into action when people choose to talk shit about my beliefs. I have nothing against those who respectfully disagree with my views. Don't believe me, ask our resident pagan Amargith.

So I adhere to the principle of Live and let live.
 

millerm277

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You may complain about being harassed by Christians in America. However, I sincerely doubt it even compares to the harassment French priests and nuns had to endure on their way to the guillotine; how their deepest beliefs would be mocked, not least of which by being presented with communion chalices filled with pig's blood.

I think....Atheists have been harassed for multiple millenia, and things like the Spanish Inquisition, are.....I would say, at least equal to the harassment of the Christians in France. To put it simply. I think, atheists have had it far worse overall than Christians, at least since we stopped throwing the Christians to the lions in Rome. With that said, both sides have had plenty of terrible things happen to people of that belief (or lack thereof).
 

Thalassa

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I think....Atheists have been harassed for multiple millenia, and things like the Spanish Inquisition, are.....I would say, at least equal to the harassment of the Christians in France. To put it simply. I think, atheists have had it far worse overall than Christians, at least since we stopped throwing the Christians to the lions in Rome. With that said, both sides have had plenty of terrible things happen to people of that belief (or lack thereof).

After all that harrassment you'd think that atheists would leave people alone, but some of them seem just as bent on converting others (in an extraordinarily condecending way) as any fundie Christian I've met - that's the only reason I ever have a problem with them.
 

Oom

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I generally tend to think ill of someone if they are sick. Maybe atheists are sickly people?
 

millerm277

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After all that harrassment you'd think that atheists would leave people alone, but some of them seem just as bent on converting others (in an extraordinarily condecending way) as any fundie Christian I've met - that's the only reason I ever have a problem with them.

I think, the harassment has caused some atheists to view organized religion as the root cause of the harassment and intrusion on their rights. Therefore, converting people away from it, would theoretically reduce said harassment. I am an atheist. Unless you are being utterly obnoxious/insulting towards me, I don't care what you believe in or care to debate it.
 

Thalassa

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I think, the harassment has caused some atheists to view organized religion as the root cause of the harassment and intrusion on their rights. Therefore, converting people away from it, would theoretically reduce said harassment. I am an atheist. Unless you are being utterly obnoxious/insulting towards me, I don't care what you believe in or care to debate it.

That's great. I have friends who are atheists. But there are atheists who want to harrass people out of any and all spiritual beliefs, organized or not.

Seriously, I think some people are just like that. Some people express it by being obnoxiously pushy fundie Christians, and some people express it by being obnoxiously pushy condecending atheists.

But by the same token there are cool Christians and cool atheists. It really depends on the person.
 
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Sniffles

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I think....Atheists have been harassed for multiple millenia, and things like the Spanish Inquisition, are.....I would say, at least equal to the harassment of the Christians in France.

Maybe, if we're going by the standard image of the Inquisition. Scholarship now concedes that it was far less brutal than previously imagined. For example, torture was actually very rarely used; largely because legal codes prevented the use of confessions obtained through such to be used in court. And when it was conducted, strict rules were enforced on how it was to be carried out - such as no blood could be spilt.

If I remember correctly, in 17th century France atheists were granted more legal protections than heretics(Protestants).
 

hommefatal

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By the way, I'm an atheist too. I'm definitely not ill but rather a genius. Most scientists are atheists too so it's just because stupid people create conspiracy theories. People can't relate to that so they create such stories.
 

Take Five

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I don't take any atheists under the age of 25 seriously. The rest I think are foolish and very afraid, or misguided, or just do not think actively or in depth about the subject.
Just because religion is more frequently associated with moral/rules/order/persecution does not automatically make religious people good, but nor does it justify a backlash against all religion for being hypocritical, or that religion is all conspiracy by ignorant masses. Just because atheists are a minority does not make them right or smarter. ^^ There have been and are plenty of theist scientists too, e.g. Francis Collins, the director of the Human Genome Project.
Spirituality is as much an aspect of humanity as the physical body and the mind. Religion is kind of like a social way of tuning one's spirituality.
In general I think strongly religious people exhibit more conviction, while strongly atheist people more often exhibit angst, frustration, and arrogance. I think many atheists use their atheism as a way of convincing themselves they are more clever than others. Although arrogance and denial is no stranger to religious folks either, after all I just wrote that I think many atheists are foolish.
 
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