Ignorance can be cured but stupid is forever
Offline Back in the early or mid 1980s, with the blessing of Madalyn Murray O'Hair and family, I founded the Tampa Bay Chapter of American Atheists.
But you know, the fight gets boring. Nobody gets converted. I never asked anybody to give up their religion, just to respect my lack of one. It never happened. It never will. Isn't it easier just to ignore them and go on about my merry atheist way while they effect regime change, blow up trade centers, have an occasional inquisition...
Oops. Got bitter. Seriously, isn't it easier to spend my energy elsewhere? Honest question from an honest atheist.
If you're an atheist, why should be an activist?
If you're not an atheist, will you ever stop fucking with me?
That's what I thought.
http://www.michaeledits.com You can't eat grits with chopsticks
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The way I see it, stupidity and ignorance are destructive forces. We either fight them, or we're all fucked. As melodramatic as that may sound, we really don't have any choice.
And yes, that kinda sucks.
I'm older than dirt, too. And it does get tiring. I'm currently reading Voices of Disbelief: why we are atheists. And the recurring theme is very few people are convinced by listening to other people. They are convinced from their own doubts. I confirmed this with a psychologist friend. If the change does not come from internal convictions, it is not a permanent change. An atheist may give the believer pause - but only if they already have doubts.
I do not push my beliefs on others. I hate evangelists of any kind, non-religious as well. It seems to me an evangelist's assumption is that you must be brain dead, never having heard anything about their religion from any source. It is the worse kind of condescension. If the subject comes up in conversation, I will state my beliefs and I'm willing to discuss why I believe and why others believe as I do.
Ignorance is bad and curable. My husband agrees with you - stupid is forever is his mantra. He includes willful ignorance in the stupid category. I think willful ignorance, the deliberate rejection of knowledge, is worse than stupidity.
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
"We are entitled to our own opinions. We're not entitled to our own facts"- Al Franken
"If death isn't sweet oblivion, I will be severely disappointed" - Ruth M.
Signature ? How ?
There is only so much one can do, but I think some people can be subtly influenced, though at times I do despair a little.
Probably best to get 'em while they're young though!
Even just setting the example of being a relatively civilised atheist achieves something.
Thanks for the good answers, everybody.
Jon Murray said that prayer is mental masturbation. Thanks for reminding me that this website is not.
http://www.michaeledits.com You can't eat grits with chopsticks
Lois McMaster Bujold wrote, "The will to be stupid is a very powerful force, but there are always alternatives."
Religion is a virus.
Fight the infection.
the best reason to be an activist is because they are never going to leave you alone. Even if they do decide to leave you alone in terms of religion, other people's stupidity will always fund a way of affecting you. I mean even a stupid person has the ability to vote, drive a car etc so you will always be in danger of experiencing negative results because of their actions.
in terms of religion, I try to remain an optimist and look at those european countries that are only like 15- 20% theist and hope that a similar change can be made in america. I believe in a darwinistic selection of ideas that tends towards truth. I figure that we will eventually be predominately atheist but how fast we get there depends on how many active atheists there are. Keep up the good fight!
100th Post Woooooo!!
I Am My God
The absence of evidence IS evidence of absence
cj said she is older than adam and eve,
If you are trying to get my goat, you are barking up the wrong tree. Take that, you whippersnapper.
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
"We are entitled to our own opinions. We're not entitled to our own facts"- Al Franken
"If death isn't sweet oblivion, I will be severely disappointed" - Ruth M.
Oh, http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/17846 is a free short story collection, The Chronicles of a Lost Soul, which is very much a product of my younger activist days. Maybe I should've died in my 30s like Jesus. Then I wouldn't spend my dotage starting stupid RRS threads.
http://www.michaeledits.com You can't eat grits with chopsticks
"Only two things are infinite - the universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe"
"I do this real moron thing, and it's called thinking. And apparently I'm not a very good American because I like to form my own opinions."
— George Carlin
Atheism is like theism in a way-when you first convert (or de-convert) you are filled with passion for the cause, trying to convince everyone that you come across. However, the same tired arguments do get boring. Although some people do change due to winning arguments from the opposition, most already have doubts
However I am still as proud as ever to be atheist, and if I have to defend that position at any point, it's good to be prepared
Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God"-From a 1763 misprinted edition of the bible
Argument from Sadism: Theist presents argument in a wall of text with no punctuation and wrong spelling. Atheist cannot read and is forced to concede.
I've just come back from a family visit and was pleased to find that none of my siblings share my parents' Christian beliefs. (I was previously unsure about a couple of them).
The count seems to be three atheists, an agnostic and a new age woo-er, though two of them send their kids to a Catholic school.
I'm the eldest, so I like to think that I've had some influence on this, though my mother is probably the primary cause.