Another xian blowhard?

nullusdeus
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Another xian blowhard?

As a result of http://www.rationalresponders.com/forum/sapient/news_activism/9998 , I attended the speech at Liberty U. by Rev. John Rankin on Sept. 21. LU’s meeting notice stated Rankin’s topic was: "Christianity and 'The New Atheism'": Answers for Today's Skeptics including Dawkins, Hitchens, Harris, The Rational Response Squad, and The Blasphemy Challenge.

 

On Rankin’s own web page, under his Calendar of Events, the topic was to be: “Love of Hard Questions Seminar #306: The Power of Genesis 1-2 to Answer the Toughest Questions of the ‘New Atheism’ and the Rational Response Squad.”

 

Obviously, this blowhard used controversial subject matter and authors to attract the attention of students. This ploy was to deceive the students into listening to a sermon. His speech touched on atheism, but not one mention was made of the above authors or RRS. Rankin explained that Genesis 1-2 answers ALL the questions put forth by atheists. After his sermon he had a Q&A period and slid around his answers with unrelated biblical rhetoric – not answering any questions. I think this efftard should be put to the test either by live online or personal debate. Or is this just another xian asswipe to be ignored – I think not, because he has directly attacked RRS.

Miracles don't exist. "Miracle" is a word given to a preposterous event that a theist considers dogmatically advantageous. Def. - Ecclesiastical sensationalism.


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What is "The New Atheism"?

What is "The New Atheism"? Did we have "The Old Atheism", and then add some new stuff?

What a prick.

Nobody I know was brainwashed into being an atheist.

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D-cubed
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I have a book titled "The

I have a book titled "The New Atheism" it was published in the 80s.  I wonder how many times Atheism has been new?


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Unless the RRS or Dawkins

Unless the RRS or Dawkins addresses them,i would ignore them. Christians are attention whores.


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Can someone please explain?

Can someone please explain the difference between Old Atheism and New Atheism? I mean did the term Atheism change? Did old Atheist's deny less god's than the New Atheist?

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Pathofreason wrote: Can

Pathofreason wrote:
Can someone please explain the difference between Old Atheism and New Atheism? I mean did the term Atheism change? Did old Atheist's deny less god's than the New Atheist?


It's very much a Christian publishing ploy to work the words "new" into the titles of books and audio materials. I would add that it is most likely that they're referring to new atheists, and not new atheism; but since when were christians clear with their language?


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"New Atheism"

Pathofreason wrote:
Can someone please explain the difference between Old Atheism and New Atheism? I mean did the term Atheism change? Did old Atheist's deny less god's than the New Atheist?


Using new in the title is a publishing ploy that Christian marketers use in all sorts of books and audio materials (though I guess lots of advertisers do it). The atheists themselves are new but the atheism is just as sound as ever. Of course there was no substantive effort to respond. Is there ever?


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"New Atheism"

oops


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  I think "new atheism"

 

I think "new atheism" might be referring to a claim I've only noticed after coming to RRS.

Xians apparently consider the growing success of atheism to be some kind of fad. There were similar responses to the blasphemy challenge where Xians accused participants of being kids who "just wanted to rebel".

As that arrogant asshole from the "Does believing in a supreme being make me a theist?" thread so arrogantly put it: "atheism is the new goth."

 

Of course it's absolutely bullshit, but I suspect that's what they're trying to pull.

Yet, if there were a sudden surge in the popularity of Christianity, there would be no such complaints. It's just Xians being crybabies about people waking up to Christianity's stupidness.

 

A place common to all will be maintained by none. A religion common to all is perhaps not much different.


Brian37
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geirj wrote: What is "The

geirj wrote:

What is "The New Atheism"? Did we have "The Old Atheism", and then add some new stuff?

What a prick.

They want to marginalize us like they always have by treating atheism as a fad or novelty. Unfortunatly for them atheists are on a forseable uprise as far as growing voice. Their tactic is futile because it never was a fad in the first place.

Skepticism has always been around. The only differance today is that atheists are no longer accepting their place at the back of the bus.

To any theist reading this. It is time to face us and deal with us. Your religion cannot and will not escape scrutiny. We will continue to challenge superstion and hocus pocus. We didnt start this conflict and never wanted it, but we are damned sure tired of outrageous claims being used to monopolize goverment and political discourse.

There is nowhere for you to hide anymore. Atheists dont want a facist state. But we do get tired of anyone of any religion making deity claims projecting their superstition on society and politics.

So give up on this idea of silencing us. Be brave and engauge us in debate. Challenge yourself to think for yourself without dogmatic rose colored glasses. We are not your enemy. We simply want YOU to not blindly buy what the preacher, rabbi or cleric sell you, "Just Because".

WE ARE NOT GOING ANYWHERE. And as Ellen Johnson rightly put it, "You can deal with us now, or deal with us later".

Atheists are on the rise and are here to stay. We are good people who are tired of the bullshit lies of immorality. We are tired of things like Scientology, Kaballah and creationism basterdizing science for a religious agenda.

So say what you will about us, that is your right under the Constitution. Our position stands on it's own merit rooted in reality and not some ancient myth written by unscientific people. We have no want or need to opress any theist. But we will raise our voices when theocrats make power grabs. We will raise our voice in objection to hocus pocus like 72 virgins, or disimbodied beings knocking up girls.

We are not going anywhere and we are not afriad. So insted of cowering behind the "poor me victim" status, be brave and engauge us. we dont bite and we wont eat your children. You may never change your position, but by engauging us, you may end up with a better understanding that we are good people with just as much variety in views on issues affecting the world.

But you are dead wrong if you think you can continue to make absurd hocus pocus claims that will not go unchallenged. You are dead wrong if you think will will allow this great diverse nation to be hijacked by the American Evangelical Taliban who if given the chance would turn back the clock and mirror the opression of the Middle East.

No, we dont want to harm you are create a facist state. But you cannot silence us anymore. We are here to stay. Grow up and deal with the fact that we exist insted hiding behind ingorant fear.

 

"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
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nullusdeus
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Brian37 wrote: Skepticism

Brian37 wrote:

Skepticism has always been around. The only differance today is that atheists are no longer accepting their place at the back of the bus.

Exactly!

In reference to "The New Atheism,"  I think that it's a zeigeist kind of thing. Richard Dawkins began his speech at the recent AAI conference; "We've heard a lot lately about the so-called 'New Atheism'. Is it wishful thinking to think that there is a new wave of reason sweeping (around the world)....?"  He goes on to say that  The God Delusion has sold over 1.25 million copies in the last year. And that many other of his colleagues have written and sold similar publications.... that recently there is a high degree of "consciuosness  raising".

Yes, and most definitely, RRS is a large part of this! 

Miracles don't exist. "Miracle" is a word given to a preposterous event that a theist considers dogmatically advantageous. Def. - Ecclesiastical sensationalism.


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geirj wrote: What is "The

geirj wrote:

What is "The New Atheism"? Did we have "The Old Atheism", and then add some new stuff?

New Atheism is Atheism that can sell books?

I think people who spout the New Atheism line are looking at it wrong. I don't think there's a rise in atheism, but a rise in anti-right-wing-Christianity. People are getting tired of evangelicals mixing religion and politics, and electing politicians like the Bush administration. One of the way to fight the Christian right is to fight their brand of Christianity (the brand the RRS spends most of its time on). Of course, there's purely political ways, like getting the other 70% (or so) of the population that aren't evangelicals to vote.