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Interesting - I've never viewed atheism as a faith. I tend to think of it as common sense.
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I agree, Martin... "not humorous." However, I always have time for the interesting thought or viewpoint. So, kudos.
Viewing atheism as a religion is a common, popular, and seriously flawed argument. By definition, atheism is a lack of belief, which definitively separates it from every religion in human history.
The 'atheism as religion' argument is an attempt to shift the burden of proof onto non-believers. This argument has been repeatedly answered by scholars and philosophers (For example, Bertrand Russell's Celestial Teapot ), and rationally the burden of proof for the existence of the supernatural still lies with the theists who promote it.
I find it interesting that 'reasonable doubt' is the fully accepted standard which our system of justice routinely uses to deprive a man of life and liberty or return him to freedom, but a reasonable doubt applied to ancient and largely disproven dogma becomes heresy.
Jay wrote: "Viewing atheism as a religion is a common, popular, and seriously flawed argument. By definition, atheism is a lack of belief, which definitively separates it from every religion in human history."Jay, I defer to your knowledge of philosophy and religion. I was expressing my personal faith - a positive belief that there is no god. It is a belief that I acquired, step by step, through my life after having been educated in an Anglican school. I am not claiming that atheism is a religion, but I think that it can be viewed as a faith.
Melkie: without any intention of belittling your view that it is "common sense", I seem to remember some famous person defined common sense as the collection of prejudices that we had learned, mainly from parents, by the age of nine (or was it some similar age - I can't remember the exact quote). It is undoubtedly common sense to think that the earth is flat and that the sun revolves around it. Until someone manages to persuade us otherwise.
Anyone heard any good jokes lately?
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faith noun -strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.
Ah, Martin! Me thinks I smell a semantic argument just around the corner! :-)
Either that, or I've burnt supper again.
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Jay wrote: "Ah, Martin! Me thinks I smell a semantic argument just around the corner! :-)."Ah, and I was just thinking the same!
I accept that the definition you quote was accurate in the context of King James' Bible and the language of Church of England clergy in the early 17th century , but I propose that it has now become degraded or blurred in common usage.
My grumble about the formulaic phrase "... all faiths and none ..." is in today's context. If I say "I have faith in my leader" it does not today imply that I worship my leader. The meaning of the word has broadened beyond a religious one. To use the language of computer programming:
faith != religious belief
If the PC people would say "... people of all religion beliefs and none ..." I might not assume that the "none" category would exclude atheists.
Maybe I should shut up. It is usually accepted that discussion of politics and religion should be avoided in polite dinner party conversations.
Have I told you the one about the actress and the bishop?
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Well, that was my (obviously bad) attempt at a joke. I don't consider atheism a "faith," as faith requires belief in things that aren't there. We are born believing in nothing; then others tell us about Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and other imaginary beings. So, does choosing not to believe in things that don't exist qualify as a belief?
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Have I told you the one about the actress and the bishop?"
We at the Humour Club are not known for politeness, or our manners. (I'm constantly speaking with my mouth full. Jay seldom wears a shirt or shoes to the table.)
And, I'd like to hear about the actress and the bishop. Dish, please.
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Au contraire! People never complain about my shirt or shoes at the table, although I have been told several times to go put on pants.
Melki wrote: "I'd like to hear about the actress and the bishop. Dish, please."You will have to Google that. I have recently found that there really is a pub, in Birmingham, called The Actress and Bishop.
However, a true story: I was once taken out to dinner at a rather upmarket restaurant near to Cambridge (the one in East Anglia). The place was full, with a hubbub of conversation. There were two high-ranking clergymen, in purple and gaiters, dining at a nearby table. Then, during one of those coincidental quiet spells when everyone has stopped talking, I heard a fragment of their conversation:
"He married his housekeeper, didn't he?"
"No, he married the housekeeper's daughter..."
"How sensible of him."
"... but he went on sleeping with the housekeeper."
Then the general buzz, of people speaking with their mouths full, began again and I could hear no more.
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You will have to Google that. I have recently found that there really is a pub, in Birmingham, called The Actress an..."
An obviously tidy arrangement.
So is nihilism a religion? It is for me.
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Nihilism? ... Why the hell not, Brena? One can certainly argue that it's as sensible as any other religion.
I’ve occasionally wondered how some women learned to walk the way they do. It can often be downright hypnotizing. Today I’ve discovered the answer.Peer pressure. Women are so critical of other women.
I was outside and a woman walked by like she belonged to the Third Reich. It was practically a march. As she went past, every single woman that was near me made some sort of derogatory comment about it.
Apparently, friends don’t let friends walk incorrectly!
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Of course, you pretty much have to wear heels to get that special walk. So to heck with it--I'm not ruining my feet, legs, and back in order to hypnotize men. Deal with it. I'll walk like I'm going somewhere, and I'll get there.
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I might be able to answer if I had any idea what you're talking about.
Joel wrote: "As long as we're on the subject of women, what's the deal with all these young women and sibilant Ss lately?"They think it is sexy and cool. Every decision a young woman makes is based on that criteria. Their job is to keep the species going, and they take it very seriously. Nature's way?
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I might be able to answer if I had any idea what you're talking about."
That sort of whistling/hissing noise they make every time they say the letter "S".
Apparently it hasn't caught on in the south. I haven't heard it yet.
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Creative people have better-connected brains
Seemingly countless self-help books and seminars tell you to tap into the right side of your brain to stimulate creativity. But forget the "right-brain" myth -- a new study suggests it's how well the two brain hemispheres communicate that sets highly creative people apart.
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Nor in the West. I haven't heard it either.
That sort of lisp was fashionable in the British upper class of the early 20th Century, though.
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Hey, Melki, do we need an "Unbelievably Freakin' Stupid" thread?
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Jay wrote: "Does anyone, your local library excepted, own an encyclopedia these days?"I had a set for years. No longer need them now though, the wife knows everything. Boom Boom! The old ones are the best.
Paul wrote: "The old ones are the best. "encyclopedia or wife?
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Joel wrote: "I thought things were supposed to slow down as you got older. Instead, it's even busier than it was when I still had the energy for it."But you are a young guy! I hear guys in their 40s talking about the good old days when they were strong, brave, and ferocious. All relative. I quit eating sugar 3 months ago. I have tons of energy now. I don't know what is going on, but I am always in motion now. Crazy!
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For those of you who have small children or grandchildren, I'd like to share a novel bit of decoration that my parents used when I was very little.
Requirements:
• 1 dog or cat with a compliant personality
• 1 large bowl
• 1 sack of flour
• 1 vacuum cleaner
If you haven't guessed already, my parents would pour some flour into the bowl and call our dog to the front door, whereupon they would dip our dog's front paws in the flour and leave "Easter Bunny Tracks" entering our house. Later, the vacuum cleaner would remove all traces.
I can tell you that my siblings and I were always remarkably excited to find this "proof" of the Easter Bunny's visit. However, this actually proves several things:
1. Parents will do nearly anything for their children.
2. Our family pet had immense patience.
3. Three year-olds are remarkably gullible.
Any other Easter traditions out there?
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Easter was kind of an all day thing back then.
Easter involved the whole family, I.E. Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, etc. We would go to my grandfather’s house where there was plenty of land. Eight to Ten dozen eggs were involved. Every year as a tradition, my father would find an egg when no one was looking and eat it. The end egg count never came out right, and the mothers would insist that we spend hours trying to find that last egg.
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No problem... Kosher eggs!
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This is what's great about being an ex-Christian. You get to celebrate all the fun parts of the holidays - presents, chocolate - without ever having to sit through church.
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I wish you, one and all, a great holiday!
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This is what's great about being an ex-Christian. You get to celebrate all the fun parts of the holidays - presents, chocolate - without e..."
Pretty much how it works around our house.
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You jest, but ever since I first saw that, I've been soooo tempted to try it.
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I admit the method has appeal.
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The move highlights the uphill battle for Democrats and consumer advocates, who say that weaker rules could allow Internet service providers to abuse their position as gatekeepers between customers and the rest of the Internet. The current net neutrality rules make it illegal for Internet service providers to block or slow down websites for consumers.
Light up, folks! The internet and the American consumer have just been screwed.
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FCC votes to start rolling back landmark net neutrality rules
The move highlights the uphill battle for Democrats and consumer advocates, who say that weaker rules could allow Internet service ..."
That's not funny.
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I couldn't agree more. Although, I sometimes wonder if I'm the only one concerned about this.
This has been an ongoing battle. While the internet is already heavily monetized, it's been an open market. Everyone marketing has a shot. This FCC decision is the first step toward deep-pocket customers being able to buy priority status on the net -- a new source of income for service providers. I fear the upcoming hearings are merely for show, and this will be another win for the Washington lobbyists. In the current climate, consumer advocates are ignored.
Is anyone else concerned about this as web users? As book marketers?
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Books mentioned in this topic
The Book of Heroic Failures (other topics)Fox in Socks (other topics)
Green Eggs and Ham (other topics)
Fox in Socks (other topics)
Fox in Socks (other topics)
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Katherine May (other topics)Richard Osman (other topics)
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Surely, not the atheists. I maintain that atheism is a valid faith, in that it is a personal belief that the holder cannot prove true and nobody else can prove wrong - just like all other religious faiths. Almost by definition.
Maybe they mean the agnostics.
Sorry. Not humourous. Maybe I should move it to one of the secular/atheist groups...