It takes zero effort to sustan non-belief. We aren't burdened with any proof or false justification of beliefs. We don't suffer the disappointment of unaswered prayers. We don't have false hopes as we take things as they are and as they come. Being an Atheist is a fairly easy lifestyle. That is until we buck up against theists who are constantly trying to usurp power and inject their view of unsuportable things on us non-believers and everyone else who doesn't believe exactly as they do. While the theist enjoys the fruits of science, they reject the core of science and scientific thought. You still have people believing that the earth is approximately 6000 years + 6 days old because they counted the lineage of Adam until Jesus and from Jesus to today. What's more, they think there's come conspriracy in science to state that the Earth is several billion years old just to justify evolution. They don't even bother themselves to learn how that "fantastic" number was arrived at. And the ones that have a scant knowledge say that scientists used carbon dating and carbon dating is know to be error prone. Yep these people exists today and are completely convinced of themselves. How can you expect rational people to respect what otherwise should be rational people when those people embrace irrational ideas? Worse yet, try to spread their irrational idealisms on everyone and then proceed to punish those that disagree? Yeah, we atheists are a minority. A minority that has to on occasion defend itself against a hoard of irrational zealots and people who believe so strongly in things that are really no better than a fairy tale, that they'd happily have us sent back to the stone age. I see atheists say that all the time. Well, not the true part because that doesn't make any sense. The religious haven't even proved to themselves that what they believe is true. But we're happy to live and let live. But problem is, the religious aren't content to live and let live. They at all turns attempt to impose their beliefs and belief system on everyone. All the while making their so called omnipotent god out to be a very weak and timid little child. For instance - gay rights. What do you care if gays want to marry? How does that affect you personally or your position in the afterlife? And by you I mean the religious in general as I don't know what your specific view is one it? Abortion? Don't like it, don't do it. Why is that such a hassle for the religious? And so on. Sure, you'll say we atheists tried to remove prayer in schools and god off money. Yes we did. Because we're looking out for the Jewish kid in a mostly Christian neigborhood. Or the Islamic kid in that same neighborhood. Or the Buddist kid. Even the atheist kid. Why should they have to be subjected to a religious view which is not their own? We supposedly live in a pluralist society. Why not act like it? Christians don't "own" America. They're just the majority. But the law of the land is to seperate religion and state. Doesn't your religion teach that one should uphold and respect the law? How would Christians like it if mostly Islamic symbols and prayers were in public schools? They'd be up in arms over it. How about doing unto others as you would have done unto you?
Yes. And it has been done. Lack of historical and archeological proof. Internal contradictions. But apologist come out and smooth things over for the faithful.
You are being intentionally obtuse. I made my point. You may now go and obfuscate into oblivion, because it's what you do and who you are.
The difference between fairies and God is that we can discount the likelihood of fairies on the basis of our having available more common sense explanations for their purported works.. but there are no explanations for the existence of the Universe that make any more sense than the God explanation. I can only think of three possible scenarios: The Universe has always been; the Universe appeared from nothing or from a series of somethings the first of which appeared from nothing; the Universe was supernaturally generated. All of these scenarios are inexplicable by way of science. This is why I say that because all the explanations for the existence of the Universe defy both common sense and science it's pointless to critique any of them on the grounds that it's unscientific or unreasonable. However, you can find reasons aplenty in nature and in yourself to adopt either style of explanation.
This doesn't qualify as scientific proof. I believe Yip is a scientist and probably wants more than common sense or bare logic.
Well, I disagree. If I say "don't think about the elephant in the room" what is your first thought? It does in reality take effort to sustain non belief in the concept of God once the concept of God has been understood, especially when it is not known if that concept is actually true or false. Atheists are surrounded by theists who proudly discuss and promote their majority belief systems, which runs counter to their own belief system. It does take effort, a continual practice of sustaining atheism. To deny the reality of your own practice may be your choice, but I don't see it as my job to convert you to the reality of how belief systems actually work, and that they take effort to maintain themselves once there is a decision to hold a belief that runs counter to the majority position. "How would Christians like it if mostly Islamic symbols and prayers were in public schools? They'd be up in arms over it." Real Christians would be too focused on their own belief systems to be concerned about the beliefs of others as long as they were free to practice their own beliefs. There are real Christians who practice their own Christian beliefs while living in Muslim countries. The "In Name Only Christians" that dominate the landscape here in America would of course feel threatened by such actions that promoted Islamic symbols and prayers. "While the theist enjoys the fruits of science, they reject the core of science and scientific thought." I am a theist, and I don't reject the core of science or scientific thought. It has its place in a limited understanding of the physical existence we all share and improving the material benefits in life. However many theists believe science is just the process of knowing about the creation of God which on its own will never bring any real contentment in life so they see no conflict in the actual science and what it does. Those who take the pure science and use it to promote their atheistic beliefs are on their own, and as long as they don't prohibit others from practicing their own theistic beliefs or try to keep theists from their beliefs there is really no problem that I can see. So someone believes in blind random chance Godless evolution, that's okay with me as long as they don't try to force their belief system down my throat or deny children the right of choice in developing their own belief systems freely.
Perhaps a better thing for you to do would be to make another grandiose public pronouncement of a New Year's resolution, then break it for all to see...