Are you never afraid of God's judgment in denying him? "Most certainly not. I also deny Zeus and Jupiter and Odin and Brahma, but this causes me no qualms. I observe that a very large portion of the human race does not believe in God and suffers no visible punishment in consequence. And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence." -- Bertrand Russell, "What Is an Agnostic?" aha! more brilliant insight! bravo bert!
There is something feeble and a little contemptible about a man who cannot face the perils of life without the help of comfortable myths. Almost inevitably some part of him is aware that they are myths and that he believes them only because they are comforting. But he dares not face this thought! Moreover, since he is aware, however dimly, that his opinions are not rational, he becomes furious when they are disputed. -- Bertrand Russell, Human Society in Ethics and Politics (1954), quoted from James A. Haught, "Breaking the Last Taboo Bert Rules!
This, however, is a passing nightmare; in time the earth will become again incapable of supporting life, and peace will return. -- Bertrand Russell (attributed: source unknown) So be it on Earth as it is in "Heaven". :-/
In his younger days Bertrand Russell tried his hand at "Mathematical Logic" [ref: Principia Mathematica]. His dreams got stopped once and for all by Kurt Gödel with his "Incompleteness Theorem". Kurt Gödel was a devout Christian. aha! more brilliant insight! bravo kurt! that's why bert had to switch to other topics and started to call himself an "agnostic". P.S. No need for boldface for this one. This theorem stands ever since without any doubt whatsoever.
Hey LongShot, you're shocked why people believe such nonsense as religion. But let me tell you this: you and other chit-chaters (axeman, stu, art aka optional) are doing a similar thing. These never-ending, point-less discussions about god doesn't make any sense. You don't want to discover the truth (since you already have your positions), you also won't convince each other. It's just a talk about, AROUND the subject, NOT an attempt to fix the core of the problem. We may call it entertainment. Enjoying the debate in the free time. Something that makes you feel good. Humans aren't rational, they're emotional. Sure, there're exceptions (mostly men in mid ages) Truth and logic are the least important things we seek and rely on. Seems controversial? Well, look around. Politicians. Who cares they lie, steal and manipulate? You'll always find people who will vote for them. Adolf Hitler, Kim Ir Sen, Fidel Castro - millions of people believe them. There are many examples of manipulated and brainwashed NATIONS. Religion gurus. Even bigger number of people who believe in simple, quick solutions and answers to all life problems, even if they're based on fairy tails. to be continued...
Marketing. Customers buy things and services they don't really need. It's a huge part of every developed economy. Many companies are selling dreams, visions, promises of a better life, not the products or services. People buy illusions. Narcotics, alcohol, cigarettes addictions. Same thing. Short-lived good feelings win. Possible deathly effects are ignored or have less impact. Man-woman relationships. Detailed comments are unnecessary. In women's minds emotions come first, logic is hard to find When a man is getting marry in his 20's in most cases he is manipulated by a local society and his woman. Yeah, that is exactly what every young guy dreams about - one woman for the rest of the life, bunch of kids and lovely mother-in-law ROTFL. It's human nature. Of course I'm not saying emotions are bad. Being 100% rational all the time is also wrong way of living. Most people just can't find balance between common sense and feelings.
Stu, GG, Turok, me... we have our position of Atheism because we are RATIONAL men. We could be swayed by evidence to the contrary but have yet to see anything of real value put forth by the credulous theists here or anywhere else for that matter. A plausible argument must be internally consistent and must have "weight" enuf to drive thru the wall of any and all significant criticisms/objections to land on other side. The pieces of the jigsaw puzzle must fit together or your picture position,beliefs) is all wrong and distorted.
Society finds balance. The most practical of which has proven to be via democratically structured Law based systems. Constantly questioning looking for rational answer to stupid suggestions, ridiculous propositions, defining who really are the liars and cheats, is not a waste of time. You are content to sit back and let it all wash over? If humans werenât rational... you wouldn't be able to send your post to this board. Longshot is right. Plausible argument internally consistent. That drives progress. You would what.. who cares?...leave it to everyone else to sort stuff out for you ?? Ya lazy bastid ! btw. Who wants to 100% rational ALL the time ? (I don't..man you have nooo idea !!) . Surely you notice Longy don't (gawd bless im)