March 2008 Screwball Nominations

[jpholding]

Starting now in case I don't get online tomorrow. Remember the rules: Rant in the other thread, not here, or I'll feed you to Cocoa.

[Leonhard]

http://www.afterfaith.com/

Question : For most of my life I’ve hidden that I’m atheist from my family and friends. The thing is: I feel embarrassed to be atheist. Is that normal?

Harmless question from an insecure atheist, even understandable. However its the answers that's quirky and paranoid in some places.

Answer : Yes it is normal. When you live in an area thats heavily populated by theists, it’s understandable that one would feel some social and psychological pressures from that community. This can lead to feelings of inadequacy, loneliness, isolation, and even embarrassment when one is feeling judged or ridiculed.
Which is exactly how they want you to feel.
You see, one of the things about theism is that it creates an attitude of fear and mistrust. It teaches you that those that don’t believe the way you do should be shunned or proselytized. The embarrassment you are feeling is probably due to worrying about how others will perceive you, and consequently, whether or not they will accept you. Religion uses this to their advantage as a way of discouraging people from leaving the flock. It’s a method of control.

Emphasis added...

Over 9 years ago I co-created one of the fastest growing and tightly knit atheist communities on the internet, the Atheist Network . I have also been called the inspiration behind Live with the Infidelguy and The Rational Response Squad.

......

http://atheistnetwork.magnify.net/watch/popular

Apparently debate via youtube is growing more popular...

[jpholding]

Matthew Green does it again....mostly pedantic reading errors that earn no Gold, but this is good:

I am going to see what I can do in ten blog articles and then I am thinking of moving onto more positive, fulfilling, and satisfying pursuits in life. I have decided that it’s best to conclude this blog with an in depth response to Mr. Holding’s lengthy essay “The Impossible Faith”. My next article, which will be up by Sunday, will make a prediction that will be about the death of Tekton Ministries!

ALRIGHT! More amusement from Arkham Asylum!

[Truth be Told]

Jake from Atheist Network:

http://atheistnetwork.magnify.net/item/7CP1XH0NJ4L779YK

I agree with him on certain parts of this, but what annoys me is that these yucks can't come up with something else besides stating that every single Christian response deals with "free will."

Edit: Nevermind, Jake basically can't help repeating himself like all other fundy atheists:

http://atheistnetwork.magnify.net/item/MXXF0YWZJ5WCGF11

[Truth be Told]

GRRAAAAAAH! MORE FUNDY ATHEISM!

http://atheistnetwork.magnify.net/item/HFDRNFM4V9VRRT7S

http://atheistnetwork.magnify.net/item/C6GXXLFBZGL6VXK8

These guys couldn't provide "faith-shattering" arguments to save their lives.

[historic salve]

John Powell wanted to have a link to my quote from the Almagest in the Argument from Scale thread. I told him I had no such link. I go to the library. I got this in reply:

POWELL:
If it's not online then I guess it's not considered that important.

in this post:

http://www.theologyweb.com/campus/sh...&postcount=185

If he bothered to do a Google search, he could have found a copy of the Almagest himself... and asked which section you found that in.

[One Bad Pig]

Just got this as a forwarded email:

Science vs. God

"Let me explain the problem science has with Jesus Christ." The
atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks
one of his new students to stand.

"You're a Christian, aren't you, son?"

"Yes sir," the student says.

"So you believe in God?"

"Absolutely."

"Is God good?"

"Sure! God's good."

"Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?"

"Yes."

"Are you good or evil?"

"The Bible says I'm evil."

The professor grins knowingly. "Aha! The Bible!" He considers for a
moment.

"Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you
can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?"

"Yes sir, I would."

"So you're good!"





"I wouldn't say that."

"But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you
could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't."

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. "He doesn't,
does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he
prayed to Jesus to heal him How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you
answer that one?"

The student remains silent.

"No, you can't, can you?" the professor says. He takes a sip of water
from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax.

"Let's start again, young fella Is God good?"

"Uh...yes," the student says.

"Is Satan good?"

The student doesn't hesitate on this one. "No."

"Then where does Satan come from?"

The student : "From God..."

"That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil
in this world?"

"Yes, sir."

"Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?"

"Yes."

"So who created evil?" The professor continued, "If God created
everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to
the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil."

Without allowing the student to answer, the professor continues: "Is
there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible
things, do they exist in this world?"

The student: "Yes."

"So who created them?"

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his
question. "Who created them?" There is still no answer. Suddenly the
lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is
mesmerized.

"Tell me," he continues onto another student. "Do you believe in Jesus
Christ, son?"

The student's voice is confident: "Yes, professor, I do."

The old man stops pacing. "Science says you have five senses you use
to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen
Jesus?"

"No sir. I've never seen Him"

"Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?"

"No, sir, I have not."

"Have you ever actually felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt
your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ,
or God for that matter?"

"No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't."

"Yet you still believe in him?"

"Yes."

"According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol,
science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?"

"Nothing," the student replies. "I only have my faith."

"Yes, faith," the professor repeats. "And that is the problem science
has with God. There is no evidence, only faith."

The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of
his own. "Professor, is there such thing as heat?"

"Yes," the professor replies. "There's heat."

"And is there such a thing as cold?"

"Yes, son, there's cold too."

"No sir, there isn't."

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The
room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain.

"You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat,
unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't
have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below zero,
which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no
such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the
lowest -458 degrees. Every body or object is susceptible to study when
it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter
have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence
of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the
absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in
thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of
heat, sir, just the absence of it."

Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom,
sounding like a hammer.

"What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?"

"Yes," the professor replies without hesitation. "What is night if it
isn't darkness?"

"You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence
of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light,
flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing
and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to
define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be
able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?"

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This
will be a good semester. "So what point are you making, young man?"

"Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to
start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed."

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. "Flawed? Can
you explain how?"

"You are working on the premise of duality," the student explains.
"You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a
bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite,
something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.
It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully
understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be
ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing.
Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it."

"Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved
from a monkey?"

"If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man,
yes, of course I do"

"Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?"

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes
where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

"Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and
cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavour, are you
not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a
preacher?"

The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion
has subsided.

"To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student,
let me give you an example of what I mean."

The student looks around the room. "Is there anyone in the class who
has ever seen the professor's brain?" The class breaks out into
laughter.

"Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt
the profe ssor's brain, touched or smelled the professor's brain? No
one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of
empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have
no brain, with all due respect, sir. So if science says you have no
brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?"

Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his
face unreadable.

Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. "I guess
you'll have to take them on faith."

"Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with
life," the student continues. "Now, sir, is there such a thing as
evil?"

Now uncertain, the professor responds, "Of course, there is. We see it
everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is
in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These
manifestations are nothing else but evil."

To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it
does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is
just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe
the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of
what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart.
It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness
that comes when there is no light."

The professor sat down.

Pass this on if you have faith and love GOD.

[JimboJSR]

Meh, I thought OBP's email actually raised a coupla clever points.

Anyhoo, Technically this is from February, and it's not a screwball as such, but it's typical of LGM's split-personality disorder when it comes to being "nice guy" one minute and complete doucebag the next:

Oh my...another one of god's spokesmodels.

Did your gpd personally appear to you as a burning bush and tell you he cared about Matt's particular religious beliefs?

Or maybe he came to you in a dream last night and told you?

Or maybe his magical spirit is taking control of your brain and telling you this right now?

Check the mirror...are you a god?....No...didn't think so...so try to speak only for yourself.

[A Deeper Look]

I can't tell you how many times I've seen those types of responses

[Kabane52]

This message I got:
I understand the importance of Christian apologetics because of 1 Peter 3:15...I used to be a Christian myself. I'm 23 now and just a 4 months ago I realized that I'm an atheist. I started apologetics since I was 15 years old...and had even seriously considered studying apologetics at a Christian college.

No, I didn't jump in the Jesus-mythicist bandwagon or swallow the idea of Jesus being borrowed from pagan religions...I'm just not convinced of the ressurection. I've studied the subject longer than you have. I'm not going to waste my time to debate...also because I don't think you should waste your time with the mental gymnastics and masturbation of apologetics.

Why can't the only ideology be treating others with respect? Why fret about worldviews when we could just try our best in this world? Why are you trying so hard to see something behind the universe?
They aren't convincing...they seem more likely to just confirm beliefs.

Why can't you just stop focusing on immaterial existences and try your best on this planet with the life that you have? Bring the myth of Heaven and try your best to make it a reality down here?

Did your desire to still believe in the Christian story make you weigh the evidence offered in apologetics differently?

When I was a Christian...One of my favorite apologists was William Lane Craig. He "accepted Jesus in his heart" before he even studied apologetics. What do you think about that?

go to the sites below, read some articles, e-mail some of ex-ministers, ex-apologists, etc. at the site below and give yourself a challenge. Try your best to follow 1 Peter 3:15...I honestly did and I could no longer follow it...eventually I could no longer believe

http://debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com/
http://www.ex-christian.net

[Chaotic Void]

Starting now in case I don't get online tomorrow. Remember the rules: Rant in the other thread, not here, or I'll feed you to Cocoa.

Geez, JP... Are you sure you want to feed your dog Junk Food?

[Truth be Told]

This message I got:http://debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com/

DEAR GOD, not that load of human fecal matter!

[historic salve]

LGM makes more baby doodoo. When will he leave his crib and blankie behind?

“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11:23-24)

Hmmm...I guess Jesus was wrong on that one.

I'm sure some brilliant apologist will claim Jesus was only kidding.

http://www.theologyweb.com/campus/sh...109494&page=14

[Darth Executor]

I nominate taoist for this entire post. Especially the equivocation between an assassination and undercover work. :dumb:

http://www.theologyweb.com/campus/sh...7&postcount=39

So if all it took was a few well-placed high-power rifle shots to end this wholesale massacre, I suppose you'd be okay with that, too.



Godwin in six posts!



Greetings, Jack,

Let me first say I know we've had some sharp disagreements in the past, and I apologize for the part I've played in them. Too often my responses have been mere epithets when a thoughtful explanation was needed.

There is only one "racist" in the recorded phone calls. It is the caller, who is clearly a pro-life advocate trolling for a tape to put up on youtube. This much is clear. The audience listening to this tape is asked to overlook this racism in order to see only the tolerance of this racism, despite the fact the racism is brought into the conversation by the pro-life advocate, and in no way instigated by the secretary handling the call.

This is the hypocrisy I see:

The receptionist is branded a racist but the caller is not.
The receptionist's attitude is used to paint her entire organization, but the caller's is not.
The contrary motivation of the caller is granted, but that of the receptionist is not.

I have sympathy for the vast majority of the work done by planned parenthood which consists of providing sexual health examinations and birth control, often at a discount for students and the financially disadvantaged. To give these discounts requires donations. When one is placed in the position of asking for money, it's sometimes necessary to hold your nose at the ethics of the man holding the wallet. This is as true for an organization asking for donations as it is for the common laborer working for a robber baron.

I would prefer that every pregnancy was taken to term with the caveats and suppositions contained in my old thread, Two out of three ain't good. But I am extremely wary of any path to righteousness that demands we overlook the ideals trampled underfoot in the process.

As ever, Jesse

[MrManNo1]

LGM makes more baby doodoo. When will he leave his crib and blankie behind?

http://www.theologyweb.com/campus/sh...109494&page=14

If LGM ever responded to one of my points, I can assure you that it would be systematically ignored.

Not because I'm afraid of his arguments or anything, but because all he does is complain about why we shouldn't believe in the God of some Bronze Age goat-herders.