Richard Dawkins & God Delusion

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JDMF's picture
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Oct 12 2006 09:59
Richard Dawkins & God Delusion

Has someone read his latest book God Delusion already?

I just found his web site http://richarddawkins.net/ and have spent about 10 hours listening audio interview clips etc - awesome way to get through a day at work smile

Such a welcome breath of fresh air in the public debate about religion.

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Oct 12 2006 10:03

i'm assuming it's just an updated run through of enlightenment rationalism? (bit sad we're still having this debate several centuries on, but there you go)

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Oct 12 2006 10:06

Who is he?

Steve
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Oct 12 2006 10:09
Joseph K. wrote:
i'm assuming it's just an updated run through of enlightenment rationalism? (bit sad we're still having this debate several centuries on, but there you go)

I was reading just this morning how groups like "Truth in Science" are trying to get creationism on the UK school curriculum.

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Oct 12 2006 10:11
rkn wrote:
Who is he?

created the universe in 7 days, rained plagues on egypt, cast out adam and eve from paradise, his son was fitted up by the roman state, you know the one

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Oct 12 2006 10:17

hey, it looks like the book is #1 on amazon and many other booksellers.

There is hope wink

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Oct 12 2006 10:22
Joseph K. wrote:
rkn wrote:
Who is he?

created the universe in 7 days, rained plagues on egypt, cast out adam and eve from paradise, his son was fitted up by the roman state, you know the one

fitted up by the jews actually! wink

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Oct 12 2006 10:22

i self-censored cry

wink

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Oct 12 2006 10:30

Ugh after watching that tv program of his a while back i can only hope he will continue to fade into obscurity and take his particularly annoying brand of liberal finger pointing with him.

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Oct 12 2006 10:35
cantdocartwheels wrote:
Ugh after watching that tv program of his a while back i can only hope he will continue to fade into obscurity and take his particularly annoying brand of liberal finger pointing with him.

and the strong alternatives are?

Dont mix your personal feelings into what is politically useful against rise of the role of political religion.

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Oct 12 2006 10:36

I just got the book, not had time to read it. I'm guessing it carries on from his 2 part TV series in January. I understand people criticisms that he comes across as peddling a form of bourgeois rationalism, but in the face of some of the arguments he comes up against you can't help but think "jesus the people are ignorant poisonous cunts".

I could interview him for research

Steve Jones also just did another talk this week, available on guardian.co.uk/science called "Why intelligent design is stupid", his other talk "why evolution is right and creationism is wrong" is also on the Royal Society's webpage in the video section.

I also just order the "Truth in Science" information pack as part of my research is how there is an active campaign to have this taught in science classrooms in the UK. Over here David Simpson of the DUP has approached the CCEA (NI exam board) to have this included in the science curriculum, citing a violation of human rights of children from evangelical families. Becasue of course, if you aren't teaching religion, you are against it roll eyes . Jesus religion is taught in every school in NI, just not as science!!!

If youse wanna see something funny stuff about the whole thing watch Penn + Teller's show "Bullshit!". Search yahoo video or google video for "penn teller creationism" and you'll find the whole episode, some fun right there.

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Oct 12 2006 10:40

all the intelligent design lot who reckon creationism is science are doing some pretty sinful stuff, iirc the bible says 'thou shalt not seek to test thy god' or something like that (always a handy clause for a load of irrationalist bs i thought)

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Oct 12 2006 10:51

But IDists don't actually do any positive science anyway so I suppose they're not really testing the "big man".
Anyway they'd argue that they never doubted god's existence anyway, and are merely "tackling" atheistic materialism.

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Oct 12 2006 10:51

i mean, agnosticism is bollocks, but it is technically correct, since the non-falsifiable thesis that, say god created the big bang, is inherently unknowable, outside of the world of libcom truths of course (Che/doplhin, i'm looking in your direction)

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Oct 12 2006 10:53
cantdocartwheels wrote:
continue to fade into obscurity

his books just went Amazon #1 and he's been on Newsnight recently. You make it sounds like he's already sliding into obscurity haha!

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Oct 12 2006 10:53
xConorx wrote:
But IDists don't actually do any positive science anyway so I suppose they're not really testing the "big man".
Anyway they'd argue that they never doubted god's existence anyway, and are merely "tackling" atheistic materialism.

true, but i'd be tempted to believe in hell if i knew they were heading there tongue

there was an excellent stat i read somewhere that 64% of americans believe in heaven and 45% believe in hell (or something like that). made me laugh

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Oct 12 2006 10:54

yeah agnosticism is such a pile of shit, i mean atleast most theists have the decency to accept it requires a leap of faith to believe.

The worst is agnostics who think they are more nuanced and sophiscated than atheists cos "you can't prove either way", yes cause that's how we navigate the world isn't it.

Cop: "We know you got the child in there! Open the door!"
Paedo: "There isn't a kid in there, it's a dragon and if I open that door it will roast your balls off"

Agnostic Cop: "Hmmm well I can't prove there isn't a dragon in there so probably best if I leave it."

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Oct 12 2006 10:54

grin

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Oct 12 2006 10:54
Joseph K. wrote:
i mean, agnosticism is bollocks, but it is technically correct, since the non-falsifiable thesis that, say god created the big bang, is inherently unknowable, outside of the world of libcom truths of course (Che/doplhin, i'm looking in your direction)

yeah but for all intents and purposes if you're a materialist you're an atheist
*see the celestial teapot argument*

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Oct 12 2006 10:55
revol68 wrote:
yeah agnosticism is such a pile of shit, i mean atleast most theists have the decency to accept it requires a leap of faith to believe.

The worst is agnostics who think they are more nuanced and sophiscated than atheists cos "you can't prove either way", yes cause that's how we navigate the world isn't it.

Cop: "We know you got the child in there! Open the door!"
Paedo: "There isn't a kid in there, it's a dragon and if I open that door it will roast your balls off"

Agnostic Cop: "Hmmm well I can't prove there isn't a dragon in there so probably best if I leave it."

hahahahahaha!
jesus we should turn that into a sketch for our comedy show (the one me and Gareth are doing)

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Oct 12 2006 10:58

Rod Liddle wrote some balls-awful criticism of this book in the Times mag the other day, saying that Dawkins started off by saying "you can't prove the non-existence of god", and then claims that since dawkins admits he's not being scientific the whole rest of the book is conjecture. Prick!

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Oct 12 2006 11:00

rod liddle is such a fucking retard, i hope Dawkins publically humiliates him for that. i'm convinced that being an ignorant prick is mandatory for newspaper columnists.

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Oct 12 2006 11:01
Jack wrote:
Joseph K. wrote:
grin

Was the post funny?

I can't read it, because there could be child porn ingrained in a kind of ASCII image in the post, or it could be amusing and relevant to the discussion. There's just no way of knowing either way. :(

it's a story about a nonce, an agnostic cop and a possible dragon.

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Oct 12 2006 11:03
Jack wrote:
Joseph K. wrote:
grin

Was the post funny?

I can't read it, because there could be child porn ingrained in a kind of ASCII image in the post, or it could be amusing and relevant to the discussion. There's just no way of knowing either way. :(

i've got images turned off so i was grin'ing at the words - i've no idea if revol's posting child porn but don't let that stop you venting your almost distubingly strong hate for paedos

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Oct 12 2006 11:14

no jack, i find your propensity to bring up your hate for paedos at every opportunity strangely reminiscent of the constant homophobia amongst the forwards in the school rugby team wink

Joseph Kay's picture
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Oct 12 2006 13:02

the sexuality of the joke is not relevant, bigot tongue

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Oct 12 2006 13:12
JDMF wrote:
cantdocartwheels wrote:
Ugh after watching that tv program of his a while back i can only hope he will continue to fade into obscurity and take his particularly annoying brand of liberal finger pointing with him.

and the strong alternatives are?

Dont mix your personal feelings into what is politically useful against rise of the role of political religion.

The rise of political religion you say? Now i'm assuming you don't mean in the UK, because if so the idea that political religion over here is going to to 'rise' is more than a little bit over the top. Richard D\wkins is just a liberal guardian reading (and usually writing) english academic pointing a finger at the US, and saying ''americans are stupid because they're so religious'' etc etc.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/alqaida/story/0,12469,919618,00.html
Take this article for example, its just pointless gobshite.

I mean what exactly seperates him from the average whining old labourite except for a bit of religious skepticism and a small helping of badly used genetics. His crackpot liberal club 'the brights' is pretty much just a less powerful and athiest version of the fabians.

Anyway i don't know about you but i regard the cabalistic mumbo jumbo of secular liberalism as being more of a political religion than any backward looking medeival church. Personally i think that in principle we should treat religious debates in exactly the same way we treat elections, ie ignore them. Treating secular liberals and leftists as the 'lesser of the two evils' is just encouraging the careerist bastards.

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Oct 12 2006 13:38
Jack wrote:
Joseph K. wrote:
the sexuality of the joke is not relevant, bigot tongue

You won't be laughing so loud when I disable your ability to post. cool

go on, if only to proove to carlosgonzalez that arbitrary state power is always corrupt, even when it's masquerading as social democratic wink

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Oct 12 2006 13:44

Actually city academies here being privately sponsored means that creationism is being taught in some british state schools now, as an equally valid theory to evolution.

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Oct 12 2006 13:45
John. wrote:
Actually city academies here being privately sponsored means that creationism is being taught in some british state schools now, as an equally valid theory to evolution.

how agnostic

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Oct 12 2006 13:51

wheels, i think you are over analysing. RD is providing awesome arguments and rhetoric tools for anyone to argue against religions - and not only that, but making atheism a viable popular position.

Of course you can poke holes to pretty much everyones chaaracter or political opinions, i just think RDs work is extremely handy to any atheist and makes it easier to be more vocal about atheist position.