The Definitional Thread

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  1. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Munchies-YumYum)
    Did I really concede or DO you BELIEVE that I did?
    If you didn't concede then what was the point of that 'exactly' that you post?

    Anyway, there are a number of issues with your original post where you claimed that atheism is also a religion:

    1 - As I said, atheism isn't the belief that there is no god. It is a lack of belief in the existence of a god. There is a subtle but important distinction there.

    2 - Even if atheism was the belief that there is no god, it still wouldn't be a religion. It would be a belief, but not a religion. Surely, there is more to a religion than mere belief or disbelief in the existence of a god, no? You know, the rituals, scriptures and et cetera.
  2. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    said a statement that is incorrect.
    No, I didn't. Just because you don't know the definition of atheism doesn't mean I am wrong.

    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    I have hardly heard Atheists except that they boldly claim that there isn't a God.
    care to give me an example of a prominent atheist who unequivocally states that there is no god?

    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    Quoting me Wikipedia is like me trying to claim the Israeli Defense force is the moral when the reality is far from the truth.
    What a silly comparison.

    And lol at milking any opportunity to bash Israel.
    Last edited by Taper; 14-01-2011 at 22:13.
  3. Munchies-YumYum's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    If you didn't concede then what was the point of that 'exactly' that you post?

    Anyway, there are a number of issues with your original post where you claimed that atheism is also a religion:

    1 - As I said, atheism isn't the belief that there is no god. It is a lack of belief in the existence of a god. There is a subtle but important distinction there.

    2 - Even if atheism was the belief that there is no god, it still wouldn't be a religion. It would be a belief, but not a religion. Surely, there is more to a religion than mere belief or disbelief in the existence of a god, no? You know, the rituals, scriptures and et cetera.
    Because you said as quoted "atheism is not the belief that there isn't a god", you used IS NOT and IS NOT which makes it IS and IS. What gives you the right what "IS NOT" and what "IS"? It's simply an opinion and I'm sorry to say you have exceeded the limit of yours. I'd rather have faith that there is a God, santa clause, pinkyminky whatever you come up. Yes, I do believe in them all, because I look at life as something positive rather than negative.
    Last edited by Munchies-YumYum; 14-01-2011 at 22:17.
  4. noisy06's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    No, I didn't. Just because you don't know the definition of atheism doesn't mean I am wrong.
    Oh stfu. Don't give me rubbish, you claimed that Atheists don't say something when they clearly do, for you to be obstinate about your position that is nothing but falsehood reeks of hurt pride and arrogance more than anything. Don;t come on this website if you can't withstand simple refutations. Stupid resistance.
  5. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Munchies-YumYum)
    I do believe in them all, because I look at life as something positive rather than negative.
    Lol. The two have nothing to do with each other. One doesn't have to believe in santa claus, gods, unicorns and et cetera to be positive.
    Last edited by Taper; 14-01-2011 at 22:24.
  6. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    Oh stfu. Don't give me rubbish, you claimed that Atheists don't say something when they clearly do, for you to be obstinate about your position that is nothing but falsehood reeks of hurt pride and arrogance more than anything. Don;t come on this website if you can't withstand simple refutations. Stupid resistance.
    I asked you to provide me with examples of prominent atheists who unequivocally believe that there is no god.

    You have FAILED to provide that evidence

    You lost.
  7. noisy06's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    I asked you to provide me with examples of prominent atheists who unequivocally believe that there is no god.

    You have FAILED to provide that evidence

    You lost.
    Do I look like I give a **** about prominent Atheists, I'm talking about Atheists in general, the ones you see on the street, or round the corner shop or on TSR you intellectually-deficient nincompoop. They are the ones screaming there is no god so you can take your prominent Atheists in stick them up your crack. :facepalm2:
  8. Munchies-YumYum's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Lol. The two have nothing to do with each other. One doesn't have to believe in santa claus, gods, unicorns and et cetera to be positive.
    The definition of positive is "something impossible to deny or disprove".
    The definition of negative is "expressing of a refusal or denial".
  9. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    Do I look like I give a **** about prominent Atheists, I'm talking about Atheists in general, the ones you see on the street, or round the corner shop or on TSR you intellectually-deficient nincompoop. They are the ones screaming there is no god so you can take your prominent Atheists in stick them up your crack. :facepalm2:
    If you can't provide one example of a prominent atheist who unequivocally believes that there is no god then you ought to keep your mouth shut. You have no evidence in support of your claim.

    I'd have no difficulty providing prominent examples of Muslims (aka Nazis) who, for example, believe that people should be murdered for simply exercising their freedom of religion.
  10. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Munchies-YumYum)
    The definition of positive is "something impossible to deny or disprove".
    The definition of negative is "expressing of a refusal or denial".
    And?
  11. noisy06's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    You have no evidence in support of your claim.
    What is my claim? What the **** is my claim? My claim is that Atheists say there is no God, and they do. If you say they don't, you need a medical. You have been refuted, just get over it, give one of the prominent atheists you speak of a blowjob or something if you like them so much.
  12. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    What is my claim? What the **** is my claim? My claim is that Atheists say there is no God, and they do. If you say they don't, you need a medical. You have been refuted, just get over it, give one of the prominent atheists you speak of a blowjob or something if you like them so much.
    Well, I am sorry to say it but you're not very intelligent if you don't understand what I am saying. The point is that atheists do not rely on faith/belief to the same extent as theists do because, as I said, atheism is a lack of belief in the existence of a god.
    I mean, I have never come across a single atheist who does not believe in the existence of a god with the same certainly as the average religious person.

    There was actually a very funny episode of The Big Questions on BBC where they had something Mehdi from the New Statesmen magazine on as one of the guests. He is a Muslim - not sure if you know of him. He called Richard Dawkins a 'fundamentalist'. Then the host told Mehdi something like, 'well, Dawkins ranks himself as a number 6 on a scale from 1 to 7 with 1 being absolute certainty in the existence of a god and 7 being absolute certainty that there is no god. So, where do you rank yourself in that scale?' Mehdi responded by saying 1 and the whole audience laughed at him.

    This is just one anecdotal example of course but it demonstrates my point.

    Similarly, the British Humanist Association organised the 'There's probably no god' campaign on London's buses. Now, you tell me how many religious people there are out there who would say, 'there probably is a god' HAHA. You would be able to count the number of religious people who say that with the fingers on one hand.

    If you're interested this video explains very well what I mean by a lack of belief: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNDZb0KtJDk
    Last edited by Taper; 14-01-2011 at 22:46.
  13. noisy06's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Well, I am sorry to say it but you're not very intelligent if you don't understand what I am saying.
    Stop setting up strawmen. You first claimed that Atheists do not say "there is no god". They clearly do, this is what I claimed and I did not go further than this. You in the hopeless situation you are in, are still denying the fact that atheists say there is no god. What you need to do is a) stfu b)Talk to atheists c) Increase your intellect because it's hopeless at the moment. Do you understand the language with which I am speaking because it seems you need a translator.
  14. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by slawaccess23)
    They clearly do
    Yet, however, you haven't been able to provide a shred of evidence.
  15. SsEe's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Similarly, the British Humanist Association organised the 'There's probably no god' campaign on London's buses. Now, you tell me how many religious people there are out there who would say, 'there probably is a god' HAHA. You would be able to count the number of religious people who say that with the fingers on one hand.
    The bus campaign in response to the atheists' was: "There definitely is a god so join the christian party and enjoy your life".

    If atheists are those who say there definitely isn't a god then the "atheist bus campaign" wasn't by atheists and Richard Dawkins isn't an atheist.
  16. zxh800's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Well, I am sorry to say it but you're not very intelligent if you don't understand what I am saying. The point is that atheists do not rely on faith/belief to the same extent as theists do because, as I said, atheism is a lack of belief in the existence of a god.
    I mean, I have never come across a single atheist who does not believe in the existence of a god with the same certainly as the average religious person.
    Unfortunately, you missed the recent poll of TSR where dozens of people said they're 99.9% sure God does not exist.

    Anyway, different people mean different things when using the word atheist. If it's a lack of belief in God, then whether a person is atheist or agnostic depends on what they say next. If they claim there is no God then they'd be atheist? and if they claim not to know, surely they'd be classed as an agnostic? Correct me if i'm wrong.
  17. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by SsEe)
    The bus campaign in response to the atheists' was: "There definitely is a god so join the christian party and enjoy your life".

    If atheists are those who say there definitely isn't a god then the "atheist bus campaign" wasn't by atheists and Richard Dawkins isn't an atheist.
    Exactly.
  18. noisy06's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Yet, however, you haven't been able to provide a shred of evidence.
    Oh, I must have been mistaken then, perhaps i mishear Atheists when I hear the words "there is no god", perhaps I'm not seeing well when I read them on people's sigs. Get a brain cell dufus, I'm not here to name average joes that you probably don't even know, Atheists I know have all said there is no god, are you telling me they are not atheists? Keep your mouth shut. The masses don't follow your theoretical crap.
  19. Munchies-YumYum's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by Taper)
    Yet, however, you haven't been able to provide a shred of evidence.
    I think what slaw is trying to say is: They do. Why else would richard dawkins make a huge compaign with the slogan "There's Probably No God!". I mean why bother if they think there is PROBABLY no God.

    Would you make a campaign with the slogan There's Probably No Santa Clause? And why is dawkins a 6 instead of a 4 or 5? I think picking 6 makes him even more ignorant and a bigot than he already is and that the audience was laughing when the muslim guy said 1 is really not rocket science to me, there are no real religious people who would go to a show to listen to "richard I know everything dawkins and you're all ignorant".
  20. Taper's Avatar
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    Re: Is Atheism becoming evangelical?
    (Original post by zxh800)
    they claim there is no God then they'd be atheist? and if they claim not to know, surely they'd be classed as an agnostic? Correct me if i'm wrong.
    That is what a lot of people think but that's not actually true (as far as my understanding goes).

    Agnosticism is the belief that we cannot know whether something (e.g. whether there is a creator) is true or not. So, a person can, for example, be an agnostic theist. This person would believe that there is no way to prove one way or the other where god exists but he or she personally has faith in the existence of a god(s). So, agnosticism isn't 'we don't know'. It's 'we can't know'.

    Atheism, on the other hand, is a lack of belief in the existence of a god.
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