1. Survey finds most Americans believe Jesus born of virgin

Comment #102537 by Diplo on December 23, 2007 at 7:00 am

I don't understand Christians. On one hand they preach abstinence as the best form of birth control and on the other they admit that virgins can have babies. What a confusing lot they are!

2. Scientists should unite against threat from religion

Comment #65024 by Diplo on August 22, 2007 at 4:54 pm

We can choose to repress our instincts. I'm still a virgin. Sure, it hasn't been easy, but I've chosen to wait until I am married. And trust me, if a 20 year old male can do it, anyone can do it ;-).

You don't live in Africa. If you can't understand why that makes a difference look at the demographics, life expectancy and social basis of life in many African villages.

3. God Bless Me, It's a Best-Seller!

Comment #64322 by Diplo on August 19, 2007 at 2:59 pm

Riley said:

Worse still in this case, a clear counter argument exists in the minds of every "religious type", most notably due to a recent study which indicates that regular church goers are more charitable than non-church goers. Some "redneck" (to use Hitchens terminology) is going to cite that study and think they have won a great victory, and they'll be right.

How does this study you refer to in anyway invalidate the point Hitchens is making? Here's what Hitchens states:

"name an ethical statement or action, made or performed by a person of faith, that could not have been made or performed by a non-believer".

Are you saying that a non-believer is incapable of giving to charity? Because that would be the only way to invalidate Hitchen's argument. Whether religious people give more or less is irrelevant what Hitchens is saying - the point is that it's not impossible for atheists to give to charity. Can atheists donate money to charity? Yes, clearly they can - it's not unique to religious folk. His argument stands.

So, I'm afraid, your logic is very much flawed, Riley.

4. God Bless Me, It's a Best-Seller!

Comment #64190 by Diplo on August 18, 2007 at 2:32 pm

I love the "divine intervention" of Hitchens ending up next to the Archbishop of Canterbury at a restaurant! Then again, most Anglicans nowdays seem to be atheists who cling on to tradition by the skin of a metaphor.

5. When did the police start collaring television?

Comment #62947 by Diplo on August 12, 2007 at 12:47 pm

For those that want to see for themselves you can view the "Dispatches" episode on YouTube at:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=peFQWuk4nuo

Oh, those poor, misunderstood preachers of hate! When they say, "We love the people of Islam and we hate the people of kuffaar. We hate the kuffaar!" it was all just a slip of the tongue and they really meant, "We love fluffy bunnies and nice pretty flowers and let's all get along"....

6. Curriculum for Baptist School

Comment #62339 by Diplo on August 9, 2007 at 10:30 am

I bet their carpentry lessons are boring, too?

"What are we making today miss? Oh, not crosses again!!!"...

7. Atheist 'Metaphysics' and Religious Equivocation

Comment #62159 by Diplo on August 8, 2007 at 12:22 pm

Comment 62040 by Stag:

There are different types of "knowledge", and the empirical method is not amenable to all of them. For example; scientific / engineering knowledge may enable you to construct a musical instrument, but they won't tell you much about composing a symphony.

You analogy is misleading because obviously engineering knowledge won't help you compose a symphony, any more than knowledge of baking will help you construct a kite.

However, I disagree with your wider point - that there are "different types of 'knowledge'". People can be knowledgeable about different subjects, and it's true that knowledge of one subject may not cast much light on a completely different subject. However, I'd contend that there is really only one actually "type" of knowledge - it's just that some knowledge is more complex, abstract and harder to quantify than others.

In other words, the knowledge to be able to construct a musical instrument and to compose a melody on that instrument do stem from the same place. All that is different is that we can break down the engineering knowledge into easily followed steps far more easily than we can the knowledge required to compose music.

I'm a musician myself, and it's tempting to say that we "pluck" melodies out of the ether, but that isn't the case. Music is fundamentally a complex form of maths, where different ratios of wavelengths when combined produce certain types of harmonic. Some people have an intuitive understanding of maths, some don't, and the same is true of music. You don't need to be conscious of this, in the same way you are not conscious of the complex calculations your brain is doing when you catch a cricket ball.

However, I'm fully confident that, in theory at least, it would be perfectly possible to use scientific methods to understand why certain combinations of sound waves are more pleasing to the ear than others and to then use this information to compose symphonies. Algorithmic music, generated by computers, is already quite sophisticated. The problem isn't that the knowledge is "special" or "mystical" but, rather, that it's extremely complex and hard to quantify and record.

8. Atheist 'Metaphysics' and Religious Equivocation

Comment #62033 by Diplo on August 8, 2007 at 1:31 am

Very good article. It still amazes me how theists can consistently accuse Dawkins et al. of being "arrogant" whilst, at the same time, contending they are a conduit to the creator of the Universe and have a deep understanding of some hidden reality that "scientists" cannot comprehend.

9. After Blair, Labour MPs opt for 'God Delusion'

Comment #61678 by Diplo on August 6, 2007 at 10:12 am

It's not just the fact that some MPs are reading The God Delusion that is important. Equally heartening is the fact that they are admitting they are reading it. There would have been a time when politicians would have been too scared to even associate themselves with even the slightest whiff of atheism (which is still the case in the USA today). Let's hope they learn something!

10. Islamic creationist group launches glitzy, global blitz

Comment #61062 by Diplo on August 3, 2007 at 1:53 pm

Well, you have to admire their sheer audacity at blaming Darwinism for terrorism. That takes some nerve! Or should that be Shia audacity? ;)

It would be interesting to lock up some Christian fundies and Islamic fundies in a room and see how the debate went (after throwing away the key, of course...!)

11. At Fermilab, the Race Is on for the 'God Particle'

Comment #58373 by Diplo on July 24, 2007 at 4:35 pm

I've always thought the Higgs field theory sounded a little over-cooked. We'll see... Shame the Large Hadron Collider is delayed.

12. Tinkering with Humans

Comment #55157 by Diplo on July 10, 2007 at 6:16 am

Couldn't it be argued that the next step in natural evolution would be for organisms to evolve the ability to alter their genome for the better?

The revelations and discoveries we make through science tend to be ethically neutral. It's up to us as human beings to work out the moral implications of technology and science. We should be careful, but not fearful.

13. Interview with Dan Dennett on Danish TV

Comment #54702 by Diplo on July 8, 2007 at 3:05 pm

scooternyc said:

Does anyone know, can you download a video off of youtube? or is there a way to copy a video from a site like youtube?

Try a site called http://www.youtubex.com/ - just paste in the URL of a YouTube video and you can download it in .flv (Flash video) format.

You can find plenty of free players for this format, such as:

http://www.wimpyplayer.com/products/wimpy_standalone_flv_player.html

http://www.rivavx.com/index.php?id=422

14. Brainwashed children plead to die as martyrs in Red Mosque siege

Comment #54680 by Diplo on July 8, 2007 at 1:00 pm

I'm waiting for the Islamist apologists to:

a) Blame this on the Western foreign policy

b) Claim this has nothing what-so-ever to do with Islam and that the real Islam is all nice and cuddly

c) Call anyone "Islamophobic" and racist who suggests it is

15. Don't Mince Words: The London Car-Bomb Plot Was Designed to Kill Women

Comment #53973 by Diplo on July 4, 2007 at 1:54 pm

Xenocratic: If the Islamists got hold of the weaponry, power and money that the US now holds what do you think the results would be?

16. Don't Mince Words: The London Car-Bomb Plot Was Designed to Kill Women

Comment #53841 by Diplo on July 3, 2007 at 1:42 pm

It's a times like this we really need people like Hitchens to tell it like it us. Far too many people are becoming apologists for Islamic terror, or else they are downplaying it. It really doesn't matter how successful or inept these attempted attacks were - the intent was there. And the intent, if not the reality, is to bring mass causality suicide-bombing to the streets of Britain where civilians are the prime target.

These bombers may be far less technically savvy than, say, the IRA, but they are also far more ruthless and dangerous. What is more, they are hear to stay for the foreseeable future.

17. When is a bishop like a suicide bomber?

Comment #53803 by Diplo on July 3, 2007 at 9:22 am

Great article! It's heartening to see the broadsheets are, at last, laying into the craziness that exemplifies religious thought patterns. Irrational thinking leads inextricably to irrational acts and this message needs to keep being hammered home.

18. Inferior Design: Richard Dawkins reviews Behe's lastest book

Comment #53575 by Diplo on July 2, 2007 at 5:06 am

Yes, yes, all very well Dawkins, but explain to me how a frog can give birth to a monkey? You can't, can you? Hah!

19. Rival to evolution may enter schools

Comment #52873 by Diplo on June 28, 2007 at 10:15 am

I guess this is the start of the Scottish Disenglightment... How sad.

20. 'I have never been happier' says the man who won gold but lost God

Comment #52638 by Diplo on June 27, 2007 at 3:12 pm

That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight, I'm
Losing my religion

Good article, and nice to see Jonathan thinking for himself.

21. God Hates the World

Comment #51930 by Diplo on June 25, 2007 at 2:59 pm

For more examples of religious child-abuse you can watch:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj5BL-tVIpM

"How many Jews did mama kill...?"

22. God Hates the World

Comment #51886 by Diplo on June 25, 2007 at 1:27 pm

Well, recently the Christian nutters had been loosing out quite badly to the Muslim nutters, so it's good to see a return to form for "our boys". The satanic child at the end was a nice touch.

23. Bush Vetoes Measure on Stem Cell Research

Comment #51044 by Diplo on June 21, 2007 at 8:57 am

a nation founded on the principle that all human life is sacred...

Tell that to the native Americans, eh?

I just wish someone had "vetoed" Bush when he was at the 100 cell stage. Though some would argue his brain is still at the 100 cell stage...

24. Atheists: stand up and be counted

Comment #50917 by Diplo on June 20, 2007 at 12:27 pm

I see the original Guardian article has attracted nearly 900 comments and is still growing - it's by far the most commented on article I've ever seen there. I think that says something!

25. The God Delusion - Dawkins Feature

Comment #50820 by Diplo on June 20, 2007 at 4:50 am

It was good to hear a non-adversarial debate between intelligent, literate scientists. Tone is a subjective thing but what is important is that they were all agreed on the fundamentals, and it's important people hear that unity.

Regards Richard's tone: I think it's all down to preconceptions. If you pick up the book, not ever having heard him speak of read any of his work, and you still haven't adjusted to the idea that religion should be subject to the same degree of criticism as any other belief-set, then you will probably be shocked. A taboo is being broken and this will initially cause offense to some people.

However, it needs someone to lead the way. Someone has to break down the barriers, someone has to have the guts to make the case. Not that long ago DH Lawrence was seen as "obscene" - imagine that! Hopefully we will come, in time, to regard criticism of religion as no more shocking than we regard the odd allusion to sexual congress. One day, I hope, we'll look back and wonder whatever was the fuss about.

26. Richard Dawkins on his online alterego

Comment #50703 by Diplo on June 19, 2007 at 2:28 pm

I'm a big fan of computers and computer games but also found Second Life rather dull. However, it's good to see Richard (who was a pioneer in his own time with 'The Blind Watchmaker') still engaging with technology and bringing his ideas to new audiences.

27. Debate between Sam Harris and Chris Hedges

Comment #50520 by Diplo on June 18, 2007 at 2:24 pm

A good debate, though in truth it was less about religion and more about politics. Hedges completely avoided defending the core concepts of religion because he implicitly acknowledges that it is irrational. He seems to be one of those Christians who doesn't believe in anything apart from a wishy-washy version of God who is "love" (and how can you argue against that redefinition of God?).

There was absolutely nothing he could say to counter Harris's devastating opening volley and so he opted for changing the subject. His main tactic was to work on Harris's Achilles heal, which was his glib defence of torture in 'The End Of Faith' (which in reality is a few badly thought through pages of an otherwise great book). Hedges then adopted the standard Western leftist approach to all the failing of the Middle East - that is, it's nothing to do with Islam and is all our fault. This seems to be a common failing of liberal Christian intellectuals - because their faith is so wish-washy and metaphorical they don't seem to be able to understand that other people are actually totally sincere in their beliefs and take what is written in ancient texts deadly seriously. The example of the Danish cartoon controversy was a good point in hand.

The fact is Hedges did nothing to address Harris's main criticisms of religion and instead made rather mawkish appeals to the audiences' obvious liberal-left leanings by appealing to their political emotions. He may be right about torture but he totally failed to make any case for the veracity or usefulness of religion, whilst studiously ignoring the damage it is undeniably causing in the Middle East (and the wider world)

28. Atheists: stand up and be counted

Comment #50487 by Diplo on June 18, 2007 at 12:13 pm

I will repost my comment I made on the Guardian site (which is in the form of a reply to another comment):

ernoleadpencil said (in comment 644869):

"Religion is a metaphor. Why are you so scared of it? Do other, smaller metaphors like the tooth fairy and Father Christmas gove you the willies? Would that be 'rational'? Are you perhaps somewhere on the autistic spectrum?"

Religion isn't a metaphor, it's a collection of irrational ideologies that revolve around mainly bronze-age conceptions of the universe and morality. When suicidal fanatics blow themselves up on buses they are not engaging in light-hearted linguistic debate. When the Pope tells Catholics to stop supporting human rights organisations and propagates irrational advise that leads to the spread of AIDS across Africa then he isn't simply engaging in wordplay. When Zionist settlers grab land and provoke conflict we are no longer witnessing discourse but a conflict.

The trouble with what you say is that people who engage with the "metaphor" of the Tooth Fairy tend not to crash packed jet planes into skyscrapers. When children finally figure out that Father Christmas doesn't exist, and say so, you wouldn't expect them to be sentenced to death for apostasy.

Religion is, and never has been, a personal belief or set of convictions. It's something that permeates through the whole of society - as Hitchens observes, it "poisons everything". You only have to turn on the news, any day at any time, and see the first hand results of religious ideas being put into practice. Whether it be terrorism, wars or simply a bunch of people in frocks telling people what they can (and cannot)think, say and do.

Believe me, atheists do not want to be vocal. In any rational world there would be no such concept as atheism. However, until the day comes when the religious are no longer able to impose their dogmatic superstitions on the world, then atheists will stand up. We will no longer be silenced by undue deference to fairy tales. We will no longer keep quiet when you try and indoctrinate our children, censor our speech, interfere with our sex lives and subjugate our women.

29. Call for 'post-9/11' RE teaching

Comment #50377 by Diplo on June 17, 2007 at 12:27 pm

A few thoughts:

1. Has it really taken '9/11' for Ofsted to notice that religion is not always a force for good?

2. Are Tony's beloved faith schools really going to be able to teach religion "warts and all"? I somehow can't see Catholic or Muslim faith schools taking an objective, critical look at their own faiths.

30. Free Speech

Comment #50295 by Diplo on June 16, 2007 at 2:06 pm

Brilliant speech by Hitchens.

What I really like about Hitchens (apart from his elegant rhetoric) is the fact that he challenges my preconceptions and beliefs. Even when I don't agree with him, which sometimes I do not, he really gives you something to think about. He doesn't try and pander to a crowd and be popular and I like that.

It just so happens that on the issue of free speech he's spot on.

31. Vatican cardinal calls on Catholics to stop funding Amnesty

Comment #50146 by Diplo on June 15, 2007 at 8:59 am

Hopefully this will cause Catholic AI members to realise what a inflexible, dogmatic organisation the Catholic Church is and how it cares far more about upholding superstitious, archaic doctrine than it does about people.

32. The Future Forum Presents: Christopher Hitchens and Marvin Olasky

Comment #49986 by Diplo on June 14, 2007 at 11:53 am

Olasky was as astoundingly bad as Hitchens was astoundingly good. There, quite literally, was no contest. It was almost as if the paucity of Olasky's argument was meant to puncture Hitchens rhetoric - it was so weak and unchallenging that it must have been difficult for Hitchens to even motivate himself to swat down the points. The only correct point that Olasky made was that Hitchens would wipe the floor with him, which he duly did.

Next time, could the Christians throw a lion into the arena, not a mouse?

33. Tome truths

Comment #49307 by Diplo on June 11, 2007 at 12:48 pm

The appearance of these books shows that the immunity of religion to forthright questioning and challenge is over

Amen to that! Pandora's box has been opened and no amount of whining and teeth-gnashing from the smug religious elites are going to close it again. Let's hope this trickle of books becomes a flood of Biblical proportions :)

34. [Warning: Graphic] Children's foreheads slashed in Muslim saint's name

Comment #20096 by Diplo on January 31, 2007 at 10:49 am

It encourages bigotry, jingoism and prejudice...

Oh dear. Why do some many people feel they have to bend over backward to apologise or censor any criticism of Muslim behaviour? It's just a double standard, as you bet if this was about right-wing US Christians there would no such qualms in laying into them.

As for encouraging prejudice, then good, it should encourage a very strong prejudice against abuse of children in the name of religion (be it physical, mental or whatever). This is not unique among Islam, but that doesn't mean that criticism of Islam isn't valid, either. Let's stop this self-censorship and moral relativism and not bow to pressure to give Muslims more respect than any other group simply because some white Western liberals feel guilty about the Iraq war. Neither one excuses the other.

35. Blasphemy Challenge on FOX

Comment #19729 by Diplo on January 29, 2007 at 2:54 pm

Brian Flemming's calm, rational and thoughtful responses to the hysterical Fox news reporter says it all, really. Well done, Brian!

36. Church of England still valid as state religion?

Comment #19587 by Diplo on January 28, 2007 at 4:39 pm

It is rather interesting that an institution formed by a womanising Tudor monarch, so he could shag some bird he wasn't married to, should become the official state religion. It all seems rather fitting.

37. Durham Council Votes To Continue Saying Lord's Prayer

Comment #19464 by Diplo on January 27, 2007 at 11:57 am

It's scary that in the 21st Century that there are still elected officials who think it perfectly reasonable to ask a non-existent deity in the sky to intervene on their behalf in the running of their little council. Apart from anything else, you would think God would have more important stuff to sort out, given the state of the World....

38. God's Hostages

Comment #18498 by Diplo on January 21, 2007 at 9:35 am

But Sam, you can't say those things! We live in a world of moral equivalence where we have to respect cultural differences, even if we disagree with them. We have to be tolerant toward the oppression of women in certain communities because it stems from a deeply held conviction. Who are we Westerners to judge? Whilst we cannot condone some of these quaint traditions, we have to accommodate them into our multi-cultural world, as we have to respect the sincere faith of the practitioners. It would be bad form to criticise!

[if you find yourself nodding with agreement then hang your head in shame]

39. Atheist Richard Dawkins on 'The God Delusion'

Comment #18296 by Diplo on January 19, 2007 at 12:23 pm

I'm currently reading Unweaving the Rainbow and it's a perfect expression of the fact that the Universe, as revealed by science, is a far more wonderful and awe inspiring place than the world, as revealed by religion.

40. 10 Questions for Heather Mac Donald

Comment #17520 by Diplo on January 14, 2007 at 11:28 am

Very heartening to hear that not all American conservatives and Republicans are irrational God-botherers. I might not agree with all her poltical ideas, but at least they are based on rational reasoning and not some gut-feeling she is doing God's work.

Hopefully we will see the last taboo of atheism broken in US politics, which can only be a good thing.

41. Gentle Rottweiler

Comment #17395 by Diplo on January 13, 2007 at 8:36 am

I guess it's just a coincidence that the PDF of this article is 666 KB in size and not some ironic joke? ;-)

42. Readers Write: Atheist Sam Harris on Torture and Faith

Comment #17184 by Diplo on January 11, 2007 at 2:22 pm

Gorenfeld's article may have been a hatchet job, but he is right to highlight Harris's attitude toward torture. I like a lot of what Sam says, but his attitude toward torture was not just distasteful but also very poorly thought through.

43. Intelligent design is a science, not a faith

Comment #17052 by Diplo on January 10, 2007 at 1:02 pm

"If, as an explanation for organised complexity, Darwinism had a more convincing evidential basis, then many of us would give up on ID."

That has to be the weakest argument I've ever heard for believing in something! If people believe in ID they should do so because they are convinced by the evidence, not because they are skeptical about an alternate theory. Even if theory A is not true that doesn't mean theory B suddenly becomes true.

ID has no evidence. It's just classic "God of the Gaps" reasoning. Don't understand something? Then say God did it! Why bother trying to find out answers to anything! Let's just sit around, stagnate and praise God. *sigh*

44. Open Letter to Rev. John Auer

Comment #16900 by Diplo on January 9, 2007 at 2:22 pm

The whole history of the Catholic church is virtually an unending succession of shameful acts that have been committed, or covered up, in the name of God. The Inquisition; the Conquistadors; the subjugation of women; the persecution of scientists; collaborating with the Nazis; exploiting the poor in workhouses; forcing single young women to give away their babies for adoption; helping the spread of AIDS through condemnation of contraception; the encouragement of sectarian violence; indoctrinating children from any early age with feelings of guilt and repression; and now the covering up of the horrific abuse of vulnerable children by sexually repressed old men. Disgusting.

45. Secular fundamentalists are the new totalitarians

Comment #16390 by Diplo on January 6, 2007 at 12:56 pm

What a disgraceful article Tobias Jones has written. I had to double check this was in The Guardian and not The Daily Mail. I can't even begin to note all the inaccuracies, let alone lies, exhibited in it's poorly argued contents. I am genuinely surprised a quality newspaper saw fit to publish this ill-thought out rant.

46. The Only One in Step

Comment #14674 by Diplo on December 24, 2006 at 5:29 am

Roger Stanyard said in Comment #14528 'In fact he [Burgess] is a leading member of the small inner core "team" of academic "creationists" in the UK (there are about eight or nine of them and most of them are closely associated with each other in a number of creationist organisations – they do not work independently of each other) and his views are probably even more frightening than McIntosh's. David Tyler who's letter was published in the Guardian alongside than of Burgess is another in the "team".'

This is what annoys me about media coverage of the debate. Newspapers some how think they have to be impartial when covering this kind of subject, and therefore print as many letters from Creationist 'scientists' as they do from real scientists, in the name of balance. But this isn't balance. A handful of Creationist crackpots should not be given equal weighting when compared with the vast scientific establishment.

It only helps to create the impression in the non-scientific public that there are two equally valid yet opposing views. There aren't. Yet if the public sees six letters from professors at eminent Universities, and three are from Creationists, this is exactly the impression that is given. This is not balance, it's a totally skewed representation of the orthodox scientific position.

47. The Only One in Step

Comment #14672 by Diplo on December 24, 2006 at 5:18 am

If Intelligent Design were simply an alternate scientific theory to Evolution then you would expect it's proponents to share roughly the same religious views as 'normal' scientists. Yet, tellingly, the overwhelming majority (if not all) of those who believe in ID also believe in a literal Biblical (or myth based) version of Creation. This is either a coincidence of amazing magnitude or else you can deduce that their religious beliefs are colouring their scientific beliefs.

Now, which could it be, I wonder?

48. I love the commercialisation of Christmas

Comment #14143 by Diplo on December 21, 2006 at 9:13 am

You'll notice that when atheists are attacked, we do not howl that we are "offended" and demand the censorship of our opponents. We simply argue back

Exactly! Great article, apart from I really wish the forces of materialism didn't have to align with Slade. Still, you can't win them all...

49. 7 monks injured in clash over monastery

Comment #14139 by Diplo on December 21, 2006 at 9:09 am

Wonder how long it will take before Mel Gibson tries to make a movie out of this?

50. Now we know how to make the IDists dance in their petticoats: blaspheme.

Comment #14137 by Diplo on December 21, 2006 at 9:06 am

In reply to Comment #14111:

OK, I deny both the false prophet Muhammad and the false saviour Jesus Christ.

Guess Yahweh and Allah will have have to fight over who gets to torch my soul :)