51. Turek vs. Hitchens Debate: Does God Exist?
Comment #274152 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Turek is an example of a more sophisticated but still deluded theist. You throw science at him, he will listen and study, but will eventually say, 'See that only reinforces what we were saying all along!.' Except it doesn't and his understanding and explanation of scientific facts is skewed towards his beliefs, not reality. His understanding of chemistry and biology was outright laughable.
He has no new arguments, because there are none and won't be any unless someone finds empirical evidence. And they were unable to do that for thousands of years.
52. Why We Believe
Comment #274135 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 4:27 pm
see:
Ghost Lusters: If You Want to See a Specter Badly Enough, Will You?
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=ghost-lusters-if-you-want
53. Dole Ad Fabricates Audio Of Opponent Yelling 'There Is No God'
Comment #274132 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 4:24 pm
So it turns out that the Republican candidate is an atheist.
Would you dare misuse god if you believed in it?
54. Countdown: Palin Wants To Help Special Needs Kids By Doing Away With Science
Comment #273842 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 10:46 am
Bonzai:
So GDP growth is wealth creation? ...
55. New Simonyi Chair appointed
Comment #273836 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 10:38 am
The problem of maths is that it's far less attractive than biology, geology, astronomy, physics or chemistry.
56. Why Children Like to Share
Comment #273661 by notsobad on October 29, 2008 at 4:44 am
Also:
Ghost Lusters: If You Want to See a Specter Bad Enough, Will You?
57. Premier debates with Dawkins
Comment #273258 by notsobad on October 28, 2008 at 11:39 am
Whether Moral absolutes actually exist (in which case they seem to be depednent on something beyond nature, therefore I infer a moral law giver)
58. Premier debates with Dawkins
Comment #273078 by notsobad on October 28, 2008 at 5:14 am
justinbrierley:
Why does rape even exist when a supposedly omnipotent god doesn't like it? (That is not even true if you actually read the Bible.)
Where was god for about 198,000 years of homo sapiens existence?
59. Premier debates with Dawkins
Comment #273028 by notsobad on October 28, 2008 at 3:47 am
He, like any atheist, has to admit that there is no absolute moral values that exist on this or any other issue.
Our morality is simply as random
and purposeless as the evolutionary process itself.
Had we evolved into a species where rape was not immoral, then that would just be that. End of story.
The problem is that that just doesn't sit well with our innate (and in my opinion God-given) sense of what is right and wrong.
60. Premier debates with Dawkins
Comment #272676 by notsobad on October 27, 2008 at 5:15 pm
"simple idea ... creative god"
So simple it's silly.
61. Interview with Richard Dawkins on fairy tales and retirement
Comment #272635 by notsobad on October 27, 2008 at 4:49 pm
Using religious titles for atheists is cheap, lazy and stupid. Find something new, copy-cat "journalists".
Anyway, one of my favourite fairy-tale books was a compilation of Greek mythology. Great stories, creatures, heroes and everything.
It is also beneficial to tell the kid that the Ancient Greeks considered the stories real, just like theists today think of the Bible or Qur'an.
Comment #272178 by notsobad on October 27, 2008 at 4:42 am
For those that diss the book, the book may be good, the review is lame.
Comment #271913 by notsobad on October 26, 2008 at 6:32 pm
Zappi:
the AGW militants
Comment #271818 by notsobad on October 26, 2008 at 3:49 pm
The article ends with the usual don't blame the system, blame the individuals message.
While individuals are responsible for their actions, it's also meaningful to blame the system.
Or is someone suggesting that African children are genetically more prone to become soldiers than other children?
65. Countdown: Palin Wants To Help Special Needs Kids By Doing Away With Science
Comment #271615 by notsobad on October 26, 2008 at 5:33 am
Republicans need at least one idiot in the race. Last time it was the president, now it's the VP. Idiot voters usually want to vote for one of their own.
As for the book, how about the classics we used to read, from Jules Verne to Arthur Conan Doyle's the Lost World.
Mark Smith:
Would that be the free market the government just propped up with 700 billion dollars?
Comment #271611 by notsobad on October 26, 2008 at 5:19 am
"We've all been brought up with the view that religion has some kind of special privileged status. You're not allowed to criticise it. And therefore, if you offer even a fairly mild criticism, it really does sound strident, because it violates this expectation that religion is out of bounds."
This is an observable fact.
It's the same with other topics people are brainwashed to consider untouchable, such as patriotism.
Interestingly, that is a local problem. Try being a patriot in germany, for example, and you'll most likely wake up in a hospital.
Comment #271171 by notsobad on October 25, 2008 at 11:25 am
"We've all been brought up with the view that religion has some kind of special privileged status. You're not allowed to criticise it. And therefore, if you offer even a fairly mild criticism, it really does sound strident, because it violates this expectation that religion is out of bounds."
68. No-God squad climb aboard the atheist bus
Comment #270512 by notsobad on October 24, 2008 at 8:31 am
Those without belief in God want it to be known that they have as strong a moral framework as those who follow ancient biblical texts and commandments laid down long ago by desert tribes.
69. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #270086 by notsobad on October 23, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Main impact of this campaign won't indeed be the ads, but reporting in the media.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article5003070.ece
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Atheists-plan--There-s-no-God--message-on-London-buses/377174
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/23/world/europe/23briefs-RILEDATHEIST_BRF.html?em
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gRSp5QYL4UULZupCtHk-8vRx1Ogw
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5dT9_Mfzt50a2hTXDwEg0nhJweAD93VME6O0
etc.
70. Memories Selectively, Safely Erased In Mice
Comment #269516 by notsobad on October 23, 2008 at 5:11 am
So if this is applicable to humans, and that's only a question of time, where is the space for soul?
71. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #269488 by notsobad on October 23, 2008 at 3:57 am
Betrothed at 7, completed at 9.
72. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #269468 by notsobad on October 23, 2008 at 3:11 am
Here is a segment specific slogan:
What would you call a man who married a 9-year old?
In Islam, they call him the prophet of God.
73. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #268852 by notsobad on October 22, 2008 at 10:49 am
Why not a magazine ad? It would contain much more information.
74. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #268585 by notsobad on October 22, 2008 at 2:27 am
How about:
How much can you believe without evidence?
and
Ready to go one god further? or just Go one god further, since it advertises the website.
We are good because we want to, not god.
75. All aboard the atheist bus campaign
Comment #268274 by notsobad on October 21, 2008 at 4:08 pm
I still don't like the message and agree with mismos00's criticism.
It should be something in form of a question to make people think about the answer, or just something funny. Or it could target religion.
All this ad will do is brighten atheists for a few seconds and make theists ignore it.
76. Bill Heine interviews Richard Dawkins
Comment #267728 by notsobad on October 21, 2008 at 2:57 am
The holocaust was all about anti-semitism, which was entirely the product of Christians who blamed the jews for killing Christ.
77. The soul? It may all be in your mind
Comment #267725 by notsobad on October 21, 2008 at 2:46 am
Would be an interesting research project to see if this is really what Descartes intended.
78. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #267723 by notsobad on October 21, 2008 at 2:41 am
NightHiker:
I'm done with you, "Ohsobad".
79. Bill Heine interviews Richard Dawkins
Comment #267556 by notsobad on October 20, 2008 at 5:03 pm
I dread these call-in shows, you all know why...but here goes.
80. The soul? It may all be in your mind
Comment #267549 by notsobad on October 20, 2008 at 4:42 pm
May?
Eduardo Punset: The soul is in the brain
All right, we knew it. But now we have the whole picture of the molecular process through which past and future link; how the germinal soul, rooted in brain matter and memory, allows for new perceptions, for the future, to emerge. It is both simple and terrifying at the same time.
When the mind is challenged from the outside universe, it searches in its accumulated archives in order to make sense of this new stimulus. This screening of our memory -of our past- produces an immediate answer: the new stimulus either leaves everyone indifferent, or else it blooms into an emotion of love, of pleasure or of sheer curiosity. These are the three touchstones of creativity. So basically, science has discovered that at the very beginning at least, only the past matters. And that holds true also of our future creativity.
Then a process more akin to alchemy than science sparks off and develops into social intelligence. The imitation process, based on mirror neurons, interacts with the corpus of accumulated knowledge -of one“s own species, and of others- which, combined with a good stock of well preserved individual memory, explode into new thinking.
Until very recently, we were missing a fundamental step in the process of knowledge- namely, how to transform short term memory into long term knowledge. At last we are taking into account the detailed contents of durability, specific proteins without which there is no learning and affection in childhood, no schooling at a later stage, no socialization in adult life. The roots are in the past; but there is no knowledge if we hide in a cave alone, with no windows to peer from and no shadows dancing outside.
The past has to be worked upon from the outside in order to transform into the future, and this has brought about the second main discovery in the molecular process of creativity. The so called "technology transfer" from old to new generations is a two-way process: matter, mind, soul, past, memory, future, and also startling new ways of looking at old things, are all marvellously intertwined in the evolutionary process.
81. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #267541 by notsobad on October 20, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Was Maher also using exaggeration for comedic purposes all the times he said vaccines do more harm than good and polio was not erradicated by vaccines?
Do you really think that a guy who is capable of defending such completely stupid beliefs as "vaccines are bad" is not capable of having another stupid belief?
And those "some cases" where supposedly religion becomes a neurological disorder, can't that be because those people are insane to begin with, no matter if religious or not?
Can't it be that the mystical feeling that religious people have is more easily triggered on people who are already mentally ill to begin with?
I get it. In the end you are not any diferent from moderate religious people. You are a nice, usually rational and socially capable person, but becomes an irrational troll when someone offends your dogmas and your deities.
82. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #267166 by notsobad on October 20, 2008 at 10:01 am
No. You said Bill Maher said that.
Because paedophilia includes the prospect of hurting innocent children
83. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #266975 by notsobad on October 20, 2008 at 3:17 am
never defended that being credulous awas an absolute good thing, or that it could not mean our demise, just tried to demonstrate how it developed on us as to become "natural", and why "religion" does not qualify as "neurological disorder". This is another strawman of yours.
Then add some real arguments, not just stubornly try to mislead and distort my own.
84. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #266683 by notsobad on October 19, 2008 at 3:03 pm
NightHiker,
I am a little tired by your ad hominems and snobbish tone by now.
In the long run, humans can die out because of their gullibility and irrationality (lack of critical thinking...), so it will be a losing strategy and not a good selection.
The only difference about paedophilia and homosexualism is not "consent", as I clearly explained, but also the deleterious effect it has on both the victim and the perpetrator. What brings it right to the point of the definition I offered.
85. God is not the enemy of reason
Comment #266479 by notsobad on October 19, 2008 at 3:31 am
In fact, we are living in a deeply irrational age, where millions are putting their faith in such mumbo-jumbo as astrology, parapsychology, paganism, witchcraft or conspiracies between sinister groups and extra-terrestrial forces. All of which goes to prove the truth of the old adage that when people stop believing in God, they will believe in anything.
86. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #266394 by notsobad on October 18, 2008 at 9:02 pm
NightHiker,
the trap is on you because I knew you will start explaining that homosexuality and paedophilia differ because practising paedophilia involves involuntary relationships.
But that was not in your original definitions so they fail. As you demonstrated, they needed to be expanded.
Your lengthy response also shows that you thought necessary to explain to me the differences between the two. That's cute.
87. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #266229 by notsobad on October 18, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Not at all. Does homosexuality impairs an individual's metabolism or behavior in any way? Not at all. They are still perfectly able to procreate, and often choose to. It just happens that they prefer the company of people of the same sex when having sexual pleasure.
And what you are ignoring is that people cannot make up their own definitions for already very well defined concepts, unless they are adept of equivocation.
88. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #266211 by notsobad on October 18, 2008 at 10:57 am
NightHiker,
you ignored the definition of what Maher calls a disorder, which is why I used those examples. And you still ignore it. You also seem to forgot that he uses exaggeration since he is a comedian.
Also, by your simple definition, homosexuality shouldn't have been taken off the disorders list.
When an uneducated peasant somewhere in Africa believes in daemons and gods, it's understandable. If you are an average educated intelligent person and believe against evidence, it's on the border of being mental.
89. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #265954 by notsobad on October 17, 2008 at 4:25 pm
To say that inclination towards religion is a neurological disorder...
90. Faith Attack
Comment #265951 by notsobad on October 17, 2008 at 4:22 pm
boring
I am going back to eating babies.
91. The Joke's on Him: Bill Maher could use a lesson in civility from Michael Moore
Comment #265442 by notsobad on October 16, 2008 at 6:18 pm
It's funny how these reviewers complain that Maher acts like a smart ass, while at the same time also call all the presented believers crazy, caricatures and such.
Pretending that your version of faith and god is truer or better than theirs is the ultimate self-righteous narcissism, Podhoretz.
92. Ricky Gervais and The Archbishop Of Canterbury
Comment #264998 by notsobad on October 15, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Church Pastors Dismiss Mental Illness
In a study of Christian church members who approached their church for help with a personal or family member's diagnosed mental illness, researchers found that more than 32 percent were told by their pastor that they or their loved one did not really have a mental illness.
93. Ricky Gervais and The Archbishop Of Canterbury
Comment #264533 by notsobad on October 14, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Belief in god doesn't generate a moral code.
It's just people writing down stories and, more importantly, rules to command others.
94. Religion vs science: can the divide between God and rationality be reconciled?
Comment #263641 by notsobad on October 12, 2008 at 7:12 am
"The new atheism completely misunderstands the way that human beings experience the poetry and narrative of life." 
95. Religion vs science: can the divide between God and rationality be reconciled?
Comment #263628 by notsobad on October 12, 2008 at 4:03 am
can the divide between God and rationality be reconciled?
96. Leading geneticist Steve Jones says human evolution is over
Comment #262823 by notsobad on October 9, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Financial crisis may increase mental health woes
The global financial crisis is likely to cause increased mental health problems and even suicides...
97. YouTube Reinstates Pat Condell
Comment #262352 by notsobad on October 8, 2008 at 11:32 am
Stephan,
you didn't watch that video, did you?
And even though you try to sound polite and friendly, calling Condell a xenophobe and comparing him to Nazis (right-wing radicals...) and saying that Styrer may be sympathizing with Nazis makes you a dick.
Talk about rational positions...
98. Leading geneticist Steve Jones says human evolution is over
Comment #262204 by notsobad on October 8, 2008 at 5:36 am
Not the end of evolution again!
at
scienceblogs.com/evolvingthoughts
99. The camp that 'cures' homosexuality
Comment #262127 by notsobad on October 8, 2008 at 3:06 am
What IS it about religions, that almost every one, and certainly all the abrahamic ones, that they insist on trying to control the natural sexual behaviour, not just of themselves, but of others, even those of a different faith, or no faith ?
100. The camp that 'cures' homosexuality
Comment #262094 by notsobad on October 8, 2008 at 1:38 am
If the churches are not careful, later generations will take the same view of its teachings on homosexuality.