51. Atheists challenge the religious right

Comment #17238 by Tintern on January 12, 2007 at 9:07 am

"Their books have spurred widespread commentary, much of it a strong critique of their arguments and lack of religious knowledge."
This seems wrong to me, as the one thing evident from both Dawkins and Harris is a substantial knowledge of religions. Is the author offering the opinion that they lack religious knowledge or simply referring to that assertion as a criticism from others? Just curious; don't think it matters hugely to the overall point.

52. Pat Robertson: God told me of 'mass killing' in 2007

Comment #16178 by Tintern on January 5, 2007 at 9:25 am

The Lord didn't say it was nuclear, but Pat believes it will be something like that? A bit presumptuous, isn't he, second-guessing the Lord?
The Lord and his messenger need to be more specific. If it's nuclear then I'll have to build a shelter and that's a lot of effort - another Credit Union loan, planning permission, learning how to build something big and complex, shopping for food with a trolley instead of a small basket to stock up. I don't want to do all that just on this guy's hunch after the Lord himself decided not to say exactly what it was. Honestly, the standards of public service announcements are really slipping lately.

53. What are you optimistic about? Why?

Comment #15710 by Tintern on January 2, 2007 at 7:16 am

As Douglas Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy" states, 42 is the answer to Life, The Universe and Everything. So perhaps we're on our way to figuring the TOE out.
On a mildly serious note, if you ask someone like Richard Dawkins a weighty yet broad question requiring some simple yet epic summing up, I think the answer is good and positive. It must be nice for him to let loose and give himself over to a grand hope once in a while instead of constructing and dissecting every word which is what he is normally required to do.
Also, it would just be plain nice if, by the time the aliens arrived, we were kinda brainy.

54. Talk in Class Turns to God, Setting Off Public Debate on Rights

Comment #13952 by Tintern on December 20, 2006 at 8:44 am

I want to have been there when someone stood up and said to the Principal:
"But this apparently excellent teacher told the class that there were dinosaurs on the Ark. Dude,WTF!"
It's a South Park moment for sure.

55. The Panel with Richard Dawkins

Comment #12459 by Tintern on December 12, 2006 at 3:48 am

It was clear that the host was a fan, and great that he let Richard make some key points in an atmosphere that wasn't hostile (that must be a pleasant change from some encounters). Though five-ten minutes watching this to make sure I didn't miss Richard's spot was a trial. Talk about annoyingly unfunny! Still, more respect than the Late Late Show for rationally presented views, and a strong, unabashed recommendation for the book.

56. Richard Dawkins on The Late Late Show with Pat Kenny

Comment #12232 by Tintern on December 11, 2006 at 11:19 am

For the first time in years I'm sorry I didn't tune into the Late Late Show. I sometimes encounter it while channel hopping but always move on. A pity I wasn't hopping this time.
I can tell you, however, that the interviewer is so uninteresing, his existence should be evidence for lack of intelligent design, and that, in the past, on "issues" of importance, this audience has certainly being stacked on the instructions of the church. This is a state controlled station - it does what it is told while protesting its "liberal" credentials. Our only defence here is that the voice of reason does exist, it simply has to find a way to get past people who take their instructions verbatim from undemocratic institutions. Perhaps this new-fangled internet thingy will help.

57. The God Delusion? Part 1

Comment #6905 by Tintern on November 16, 2006 at 6:32 am

"I have seen medical cures that science can't explain, some seemingly triggered by faith."
No, you haven't. You've seen people get better. A happy occurence, and a joy to have an opportunity to gain medical knowledge without the sadness of loss. Just be man enough to step aside and let the good doctor find out what happened, so he can make it happen again.

58. Faith Won't Heal a Divided World

Comment #6885 by Tintern on November 16, 2006 at 4:15 am

This point about having the honest conversations is the standout point for me from both of Sam's books. Of all the necessary facets of the struggle for enlightenment, it is the one where you can almost physically see how quickly a breakthrough would bring about change.