Dark side of athiest culture

[Desert Snake]

Yes, there is a dark side to atheist culture, and it may be the lack of culture. It may be that people have not figured out a way to teach young people to be moral outside of religion. Many young atheists of my acquaintance have no scruples about lying, cheating, stealing and stabbing coworkers in the back, but Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus all believe somebody is watching.

Perhaps you have it backward. Perhaps atheism is attractive to those who wish to live with no morals or no moral obligation.

 

[Majikthise]

We are not really talking about whether atheism itself is moral or immoral but about whether kids not taught religion behave morally relative to those that are. The objection to religion is that the religious kids aren't 'Truly moral' since they believe they are being watched (or that they can do what they want and be forgiven).

I'll keep it short. Im an atheist, my wife is agnostic. We have two children, 12 and 17. They have been raised to show compassion and respect the views of others. They both do these things quite well. You really need to reassess your views on this subject.
Respectfully, Dan.

 

[Sunstone]

Perhaps you have it backward. Perhaps atheism is attractive to those who wish to live with no morals or no moral obligation.

Why would atheism attract such people any more than, say, Roman Catholicism or Evangelicalism? After all, in the latter, you can sin all you want during the week and still turn to Christ and be forgiven on Sunday.

 

[Majikthise]

I'm not going there.

I dont blame you. Shes been harping on that forever.

 

[Desert Snake]

Why would atheism attract such people any more than, say, Roman Catholicism or Evangelicalism? After all, in the latter, you can sin all you want during the week and still turn to Christ and be forgiven on Sunday.

It might be easier to 'square' a total lack of morality with atheism...

 

[Brickjectivity]

Considering the USA was one of the very first truly secular nations, I'm not sure that's true. America was pretty much founded on secular morality.


I'm not sure what you're defining as "atheist culture", but I'm pretty sure the mass killing, endless internal conflicts and the continuous wars had a bigger impact on the collapse of the USSR than atheism did. Using the USSR as a the standard bearer for "atheist culture" is kind of like using Nazi Germany as the standard bearer for "Catholic culture".

I think we did have some secular people involved, yes; but I don't see it as a secular country. Things have changed. The 'Secular morality' as you call it actually was a mix and preserved in non-secular ways and comes to us by many channels, some of them secular some not. For example I wouldn't consider John Lock's arguments to be purely secular, and they profoundly influenced America from the beginning.

The number of secular people has increased by a lot (and that is supportable by surveys I have seen), so there is a huge increase in 'New' atheists running about and enough for me to notice and for them to tell me so. Sunstone's point I take, that I cannot generalize my experiences to everyone. I think the USA is in a relatively fast cultural shift and has not traditionally thought of itself as secular. Maybe the universities have thought themselves secular for a while but not people in general. Point taken about the USSR.

 

[Sunstone]

It might be easier to 'square' a total lack of morality with atheism...

I don't see why. If you're suggesting that deity is required for morality, I think arguments of that sort have been debunked time and again.

 

[LuisDantas]

Perhaps you have it backward. Perhaps atheism is attractive to those who wish to live with no morals or no moral obligation.

I can see you have not met some theists I know.

 

[LuisDantas]

It might be easier to 'square' a total lack of morality with atheism...

In practice, it just isn't at all likely to happen.

By contrast, most amoralists are theists, often because they can fairly easily "third-party" the responsibility for their behavior.

 

[Majikthise]

The devil made me do it.

 

[outhouse]

atheist culture

There is no such culture

They joined because to them there was something wrong with secular culture.

There is no culture.


maybe where you live everyone lacks morals

 

[Brickjectivity]

In practice, it just isn't at all likely to happen.

By contrast, most amoralists are theists, often because they can fairly easily "third-party" the responsibility for their behavior.

Most criminals in the USA are theists, so lets go ahead and generalize from that. Its fair since I generalized from the young atheists I had met.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

There is no culture.


maybe where you live everyone lacks morals

Of course there's a "culture", if you define culture loosely enough.

Pretty much take every stereotype of atheists and group it together into a way of life. Neckbeards, various YouTube channels where atheists are the stars, Dawkins, Hitchens, nihilism, communism, etc. Voila! "Culture".

 

[LuisDantas]

Most criminals in the USA are theists, so lets go ahead and generalize from that. Its fair since I generalized from the young atheists I had met.

Are you joking or something?

 

[outhouse]

Of course there's a "culture", if you define culture loosely enough.

Pretty much take every stereotype of atheists and group it together into a way of life. Neckbeards, various YouTube channels where atheists are the stars, Dawkins, Hitchens, nihilism, communism, etc. Voila! "Culture".

Yes OP can pervert the term culture.

But that does not make it so.



You get into certain low life blocks in major cities, people can be dirt bags with or without religion.

Op could be blaming teenage growing pains and is confused it with religion and or lack of.


Either way I view it as a handful of ignorance

 

[Brickjectivity]

Perhaps you have it backward. Perhaps atheism is attractive to those who wish to live with no morals or no moral obligation.

No, I don't think that.

What I think is that most people have normal sympathy towards others, that about 1 in 100 don't and its random whether they are taught religion and what religion. So people 'Without morals' as in those who have weak or no consciences can be born into any group of people. The rest of us generally feel sympathy towards others, and when we offend others it is by measure, by what we deem is an appropriate amount. Our sympathies can be subverted, however. We can become cold and distant, and there are many ways we can become criminal and corrupt both in and out of religion.

 

[Brickjectivity]

Are you joking or something?

I am discussing facts, not haggling. I hate haggling in debates.

 

[Brickjectivity]

I'll keep it short. Im an atheist, my wife is agnostic. We have two children, 12 and 17. They have been raised to show compassion and respect the views of others. They both do these things quite well. You really need to reassess your views on this subject.
Respectfully, Dan.

I think that is positive atheist culture. You are establishing a culture that is atheist, rather than the lack of a culture.

 

[Revoltingest]

I think that is positive atheist culture. You are establishing a culture that is atheist, rather than the lack of a culture.

What about this "culture" is a trait of atheism?
It seems more that it's just how a few particular atheists live.
If they owned a Ford pick-up truck, would this be Ford pick-up truck culture?

 

[Brickjectivity]

There is no such culture

There is no culture.

maybe where you live everyone lacks morals

Sorry if this offended you. Culture is like know-how or a technology. Personally I believe it accumulates and improves over generations. As a young person you are surrounded by various people who contribute to your education and your formation as you develop and grow up. That is what I mean by culture. Religion is part of some people's culture.