Dawkins’ Belief Scale

[gnomon]

Agreed on both counts. Obviously it's easier to predict the results of an "experiment" if one sets the parameters in such a manner to achieve the desired results. I think it was no accident that Dawkins phrased his scale in a very specific manner. My point was to point out this flaw just as others have pointed out or alluded.

Besides "sexed up atheism", Dawkins is one of the "Four Horsemen of New Atheism" and an advocate of militancy among his followers. Specific phrasing is a key to leading people to take a certain point of view. It doesn't matter the religious or the political philosophy, the strategy works the same. Unethical, maybe, but certainly effective.

That was an incredibly insightful post.

Never heard it before. Who knew that high profile atheists were deliberately twisting the language in order to persuade people to their philosophy.

What do you think needs to be done about this militancy among atheists? Certainly it's only a matter of time before some Dawkinites start dousing women in acid, flying planes into buildings, killing their own children..........how far do you think the militancy will go?

It worries me.

 

[Road Warrior]

What do you think needs to be done about this militancy among atheists?

Nothing as long as he nor anyone who follows him breaks the law. It is his right to believe as he wishes.

 

[crystalonyx]

That was an incredibly insightful post.

Never heard it before. Who knew that high profile atheists were deliberately twisting the language in order to persuade people to their philosophy.

What do you think needs to be done about this militancy among atheists? Certainly it's only a matter of time before some Dawkinites start dousing women in acid, flying planes into buildings, killing their own children..........how far do you think the militancy will go?

It worries me.

It's strange how militancy among Christians or Islam is pretty much taken for granted, but forthright atheists are condemned.

 

[fallingblood]

It's strange how militancy among Christians or Islam is pretty much taken for granted, but forthright atheists are condemned.

I guess if you actually don't look at the backlash against militant Christians and Islam, you're right.

 

[crystalonyx]

I guess if you actually don't look at the backlash against militant Christians and Islam, you're right.

Thre is some disconnect here. Have you been watching the republican campaign, which is a religious diatribe against women's rights in particular, and the poor and middle class in general? If that isn't militancy, I don't know what is.:thud:

 

[fallingblood]

Thre is some disconnect here. Have you been watching the republican campaign, which is a religious diatribe against women's rights in particular, and the poor and middle class in general? If that isn't militancy, I don't know what is.:thud:

Have you seen the vast amount of backlash those candidates have also gotten? That is especially true in this forum.

 

[tumbleweed41]

FTR, it looks as though I am the only one so far to pick Weak Theist.

 

[Road Warrior]

It's strange how militancy among Christians or Islam is pretty much taken for granted, but forthright atheists are condemned.

I condemn anyone who attempts to bully or force someone to believe differently. Persuasion is fine, but coercion is not.

There is little difference in the tactics of Pat Robertson and Richard Dawkins, only different agendas.

 

[PolyHedral]

I condemn anyone who attempts to bully or force someone to believe differently. Persuasion is fine, but coercion is not.

There is little difference in the tactics of Pat Robertson and Richard Dawkins, only different agendas.

I'm not aware of Dawkins bullying anyone. He is certainly unforgiving and perhaps ungracious in the language he uses, but he doesn't evangelize, nor is he politically active.

 

[tumbleweed41]

I'm not aware of Dawkins bullying anyone. He is certainly unforgiving and perhaps ungracious in the language he uses, but he doesn't evangelize, nor is he politically active.

And I have never heard him blame the deaths of thousands on witchcraft or homosexual practices or the "wrath of God:.

 

[outhouse]

ah yes

percieved bullying because it goes against some faith

 

[Road Warrior]

I'm not aware of Dawkins bullying anyone. He is certainly unforgiving and perhaps ungracious in the language he uses, but he doesn't evangelize, nor is he politically active.

He accuses parents who teach their children of being child abusers. He advocates that anyone who believes in a religion should be treated with ridicule and contempt. Isn't that bullying? If you wore an atheist "A" pendant in public, would you consider it bulling if a group of theists ridiculed you and treated you with contempt?

Dawkins calls for mockery of Catholics at 'Reason Rally' :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

At the March 24 “Reason Rally” in Washington, D.C., an estimated 20,000 atheists and agnostics heard author and activist Richard Dawkins encourage mockery of Catholic beliefs and those of other religions.
“Don't fall for the convention that we're all 'too polite' to talk about religion,” Dawkins said, before urging rally attendees to ridicule Catholics' faith in the Eucharist.
“Religion makes specific claims about the universe which need to be substantiated, and need to be challenged – and if necessary, need to be ridiculed with contempt,” he told the cheering crowd on the National Mall.
“For example, if they say they're Catholic: Do you really believe, that when a priest blesses a wafer, it turns into the body of Christ? Are you seriously telling me you believe that? Are you seriously saying that wine turns into blood?”
If the answer is yes, Dawkins suggested atheists should show contempt for believers instead of ignoring the issue or feigning respect.
“Mock them,” he told the crowd. “Ridicule them! In public!”

 

[Road Warrior]

And I have never heard him blame the deaths of thousands on witchcraft or homosexual practices or the "wrath of God:.

How about the deaths of millions in a "Cultural Revolution" or to abolish religion in a communist state?

Cultural Revolution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Millions of people were persecuted in the violent factional struggles that ensued across the country, and suffered a wide range of abuses including torture, rape, imprisonment, sustained harassment, and seizure of property. A large segment of the population was forcibly displaced, most notably the transfer of urban youth to rural regions during the Down to the Countryside Movement. Historical relics and artifacts were destroyed. Cultural and religious sites were ransacked."

Religion in the Soviet Union - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Soviet Union was the first state to have as an ideological objective the elimination of religion and its replacement with atheism. The communist regime confiscated religious property, ridiculed religion, harassed believers, and propagated atheism in schools. The confiscation of religious assets was often based on accusations of illegal accumulation of wealth.

State atheism in the Soviet Union was known as gosateizm, and was based on the ideology of Marxism–Leninism. As the founder of the Soviet state, V. I. Lenin, put it:

Religion is the opium of the people: this saying of Marx is the cornerstone of the entire ideology of Marxism about religion. All modern religions and churches, all and of every kind of religious organizations are always considered by Marxism as the organs of bourgeois reaction, used for the protection of the exploitation and the stupefaction of the working class.

Marxism–Leninism has consistently advocated the control, suppression, and elimination of religion. Within about a year of the revolution, the state expropriated all church property, including the churches themselves, and in the period from 1922 to 1926, 28 Russian Orthodox bishops and more than 1,200 priests were killed. Many more were persecuted."

 

[Sgloom]

i put weak atheist, borderline de facto though. i 100% dont believe in any religion, manmade god though. if there is some sort of god or gods, they will never be known to us. though i just dont really believe in any at all. but who knows...

 

[tumbleweed41]

How about the deaths of millions in a "Cultural Revolution" or to abolish religion in a communist state?

Cultural Revolution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Millions of people were persecuted in the violent factional struggles that ensued across the country, and suffered a wide range of abuses including torture, rape, imprisonment, sustained harassment, and seizure of property. A large segment of the population was forcibly displaced, most notably the transfer of urban youth to rural regions during the Down to the Countryside Movement. Historical relics and artifacts were destroyed. Cultural and religious sites were ransacked."

Religion in the Soviet Union - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Soviet Union was the first state to have as an ideological objective the elimination of religion and its replacement with atheism. The communist regime confiscated religious property, ridiculed religion, harassed believers, and propagated atheism in schools. The confiscation of religious assets was often based on accusations of illegal accumulation of wealth.

State atheism in the Soviet Union was known as gosateizm, and was based on the ideology of Marxism–Leninism. As the founder of the Soviet state, V. I. Lenin, put it:

Religion is the opium of the people: this saying of Marx is the cornerstone of the entire ideology of Marxism about religion. All modern religions and churches, all and of every kind of religious organizations are always considered by Marxism as the organs of bourgeois reaction, used for the protection of the exploitation and the stupefaction of the working class.

Marxism–Leninism has consistently advocated the control, suppression, and elimination of religion. Within about a year of the revolution, the state expropriated all church property, including the churches themselves, and in the period from 1922 to 1926, 28 Russian Orthodox bishops and more than 1,200 priests were killed. Many more were persecuted."

What has that to do with Dawkins?

 

[Koldo]

54 people voted.

All I see is tumbleweed though...
Where did everyone go?

 

[PolyHedral]

How about the deaths of millions in a "Cultural Revolution" or to abolish religion in a communist state?

Cultural Revolution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Millions of people were persecuted in the violent factional struggles that ensued across the country, and suffered a wide range of abuses including torture, rape, imprisonment, sustained harassment, and seizure of property. A large segment of the population was forcibly displaced, most notably the transfer of urban youth to rural regions during the Down to the Countryside Movement. Historical relics and artifacts were destroyed. Cultural and religious sites were ransacked."

Religion in the Soviet Union - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Soviet Union was the first state to have as an ideological objective the elimination of religion and its replacement with atheism. The communist regime confiscated religious property, ridiculed religion, harassed believers, and propagated atheism in schools. The confiscation of religious assets was often based on accusations of illegal accumulation of wealth.

State atheism in the Soviet Union was known as gosateizm, and was based on the ideology of Marxism–Leninism. As the founder of the Soviet state, V. I. Lenin, put it:

Religion is the opium of the people: this saying of Marx is the cornerstone of the entire ideology of Marxism about religion. All modern religions and churches, all and of every kind of religious organizations are always considered by Marxism as the organs of bourgeois reaction, used for the protection of the exploitation and the stupefaction of the working class.

Marxism–Leninism has consistently advocated the control, suppression, and elimination of religion. Within about a year of the revolution, the state expropriated all church property, including the churches themselves, and in the period from 1922 to 1926, 28 Russian Orthodox bishops and more than 1,200 priests were killed. Many more were persecuted."

Dawkins is not communist.

 

[Reptillian]

Dawkins is not communist.

But I thought all atheists were communists.

 

[9Westy9]

54 people voted.

All I see is tumbleweed though...
Where did everyone go?

We're hiding in the shadows. Waiting to pounce

 

[Viker]

I'm torn between weak and defacto atheist. I didn't answer the poll because of it but I think I lean more towards defacto. If this is about a personal deity as defined then definitely defacto. Something like a concierge of gods, a dark higher being or creator or something else I'm stuck on 'I just don't know'.